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Dart board scoring

What is dart scoring?

Dart board scoring is never consistent between players, venues or even games! Some people will count treble twenty as 60 points, others 50 and some just 10, though the most common strategy is to treat the number as 30 points. This variation in scorekeeping can cause problems later on if one player turns out to be much better than the other–the difference of ten points could turn out to be crucial for determining who wins. For this reason it’s best to ask what rule your opponent prefers before beginning a game. No matter what format you choose for your next darts match, always remember that it’s only worth what you make it worth!

A dartboard is a thin, circular surface that is divided into twenty numbered sections used in the game of darts. At the end of each one of these sections there is an inner circle, with a small red or green number in it. This number signifies that when you hit this section on the dartboard, then whichever player scores that number gets to score however many points they were at in this round (if they were at 2 and hit 20:2:20:2:20:2–then their score would be 16). These numbers range from one to twenty and can also vary depending on what type of dartboard you have; if you play in bars or pubs frequently, then you would most likely see area scoring instead of single area scoring, which is different. This article will teach you how to properly score darts using the single area system.

Dart board scoring procedure

Scoring on a dartboard is done according to what is called bulls-eyes and trebles–bulls-eyes are any section with a red number in it (they range from 1 to 20); these are referred to as double bulls-eyes or triple bulls-eyes if they have two or three red numbers inside of them.

Treble sections are larger black areas that have either an outer ring of white numbers surrounding them or an inner ring of single bulls-eyes–these range from 1 to 20 and can be referred to as double trebles or triple trebles. These are counted as follows: any bulls-eye is scored as follows: the highest number on the board–in this case, twenty–plus one point for each player. In other words, if there is a single bull and two players playing that round then whoever gets closest to the bull by hitting it first will get three points (20+1+1+1=23 points). Double and triple bulls-eyes can be scored with either double or triple points, depending on what type of game you decide to play during that round; in most cases they are usually played with double points. Treble sections work similarly to bulls-eyes but instead of adding up all of your points from hitting it once, you add your total score accumulated so far in the round to whatever you score from hitting a treble. In other words, if there was a treble twenty (green number) and someone hit it during their turn, they would get two points for each player (the highest number on the board added to their current score).

How many scoring zones on a dart board?

There are a total of twenty-one scoring zones on the dartboard. The three outer sections are single, double and triple scores for each number.

The middle section consists of one bulls-eye, two bulls-eyes, two trebles, one treble and double bullseyes – giving a score of five times the value above it.

The inner section has three bullseyes, three trebles and a double-treble for a total of fifteen times the value above it.

The dartboard is divided into twenty numbered sections representing scoring points for that round. The outer circular band lists the points for hitting each of these sections, with the narrow inner band showing the corresponding score in multiples of ten (except where noted). A dart landing on any of these scores earns that player those points. If both players hit a section, they both get the points – unless one hits a double or treble section which also awards them an additional score multiplier!

Where is the most points on a dart board?

The most points in a game of darts can be scored by hitting treble twenty, which is worth 60 points.

Bulls-eye (1) = 1 point per player (x2 if hitting a double bullseye).

Treble 20 (green) = 60 points.

Single Bullseye (1 to 20) – scores the total number of points that have been accumulated by both players in the current round.

Double and Triple Bullseyes (1 to 20) – 2 or 3 times the value of what is above it, but only for one dart thrown. This can only be scored if an outer bullseye is hit on either the first or last dart thrown in a turn. If both bulls are hit with two darts, the higher value is scored. If no outer bulls are hit, this score isn’t counted and the turn passes to the other player.

Double and Triple Trebles (1 to 20) – 2 or 3 times the value of what is above it, but only for one dart thrown. This can only be scored if an outer treble is hit on either the first or last dart thrown in a turn. If both trebles are hit with two darts then the higher value is scored. If no outer trebles are hit, this score isn’t counted and the turn passes to the other player.

Bulls-eye (50 to 60) = 50 points plus whatever has been accumulated by both players prior to hitting that bullseye for that round. Triple bulls-eyes are worth 100 points each instead of 150, so must be tripled (i.e., 600 points).

Bulls-eye (25 to 30) = 25 points plus whatever has been accumulated by both players prior to hitting that bullseye for that round. Triple bulls-eyes are worth 50 points each instead of 150, so must be tripled (i.e., 300 points).

