What Is a 9 Dart Finish In Darts (How to Get a Nine Darter)

Darts is a game with a defined score (501), the aim of darts is to reduce this score from 501 to 0 by throwing 3 darts per turn, and in order to finish, you need to checkout on a double or bullseye. This means if you have a score of 10 left, you can’t hit a single 10, you need to hit double 5.

Why am I explaining the absolute basic rules of darts? Because when you have a defined score in something you have a minimum number of darts in which you can win a game. 

For fans of snooker, you’ll know that the most impressive feat is a 147 break. This means you pot every ball with the highest possible total for each shot. In darts, the equivalent impressive feat is a 9 dart finish. 

Most darters know what a 9 dart finish is but read on to learn what it is if you are a beginner, find out how you can hit a 9 darter, and also see some of the best televised 9 darters. 

You might think a 9 darter sounds simple but hitting 9 perfect darts in a row is not even something 75% of the professional dart players have ever achieved! 

What Is a 9 Dart Finish

Darts has evolved over the years, transitioning from a pub game into an incredibly competitive sport with a highly elite level of accuracy and consistency needed in order to play at the top of the game. The viewership, player base, and prize money in the game today demonstrate just how popular darts have become along with the increased standard of play. 

With that said, players are not yet at the level where they can play like robots and this is why a 9 darter is so well-renowned, hitting a perfect leg in darts is no easy task and a 9 darter is just that – a perfect leg. 

A 9 dart finish, also known as a 9 darter is the minimum number of darts that a player can finish in a game of 501 darts. It is considered to be a perfect leg or a perfect game of darts and is a score rarely achieved even at the provisional level. 

For some inspiration, check out this compilation of some of the best televised 9 darts:

How to Hit a 9 Dart Finish

Hitting a 9 dart finish requires you to hit 9 consecutive perfect darts. Now, for anyone playing darts, you know that hitting 3 perfect darts with a level of consistency can be the difference between a pub player and a competitive player with aspirations of turning pro. 

This is because the margins and targets are so small with darts that you need an incredible level of accuracy and consistency in order to even give yourself a chance of hitting a perfect leg. One of the key issues for most players is that even after hitting consecutive 180 scores, the pressure for the final three darts becomes both a test of accuracy and a mind game. 

Realizing that you have the opportunity to hit a 9 dart leg usually leads to overthinking and adding extra pressure to the finish (despite consecutive 180s almost guaranteeing you a sizeable lead in the leg), this is what usually causes players to freeze up and miss those crucial last few darts. 

To hit a 9 dart finish, there are a few common combinations that players can take once the first couple of 180s has been hit.

9 Dart Finish Combinations

The most common 9 dart finish involves players hitting a 180 with the first throw (treble 20, treble 20, treble 20), a 180 with the second throw (treble 20, treble 20, treble 20), and a 141 with the final throw (treble 20, treble 19, double 12).

After hitting the initial two 180s though, there are actually three main combinations for checking out on the remaining 141 to complete a 9 darter. These are:

• Treble 20 (60), Treble 19 (57), Double 12 (24)
• Treble 20 (60), Treble 15 (45), Double 18 (36)
• Treble 17 (51), Treble 18 (54), Double 18 (36)

The above is the most common 9 dart finish combination but there are actually thousands of ways that you can hit a 9 dart finish. 

There may only be six options for checking out on the 9th dart but there are 3,944 different combinations for the first 8 darts. For a bullseye finish, there are 2,296 possible combinations and then for the doubles, you have the following:

• Double 20: 672
• Double 18: 792
• Double 17: 56
• Double 15: 120
• Double 12: 8

9 Dart Finish Prize Money

Not only is there a level of prestige and pride that comes with hitting a 9 darter, when doing so in a televised competition the prize money is also incredibly enticing. For the PDC series of events, there is a rolling prize fund of £5000 and since prize money for a 9 darter was first introduced, the prize money has fluctuated between £2,500 – £100,000.

For the 2021 PDC World Championship, the headline sponsor (Selco) wanted to raise the excitement and offered £100k to any player that could hit 2 x 9 darters within the tournament, a feat never seen before. 

The split would have been £50,000 to the player, £25,000 to a fan, and £25,000 to a nominated charity. Unfortunately, this wasn’t achieved in the end (despite three separate players hitting a 9 darter during the tournament). 

This does demonstrate how the 9 dart finish is still revered in the game despite the standard rising significantly over the years, the prize money and excitement of hitting one is still present.

List of Televised 9 Darters

** This table is accurate at the time of writing (13/01/2022) and will be updated quarterly each year.

Who Has the Most 9 Darters

Over the span of a career, players will hit both televised and non-televised 9 darters so for a tally, a 9 darter is usually only considered for tournament play at a professional level so this can be split into two categories. 

The players with the most televised 9 darters are:

1. Phil Taylor – 11
2. Michael Van Gerwen – 7
3. Adrian Lewis – 5

While the players with the most career 9 darters are:

1. Michael Van Gerwen – 24
2. Phil Taylor – 22
3. Adrian Lewis – 12

Summary

A 9 dart finish is the minimum number of darts that you can check out in a game of 501. This essentially means you need to hit 9 consecutive, perfect darts to join an elite league of 9 dart finishes. 

As standards are increasing year on year and dart averages are soaring, even in qualifying games there standard is impressive outside of the professional game. With that said, something that still holds a level of magic is the 9 darter. 
Hitting one is still a rare occurrence with less than 10 televised instances happening in a given year. Most of us will never have the glory of hitting that perfect leg but, the dream and possibility is always there…