Darts Glossary: 180, Ton, Bed, Leg, Maximum Explained | Oche

Darts has a language all its own — a mix of scoring slang, board anatomy and match structure that can leave newcomers baffled. This glossary explains the terms you’ll actually hear, in plain English, with links to the full guides where each one matters. Bookmark it and refer back whenever a word trips you up.

Scoring terms

180 — The maximum score with three darts: three treble 20s (60 + 60 + 60). The highest possible single visit and the most famous call in the sport. See how the scoring works.

Maximum — Another name for a 180. “He hit three maximums in that leg” means three scores of 180.

Ton — A score of 100 or more in one visit. Ton-40 is 140, ton-80 is 180 (the maximum). The term is old slang for one hundred.

Visit / Turn — Your set of three darts. Your turn ends after three throws (or when you check out or bust).

Bust — A turn that leaves you in an impossible position: scoring more than you need, landing on exactly 1, or hitting zero without finishing on a double. Your score resets to the start of the turn. Full detail in what is a bust and the bust rules.

Average / Three-dart average — Your mean score per three-dart visit across a leg or session. The headline measure of skill. Learn what’s good in our three-dart average guide and what counts as a good average.

Finishing terms

Checkout — The combination of darts that finishes a leg by taking you to exactly zero on a double. Browse the full checkout chart or read the checkout chart article.

Double out — The rule that your final dart must land in a double (or the bull) to win. Explained in the double-out guide.

The Big Fish — A 170 checkout (T20, T20, Bull), the highest possible three-dart finish. See 170 and the highest finishes and the highest checkouts page.

Bogey number — A score from which no three-dart finish is possible: 169, 168, 166, 165, 163, 162 and 159. Covered in bogey numbers explained.

Nine-darter — A perfect leg of 501 finished in just nine darts — the rarest achievement in the game. See the nine-dart finish article.

Checkout percentage — How often you finish a leg when given the chance at a double. A key improvement metric — see checkout percentage explained.

Board anatomy

Bed — A scoring segment of the board. The “treble 20 bed” is the small box of the treble 20. Players talk about being “in the bed” when their darts group tightly.

Treble (Triple) — The inner ring that scores three times the segment number. Treble 20 (60) is the most valuable single shot.

Double — The thin outer ring that scores twice the segment number, and the ring you must hit to finish a leg. Learn which to aim for in best doubles to aim for.

Bull / Bullseye — The centre of the board. The outer bull (green) scores 25; the inner bull (red) scores 50 and counts as a double for finishing.

Wire / Spider — The metal framework separating the segments. A dart that hits it (“bounce-out”) usually falls and scores nothing.

The playing area

Oche — The throwing line you stand behind, set 2.37 m (7 ft 9¼ in) from the board for steel-tip. Its history and exact position are in what is the oche and the oche setup guide.

Toeing the oche — Standing with your foot up to (but not over) the line. Stepping over it is a foul.

Match structure

Leg — A single game of 501 (or other X01), from the starting score to zero. The basic unit of a match.

Set — A group of legs, usually best-of-five. Used in major tournaments. A match might be “best of 11 sets,” each set “best of five legs.”

Match — The full contest, decided by winning a required number of legs or sets.

Throw / Bull-up — Players throw at the bull to decide who starts; closest to the centre throws first.

Player slang

Robin Hood — A dart that lands in the back of a dart already in the board. It doesn’t score, but it’s a great photo.

Madhouse — Slang for double 1, the dreaded finish when you’ve left yourself the hardest, smallest double on the board.

Chucking / Arrows — Casual words for throwing darts. “Fancy a game of arrows?”

Put the terms into practice

You don’t need to memorise all of this — the words stick fast once you’re playing. Start with how to play darts, set your board up using the setup guides, and let the Oche X01 scorer handle the scoring and stats while you learn the language at the board. When a term comes up, come back here.