When I first started throwing darts I felt I was learning on my own. You don’t have to:
How to throw Darts – a guide for beginners
- Get your stance right.
- How to hold a dart.
- Throw with accuracy.
Get your stance right – best foot forward
This is a guide on how to play darts for beginners to help you to throw darts properly.
The first thing to consider is the position of your feet when you throw your darts is called your stance. You need to ensure you have a stable stance so that when you throw the darts you are well balanced.
Think of throwing darts like building a house, you start with your foundations. If you don’t have a strong stable stance your house / how you throw darts won’t be as effective.
Darts are thrown from a line called the oche or throw line. Your front foot must not cross this line.
If you are right handed you throw with your right foot at the front, usually side on to the oche, if you are left handed you throw with your left foot out in front.
You will also stand with your shoulders above your hips. Keep your shoulders, hips and legs still when you throw. Try not to jerk out of position.
How to hold a dart – 3 finger grip
The most common way to hold a dart is using a 3 finger grip together with your thumb. Hold the dart lightly – there’s no need to grip the dart tight, this only adds tension to your hand, you must try and be relaxed when you release so a tight grip does not help that.
The pro’s have many ways of holding darts, many of them unique.
Phil Taylors dart grip
Phil “The Power” Taylor was unusual as he kept his fingers closed, almost like he grasped the dart with his fist, but he held his darts like he was holding a pen or pencil. He gripped part way along the barrel away from the joint between barrel and stem.
Michael van Gerwens dart grip
MVG also adopts a pen type grip for his darts but does not close his fingers as tightly as Phil Taylor did. MVG also holds the darts slightly further back in his hand than Phil did, almost past the joint of the barrel and the stem.
Proper dart grip – what’s yours?
I feel it’s safe to say there is no proper dart grip. As we described above regarding Phil Taylor and Michael Van Gerwin, the pro’s each have grips that are unique to themselves. The best grip for you is the one you feel most comfortable with. By all means experiment with 3 fingers 2 fingers, the pen type grip and eventually you will find that you are throwing your darts consistently when you find your most comfortable grip.How to throw darts with precision
When you have a comfortable loose grip of the dart, bring your hand back up towards your head – the dart should be in a line between your eyes and the board. This helps you take aim. You will move your arm forward and use your wrist, hand, your forearm and your elbow to throw the dart. Your shoulder should remain as still as possible and at the point of release continue with your throwing action so that your fingers point at the target at the end of the throw. This follow through will help you to release the darts towards your target. The science behind the throw! I’m certainly no scientist but darts being thrown towards a dartboard will be acted upon by physics :-/ Darts are classified as projectiles As they are thrown at an angle and you must find the best angle using the most appropriate velocity to get the darts to the dartboard. If you get your angles wrong you won’t hit where you intend to, in extreme circumstances this includes hitting the backboard, the wall or even the ceiling – but even I’ll admit I’ve never hit the ceiling before. The angle that the dark leaves your hand is usually less than 45 degrees. As it is a physical property, gravity will act on your dart as you throw it. I’m not sure that the next time I throw a dart I’ll be judging how gravity works on my angle of release to ensure my dart projectile hits my designated target area – life’s too short!How to throw darts better
The secret to throwing darts better is to practice. Every day if necessary. Aim at different parts of the board, challenge yourself to hit the same single 3 times in a row, or the same double. As you become more experienced you will imperceptibly become better at darts. Consistent practice allows you to understand how you are throwing and how you can improve. One thing I have found as a right hander is to place my front foot slightly to the left of the bullseye when setting up. This means my right arm is aiming in a line with the bullseye. Obviously re-align your feet depending on the line you want to aim at on the board. You will often see pro’s changing their stance if they have blocked a bed – usually a double – with an earlier dart to give them a different line of attack at their target.Bonus Tip:
Take your time after throwing your third dart at the board… Think about it, you get to the oche and settle to take aim, you are standing still for the first dart, you take aim and are standing still for the second dart but before you have fully settled and followed through with your third dart you may be heading to the board to pick your darts out. Make sure you don’t do this as the third dart won’t be consistent if you are moving forward as you throw, no matter how slight this move is. Always remember to pause after the follow through action of your third dart. Once you have finished the throw you can then move forward to the dartboard to collect your darts.How to throw darts like a pro – 7 tips
- As we have seen from analyzing the dart grips of 2 pro’s, each has a subtle difference so get comfortable with your own grip.
- The goal when you are throwing your dart is to have as little movement through your body as possible so maintain a steady stance.
- Line up where you are aiming for through your elbow.
- Pick a point through your hand that you can use as to aim with.
- Throw from under your chin.
- Keep everything in line and follow through after your release.
- Practise, practise, practise, practise…
