When starting out, it seems to be a complete mystery as to why a dartboard is numbered the way it is. The order just seems desperately random. That is not the case, of course. Essentially, dartboard numbers are set in order such as to increase the need for skill and remove chance.
Higher numbers are placed alongside lower numbers so that, in effect, the penalty for missing the bigger numbers increases. This means an upgraded need for genuine skill, one of the things that ultimately changed darts from a social game of chance to a competitive sport.
The Board
A regulation dartboard is 451mm in diameter, divided into 20 radial sections. The sections are separated with metal wire. You may have played on cheap boards made of coiled paper or cork, but quality boards to this day or made of sisal fibres sourced from Brazil, China and eastern parts of Africa.
How the Number Order Came About
Brian Gamlin, a Lancastrian carpenter, is widely credited with designing the number system on dartboards. Back in the late 1880’s, Gamlin is said to have arranged the board from 1-20 in a specific order.
Like many things back then, and more recently poker, there was a bone of contention surrounding whether or not darts was a game of chance or a game of skill. This would directly affect whether people could play it based on strict gambling laws.
Thus, a clear definition was needed to show darts was a game of skill. You shouldn’t just be able to throw darts towards the bigger numbers and hope for the best score.
Probabilities and Consequences of Sequence
There are an amazing 2.43 x 10¹⁸ possible sequences in which to arrange the 20 numbered sections around a modern dartboard. That would lead to be a possible 2,432,902,008,176,640,000 combinations of ways to arrange the 20 numbers. That’s more than 2 quintillion in case you were trying to count the digits.
With that in mind, Gamlin’s choice of order is of very special interest. The order he chose form the top and moving clockwise are: 20-1-18-4-13-6-10-15-2-17-3-19-7-16-8-11-14-9-12-5.
Certain things are achieved by that number sequence. Should a player aim at a board left to chance, they’d be as likely to hit one number as any on the board. Introducing small variations to how the board is numbered, rather than going round in order from 1-20 or making the numbers random, increases the need for accuracy. This number order essentially increases skill by punishing mistakes.
Those attempting to hit single, double or triple 20 could end up next door. Not in 19 or 18, but in 1 or 5 meaning a low score. Accuracy therefore becomes very important. Should a rank amateur attempt deliberately to reach treble 20, they are quite likely in fact to reach a much lower score. If a pro is not on the ball, they can do the same thing and lose the match in an instant.
All the numbers below 10 are placed beside high numbers with bigger values. When Gamlin designed the modern dartboard sequence, he was not leaving anything to chance.
Origins
Darts’ origins go a long way back, all the way to the early 1300s. Perhaps not surprisingly, a lot of bored archers were supposedly looking for something to do when they began shooting arrowheads at the lids of wine casks, or so the story goes.
As tends to happen, this new game began to take hold among the military and other skilled archers. Competition ensued and a scoring system was clearly needed. Over the years, decades, even centuries, this game developed and most likely became darts as archers disappeared. How many people would walk into a tavern and shoot Robin Hood style into a giant board as sport?
With that, the person who developed the original dartboard and its scoring system is not known. The aforementioned Brian Gamlin, a carpenter from Bury who wanted to boost his income, began modernising and fine-tuning the system and boy did he do a good job.
Now, we have a great scoring system and a proper game of skill and accuracy. This has led to much debate between snooker and darts players over which is the hardest score to achieve: a 147 break or a 9-dart finish? You can decide.