Guides · Throwing technique · 9 min read
How to throw darts: stance, aim, release and follow-through
Learning how to throw darts comes down to a still body and a forearm that swings from the elbow like a hinge. Release while your hand is still speeding up, follow through, and repeat that same movement for every dart.
In short
- Front foot at the oche, most of your weight on it.
- Upper arm still, the forearm swings from the elbow.
- Let go while speeding up, then follow through.
- One routine for every dart beats any particular style.
Stance
What is the best darts stance?
Put the foot on your throwing side forward, toes at the oche, and let it carry most of your weight. There is no single best darts stance: how far you turn sideways is personal, and all three below are common among good players.
- Front-onFeels natural and easy to balance, but the shoulder gets in the way and the body tends to twist.
- AngledFront foot turned 30 to 60 degrees. Stable, with room for the arm, and the most common choice.
- Side-onShoulder, elbow and hand line up with the target. Harder to balance, and you look over your shoulder.
- Weight: mostly on the front foot. An even split works too, as long as you don’t rock.
- Lean: a little from the hips, only as far as you stay still, and the same every dart.
- Legs: straight but relaxed, knees unlocked.
- Spot: the place where arm, eye and treble 20 line up without twisting. Stand there every visit.
What the rules allow: under WDF and DRA rules your feet stay behind the oche, 2.37 m from the board face, but your upper body may lean over it. The full set of measurements is in dartboard dimensions.
Grip
How to hold a dart
Hold the barrel with your thumb and two to four fingers, firmly enough to control it and loosely enough that it leaves without a tug. The darts grip guide compares the common grips finger by finger.
- Light pressureWhite fingertips mean you are squeezing, and the release turns jerky.
- Tip level or slightly upA point that aims down at release tends to send the dart low.
- Same spot every timeFind the balance point of the barrel by feel and pick the dart up the same way.
- Fewer or more fingersFewer make a clean release easier. More give control, but more to catch on the way out.
Aiming
How to aim darts with your dominant eye
Bring the dart onto the line between your dominant eye and the target, fix your gaze on one small spot and keep looking at it until the dart lands.
- Find your dominant eyeHold your thumb over a distant point with both eyes open, then close one. If the thumb stays put, the open eye leads. More in dominant eye in darts.
- Line up the dartBelow the eye, at the cheek or at the chin: any place works if dart, eye and target stay on one line.
- Pick one spotLook at a point, not the whole treble. When a dart blocks it, see T20 or T19.
- Keep your eyes thereFollowing the dart pulls the head, and the arm follows.
The throwing motion
How to throw darts step by step
The throw is a forearm swing around a still elbow. You draw the dart back towards your face, then bring it forward in one smooth movement that keeps gaining speed until the dart has gone.
- AimStance and grip set, dart at eye height on your line of aim. Settle on your spot.
- Take backBend at the elbow and draw the dart towards your face, calmly and to the same point each time.
- AccelerateSwing the forearm forward with steadily rising speed, no jerk and no push from the shoulder.
- ReleaseLet go while the hand is still speeding up, shortly before the arm is straight.
- Follow throughKeep the arm moving until it is fully extended towards the target.
Upper arm still, elbow free to rise. One moving joint is easier to repeat than two. As the arm straightens at the very end, let the elbow lift naturally, because holding it down tends to pull the dart low.
The wrist is a matter of style: some players keep it firm, others let it cock back and uncoil. Both work if it does the same thing on every dart. If your elbow, shoulder or back aches after practice, pain in darts covers the usual causes.
Release and follow-through
When to release the dart and how to follow through
Release while your hand is still accelerating, and let the arm carry on along the line of the throw until it points at the target. A good darts follow through cannot steer a dart that has gone, but it proves you were still speeding up at release, which keeps the release point repeatable.
What a clean finish looks like
- Fingers open together. One that drags turns the dart sideways and makes it wobble.
- Arm straight, reaching towards the target, fingers pointing where you aimed.
- Elbow up a little, without snapping the arm into a hard lock.
- Hold the finish until the dart is in the board.
Don’t time the release. With a smooth acceleration your fingers open at the same point on their own. As a rule of thumb, letting go early sends the dart high and late sends it low.
Four follow-through faults
- Snatching: low, wobbly dartsThe arm stops dead or jerks back. Slow the take-back and let the arm keep moving. If it locks at the release whatever you do, read about dartitis.
