Where does this come from, and can I check it?

High numbers sit next to low ones, so a stray dart costs points. The figure is taken from Professional Darts Corporation, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.

Is this really a sports fact?

Yes. It sits on the Sports shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.

What else can I read about it?

The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.

Mondo Knows Facts

Darts numbers are arranged to punish bad aim

High numbers sit next to low ones, so a stray dart costs points The standard board places 20 between 1 and 5, and 19 next to 3 and 7, so the pattern wraps low scores around the highest. The layout is credited to a carpenter, Brian Gamlin, in the 1890s, though the story is not well documented. The bull is worth 50 and the outer bull 25. It sits in Mondo's sports collection, one of 200 facts that each trace back to the reference below.

Where this comes from

Professional Darts Corporation

Facts that can change over time are reviewed and updated. If something here looks wrong, Mondo would rather know than be confidently incorrect.

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Sports trivia

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Modern dartboards use thin wire, not staplesThe blade wire design arrived in the 1980s and reduced bounce-outs A dartboard is hung 1.73 metres upThe throw line stands 2.37 metres back from the face of the board The perfect darts leg takes nine dartsA player must start on 501 and finish on a double or the bull A leg of darts must finish on a doubleThe rule makes 170 the highest possible checkout in one visit The PDC world final is played at Alexandra PalaceThe tournament moved there in 2008 and draws large crowds over the new year The Emmy statuette is named for an image orthiconThe nickname comes from the camera tube engineers called the Immy

Tags: darts, board, design

Darts numbers are arranged to punish bad aim: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?: High numbers sit next to low ones, so a stray dart costs points. The figure is taken from Professional Darts Corporation, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a sports fact?: Yes. It sits on the Sports shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?: The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.