How to organise a darts tournament with friends: the guide
A darts tournament with friends is the best way to turn an evening into a proper event. Without a bit of organisation, though, it quickly turns into matches dragging on until 2 am and arguments about who's playing whom. Here's how to pick the right format and keep things on schedule.
Picking the tournament format
The format depends mainly on two things: the number of players and how much time you have.
Round robin (everyone plays everyone)
Each player takes on everyone else in their group. Players are ranked on wins, then on leg difference if they're level.
- Upside: everyone gets plenty of darts, even the weakest player.
- Downside: the number of matches climbs fast. With n players you need n × (n - 1) / 2 matches.
| Players in the group | Matches to play |
|---|---|
| 4 | 6 |
| 5 | 10 |
| 6 | 15 |
| 8 | 28 |
Beyond 5 or 6 players, you're better off splitting into several groups.
Knockout
Lose once and you're out. The classic bracket of the big tournaments.
- Upside: quick, with n - 1 matches in total, and real tension every round.
- Downside: half the field only plays one match. Among friends, that's a bit harsh.
If the number of players isn't a power of 2 (4, 8, 16), some players get a bye through the first round.
Double elimination
You have to lose two matches to go out. First-round losers drop into a losers' bracket, whose winner meets the winner of the main bracket in the final.
- Upside: one bad match doesn't ruin anyone's evening.
- Downside: roughly twice as many matches as a straight knockout, and a bracket that's harder to follow.
The hybrid, often the best option
For 8 to 16 players, the combination that works best: groups of 4, then the top two from each group go into a knockout. Everyone plays at least three matches, and the evening ends with games that matter.
Picking the match format
Legs and sets
A leg is one game of x01 (usually 501, finishing on a double). A match is played as the best of several legs: best of 3 (first to 2 legs), best of 5 (first to 3)...
Sets group several legs together, as at the World Championship. Among friends that's usually too long: save sets for the final if you fancy a bit of ceremony.
Matching the level
Between casual players, a leg of 501 can go on for a while, especially when nobody can find their double. A few options:
- switch to 301 for the group stage and keep 501 for the knockout;
- play best of 3 legs in the groups and best of 5 in the final;
- set a maximum number of rounds per leg.
If the finishing rules are a bit hazy, we cover them in double out, double in and master out.
The draw and the bull-off
The draw
Names in a hat or a random draw on a phone, it doesn't matter. If a couple of players are clearly stronger, make them seeds: put them in different groups, or at opposite ends of the bracket, so they don't knock each other out in the first round.
Who throws first?
Tradition says bull-off. Each player throws one dart at the centre, and whoever is closest to the bull starts. After that, the player throwing first alternates from leg to leg.
Managing the time
This is where most tournaments among friends go off the rails.
- Count your matches in advance using the table above, and time the first match to estimate the rest.
- One board is a bottleneck. If you have two boards, run two matches side by side.
- Put the schedule up: who's playing, on which board, and who's next. A player who knows they're up is a player who's ready.
- No wandering off between legs: pull your darts out and crack on.
The kit
- one or more properly hung boards, at the right height and distance (it's all in dartboard height and throw distance);
- good lighting and a clearly marked oche;
- something to track the bracket: a sheet of paper, a whiteboard, a spreadsheet;
- a few spare darts for whoever forgets theirs.
Where Throw comes in
Throw doesn't have a tournament mode: the bracket, the groups and the standings are handled separately, on paper or in a spreadsheet.
Each match, on the other hand, plays very nicely in Throw. Start a game of x01 over best of 3 or 5 legs, with whatever starting score and finishing rule you like, and if needed a maximum number of rounds per leg to keep to time. The phone beside the board keeps score on its own, so nobody's stuck being the scorer. The "who starts" option even offers a bull-off, measured by the camera.
For the final, open throw.maz-ui.com/app/screen on a TV or a computer and pair the phone with the code shown: everyone can follow the score on the big screen.