A good darts practice routine is short, the same every time, and written down. Below is a 30-minute template: a warm-up, a scoring block, a doubles block and one X01 leg that you log, so your average and finishing numbers show whether you are improving.
It is a checklist for running a session. For the general method of getting better, read how to get better at darts.
The 30-minute session at a glance
Harrows publishes a plan for players who only have 30 minutes. Its published part is the warm-up and the finishing block. We added a scoring block and a logged leg to make it a full template.
| Minutes | Block | What you do | What you record |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 to 5 | Warm-up | Around the Clock | Time to finish |
| 5 to 15 | Scoring | Throw at the treble 20 and note the visits | Best and worst visit |
| 15 to 25 | Doubles | Doubles practice or Bob's 27 | Drill score |
| 25 to 30 | Logged leg | One X01 leg, double out | Average, darts, finish |
The block lengths for the warm-up and finishing come from Harrows. The scoring block and the logged leg are our suggestion, not part of its plan. If your leg runs long, we suggest shortening the scoring block rather than skipping the leg.
Tip
Three short sessions a week will do far more for you than one long one, according to Harrows. Our tip: put the three sessions on fixed days so you do not skip them.
Block 1: warm-up (5 minutes)
Harrows calls Around the Clock the classic warm-up and a great accuracy builder. It is meant to loosen your arm and help you find your aim.
Winmau suggests the game 51 Darts as a perfect starting game to get warmed up. Our advice: pick one of the two and stay with it, so your warm-up never changes between sessions.
Time yourself. Harrows suggests you time yourself and try to beat that time in your next session. A time is a number you can write in the log. For the rules of Around the Clock and other games, see our darts games guide.
Block 2: scoring (10 minutes)
Winmau's practice article quotes the line "Trebles for show, Doubles for Dough". We read this as a reminder that trebles build your score but doubles win legs, which is why we keep this block to a third of the session.
Here is a simple version that needs no special rules:
- Throw three darts at the treble 20 and add up the visit.
- Write the total on a sheet.
- Repeat until the 10 minutes are up.
- Circle your best and worst visit.
The point is to see your spread, not only your top score. A player whose visits range from 20 to 140 has a different problem from one who scores 60 every time. Keep the numbers; they are your baseline for later weeks.
Block 3: doubles and finishing (10 minutes)
Harrows says doubles practice is the drill most players skip, and also the one that wins the most legs. It lists two options for this slot: plain doubles practice or Bob's 27.
Bob's 27 gives you a score to log. DartCounter's rules page says every game starts with 27 points, and that in a classic full game (doubles 1 to 20 and the bull), hitting all three darts at every target gives 1,437 points. The full rules are in our darts games guide.
Winmau suggests another option, the game 420, which it describes as sharpening your doubles while putting increasing pressure on your key finishing doubles.
Our decision rule for choosing a drill:
| If you... | Use |
|---|---|
| Want a score to beat every session | Bob's 27 |
| Want to work on one favorite double | Plain doubles practice |
| Feel you rush finishes under pressure | 420 |
We suggest keeping one drill for at least four sessions. If you change every time, the logs are hard to compare.
Block 4: one logged X01 leg (5 minutes)
End with one leg of X01 and keep score properly. In our view, this is the number that shows whether the drills carry over into real play.
Darts Counter is an Android app that scores X01 with start scores from 301 to 901. If you are short on time, a 301 leg is a quick one to log. Switch the checkout mode to Double Out, because the default on a fresh install is Straight Out. The app shows your 3-dart average and the number of darts thrown, and its statistics also include "Max. Checkout" (your highest finish) and "On Double". Note the app has no iPhone version.
"On Double" is doubles hit as a share of all darts you threw, not a true checkout percentage, because the app does not count darts thrown at a double. Our checkout percentage guide shows how to count it by hand.
Two things to keep in mind. Match and lifetime averages in the app are the mean of your leg averages, not total points divided by total darts, so for a single leg the number is clean but for a long history it can differ from the textbook figure. Our guide to calculating your 3-dart average covers both methods. Also, the app has no "last 6 scores" view yet.
The log sheet
Harrows says to keep a record of your scores from each drill. Copy this table into a notes app or onto paper.
| Date | Warm-up time | Best visit | Drill (name and score) | Leg: darts | Leg: average | Doubles hit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1 | 4:10 | 100 | Bob's 27: 135 | 27 | 33.44 | 2 |
| Oct 3 | 3:55 | 117 | Bob's 27: 162 | 24 | 37.63 | 3 |
| Oct 6 | 3:40 | 100 | Bob's 27: 171 | 21 | 43.00 | 3 |
These figures are made up to show the format, using the quick 301 leg from Block 4. The averages come from points scored divided by darts thrown, times three. A 301 leg in 27 darts is 301 / 27 x 3 = 33.44. The same leg in 21 darts is 301 / 21 x 3 = 43.00. If you play 501 instead, the same math applies with 501 as the points.
Our reading of the log (our own rules of thumb, not advice from Harrows or Winmau):
- Warm-up time falling: can suggest your aim is settling faster.
- Drill score rising over several sessions: can suggest the doubles work is paying off.
- Darts per leg falling: a useful sign, since it reflects both scoring and finishing.
- Average rising but doubles hit flat: may mean you score faster but still miss the finish. You could try moving 5 minutes from scoring to doubles.
One leg is a small sample, so we suggest judging trends over several sessions, not a single night.
Common mistakes
- Changing the routine each time. Then the log compares different things.
- Skipping doubles. It is the drill most players skip, says Harrows.
- One long session a week. Three short sessions a week do more, per Harrows.
- Logging only good nights. Write down the bad sessions too. They show your real spread.
- Playing the leg with Straight Out on. The finishing numbers will not match double out play.
- Judging yourself after one leg. Wait for a trend. For the bigger picture of what to work on, see darts checkouts explained and the checkout chart.
Sources
All pages accessed on October 22, 2026.
- Harrows: darts practice routines to try at home: the 30-minute plan, Around the Clock as warm-up, doubles or Bob's 27 for finishing, three short sessions a week, timing yourself, and keeping a record of drill scores.
- Winmau: Top 3 Practice Program to Improve your Game: 51 Darts as a warm-up, 420 for doubles pressure, and the quoted line "Trebles for show, Doubles for Dough".
- DartCounter: Bob's 27: Darts Rules: the 27 starting points and the 1,437 points for hitting every dart in a classic full game.