Double and Triple Bulls-eyes (25 to 30) – as per double and triple bulls above, but scores 100/200/300 points where applicable instead of the higher value.

Single Bullseye (1 to 20) – scores the total number of points that have been accumulated by both players in the current round +10 if a treble is hit with the first dart +20 if a treble is hit with the last dart. If both players hit a bulls-eye, or all three darts are in trebles, no extra points are gained. Double and triple bulls only count for one dart thrown per turn.

Single Bullseye (1 to 10) – scores the total number of points that have been accumulated by both players in the current round +5 if a treble is hit with the first dart +10 if a treble is hit with the last dart. If both players hit a bulls-eye, or all three darts are in trebles, no extra points are gained. Double and triple bulls only count for one dart thrown per turn.

Single Bullseye (1 to 20) – as per single bullseyes above, but scores 50/100/150 points where applicable instead of the higher value.

Single Bullseye (1 to 10) – as per single bulls-eyes above, but scores 25/50/75 points where applicable instead of the higher value.

Double and Triple 20s (40 to 60) – 2 or 3 times the value of what is above it, but only for one dart thrown. This can only be scored if an outer bullseye is hit on either the first or last dart thrown in a turn. If both trebles are hit with two darts then the higher value is scored. If no outer bulls are hit, this score isn’t counted and the turn passes to the other player.

Triple and Bull 20s (40 to 60) – as above but score 80/160/240 points where applicable instead of the higher value.

Bulls-eye (1) = 1 point per player (x2 if hitting a double bullseye).

Treble 19 or 18 (red or green) = 57 points.

Double and Triple 19s or 18s (red or green) – as above but scores 114/228/342 points where applicable instead of the higher value. 23’s and 24’s only count for one dart each thrown per turn, not both.

Single Bullseye (1 to 12) = 25 points plus whatever has been accumulated by either player prior to hitting that bulls-eye for that round.

Champion League (1 to 20) = Only available when playing Champion league darts. If using the standard matchplay scoring, this is equivalent of Bullseye (50 to 60). Double and triple 19s or 18s aren’t counted twice on champion league darts.

Double, Triple and Bulls-eye Champion League (1 to 20) – as per double, triple and bulls-eyes above but scores 100/200/300 points where applicable instead of the higher value.

Bulls-eye on first dart thrown = 100 points plus whatever has been accumulated by either player prior to hitting that bulls-eye for that round.

Bull’s-eye on the last dart thrown = 200 plus whatever has been accumulated by either player prior to hitting that bulls-eye for that round.

Double Bull’s-eye on first/last dart thrown = 400 plus whatever has been accumulated by either player prior to hitting that bulls-eye for that round. Only counts if both bullseyes are hit with the same darts. If double bull’s-eyes are hit consecutively, then they do not count twice.

Treble Bull’s-eye on first/last dart thrown = 600 plus whatever has been accumulated by either player prior to hitting that bulls-eye for that round. Only counts if all three bullseyes are hit with the same darts. If treble bull’s-eyes are hit consecutively, then they do not count twice (ie, triple bull’s-eye).

If a player wins a round with a double bullseye, then no further points are counted for that round except the double value itself – e.g., if Player A hits a double 20 and Player B follows up by hitting another double 20, but Player A has already won the current round due to his own double 20, then Player A would win by default rather than receive credit for an additional 40 points because he had already ‘scored’ the higher value of 30 from the previous turn.

How do Beginners score darts?

Beginners are often confused on how to properly score darts. For instance, there is a case where two beginners happen to be playing each other and one hits the number four, then the other hits it immediately after. Who gets to score? Many players would argue that both players get to score since they hit consecutively and others would say that only the first player gets to score because they did not hit another section before hitting the number four again. These arguments will never go away and vary depending on who you play with or what type of dartboard you have–many pub boards use area scoring which means any numbers within a certain range get added together so if the first player hit seven singles in one turn, then their total would be 7+7+7+7+7, then the second player would hit four doubles and three singles in one turn their total would be 6+4+2+3=15.

