PRACTICE

You must install a good quality dart board at home to enable you to practice daily.  Practice various triples & doubles and don't forget to also practice singles especially 1, 3, 5, 7, 11 which you would need to hit if you are left to finish an odd number under 20.  Play 301 and monitor how many darts it takes you to finish a game and try to beat it the next time. Set yourself a target or play against an imaginary opponent you admire. Your practice sessions should be on a concentration level similar to when playing a match. Stop and start again if your motivation or concentration drops, if you find it boring and when you are unhappy with your game. Start again later with renewed motivation and awareness. Un-concentrated and unmotivated practice is bad practice. 

I like practicing in solitude. Practicing alone allows me to focus on every aspect of my game.  I'm forced to raise my game above my own to be able to compete against my strongest opponent. It allows me to focus and work on areas of weakness. You can also download apps which allow you to play against dartbots of different levels and to monitor your average and progress.  One such app is scoredarts.

No matter how good you are, you must strive to get better. Solitary practice alone is not sufficient and you should practice with opponents of high calibre. If your practicing opponent is weak, your will normally raise your game only above your opponent.  Even if you play against an opponent who is weak, play exactly the way you would when playing against a strong opponent.  

GRIP

There are many variations and no single grip is considered the best.  What works for one will not work for the other so avoid trying to imitate other players.  It is better to use fewer fingers to grip the dart.  As a beginner, the best grip is holding the dart with 3 fingers with your thumb at the centre of gravity similar to the way you would hold a pen.  Gradually you will have a grip that you find comfortable.  If you are unhappy with your current grip, gradually make minor changes to see what works better for you.  

Whatever you grip, you grip's main objective must be to keep the tip of your dart pointing upwards as you bring your hand under your chin and ready to accelerate for release.  Your grip should not be too firm so as to apply any strain to your finger and wrist muscles. If your muscles are tense, you will encounter a problem while releasing your darts. Darts is a game of touch, not force. 

What do you do with fingers not involved in the grip? It is best to spread them away or keep them in the same position when you pull back and release. If you make a fist when you pull back the dart, it should be a light fist  or you could encounter stiffness in your hand when releasing the dart. 

Be aware that chalk, iced beverages and weather may have detrimental effects on your grip. If your fingers get dry and slick, use wax to improve grip. If your hands get sweaty, use chalk. SALIVA - DISGUSTING.

STANCE 

Holding the dart too far from the body increases the possibility of error and increases fatigue. Keeping it too close reduces pull back movement and acceleration during release. 

The correct stance is right foot forward for right handers and left foot forward for left handers. At what angle to keep your foot against the oche is personal preferance.  You have three choices - foot plump sideways or angled against the oche and toes pointing towards the dartboard which i would not recommend. 

While standing sideway, you could place your foot at a slight angle or flat against the oche. Standing flat against the oche puts your shoulders, throwing arm, elbows and your eyes on the same line reducing the possibility of your arm moving side-to-side and your elbow drifting away from your body.  The elbows should ideally be the first part of your body to lead the throwing action.  

Throw line: 

Practice to determine from which position your darts travel straight while standing comfortably.  Mark the area with chalk so that you consistently return to the same area on the oche to throw your darts.  Technically, while at the oche, your  shoulder should be pointing to the centre of the board.  However, this may not work for everyone and you will find right handed players playing slighly from the right and left handed players playing slightly from the left.  When you experiment, try not to go too far away from the centre of the board. 

Balance: In every point of the throw you must stay perfectly balanced. Your weight will mainly rest on your forward foot, while your rear foot will hold enough weight to perfectly balance your stance. Remember, no matter which weight distribution you use, your stance must be rock-solid.

Leaning forward: gets you closer to the board but also makes your throw more physically demanding and unstable. It can also lead to back, hip and leg problems. Getting closer to the board may not enhance your game. Lean just enough to enable a steady balance with your rear foot firmly on the ground.

Acceleration and the path of the dart flying along the parabolic curve

Shoulder: The shoulder is the only lever in the arm that does not change it's position and stays fixed.

