American Darts
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
American Darts is similar to English darts in that players stand behind a throw line and toss darts into a dart board. Both the equipment used and the games played are different from American Darts though.
American Darts originated in Philadelphia, and is played mainly in Pennsylvania and areas of the surrounding states.
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[edit] Equipment
[edit] Dart Boards
The board is made of basswood, using the end grain. Embedded in the board are wires that separate the board into scoring sections. High quailty board have rotatable centers, that can be turned so the board will wear more evenly.
[edit] Height and Distance
The board should be hung so that the center of the cork is 5' 8" from the floor. The distance between the dartboard and the throwing line is of some debate.
Widdy and Dart Shark, both major board manufacturers, both set the line distance at 7' 3" from the back of the dart board. This would result in a distance of 106.4" from the center of the cork to the throw line.
The ABDA (American Baseball Darts Association) sets the distance at 7' 3" from the front of the board. This is 107.4" from the center of the cork to the throw line.
[edit] Darts
The darts are made of wooden barrels with turkey feather flights glued in place. They have a steel tip, and are 5 3/4 inches long.
[edit] Baseball
Although many different games can be played on an American dart board, the standard game is Baseball. Players take turns shooting three darts at each inning. They begin with inning number One and continue in order until they have shot nine innings.
If the game is tied at the end of nine innings, extra innings are shot to determine the winner, starting with inning Ten.
[edit] Scoring
Each inning on the dartboard consists of a pie shaped area that extends from the cork outward through both a red and an uncolored outer ring. Darts landing in the thin uncolored outer ring are worth 3 points. The red ring is worth 2 points, and the inside area is worth 1 point. Darts outside this area do not score. The blue ring is not a scoring area.
Darts that do not remain in the board at the end of the shooter's turn do not earn points. Darts that accidentally stick in the barrel of another dart do not earn any points.
The wires separating the scoring sections on the board occasionally overlap. Any dart pieircing the wires and splitting them is credited in the shooter's favor. If the wires separate the two and three point zones, the player is awarded three points. If the wires separate the three point zone and the blue ring, the player is credited with three points.
[edit] Amateur Competition
- The American Baseball Darts Association presides over the largest American Dart tournaments in the world. This includes the annual Pennsylvania State Dart Tournament, the largest American Dart event. (http://www.vipid.com/abda/)
[edit] External Links
- American Style Darts - scoresheets, tournament brackets, games and rules
- George Silberzahn Interview
