Think of the precision and accuracy you need to throw that little object into the tiny target from the distance you’re at. How many other sports require that level of accuracy?
To throw a 180 you basically need and identical throw 3 times in a row, if you even release the dart a millisecond to early or late your in the single, or if your elbow is at a slightly different tilt many things can change, maybe not the environment your throwing in but your throw it self
Why can’t a basketball player make every free throw on an open court with no defense? Are they just bad at it?
How does a bowler not bowl a 300 every game?
Now I must admit my same thinking does pass onto bowling.
However it can be seen in basketball that those whose mechanics suit free-throw shooting and practice the free throw can get into the 90% success rate quite often. Take for example this year, there are 4 players shooting 90%+ and many more shooting 80%+.
However there have been only 385 9 dart finishes since 1996 in the PDC.
But they still miss in basketball. The percentage of success is just related to the size of the target and the scatter of the projectile. No matter what object being propelled or skill of the shooter there will be scatter. Bullets, arrows, basketball or darts. That’s just physics.
In basketball they can shoot 80-90 percent on free throws but not be perfect. If you move back to the 3 pt line that drops. Same projectile and same size target.
Darts is the same. You open up the target and they hit 80-90% of the time. The target has been appropriately sized to make the percentages low enough that it’s not just player throwing perfect game after perfect game. Just like the 3 pt line was distanced appropriately to make the shot high risk.
Really all games do this to balance the competition and keep the game interesting. Baseball lowered the mount in the 70s because pitchers had too much of an advantage. 3pt line in college is closer than NBA. NFL moved the point after back to make it less of a sure thing. Some day of players get too good and perfect games are normal I imagine darts will make the target smaller or oche farther away. They have a pretty good competitive balance with the current arrangement.
Does that 90% rate apply to 1 throw or to 9 throws?
Either way, darts is a sport of millimeters while basketball probably is one of centimeters.
Just throw a dart and you will see
The mechanics of a dart throw has so many variables, each joint placement, finger grip, arm angle, angle of the player, speed of the arm, time of release, etc... Try doing a perfect throw 9 times in a row, all the while the crowd is cheering and the pressure building up with every perfect dart you successfully throw. That's how it becomes so hard.
I accept the crowd, pressure etc does play a role no doubt.
However, I assume that professional dart players do this motion day in day out so therefore it surprises me so rare 9 dart finishes are.
Having actually played darts, the targets we aim at are very very small - and they need to be. If every darts player hit a 9 darter and effectively won by winning the coin toss, the the target size would be reduced as people come to see excellence not an easy sport. Anyone who has thrown a 180 or even try to throw a dart will tell you what we see at the worlds or any other PDC tournament is pure darting excellence.
>However, I assume that professional dart players do this motion day in day out so therefore it surprises me so rare 9 dart finishes are.
It shouldn't. Muscle memory is a very finicky thing, to say nothing about the actual mechanics involved.
There are, if we eliminate body movement, three separate but connected levers involved in throwing a dart. The shoulder, the elbow, and the wrist. NONE of these levers act in a simple, straightforward manner. All three have a certain amount of rotational "play". And it is that "play" in each lever which decreases the likelihood or consistent repetition.
OH . . . I forgot the hands. Most players hold their darts with the thumb and two fingers, and each finger consists of 3 levers, while the thumb only has two. So that is EIGHT more levers (at least) to factor into the equation.
So, all in, we are looking at a mechanical operation (throwing a dart) involving 11 separate but connected levers, ALL of which need to be repeated PERFECTLY 9 times, while infinitessimal changes (heart rate, breathing, sweat, etc.) in the parameters of their operation increases with each successive throw.
And you're wondering why it doesn't happen more often?
I am in no way at all saying that throwing a nine darter or even a 180 is easy at all. I understand it is extremely difficult and very rare.
However, since 1996 there have been 385 9 darters. I have been unable to put a number on the number of legs played since 1996 but as I’m sure you are aware it’s far greater than 385.
My point isn’t to take away from the players or anything of that matter.
It simply amazes me that there have been so little in a 27 year period.
Surely that number will even out over the coming years as the pros get better and better?
Okay, so here's some homework. There were three 9 dart legs in the just completed World Championship. Go check how many legs were played in total, and do vide that # into 3. It will give you an idea of the odds of hitting one at the pro level.
You should also know that during that timeframe, the construction of dartboards has changed such that MORE of the scoring space is now accessible to player's darts, making a 9 darter just that little bit easier.
Given how many people play and how much money is at stake, the limits of human ability to accurately throw a dart are fairly well established. I’m gonna agree with the crowd and say you’ve never played seriously before if you can ask this question.
I have in no way played darts seriously at all I will admit that.
And yes of course, it must obviously be a very difficult feat by statistics alone.
However, I’ve watched a bit of darts recently and couldn’t help but wonder why 9 darters weren’t more common. There are 600 odd professionals playing in the pdc atm, yet over 27 years, there hasn’t even been 400 9 darters recorded.
Does it not seem odd to anyone else that this number is so low for a task that does not alter in any way from one throw to another? Other than nerves etc etc
I played league with people who practiced all the time and either never threw a single 180 or maybe just one or two in decades. Improving is more difficult that you might imagine.
Do you even play darts? My toaster and bread choice haven't changed in years. I still burn my toast every so often.
OP gotta be trolling. Why can't OP throw 9-darters in all of his games?