Wrist: A wrist action will help in accelerating the dart and is used by many pros. The problem in using a wrist snap in your throw is that it is one more lever that has to be controlled and one more source for error.  I would advise against using the wrist as a beginner and gradually introduce it if you are unable to generate enough acceleration with your regular throw.   

Pull Back: Your pull back should be slow, toward and under your chin and in a controlled manner with rhythm.

Acceleration: Do it naturally, slow, smooth, without force and all the way to the follow-through. A common error is for the elbows to drop at this stage. The elbow will actually move upwards as you go into the follow through.

Release: To avoid wobble, you should not jerk your arm while releasing the dart and all your fingers should leave the dart at the same time to ensure the dart travels the path you intend it to. If the dart is released too early or too late, it will not reach it's intended destination. If you are throwing correctly and along the parabolic curve, the release will come naturally. If you are having a problem, check the topics discussed in this article to correct your technical error.

Follow-through: is critical to ensure a smooth release and to avoid the elbow from dropping. The best way to follow-through is to end your throw with your hand aiming at the chosen target.  A common error by many players is to let your arm drop down after the release causing the elbow to drop.

Flow: Your delivery should be smooth, consistent and the rhythm should be exact every time you throw a dart. Do not rush your  throw when you are unsure what to hit. Be aware of change in your physical status with effects of alcohol, tobacco and fatigue. If you find that all of a sudden your darts are wobbling or your game has dropped badly, concentrate on your action to determine what is going wrong. This however is easier said than done when a match is in progress. 

Why Phil Taylor's darts behave differently:

http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Guardian/documents/2007/12/14/SportDarts.pdf

EQUIPMENT

If you are considering changing your equipment, experiment during practice with different shapes of flights and sizes of shafts. If you want new darts, you need to find out what works best with your action and if you need heavier or lighter darts and shape and length of the barrel. Do no change your equipment regularly and a few days prior to your scheduled match.  Always carry spare flights, shafts, sharpener etc. When trying out new darts, flights and shafts, only change one item at a time to figure out the effect of each of these items in your throw.

FINISHING A GAME

You will never hit the big outs unless you try for them and unless you make the effort to memorize the best possible finishes.  Out charts are excellent but will not give you all the combinations or the best finish at a given stage of the game. If you use them or ask your teammate for the finish during the game, you loose your rhythm and concentration. Do not lose an opportunity to chalk as you will learn to calculate fast which will help in memorizing your checkouts. When you play and when your practice, count your balance after every throw and not when you are approaching a finish.  Electronic scoreboards are extremely convenient and I would only recommend them for seasoned players or on social games.

GENERAL

Focus - Enjoy a league game but stay focussed on the status of your game and team. Focus could be lost when you are losing or when you hit a big number or defeat a strong opponent. If you find your darts not working well on a particular day, take a short break to analyze what is going wrong.

Confidence - Walking up with confidence to the oche can throw a player off. Raise your shoulders, raise your head and step to the oche in full confidence. Do not walk back with your head down or swear if you have a bad throw. Any sign of weakness will only raise confidence in your opponent. If you look like the boss on the oche, you could in fact become the boss!

Breathing - Whenever the situation is tense and you feel the pressure, walk up slowly to the oche, pause and take a deep breath. Take you time getting into the right position and before you throw your darts. 

Warm up - is another form of practice that is largely overlooked. Loosen up you arms, shoulders and fingers. Having a specific warm-up routine will get you ready for the game. For instance when I warm up, I concentrate on my action and rhythm first and once I know it is correct, I start practicing around the board. I may practice with opponents only after my action and rhythm is right. Always arrive early for the game to warm up.

Goals - There is absolutely nothing wrong if you are playing darts just for fun.  There is absolutely nothing wrong as well if you are like to play competitive darts and you always strive to win as long as you are a good loser.  If you are the competitive type, then you have to set you goals just as anything else in life.

Tournament - The only way to really improve your darts is to play tournaments whenever you have the opportunity. You will only know your true ability when you play in a singles tournament or zone shoot.