If you are just starting out playing pub-style darts, it is best to ask an experienced player before you play your first game what they think the proper dart scoring procedure should be. If any questions or concerns arise about how to calculate dart scores, always defer to whatever your partner says since both players must agree on how they will score during a game for it to be officially counted. Otherwise, anything goes so long as you both can agree on who gets points when.

Where should beginners aim for when throwing darts?

Beginners often want to know where they should aim when throwing darts. For area scoring dartboards, the best place to aim is usually in the middle of a round or below on a number that hasn’t been hit yet–this ensures you get maximum points from your throws and prevents players from getting into arguments over who gets what score when; however, what you should aim for can vary depending on which dartboard you have and how many players are in your game: in most pub games two player games work best with top-to-bottom (numbers 1 – 20) and left-to-right (20 – 3) aiming; three player games work best with top-to-bottom aiming but will require you to draw lines on the board to indicate where everyone should aim since trying to aim left-to-right on a dart board with more than three players gets confusing and will almost always cause arguments over who gets the points.

Where does the term ‘checking out’ in darts come from?

When you check out in a game of dart, it means that you have hit all seven sections of your preferred number during your turn, giving you 25 points per player–hence why checking out is often referred to as “leaving them nothing” or saying they are “dead”. This term has been used in generations of darts going back to when scoring was actually done by hand with pen and paper for each round. If a player reached exactly 7 x their chosen number then that was considered a perfect end and something to be proud of since it was difficult to do, especially during pub play where players rarely played until the end–it was much more common for players to be at or beyond 100 points and call their game there. Scoring this perfect end was called checking out; because at that point, you had succeeded in leaving your opponent nothing.

When two players hit the same number on a dart board consecutively, who gets to score?

Answer: Many players would argue that both players get to score since they hit consecutively and others would say that only the first player gets to score because they did not hit another section before hitting the number four again. These arguments will never go away and vary depending on who you play with or what type of dartboard you have–many pub boards use area scoring which means any numbers within a certain range get added together so if the first player hit seven singles in one turn, then their total would be 7+7+7+7+7, then the second player would hit four doubles and three singles in one turn their total would be 6+4+2+3=15. This means that it is possible for both players to score more after hitting the same number consecutively–so whoever hits the third section of that number gets to score all of those points, but they also cannot throw another dart into that number until it resets at zero for them again.

How are darts games typically scored?

Dart games are typically scored by using either a 2 X’s or 3 X’s type scoring system where players must first choose their preferred numbers (if two play, 20s through 15s are preferable) and then reset the numbers on each new round. This is done by throwing one dart at the number you would like to reset and hitting it out completely (this also applies when two players score the same number on consecutive turns) until it becomes zero again–the reason for this method of scoring is because having a reset requirement means that neither player can ever reach 0 points, which prevents ties in most standard games; however, some pub boards use area scoring which requires fewer throws but results in ties more often during pub play.

What is the highest score in darts?

If you are playing with single bulls-eye scoring, then the highest score possible is twenty but if you are playing with double or triple bulls-eyes then the maximum amount of points that can be assigned to one area would be thirty-two because any number multiplied by two will result in a higher number. For treble sections, it depends on what type of dartboard your using–single section trebles have a maximum scoring capacity of forty while treble fours have a maximum point value of fifty due to having two small inner bulls-eyes worth twenty points each and an outer ring worth ten points.

Dart board scoring conclusion

That is all there is to scoring darts; once you know how the game works, you should be able to catch on very quickly after playing for just an hour or so. When first learning how to play darts, it may take some time before anyone becomes an expert–just remember that practice makes perfect. If you are looking for places to play darts at then look into joining dart leagues; bars and pubs will have dart boards but are not nearly as fun since you cannot choose which board to play on or how many people are playing with you–joining a dart league is very popular in North America because they usually have big cash prizes for winners and it’s a great way to make new friends.

More articles that may interest you:

Victor Cher

Victor Cher

I started darting about 4 years ago when my friend had some darts in the office. He used to throw them when he got bored and I joined.

Since then, I’ve been progressing and learning more about this wonderful game. I participated in a bunch of tournaments, and I also won first places and nice prizes.

The site was built with the goal of helping beginners as well as experienced players find information and to answer any and all questions they might have.

If you have any questions or suggestions, Please contact me: 

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