Stumbling through youtube today, I came across a video from “the Mirror” in the UK. It was Phil “The Power” Taylor’s Top 5 Tips to Darts Success. And I thought, hey, that’s pretty cool. Considering he’s probably the best dart player on the face of the planet.
Turns out a bit of it is tongue in cheek. And, even though the announcer speaks English, his accent is so thick I did a lot of rewinding to figure out what he was saying during the first 30 seconds. Phil on the other hand, speaks clearly enough for my ears. Anyway, here’s the video . . .
1. Always Have the Right Gear – which makes sense, especially for English darters where every part of the dart seems to be customisable. The flights, the weights, the barrel shapes, and on and on.
On the American side, the choices are really limited to whether you want to use Widdy’s, Darto’s, or Apex darts. Phil says that it’s all “experimental really”, so experiment with the different darts that are available, and find the one that suits you!
And “equipment” doesn’t end with the dart itself, it also extends to the clothes you wear. I know that some players simply won’t wear sleeved shirts. They cut the sleeves off completely. other won’t wear long sleeves. It doesn’t matter what you prefer, but it might be worth paying attention to for a moment to see if your choice of shirts for the evening has a little something to do with your dart game.
Phil mentions shoes as well. I suppose anything you could wear that might make you more comfortable and stable at the line is worth thinking about.
2. Play the Name Game – ok, this made me chuckle. But, english darts is not the team game that american darts are. I see this in the bar pretty often when a newcomer wants to join in the dart games and someone says, “get team, we’ll shoot” and he looks at them like “what the hell are you talking about, a team?”.
Heh, looking through our scoresheets though, it does seem like a lot of shooters have a nickname: Cookie, Biggie, Mutzy, Z, Zig, Trout, Muff, Mall, Zippy, Fatty, Pizza, and the list goes on.
3. Take a Stand – as in “how to stand at the oche” (rhymes with “hockey”).
- Put your foot sideways
- Aim your dart “a little bit like aiming a gun” (he seems to be shy saying that, which makes me chuckle as well. i suppose he’s not from hunting country
- Pull back and fire
He doesn’t say much about a “follow through”
4. How to Throw – couldn’t make out all the words, but he says he gets his thoughts directly in line with whatever he’s aiming at. Imagine there’s a plum(?) line that comes right across the floor. That’s where he stands, and keep everything level.
5. Feel the Pressure – he says it’s “not easy”.
Well – for better or worse, those are the words from the man himself!
But Wait – There’s More!!
One of the members of the darts forums we once had set up asked for some tips for throwing American Darts, and he received some of the best dart throwing advice I’ve seen online so be sure to read over RJB’s Tips for Throwing Darts!!
The above article originally appeared on a darts blog, and had an active commenting system. The following comments were posted during that time. Additional comments can be submitted via email to webmaster AT americanstyledarts.com with the words “Darts Website” in the Subject line.Comments
1. Author: murphy belfast | Date: July 27, 2008 | Time: 1:35 pm | the power will be with me tonight when i stuff james
2. Author: Rodman | Date: October 5, 2008 | Time: 2:14 am | Do not lean towards the dart board….
3 Author: Robbie | Date: December 8, 2008 | Time: 10:32 am | I have to back up Rodman’s comment about not leaning in, if you are Phil Taylor you can do what ever the hell you please but the rest of us mortals should keep stable. Leaning in knocks stability and is pointless (are you really trying to get an inch closer?!!??)
4 Author: patrick | Date: December 16, 2008 | Time: 11:10 pm | how come other players improve their game when they get drunk????
5 Author: rian o’ceallaigh | Date: January 6, 2009 | Time: 7:36 am | a “plum” is like a spirit level used to make sure everything is level….
