From Sewa-Darts.com

INTRODUCTION



The following represents my opinion of where to start when first taking up the game of darts culled from over 25 years of playing and watching. Refining your abilities, learning the different games and competing against others will go far beyond these first steps and, of course, is the main reason we have such a large forum here! Don't be afraid to ask questions, read the posts of others (especially the wonderful group of top touring Pros that we are starting to get here) and participate in the discussions.



When you're first starting to play darts there are several things that can make the experience fun and rewarding instead of painful and frustrating. Interestingly enough, these don't necessarily include being able to hit what you're aiming for yet! After you master a few basic things you will find that darts becomes primarily a mental game of memory, focus and concentration.



So where do you start? There are three areas that should be addressed first. These areas are your stance, your throw (including your grip) and the dart you choose to use. Before continuing to examine each area in more detail, it needs to be pointed out that these are only guidelines.



Darts is a sport with lots of differing styles and mechanics. Copying someone else's stance, throwing style or darts may not be what's best for YOU. So, don't shortcut the initial process and try to jump directly to the mental aspects of the game or you will find the path much harder than it needs to be. It will take a little time before your arm is completely ready to throw precise darts (this is known as developing "muscle memory" where some of the smaller muscles need to strengthen, as well as supporting ligaments, etc.).





THE STANCE



Find a comfortable, balanced stance where you can throw your darts with the least amount of body movement (the fewer things that move the easier it is to be accurate).



You'll want to have your throwing arm closer to the board than your other arm. You're not pitching a baseball, you're trying to develop a subtle, repeatable arm action (as I touched on above, after a certain amount of practice, darts becomes at least 90% mental).



It's very important that your stance helps you throw and not cause any pain during a full league night or long tournament. Your front foot will normally bear most of your weight and will be closest to the oche (the line you throw from). The angle of your front foot can range from parallel to the oche to perpendicular (i.e., pointing at the board) to any point in-between.



Again, this will be a personal thing, but you should try to find a comfortable position that causes the least amount of body movement during your throw (you'll want to avoid a stance that causes you to jump or lift your rear leg as well as any stance that makes you feel off-balance).



It is perfectly normal to have a bit of lean in your body and some techniques will incorporate a slight twist of your body to help lock in the body parts that you don't want moving. These can be attempted after you have developed a basic stance.





THE THROW



As strange as it may sound on the surface, it's not all that important what you hit with your darts when you're first learning. Of far more significance is how the dart looks going into the board and how tight your groupings are.



You should be able to walk up to the line and simply throw your darts at the board (without specifically aiming at a target) and the darts should all look similar. What I mean by similar is that they should all enter the board at the same vertical angle without leaning to the left or right.



The first things you are striving to accomplish in the beginning is to develop a smooth, consistent throw that doesn't cause you any pain. If the darts are entering the board at weird angles and/or do not look the same from one dart to another then your throw is not correct and NOW is the time to work on it (bad habits are terribly hard to break). Your throw should start from a relaxed position, have a smooth backstroke and a nice follow-thru.



Also, notice how your fingers hold the dart during the throw. Do you spin the dart as you throw? Are there any hard or sharp motions in your throw? (These will not only cause inaccurate results, but can eventually cause you pain.) With regards to your grip, you want to develop a grip that is comfortable and easy to repeat throw after throw. Dart surfaces (explained later) can help here as well as external substances like wax, chalk or rosin.



Muscle memory is what you are trying to achieve when you first start to play. Basically, you want to train your arm to have a consistent, repeatable stroke. Will it require a lot of practice and dedication? You bet! But an interesting thing is that once you have developed this correctly, you'll require far less practice later in your playing life (where it mostly becomes all about mental focus and handling nerves).



Needless to say, if you don't practice good technique you will be teaching your muscles bad habits which will take FAR more effort to correct later. That said, you'll want to avoid using any part of the dart or your hand to aim with. While many are used to sighting their target (down the barrel of a gun for example), the difference here is that as you start to move your arm back, what you're using to focus on is moving.



Once your throw looks good (meaning the dart enters the board straight in without leaning to either side), you should work on learning how to group your darts. This is actually pretty easy to practice since all you need to do is throw a dart at the board and then throw the next two darts with the same mechanics.



The goal being that the second and third darts should be close to the first dart. In other words, throw a dart at a target (say the triple 20), but even if the dart misses, go ahead and throw the remaining two darts exactly as you did the first and see if they end up near the first dart. The point here is to reduce the frustration that comes from missing a target which may due to an inconsistent throw, then trying to correct and missing again.



Once your darts are grouping nicely you will know that you have a consistent throw. At this time you are ready to really begin really throwing at targets (it's at about this time that the game will begin to become more mental and less physical).





THE DARTS



This is the third point because an improper stance or throw can make even the best dart feel awkward.



There are many types of darts with the main differences being length, shape, weight, grip and location of the center of balance (either front-loaded or center-loaded darts). Then, you add shafts (where the initial difference is primarily length) and flights (which, in the beginning, you should consider shape and size). Beyond this lies a world of differing looks, colors, materials and accessories, most of which are purely for personal preference and don't change how you throw your darts.



First of all, it's important to know what each part of the dart is called. The main section is called the barrel and this piece will commonly have a hole in the front for a tip to screw into (or already have a tip attached) and another hole in back where the shaft goes. The shaft (or stem) is the part that holds the flight onto the back of the dart. The flight (which used to be called the "feathers") are used to stabilize the dart in flight and will commonly have four "wings" unlike an archery arrow which usually has three.



There are some practical considerations to take into account as well. If you throw with heavy darts (especially non-tungsten darts that use a lighter metal), your darts will be very large. This will make it difficult to get all three darts to hit the same target since they take up a lot of space.



Also, although it may not seem like much, if you're throwing a dart that weighs more than 28.3 grams, you are throwing more than three ounces every turn, which becomes over a pound about every five turns. Play a long tournament and you will find it getting more and more difficult to maintain a consistent throw as your arm tires out.



Then there is getting a dart set-up that feels easy to throw well. Most people fall into either the front-load or center-load camps and really can't throw the other type. You've got enough to think about during a match, the last thing you need to do is have to fight with the darts to get them to do anything.



Another consideration is length. If the dart is too long, you might hit yourself in the face on the backstroke of your throw, while a dart that is too short might not fit comfortably in your hand. Of course, if you desire to play in tournaments someday, you will need to abide with the equipment rules of the governing body. For example, the American Darts Organization (ADO), states that: