Cricket (darts) cheat sheet
Darts · Cricket
American Cricket, abbreviated. There is no single governing rulebook — your league or machine wins any conflict.
A single is one mark, a double two, a triple three. Three marks on a number closes it for you.
Once you've closed a number, extra hits score its face value — but only until your opponent closes it too, after which it's dead.
Only the segments 20, 19, 18, 17, 16, 15 and the bull count. Everything else on the board is ignored.
Things people get wrong:
- You keep scoring a number until your opponent also closes it — then it goes dead for both.
- A triple closes a number in one dart (3 marks); a double is 2.
- Outer bull = 25 and 1 mark; inner bull = 50 and 2 marks.
- Closing everything first does not win if you’re behind on points — you play on.
- A dart that bounces out or drops before you pull it scores nothing.
- A triple 14 is still nothing — only 20–15 and the bull register.
Targets
The board
Only 20–15 and the bull are live. A single is 1 mark, the middle (triple) ring 3, the outer (double) ring 2.
Scoring
Marks & the scoreboard
Slash, X, circled X — one, two, three marks. Close a number and it starts scoring for you until your opponent closes it and kills it.
Setup
Board & throw line
Bull centre 5′8″ off the floor; throw line 7′9¼″ back for steel-tip, 8′0″ for soft-tip, measured from the board face.
01
The game
- Targets: 20, 19, 18, 17, 16, 15 and the bull — nothing else counts.
- Aim: be first to close all seven and not be behind on points.
- Turn: three darts each, taking turns. Leave the darts in until the score is agreed and written.
- Players: one-on-one or two-a-side teams.
02
Marks — opening & closing
- Mark values: single = 1, double = 2, triple = 3. It takes 3 marks to close a number, so one triple does it outright.
- The bull: outer bull = 1 mark, inner (double) bull = 2 marks toward closing it.
- Overflow: marks past the third don’t bank — a double when you’re on 2 closes the number and the extra mark is lost (unless it can score, see 03).
03
Points
- When they count: only on a number you have closed and your opponent hasn’t.
- How much: face value — triple 20 = 60, double 18 = 36, single 15 = 15. Bull scores 25 (outer) or 50 (inner).
- Dead numbers: once both sides have closed a number, nobody can score it again.
04
Winning & variants
- To win: close all seven targets and have points equal to or greater than your opponent, at the same moment.
- Closed but behind: keep throwing — score on your still-open numbers until you catch up, or your opponent closes out and passes you.
- No-score Cricket: some bars play marks-only — first to close everything wins. Agree before you throw.
- Cut-throat (3+): points are bad — a hit on a number others haven’t closed adds to their score; lowest total wins.
05
Throwing & etiquette
- Who’s first: each player throws one dart at the bull — closest goes first (“cork” or “diddle”).
- Foot line: don’t step on or over the oche until every dart has landed.
- Bounce-outs: a dart that doesn’t stay in the board scores nothing and isn’t re-thrown.
- Call it: read your own score; if a dart’s ring is unclear, agree it before pulling the darts.
- Electronic boards: auto-scoring can misread — glance at the marks before hitting “player change”.
- Distraction: stand back and quiet while your opponent is at the line.