6 Author: Stuart | Date: January 24, 2009 | Time: 6:49 pm | Another tip is to release your arm completely vertically parrallel and the trick is to not let your shoulder move AT ALL
7 Author: Stuart | Date: January 24, 2009 | Time: 6:53 pm | Another thing that I find is to try not to leave a pause between the three throws. For instance if you throw a bit below th T20 if you can Throw your next dart in flow your body brain power will easier pick up on the more power needed to move up so many MM to get the T20
8 Author: Taux | Date: February 23, 2009 | Time: 8:29 am | Drink a lot of beer to minimize the preasure
9 Author: Taux | Date: February 24, 2009 | Time: 1:07 pm | Focus the number you want to hit and take a deep breath.just relax..
10 Author: scarhead | Date: March 20, 2009 | Time: 2:44 am | be yourself and have fun!
11 Author: GingaNinja | Date: April 4, 2009 | Time: 1:26 am | A plum line is a weight hanging from a piece of string, often used for ensuring wallpaper is flush! As for the leaning in, I’ve always leaned in as do a lot of players I know, the secret is to get ur balance shift right so ur not toppling over all the time, another tip would be to learn ur outshots!
12 Author: big G,Edinburgh | Date: July 10, 2009 | Time: 10:22 am | Iagree with the power! side foot good balance line up on oche across from area you want to hit.arm straight to eye level pull back release dart.full arm extention follow through.Never take your eye off the area you want to hit.If your darts are falling low? they are probably too heavy.May the darts be with yous all ways.Oh yes allways wear the same shoes it keeps your height consistant.
13 Author: andrew, uk and usa | Date: August 20, 2009 | Time: 9:36 pm | luckily i hae brought my darts from england oer to the us, i hae quite a large slope in my sot so i weight it further to the front to help guide it where i want you want that same circular motion like in a cricket bowl when having your follow through
14 Author: bill | Date: October 19, 2009 | Time: 10:01 pm | larry law (aka :huck) was the best darts coach in the pittgburgh area during the late ’60s and early 70s…he had 3 rules of darts. they have served me well over the years:
- never piss when you are ahead
- never let your dart hand touch anything but your darts
- if you don’t miss, you won’t lose
good darting and enjoy the experience!!!! bill aka hunter
15 Author: Darts tip | Date: October 28, 2009 | Time: 5:21 pm | Just have fun, and try not to over think it. My 2 cents….
16 Author: martyn | Date: December 23, 2009 | Time: 9:21 am | to all the people who dont say lean.. i lean when i play darts and not being big headed but after only a year of playing darts im improving all the time, and leaning does not affect my game what so ever.. it realy depends on the person and there throwing style. yes you may get a sore leg for leaning on it through a long game but footballers dont not run because they will get sore legs..
17 Author: joe | Date: January 27, 2010 | Time: 1:11 pm | when practicing I try to create a hostile enviroment,ei. loud music,t.v. or letting the old lady in the room duplicating a pub atmosphere.Thanks for the tips and laughs,joe Canadian.
18 Author: jerry | Date: March 9, 2010 | Time: 2:11 pm | i’ve only been playing this game a few months now but i feel i’ve came a long way by just relaxing aim and shoot, dont over think it and as far as feeling the pressure i did feel it at first but i came to realize that the only darts i can control are my darts so i try not to pay the pressure any mind and do the best i can with my darts and i have found myself winning more and more games like that and i hope as i go on and hit my marks more consistantly i’ll be a good player or atleast thats my goal
19 Author: glen roberts | Date: March 24, 2010 | Time: 2:25 am | I just purchased a set of phase 5 darts 26gram i am very happy with them the extra wieght has tidyed me up heaps and made me more consistant i was useing a set of 18grm cheapies and the slightest difference in your grip relese or whatever sent them all over the place….Thanks phil and unicorn darts for making these darts they are excellent.
20 Author: Victor | Date: September 13, 2010 | Time: 1:36 pm | I wish I had 1/8 the skill Taylor has
21 Author: bilal | Date: October 16, 2012 | Time: 12:27 am | hi… i have a question. im living in DUBAI im playing darts very good. but i want to know the darts competations in wich countries happened and how to do if i want to share in any competation. thanks for anyone help me to have that information.
