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My introduction to pub darts was not on the English bristle board, nor was it with
electronic soft tips.
Where I grew up on the New Jersey shore, the dartboard of choice in most pubs and taverns was made of wood, and it was the board for playing American Darts.
 The Widdy Company in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania still manufactures the board, and now it’s made of tightly rolled paper, and the quality is much better
than what you might expect. The traditional American dartboard is two sided. Wear one side out, then flip the board over. The pub
supplies the wooden darts, and they feature long sharp point and feather type flights, sometimes called French darts.
The game played on this board is
Baseball, with several variations. Regionally, it’s a very popular game, and is as much fun as any other dart game.
The board is numbered the same as the bristle board, but the scoring areas
are set up different. The thin outer ring scores triple. The red band just
inside the outer ring scores double, and the remainder of the wedge scores single. The numbers one through nine are used to play the game, and score
is kept with numbered wheels on the green dart cabinet that usually accompanies the board in shore pubs.
In this game, your opponent scores your darts and pulls them. A total score
of 40 points is the benchmark of a good game, while high 20’s is considered intermediate play. It’s a very social game, just like ’01 or cricket, and is just
as much fun.
In upstate New York, there is yet another type of wooden board that I have
seen only on the internet, but the next time I’m in that neck of the woods, I will hunt for it. I am always willing to learn a new dart game.
Recently I have been dabbling with electronic darts. I had a bristle board in
my house, but moved it down to my bait shop so I could practice more at work. Last Christmas, I had a friend visiting from Ohio and we were on a
shopping excursion to the local Walmart where I saw a new type of soft tip board by Halex. It looked very much like a bristle board, with the same size
scoring areas, and electronic scoring. It was only $50, and I couldn’t resist.
I was pleasantly surprised at how well the board played. The darts stick well,
and there are more than twenty different games that can be played on it. You can even play against cyber opponents of varying skill levels, from novice to
pro. I found myself playing against the intermediate player in Cricket most often, and beating that level requires a very good game with few mistakes.
The practice is excellent, and it applies to my steel tip game because it raises the level of concentration in practice to a higher level that what it would
normally be.
What surprised me most was how much my steel tip game improved as a
result of the extra practice on the soft tip board. I think throwing the lighter
darts helped my steel tip stroke. Whatever the reason, it pays to be open minded about any type of dart game.
I hear a lot demeaning talk by steel tip players about the soft tip game, but
there are some very good soft tip players in my league who are equally adept at both games.
Personally, I still prefer bristle board cricket above all other games, but the
nearest steel dart pub is 25 miles from home, while there is a local bar with a good soft tip following 5 miles away. I am getting equal time now on both
boards, and both games are improved as a result, one of the great benefits of diversity. In a pinch, any dart game will do. Beats the devil out of sitting on
the couch all the time.
Captain Fred Everson is author of A Dart Player’s Guide to Winning Darts,
which is available from Bull’s-Eye News, PO Box 321, Pickerington, OH 43147 or online at www.bullseyenews.com for $13.95 plus $5.95 for shipping
and handling. For faster service you can call 1.800.688.3278 and use your Mastercard or Visa to order your copy, or click here  to order it right now online!
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