How to play 501 darts

501 is the game you see on TV and in most leagues: everyone starts on 501 and races to exactly zero, finishing on a double. 301 and 701 work the same way from a different start. Together they're called x01 games.

Starting scores

Game	Start	Typical use
301	301	Quick games, beginners, and many American leagues (often played double in, see below)
501	501	The standard: pro events, most pub leagues
701	701	Longer legs, often for pairs and team matches

Decide who throws first with a bull-up: each player throws one dart at the bull and the closest goes first. In a match, the player who starts alternates from leg to leg.

Turns and scoring

• A turn, called a visit, is three darts. Add them up and take the total off your score.
• The outer ring is a double (twice the number), the inner narrow ring a treble (three times). The outer bull is 25, the inner bull 50.
• A dart only counts if it's in the board when you've thrown all three. Bounce-outs and misses score nothing.
• The most you can score in one visit is 180: three treble 20s.

Double out

You must reach exactly zero, and the last dart must be a double. The inner bull counts as a double, so 50 is a one-dart finish. That's why the biggest finish is 170 (T20, T20, Bull), and why some scores under 170, the bogey numbers, can't be finished in one visit at all. The checkout chart lists every finish.

House variations:

• Straight out: any dart that reaches exactly zero wins. Common for casual games and beginners.
• Double in: your score doesn't start counting down until you hit a double. Popular in American 301 leagues.
• Master out: you can finish on a double or a treble.

Busts

With double out, you bust if a dart:

• takes you below zero,
• leaves you on exactly 1 (no double is worth 1, so it can never be finished), or
• takes you to zero without being a double.

When you bust, the visit ends immediately and your score goes back to what it was at the start of that visit. Any darts you'd already scored that visit don't count.

Playing straight out, only going below zero is a bust.

Legs and sets

• A leg is one game, from 501 down to zero.
• Most matches are first to a number of legs, such as first to 3 (best of 5).
• Longer formats group legs into sets: usually first to 3 legs wins a set, and the match is first to a number of sets.
• The player who throws first changes every leg, so nobody keeps the advantage of starting.

Averages

3-dart average

The standard measure of how well someone scores: total points scored, divided by darts thrown, times 3. If you check out 501 in 18 darts, that's 501 / 18 × 3 = 83.5. A bust visit counts its darts but scores nothing, so it pulls your average down.

First 9 average

The same calculation for just the first nine darts (three visits) of each leg. Early in a leg everyone is throwing at treble 20, so the first 9 average shows pure scoring power, before checkouts and set-up shots get involved. It's usually higher than the full-leg average.

Checkout percentage

Doubles hit divided by darts thrown at a finishing double. Three darts at D16 with the last one landing is 1 of 3, or 33%.

Rough benchmarks

Casual players often average 20 to 40, regular league players 45 to 70, and top professionals 95 and up. Use your own average as the thing to beat.

Questions

Can you finish 501 on the bullseye?

Yes. The inner bull is worth 50 and counts as a double, so it finishes 50 under double-out rules. The outer bull (25) is a single and can't finish a leg.

What happens when you bust in darts?

Your visit ends straight away and your score goes back to what it was before that visit. You bust by going below zero, by leaving exactly 1, or by reaching zero with a dart that isn't a double.

How do you work out a 3-dart average?

Divide the total points you scored by the number of darts you threw, then multiply by 3. 501 points in 18 darts is a 3-dart average of 83.5. Bust visits add their darts but no points.

What is the first 9 average?

Your 3-dart average over just the first nine darts of each leg, the stretch where everyone is still throwing at the treble 20. It shows your scoring power without your finishing dragging it down.