Cricket darts
The most tactical game in darts, and the one most played in America. Nothing to do with the sport of cricket beyond the name.
How do you play cricket darts?
Only 20, 19, 18, 17, 16, 15 and the bull are in play. You close each one by hitting it three times, with a double counting twice and a treble three times. Once you have closed a number you score its value on further hits, until your opponent closes it too and it goes dead. Win by closing all seven while at least level on points.
Play it now
Cut-throat or standard, agreed before the first dart. The board keeps the marks the traditional way, and every dart says what it did, including the ones that did nothing.
| Number | You | Player 2 |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | 0 marks on 20 | 0 marks on 20 |
| 19 | 0 marks on 19 | 0 marks on 19 |
| 18 | 0 marks on 18 | 0 marks on 18 |
| 17 | 0 marks on 17 | 0 marks on 17 |
| 16 | 0 marks on 16 | 0 marks on 16 |
| 15 | 0 marks on 15 | 0 marks on 15 |
| Bull | 0 marks on the bull | 0 marks on the bull |
| Points | 0 | 0 |
Marks, and closing
Everything in cricket is counted in marks. A single is one mark, a double is two, a treble is three. Three marks on a number closes it for you.
That means one treble 20 closes the 20 outright, which is why the game rewards treble hunting far more than 501 does. Marks carry over between visits, so two singles this turn and one next turn does the same job more slowly.
The bull works the same way with different values: the outer bull is one mark and the bullseye is two, so closing the bull takes three outer bulls, or one bullseye and one outer.
| Hit | Marks |
|---|---|
| Single | 1 |
| Double | 2 |
| Treble | 3 |
| Outer bull | 1 |
| Bullseye | 2 |
Scoring, and when a number dies
Marks past the third score points at face value. Close the 20 and hit another treble 20 and you take 60. Keep hitting it and you keep taking 60 a dart.
This only works while your opponent still has that number open. The moment they close it too, the number is dead for both of you and scores nothing for the rest of the game. A player who is behind on points closes numbers to shut the tap off; a player ahead leaves one open deliberately and milks it.
The game ends when someone has closed all seven targets, and they win only if their score is equal or higher. Closing everything while behind does not win it: play continues until they get their nose in front, which is the situation the whole game is really about.
The variants worth knowing
- Cut-throat
- Points go to your OPPONENTS rather than to you, and the lowest score wins. It changes the game completely: closing a number becomes an act of aggression, and leading is bad. The usual choice with three or more players.
- No points
- Closing only. First to close all seven wins, and the scoring half of the game is dropped. Quick, and a good way to learn which numbers are where.
- Wild card
- One random number is added to the seven at the start, which stops the game being the same 20-19-18 routine every time.
- Quick cricket
- Any number counts, not just the seven. Faster and much less tactical.
What actually wins it
Close the 20 first and keep hitting it. Everything else in the game is a consequence of who owns the 20, because it is worth three times the 15 for exactly the same dart.
If you are behind, stop scoring and start closing. Points you cannot protect are worth less than shutting down the number your opponent is feeding on.
Leave the bull until last unless you are genuinely good at it. Three outer bulls is a lot of darts for a number worth 25, and games have been lost by players closing everything else and then standing at the oche unable to finish.