- Dropping: low dartsThe hand falls to the floor after release. Finish reaching at the target and hold it.
- Pulling across: sideways missesThe arm ends across the body, so a right-hander misses left. Check your stance angle and elbow.
- Flicking: high and low, no patternThe wrist does the work while the arm stops short. Let the forearm drive.
Three drills for a better finish
- Freeze the finishHold every follow-through for a slow count of two and check where your fingers point. One whole session at the bull.
- Throw from a metreStand close, throw at the bull and think only about extending the arm. Step back to the oche after five minutes.
- Shadow throwsNo dart, slow and complete throws in front of a mirror. The hand should finish on your line of aim.
Film it: a clip from the side at shoulder height shows whether the arm ends straight. Your misses tell you too: a low cluster often means snatching or dropping, a sideways drift means pulling across.
Rhythm
How to throw with a consistent rhythm
A steady rhythm comes from a fixed routine: the same steps before every dart, at the same pace. It also holds your throw together when a match gets tight, as the guide to the mental game explains.
- Feeton your spot
- Breatheout, once
- Gripsettle the dart
- Aimone small spot
- Throwno waiting
- Once you are set, throw. Long aiming builds tension. If something feels wrong, lower the arm and start again.
- Stay planted for all three darts. Only your aim moves between them.
- Breathe the same way. Out just before the throw or a short hold: pick one and keep it.
Avoid these
Common beginner mistakes when throwing darts
Most beginner problems come from something moving that should stay still, or from tension. Each one leaves a typical pattern on the board.
Do
- Hold it lightly, just firm enough not to drop it
- Let the forearm work while the upper arm stays still
- Plant your feet and keep the body still
- Keep the elbow under the line of the throw
- Follow through until the arm is straight
- Change one thing and give it a few sessions
Don’t
- Squeeze the barrel: jerky release, tired forearm
- Throw from the shoulder: darts spread up and down
- Lean in or rock: every dart starts somewhere else
- Let the elbow drift: darts spread left and right
- Stop the arm at release: darts drop low
- Change everything weekly: no steady progress
New to the game as a whole? Darts for beginners covers the equipment, setting up the board and the first games to play.
Practice
How to practise your darts throwing technique
Work on one part of the throw at a time, at an easy target, so your attention goes to the movement instead of the score. Judge the result by how tightly your darts group, not by one lucky visit.
A practice ladder
- One focus per sessionA still upper arm or a relaxed grip, for example. Let everything else run on its own.
- Throw at a lineThe 20, the bull and the 3 sit on one vertical line. Ignore the score: only darts left or right of it are misses.
- Group at the bullThree darts at the bull, again and again, watching how close they land. Bull Shooting scores it for you.
- Measure weeklySame drill, same settings, then compare. The darts practice routine has a full 30-minute session.
Let the board keep count: patterns show up over hundreds of darts. The heatmap in Sridu’s statistics makes a low cluster under the treble 20 or a drift towards the 5 easy to spot.
Sources: WDF Playing and Tournament Rules, section 6, DRA Rule Book, section 6.
FAQ
Questions about throwing darts
Which foot goes forward when you throw darts?
The foot on the same side as your throwing arm: right foot for right-handers, left foot for left-handers. It goes to the oche and carries most of your weight.
Can you lean over the oche?
Yes. Your feet must stay behind the front edge of the oche, but your upper body may lean over it. If you have to fight to stay still, you are leaning too far.
Should my elbow move when I throw?
It should not move sideways or drop. During the take-back and the swing it stays where it is. As the arm straightens at the end, it usually rises a little, and most coaches let that happen.
Should I throw darts hard or soft?
Either works. Some players throw a fast, flat dart, others a slower one with a higher arc. Choose the pace you can repeat with a smooth acceleration.
Should I copy a professional player’s throw?
Copy the principles, such as a still body and a full follow-through. The details of a professional’s throw grew out of their own body and years of practice, so build yours around what feels natural.
How long does it take to learn a good throw?
There is no fixed time. Short, regular sessions build a throw faster than occasional long ones. A change often feels worse before it feels better, so give it a few sessions.
Put your throw to the test
You know how to throw darts, so see how your darts group. Open Sridu in your browser, warm up with Bull Shooting and watch the heatmap fill up dart by dart, with no account and nothing to install.