American Darts - Etiquette

Etiquette

One notable etiquette difference from traditional "English" style darts is that in American Darts, each player leaves the thrown darts in the board for the next player, rather than retrieving them.

This is done for several practical reasons:

• In nearly all settings, a shared set of darts is used, rather than every competitor having their own darts. So if you were to retrieve the darts you just threw, all you would then do is immediately hand them to the next player. With that in mind, it is simply quicker for the incoming shooter to remove the darts from the board, rather than the awkward process of the preceding shooter removing them, then (carefully) passing a handful of three sharpened steel darts to the next player.
• The next player can view and verify the score of the preceding player. This eliminates the need for a scorekeeper to stand near the board.
• Dart maintenance supplies (like a potato, for moistening the dart tips, or a sharpening stone) are often kept at the board. Thus requiring every player to go the board before they throw, rather than after, allows him or her to more quickly prepare the darts to their liking.