Three Shot Drills to Test Scoring, Doubles and Target Switching

Useful darts shot drills give you a target, a stopping point and a result to record. This session uses 60 scoring darts, 30 doubles darts and 30 target-switching darts to separate three questions: are you staying in the scoring segment, hitting doubles, and finding a double after a scoring shot?

These are fixed-length practice variations, not a recognised competition format. You need three darts, a correctly installed board and a paper score sheet or scoring app. Warm up briefly before starting, then keep the same darts and drill settings when you repeat the test.

1. Scoring drill: 20 visits at the 20 segment

Raymond Smith’s practice guidance for Shot Darts includes building a streak of visits scoring 60 or more while throwing at 20. Here, use a fixed 20-visit test so a difficult day does not turn into an endless chase.

Action

• Throw all three darts at treble 20 on every visit. A visit means one turn of up to three darts.
• Record the actual score after each visit.
• Count each dart that lands in the 20 segment: single, double or treble.
• Finish after 20 visits, regardless of your result.

Record three numbers: total points, visits scoring at least 60, and darts outside the 20 segment. For this test, count board misses and bounce-outs as zero points and outside-20 darts; do not rethrow them.

The last measure matters because a 60-point visit does not necessarily mean three darts in the 20 segment. One treble 20 and two board misses also score 60. Keeping the segment count stops that result from hiding the misses.

Your scoring-only three-dart average is total points ÷ 20. For example, 1,040 points gives an average of 52. Do not compare it directly with a full 501 average: this drill contains no setup shots or finishing attempts.

Checkpoint: compare the average alongside the outside-20 count. If the average rises but the misses increase, you have scored more without landing a greater proportion of darts in the 20 segment.

2. Doubles drill: 30 darts, five targets

In standard double-out 501, you must reach exactly zero with the final dart landing on a double, as the PDC’s rules explain. This drill isolates those targets rather than playing complete finishes.

Use this sequence twice:

D20 → D10 → D5 → D16 → D8

Here, D20 means double 20: the narrow outer ring in the 20 segment.

Action

Throw three darts at each listed double, then move on. Keep aiming at the same double for all three darts, even after a hit or a single. This is target practice, so you are not subtracting a remaining score or applying bust rules.

After two passes, you will have thrown six darts at each double and 30 overall.

Record: hits out of six for each target, plus total hits out of 30. Six hits from 30 attempts is a 20% double-hit rate—not a percentage of legs won.

DartCounter’s Doubles Training keeps you on a target until you hit it. This fixed-dart version instead gives every selected double equal exposure and makes the session length predictable.

Checkpoint: note your lowest-scoring double, but keep the same sequence next time. Treat one six-dart result as a prompt to collect more data, not a reason to drop a target or rebuild your throw.

3. Switching drill: earn one dart at a double

Smith’s “Frustration” game requires scoring 60 or more within the first two darts before attempting doubles. This shorter adaptation uses a 40-point threshold initially, with 60 as the harder setting. It tests the scoring-to-double transition; it is not a checkout game.

Action

1. Play ten three-dart visits.
2. Aim your first two darts at treble 20. Always throw both scoring darts, even if the first reaches the threshold.
3. If their combined score reaches your threshold, use dart three at the designated double.
4. If you fall short, throw dart three at treble 20 instead. Do not count it towards earning a double attempt.
5. Alternate the designated target: D20 on odd-numbered visits, D16 on even-numbered visits.

At the 40-point setting, two single 20s earn the double attempt. Single 20 plus single 1 does not. At 60, those two single 20s no longer qualify.

Record separately: visits earning a double attempt out of ten, and doubles hit out of the attempts earned. For example, “six chances earned; two doubles hit” is more informative than simply “two successes”. Note the attempts and hits for D20 and D16 separately, too. If you earn no attempts, record “no chances”—there is no double-hit rate to calculate.

If you earn very few attempts, stay at 40. Increase to 60 when you want a harder scoring requirement, and label the change in your log rather than comparing the two settings as equivalent.

Keep one cue and a short record

For all three drills, use one observable setup cue: return your lead foot to the same position before each visit. Check it before raising the dart, rather than trying to steer your arm mid-throw. Our throw-line setup drill covers that repeatable return in more detail.

Use this log after each session:

Test	Result to record
Scoring	Points; 60+ visits/20; outside-20 darts/60
Doubles	Hits/30; hits/6 on each target
Switching	Threshold; chances/10; hits/chances, overall and by double

Repeat the unchanged session three times before choosing your next focus. A recurring high outside-20 count gives you a reason to focus on staying in the scoring segment; repeatedly low doubles results give you targets for extra practice.

To explore switching, compare D20 and D16 with their own isolated results—not with the five-double total. Pool attempts across sessions, and treat any difference as a clue to investigate rather than proof of a transition problem: the switching drill may give you very few double attempts. For practice that combines scoring, setup shots and finishing in complete legs, use our scored 501 routine.