It’s been a whirlwind 12 months for Stephen Bunting.
The St Helens darter and 2014 BDO World Darts Champion has had a career resurrection like we’ve never seen before in the sport!
In 2024, Bunting would win his first PDC major title with The Masters, became a social media sensation (by darts standards), made it to the semi-finals of the 2025 World Championship, reached 5th in the PDC Order of Merit, and has had a recall to the Premier League for the first time in a decade.
He even went viral in the United States with his walk-on!!!
We interrupt the CFP to present you the greatest walkout in all of sports.
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) January 2, 2025
pic.twitter.com/eRD2I70qgB
Keeping up this career momentum, Bunting launched a YouTube channel at the end of 2024 called The Bunting Effect and has already gained 66k subscribers at the time of writing (Feb, 2025).
In his latest video on the channel, Bunting reveals some tips that he says can help any player improve so below are the ULTIMATE tips to get better at darts from Stephen Bunting.
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Tip #1: Keep Straight
Bunting’s first tip is to keep your dart and hand as straight as possible, aiming at the treble 20.
“Keeping as straight as you can and as still as you can is a real good basis for a really good throw.”
He says the main thing you can do is to keep straight as kids and beginners are picking up darts and ‘spraying’ the darts all around the board.
He goes on to say that hand eye coordination is also a part of this process. You want to be able to see your dart leaving your hand and aiming at the number you are throwing at.
He doesn’t get into the details of how to keep straight when throwing, however, there are some tutorials on YouTube like this one below:
Throwing straight is definitely an issue many beginners face and is one of the main reasons why your darts keep hitting 5 or 1…
Tip #2: The String…
This is by far the most unique tip that Bunting provides and is not something we’ve heard mentioned before.
He uses the imaginary string technique to improve his focus when aiming.
Bunting says he tries to imagine a piece of string running down the middle of the board and he tries to ‘cut’ the string in the middle when throwing.
He aims just above the treble in order to cut the string as the dart drops down.
Visualisation is a powerful tool that is used across a number of sports and Bunting is using it specifically to improve his focus when aiming.
When aiming at a target like the treble 20, you are already focusing on a particular segment of the board, however, Bunting takes this a step further.
By then aiming at a particular point (though imaginary), he is able to further enhance his focus on a target area.
It is like throwing for a 25 but aiming at the bullseye.
Most players reading this aren’t at a level where you can hit the bullseye in a single dart so if you miss the bull, you’re still likely to land in the 25 ring.
This also ties into his first tip about keeping straight. By aiming at this imaginary string, you’re throwing at a straight line, so, you can see how Bunting has developed a routine that is consistent with his belief in keeping a straight throw.
Tip #3: Choosing Your Darts
One of the most important things in darts is how to choose darts.
There are now more designs, materials and combinations than ever before and it can be hard for beginners to know where to start.
Bunting lists a dozen differences when it comes to dart set-up but says his main piece of advice would be to go to a darts shop and test some of the different darts in order to see what feels most comfortable for you.
Then, once you have a set that feels comfortable in your hand, including the grip, weight, etc… Then you start practising and can get better with your particular setup.
“You see Peter Wright swapping his darts a lot and he probably sets a bad example to be honest. He’s been really successful doing that but I wouldn’t advise that to anyone else to be honest.
You need to hone your own skills with the set you’ve got and put the hours in on the practise board.”
Tip #4: Breathing
A tip you don’t see often, especially aimed at beginner or intermediate players, is breathing.
Breath work is essential to regulate your nervous system and control anxiety, adrenaline and nerves during pressure moments in sports.
If you find yourself missing crucial match darts, breathing *could* be a factor.
Bunting says:
“When you step to the oche, you can always be anxious. You can hear it sometimes when people speak and they start stuttering because they’re obviously full of air and it’s the same in darts.
“You’ve got to be so focused, sometimes we play so many fast players that you’re up and down, up and down… You’ve got to keep your breathing right, keep yourself focused, and you’ve got to keep yourself mentally ready for the game.
“So when you take a deep breath, especially when you’re throwing for a double at the end of a leg, you’re giving yourself that extra 5% – 10% to hit it because you’re releasing anxiousness and endorphins.
“It’s important in pressure situations that you breathe at the right times.”
This tip came from working with a sports psychologist and is something Bunting has spoken about a lot over the last year in how it’s helped him up his game in 2024.
Bonus Tip: Practice Routine
As a bonus tip, Bunting told us the practice routine he used in preparation for the 2025 World Darts Championship.
It’s a simple game of 501 but he chooses the format based on the format of an upcoming tournament. So, to win the game the sets and legs format will vary depending on what he will be playing.
This is practice for playing alone so he has an imaginary opponent and selects the difficulty based on what he believes he will need to hit to win the leg.
As a top ranked professional player, his guideline is 15 darts. If he takes out 501 in less than 15 darts, he wins the leg, anything over 15 darts he loses the leg.
This is because he believes his opponents will USUALLY checkout in 15 darts or less.
If you’re a pub player that plays best of 3 legs. You’ll practice a game in that format and select the number of darts that you would theoretically need to win the leg. It could be 30 for beginners or 21 for a decent standard league.
The key is to then progress over time the more of these ‘matches’ that you win. So, if you keep winning in 30 darts, move to the next level of 27 darts.
Even when you aren’t playing an opponent, this level-matching technique will simulate a similar pressure of playing an opponent and will improve your practice sessions as you’ll now have a target to reach.
Like we say, Bunting really upped his game in 2024 so if there was ever a time to be taking tips from the Bullet, it’s now!
Check out his full video below:
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