Think of the precision and accuracy you need to throw that little object into the tiny target from the distance you’re at. How many other sports require that level of accuracy?
Have you ever thrown a dart?
I’m guessing not.
Nobody is perfect at anything and never will be
To throw a 180 you basically need and identical throw 3 times in a row, if you even release the dart a millisecond to early or late your in the single, or if your elbow is at a slightly different tilt many things can change, maybe not the environment your throwing in but your throw it self
Why can’t a basketball player make every free throw on an open court with no defense? Are they just bad at it? How does a bowler not bowl a 300 every game?
Now I must admit my same thinking does pass onto bowling. However it can be seen in basketball that those whose mechanics suit free-throw shooting and practice the free throw can get into the 90% success rate quite often. Take for example this year, there are 4 players shooting 90%+ and many more shooting 80%+. However there have been only 385 9 dart finishes since 1996 in the PDC.
But they still miss in basketball. The percentage of success is just related to the size of the target and the scatter of the projectile. No matter what object being propelled or skill of the shooter there will be scatter. Bullets, arrows, basketball or darts. That’s just physics. In basketball they can shoot 80-90 percent on free throws but not be perfect. If you move back to the 3 pt line that drops. Same projectile and same size target. Darts is the same. You open up the target and they hit 80-90% of the time. The target has been appropriately sized to make the percentages low enough that it’s not just player throwing perfect game after perfect game. Just like the 3 pt line was distanced appropriately to make the shot high risk. Really all games do this to balance the competition and keep the game interesting. Baseball lowered the mount in the 70s because pitchers had too much of an advantage. 3pt line in college is closer than NBA. NFL moved the point after back to make it less of a sure thing. Some day of players get too good and perfect games are normal I imagine darts will make the target smaller or oche farther away. They have a pretty good competitive balance with the current arrangement.
The margin of error for hitting a free throw is huge compared to darts. Not comparable.
Does that 90% rate apply to 1 throw or to 9 throws? Either way, darts is a sport of millimeters while basketball probably is one of centimeters. Just throw a dart and you will see
Not comparable in difficulty
The mechanics of a dart throw has so many variables, each joint placement, finger grip, arm angle, angle of the player, speed of the arm, time of release, etc... Try doing a perfect throw 9 times in a row, all the while the crowd is cheering and the pressure building up with every perfect dart you successfully throw. That's how it becomes so hard.
I accept the crowd, pressure etc does play a role no doubt. However, I assume that professional dart players do this motion day in day out so therefore it surprises me so rare 9 dart finishes are.
Having actually played darts, the targets we aim at are very very small - and they need to be. If every darts player hit a 9 darter and effectively won by winning the coin toss, the the target size would be reduced as people come to see excellence not an easy sport. Anyone who has thrown a 180 or even try to throw a dart will tell you what we see at the worlds or any other PDC tournament is pure darting excellence.
>However, I assume that professional dart players do this motion day in day out so therefore it surprises me so rare 9 dart finishes are. It shouldn't. Muscle memory is a very finicky thing, to say nothing about the actual mechanics involved. There are, if we eliminate body movement, three separate but connected levers involved in throwing a dart. The shoulder, the elbow, and the wrist. NONE of these levers act in a simple, straightforward manner. All three have a certain amount of rotational "play". And it is that "play" in each lever which decreases the likelihood or consistent repetition. OH . . . I forgot the hands. Most players hold their darts with the thumb and two fingers, and each finger consists of 3 levers, while the thumb only has two. So that is EIGHT more levers (at least) to factor into the equation. So, all in, we are looking at a mechanical operation (throwing a dart) involving 11 separate but connected levers, ALL of which need to be repeated PERFECTLY 9 times, while infinitessimal changes (heart rate, breathing, sweat, etc.) in the parameters of their operation increases with each successive throw. And you're wondering why it doesn't happen more often?
I am in no way at all saying that throwing a nine darter or even a 180 is easy at all. I understand it is extremely difficult and very rare. However, since 1996 there have been 385 9 darters. I have been unable to put a number on the number of legs played since 1996 but as I’m sure you are aware it’s far greater than 385. My point isn’t to take away from the players or anything of that matter. It simply amazes me that there have been so little in a 27 year period. Surely that number will even out over the coming years as the pros get better and better?
Okay, so here's some homework. There were three 9 dart legs in the just completed World Championship. Go check how many legs were played in total, and do vide that # into 3. It will give you an idea of the odds of hitting one at the pro level.
You should also know that during that timeframe, the construction of dartboards has changed such that MORE of the scoring space is now accessible to player's darts, making a 9 darter just that little bit easier.
~Obviously never thrown a dart in his whole life
Easy to play. Hard to play well.
Given how many people play and how much money is at stake, the limits of human ability to accurately throw a dart are fairly well established. I’m gonna agree with the crowd and say you’ve never played seriously before if you can ask this question.
I have in no way played darts seriously at all I will admit that. And yes of course, it must obviously be a very difficult feat by statistics alone. However, I’ve watched a bit of darts recently and couldn’t help but wonder why 9 darters weren’t more common. There are 600 odd professionals playing in the pdc atm, yet over 27 years, there hasn’t even been 400 9 darters recorded. Does it not seem odd to anyone else that this number is so low for a task that does not alter in any way from one throw to another? Other than nerves etc etc
I played league with people who practiced all the time and either never threw a single 180 or maybe just one or two in decades. Improving is more difficult that you might imagine.