Darts rules explained: 501 double out, checkouts, cricket and round the clock

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Most darts nights come down to a few games. 501 is the standard match game, cricket is the common alternative, and round the clock is the classic warm-up. Here is how each one works, and the small rules that cause arguments.

Scoring basics

The number on a segment is its score. The outer thin ring is a double, the inner thin ring a treble.
Outer bull scores 25. The bullseye scores 50 and counts as a double (double 25) for finishing.
A dart counts only if it stays in the board. Darts that bounce out or miss the board score nothing.
Each player throws three darts per turn, then the scores are totted up.
Players usually decide who throws first by each throwing one dart at the bull; nearest goes first.

501 with double out

Each player starts at 501 and subtracts what they score. The first to reach exactly zero wins the game, called a leg.

You must finish on a double. If you have 40 left, double 20 wins. A single 20 leaves 20, and you then need double 10.
The bullseye counts as a double, so 50 can be finished on the bull.
Bust: if a dart takes you below zero, to exactly 1 (which cannot be finished on a double), or to zero without a double, the turn is bust. Your score goes back to what it was at the start of that turn, and any remaining darts in the turn are not thrown.
Matches are usually played as a number of legs, and sometimes sets of legs.

A perfect leg of 501 takes nine darts, which is why a "nine-darter" is a big moment in professional darts. Some leagues play 301, or require a double in too, meaning your score only starts counting once you hit a double.

Checkouts

A checkout is the combination of darts that finishes a leg. Some essentials:

170 is the highest possible checkout: treble 20, treble 20, bullseye.
Some numbers below 170 cannot be finished in three darts: 169, 168, 166, 165, 163, 162 and 159. These are sometimes called bogey numbers.
Favourite doubles are double 20 (40), double 16 (32) and double 8 (16), because if you hit the single by mistake, an even number remains and you still have a double to go for. Double 16 halves to double 8, then double 4, then double 2.
Leave yourself an even number when you can. An odd number forces you to hit a single first.

A few common finishes: 100 is treble 20, double 20; 81 is treble 19, double 12; 60 is single 20, double 20; 36 is double 18.

Cricket

Cricket uses only 15 to 20 and the bull.

To close a number you need three marks on it: a single is one mark, a double two, a treble three. On the bull, the outer bull is one mark and the bullseye two.
Once you have closed a number and your opponent has not, every further hit on it scores points for you (its face value, or 25 for the outer bull and 50 for the bullseye).
Once both players have closed a number, it is dead and scores for no one.
You win by closing everything while having as many points as your opponent or more. Closing everything with fewer points means you must keep scoring until you overtake them.

Cricket is tactical: you choose between closing numbers to stop your opponent and scoring on numbers you already own.

Round the clock

The simplest game, and an excellent practice routine.

Hit 1, then 2, then 3, in order, up to 20. Many people finish with the outer bull and then the bullseye.
Any part of the segment counts in the basic version. A harder variation requires doubles only, or trebles only.
In some versions a double moves you on two numbers and a treble three. Agree this before you start.

Etiquette worth knowing

The thrower's score is called once they have retrieved their darts, and is checked by the scorer or marker.
A dart counts where it is when the darts are retrieved, not where it first landed.
Stay still and quiet behind the thrower; it is the one rule everyone agrees on.

House rules vary from pub to pub, so ask before the first leg. Which game does your local play, and which rule caused the last argument? Tell us in the comments.