Why your board needs 1.73 m – and should it be 2.37 m or 2.44 m

There are two numbers that decide every leg before the first dart is thrown: 1.73 m and 2.37 m. No custom, no "approximately," but WDF and PDC standard for steel-tip darts – worldwide, for decades, in a Manchester pub as well as in a club in Munich-Giesing.

Where does the 1.73 m come from?

The center of the bullseye is 173 cm above the floor. This corresponds to 5 feet 8 inches – approximately the average eye level of an adult man. The WDF did not guess this number: it is the point at which the shoulder, elbow, and wrist chain are most naturally relaxed during the throwing motion. Those who throw lower raise their shoulder. Those who throw higher push down. Both change the flight path – and permanently so if you train at the wrong height for months.

This does not mean that everyone has to be 173 cm tall. It means: the point you are looking at is 173 cm high. Your chin can be above it, your feet stay on the ground.
(Note for parents: Children may lower it to ~150 cm and shorten the oche to 175–200 cm – but only at home, never in a tournament.)

And the 2.37 m? – Or is it 2.44 m?

For steel-tip darts: The oche – the throwing line – is 237 cm from the front edge of the board, measured horizontally across the floor. That's 7 feet 9¼ inches – WDF and PDC standard, identical in Leverkusen, Budapest or at the PDC Europe Start Süd. The diagonal from the bullseye center to the oche is 293 cm (9 feet 7½ inches) and serves as a check if the floor is uneven.

A Winmau Blade 6 extends about 3–4 cm from the wall due to its bracket and board depth. If you measure from the masonry, you will end up too close. A surround protects the wall but does not shift the oche – the front edge of the board, not the outer edge of the ring, remains decisive.

The important difference: Those who throw on an electronic board (soft-tip) play by a different standard. There, an oche of 244 cm (8 feet) applies, exactly 7 cm more than with steel-tip. The diagonal is then 298 cm. If you train in the basement at 244 cm and then switch to steel-tip in a club, you are suddenly 7 cm too close – and miss the 20-segment to the left or right because the angle is right, but the distance is not.

In short:

• Steel-tip darts: Oche 237 cm, diagonal 293 cm
• Soft-tip / electronic board: Oche 244 cm, diagonal 298 cm

What we have made of it since 1983

For over 40 years, we haven't just sold darts – we sell what goes with them: the view of the board, the feel for the oche, the honest answer to why the dart just landed in the 1 to the left. Whoever comes in throws first – you see the mistakes yourself, often faster than we could explain them.

Come by at Kapuzinerstraße 31 – or check us out online. Something is guaranteed to fit. If you notice an error – please leave us a comment.