Nine-darters
The nine-dart finish is the lowest possible number of darts required to win a 501 leg. It is the sport's equivalent of a 147 break. There have been hundreds in practice; the televised list is a much tighter record, and every entry is part of darts history.
How a nine-darter works
Starting from 501, a player must reach exactly zero in nine darts, finishing on a double or the bull. The conventional nine-dart route is T20, T20, T20 (180), T20, T20, T20 (another 180, leaving 141), then T20, T19, D12 - or a near-equivalent route ending on a double. Several players have used alternative routes, notably finishes via the bull.
- Standard route
- 180, 180, 141 (T20-T19-D12). The most common televised path.
- Bull finish
- 180, 180, 141 (T20-T17-Bull). Phil Taylor used the bull finish in several of his.
- Alternative
- 167 + 167 + 167 is mathematically impossible to reach from 501, so nearly all nine-darters start with at least one 180.
The firsts
Most televised nine-darters
| Player | Televised 9-darters | Notable |
|---|---|---|
| Phil Taylor | 11 | Includes two in the same televised final (2010 Premier League vs James Wade). |
| Michael van Gerwen | 6 | Includes the 2012 Premier League 9-darter that introduced him to UK audiences. |
| Adrian Lewis | 4 | 2011 PDC World Championship final - first ever in a World Championship final. |
| Raymond van Barneveld | 4 | First at the PDC World Championship (2009). |
| Gary Anderson | 3 | One against Taylor in a 2014 Premier League night. |
| Michael Smith | 3 | Famously threw one in the final after van Gerwen had just missed his own on the previous dart, 2023 PDC World final. |
The 2010 Premier League final - two in one match
The single most-referenced nine-darter performance in televised darts. Phil Taylor threw a nine-darter in the sixth leg of the 2010 Premier League final against James Wade, then repeated the feat in the eighth leg. No other player has thrown two in a single televised match.
The Smith-Van Gerwen exchange, 2023
In the second set of the 2023 PDC World Championship final, Michael van Gerwen attempted a nine-darter and missed his final dart at D12. Michael Smith then threw his own perfect leg in reply - the first ever mutual nine-dart attempt in a world final. Smith went on to win the title.
It is the one nine-darter most commonly remembered by non-darts audiences who do not otherwise watch the sport, because both attempts were shown and replayed on mainstream news.