Darts

Darts, indoor target game played by throwing feathered darts at a circular board with numbered spaces. The game became popular in English inns and taverns in the 19th century and increasingly so in the 20th. The board, commonly made of sisal (known familiarly as “bristle”) but sometimes made of cork or elmwood, is divided into 20 sectors valued at points from 1 to 20. Six rings determine the scoring: an inner bull’s-eye worth 50 points, an outer bull’s-eye worth 25 points, a wide single-scoring ring, a narrow triple-scoring ring, another wide single-scoring ring, and, outermost, a narrow double-scoring ring. Throwing is free-style. The recognized standard length is 7 feet 9.25 inches (2.37 metres), though traditional distances vary up to 9 feet. The centre of the board is posted 5 feet 8 inches (1.73 metres) above the floor. (These and other rules may vary slightly in countries outside the British Isles.)