Countdown 501/301 or hit-and-score Cricket. Three darts per visit.
Setup & play
Standard dartboard, three darts per visit, alternating players. Pick the mode in the start form.
Scoring
501 / 301 (countdown): Each visit, you subtract your scored points from your remaining total. Bust if you go below zero (or below 2 with double-out enabled). Win on exactly 0 — with the double-out rule, the last dart must be a double (or bullseye, which counts as a double-20).
Double-in: First dart that scores must be a double. Strict variant.
Cricket: Hit 20, 19, 18, 17, 16, 15, and bullseye (25) — three times each to "close" the number. Once closed, your hits on that number score the face value (×2 for double, ×3 for triple, ×2 for bullseye outer/inner). Targets that all players have closed score nothing.
Cut-throat Cricket: Hits accumulate as points for OPPONENTS rather than yourself. Lowest score wins.
Variants
- 501
Classic countdown. Default mode.
- 301
Shorter countdown; double-in is sometimes enforced.
- Cricket
Standard Cricket — close targets, accumulate points, highest total wins.
- Cut-throat Cricket
Same closing logic, but points go to opponents. Lowest total wins.
Common house-rule decisions
These are the questions that come up most often. The Rules tab toggles between the common choices — agree before the first hand or you’ll re-litigate them mid-game.
- Double-out on or off — most pub leagues require it.
- Double-in on or off — less common.
- Cut-throat or standard scoring for Cricket.
- Bullseye-as-double rule for double-out.
- Whether triple-bull (50) counts as a triple-25 for Cricket closing.
- Number of darts to throw on a tie-breaker.