Dart players often complain that they have been very tensed at crucial points of a match and have therefore been unable to take what seemed to be either a big opportunity for a win, or a good chance to fight back. We all know these ugly situations of being on this double 16 in the deciding leg, three darts in your hand, where it simply must go in because you are down and out if you fail. Nerves are coming in. Your hand is shaking, your knees feel like melted butter and you praise God or Buddha for this dart to go in - but God is out to dinner at the moment and Buddha is having a meditation on his own, and so you blunder. Your opponent steps up with a smile on their face and kills their dirty 60 points remainder in two darts. What went wrong? If you had been up with two legs you would have hit that double 16 nearly blind. 'Damn nerves' you say, and you are right.

When it comes down to it, it's all a matter of thinking. If you step up with the thought on your mind that you HAVE TO HIT otherwise you will lose, the chance that you will miss; is big. It's that simple and that is hard: Don't think of winning or losing. Simply think of PLAYING. When you get to such an important point in a match quietly say to yourself: just play. Don't waste one single thought throughout the entire match on losing. Strike out this word in your mental dictionary, you won't need it in play. Learn to control your thinking. Whenever you get aware of such a 'negative' thought during a game give yourself a short mental rest and say "Stop!". Raise your shoulders, take a breath and stand up to the oche in full concentration with only one thing on your mind: Play. That's enough for most situations where you feel tensed.

But sometimes your hand won't stop shaking and you can't focus on the board. If the situation is this extreme, then here is a simple relaxation exercise that only requires a little practice. It is called "The Quiet Place".

Give yourself ten minutes as often as you can. Each day would be best, but at a minimum, once a week. Sit down and relax. Now with one hand press the thumb of the other hand. Think about a quiet place that you like. This can be whatever you like such as laying down on the beach of a tropical island or that comfortable chair in your living room. If you repeat this exercise regularly you will only need to press the thumb of your hand at these nerve-shaking moments in a match and all the tension will be gone.