Scoring -  If a dart or flight on the board is blocking your throw and you want to hit in the same area, move along the oche without taking your eye off the target.  A better option may be to score on another high number on the board rather than crowd your darts in the same area.  In Cricket - It is critical that you lead and not follow even when you are down.  If your opponent has closed 20, 19 and 18, your aim should be to catch the 17 or bulls and pound on the score.  Staying ahead of score is critical in cricket. It is not considered polite in cricket to accumulate more points than you need to win. 

Chalking - Stand still facing the dartboard where you cannot see the players. To avoid distracting the player, do not move for any reason including correcting a score. Wait until a player has thrown all 3 darts to do it. Don't speak unless spoken to. You may call out a player's score immediately after they have thrown their darts. Players should remove their darts from the board only after the chalker has confirmed the correct score. Only if a player asks, you may tell them what they have hit, what is left and never what to go for. If you need to erase the dartboard during chalking, do not erase the entire board but leave a few scores at the bottom and erase it a little later.  All scores become absolutely final (even if there is an error) once that person has thrown a dart on their next turn.  However, if the opponent is accommodating, they may permit the chalker to correct the score.  If a player notices that a score is wrong, do not ask the chalker to correct it while your opponent is throwing.

An easier way to deduct score in some scenarios 

Example -  A player scores 92 with 256 on the scoreboard.  Deducting 92 from 256 seems difficult so use the rounding up technique.  

Add 8 (i.e 100 - 92)  to 256 = 264 and then deduct 100 = 164

Example - A player hits 63 with 152 on the scoreboard,  

Add 37 (i.e 100 - 63) to 152 = 189 and then deduct 100 = 89

Fun - League evenings should be an evening out with friends. Winning a game, a match, the league, playoffs, being number one in the league, having a big finish etc will make the fun sweeter. The fun factor will obviously diminish during a tournament or playoff.

ETIQUETTE 

Never talk down to a weaker opponent.

Do not stand near an opponent and rattle the darts in your hand.

Do not talk while your opponent is at the oche.

Ask permission from your opponent or ask the chalker to adjust the board or wires.

Do not distract your opponent or look them in the eye when you walk back after your throw.

If self chalking, walk back on the same side you're chalking and not across thereby distracting your opponent who is already on the oche.  

Don't ignore senior players if they offer you free advice.

Never cheat.

Attitude - Be polite, earn respect, be competitive, stay cool, respect the rules, accept defeat gracefully, stand your ground whenever required, apologize if you are in the wrong, motivate your teammates, acknowledge a good throw from your opponent, shake hands or the fist-bump before and after the game, sportsmanship, offer coaching to weaker player, be courteous, play fair and do not have a "win at any cost" attitude...........

Do darts have attitude? http://www.100megsfree.com/thedartdog/TheDartdoG/do_your_darts_have_an_attitude.htm     

CHECK-OUTS

There are basically three sections of numbers for all the outs. 

The first group is 131 - 170 all these outs require two triples to get to a double. For 132 or 135 finish, a better choice is first dart bull, second dart triple and third a double.

The second group is 96 - 130, all these outs require you to hit at least one of your first two darts in a triple.

The third group is 90 - 95, you can choose to go for a triple or a bull on your first dart.  If your opponent is on a finish, your best bet is to go for a bull.  For 90, you may choose either T20 or Bull.   

When your score is near 200, you should be careful what you leave yourself or your partner.  The following numbers cannot be taken out even with three darts - 159, 162, 163, 165, 166, 168, and 169.

When you have 61-70 left with only two darts left in your hand, below is the finish.  If you miss the triple on you're first throw, it leaves you a chance to finish on Bull.  You may also choose to avoid hitting the triple and go for a broader area to hit the single and then go for a Bull finish.  This would apply if your opponent is one a finish if you do not finish.  

70- T20, D5

69- T19, D6

68- T18, D7

67- T17, D8

66- T16, D9

65- T15, D10

64- T14, D11

63- T13, D12

62- T12, D13

61- T11, D14

You should decide on how you plan to check out before you approach the oche. If you miss a finish you are aiming for, you must know what will be left and how to finish - e.g. you have 114 left and you aim to get T20, S14, D20. What is left if you get S20 instead of a T20 and how will you finish? Simply look at the chart below that shows a finish for 94.