The Power in Numbers: Part 2

The Power in Numbers : Part 2 ( Thinking about finishing the game above 300)
by Ken MacNeil

Hello again,

I would like to go into a little more depth on my power in numbers from my last tip in September,  I'm going to talk about percentage shooting to leave yourself an outshot from over 300 and some things to think about on certain shots in the 200's. First of all the whole object of this game is to leave yourself a shot at a finish before your opponent , and if you always try to stay 3 darts ahead of yourself it will help you to leave the shots needed to win. Ok let's begin with shots over 300 to set up the outshot needed. I will start by saying that all these set up shots require at least 2 triples to leave the outshot. I'll explain where your first dart should go and why.

309- triple 19 with 1st dart because at least if you miss the triple you can hit the next 2 t20's to leave an out.
308- triple 18 for same reason as 309.
307- triple 20 with first dart.
306- triple 19 with first dart because if you miss the first t19 and hit a single then a t19 t20 will leave the outshot.
305- not alot of players i see do this because it is a risky move, but if you go bull with first dart and leave a good marker on 25 then bull t20 leaves an outshot.
304- triple 20 with first dart and stay on that number.
303- triple 19 because as i said in first segment it is easier to stay with the same dart and on this shot a 7 count on the 19's leave an outshot.
302- triple 18 with first dart for the same reason if you miss the first triple then t18 t20 leaves an outshot.
301- stay on the 20's

Now remember this is a personal preference , it is not set in stone on how to shoot for your outshots , I just found through years of experience and practicing these routines with these outshots it gives you a better chance at winning the game. There may be people that disagree with my method on some of these shots, but like I said it is my personal preference and seems to have worked for me a few times. I'll explain why it is so important to leave the outshot in these circumstances. The reason for this percentage shooting is because it gives you more of an opportunity not only to land on an outshot but also to force pressure on your opponents shot.
The reason it forces pressure on your opponent is because if you are on an outshot like 170, 167,164 albeit a high number and a difficult shot to take out, it is still a possibility to finish if your opponent misses his shot. Where as if you are on a bogey like 171 or any number you can't finish in 3 darts, then there is no pressure on the opponents shot and a relaxed score to set up is all he needs. This is why setting up your outshots is very crucial when playing high calibre darts.

I'll now talk about my outshots for some of the 200 score marks to leave an outshot. I'll only talk about the ones that are notable to myself, with these setup shots, you don't even need a triple because hitting the 25 on last dart will leave you that all important outshot, well here goes. I'll just give the single numbers because if you hit a triple in any of these shots you'll be in finishing range.

234- s20 s19 bull
235- s20 s20 bull
234- s20 s19 bull
233- s19 s19 bull
232- s20 s20 bull
231- s20 s19 bull

I hope you all enjoyed the 2nd segment of my "power in numbers article". Remember as I said these are my personal preference for these finishes and you may like to try it different but at least this can give you some variety in your practicing routines for outshots. My next segment I may talk about my personal practice routines that I like to work on for different aspects of my game.