Cut-Throat Cricket Darts Rules & Strategy

Standard Cricket is a two-player duel of closing and scoring. Cut-Throat Cricket takes those same mechanics, flips the scoring upside down, and throws a third, fourth, or fifth player into the mix. The result is one of the most socially chaotic and tactically layered pub darts games around.

Here is a direct answer before diving into the details: in Cut-Throat Cricket, points are scored against your opponents rather than for yourself. The player with the lowest score when all numbers are closed wins. If you are familiar with standard Cricket, everything about closing numbers stays the same — only what happens to those points changes.

How Cut-Throat Cricket Works

Cut-Throat Cricket uses the same seven targets as standard Cricket: 20, 19, 18, 17, 16, 15, and the bullseye. All other numbers on the board are irrelevant.

The closing mechanic is identical. Hit a number three times — across any combination of singles, doubles, and triples — and that number is closed for you. Singles count as 1 mark, doubles as 2, triples as 3. A T20 closes the 20 in a single dart.

Where it differs is what happens after you close a number.

In standard Cricket, hitting a closed number scores points for you. In Cut-Throat Cricket, those same hits distribute points to opponents who have not yet closed that number. If three players are in the game and you throw a T20 after closing 20, each opponent who has not closed 20 gets 60 added to their score.

The win condition is also reversed: instead of needing the highest score, you want the lowest score when all seven numbers are closed.

Winning the Game

The game ends when one player has closed all seven numbers (20, 19, 18, 17, 16, 15, and bull). At that point, the player with the fewest total points wins — regardless of whether they closed all their numbers.

This means you can win without closing everything, as long as everyone else has accumulated more points than you. Defensive play and lucky timing matter as much as closing speed.

Standard Cricket vs Cut-Throat Cricket

Keeping Score

The scoreboard layout is the same as standard Cricket — each player has a column with seven rows for the Cricket numbers. Marks (/, X, circle) track progress toward closing.

The key difference is the points column. In standard Cricket, you write your own running total. In Cut-Throat Cricket, you write each player's running total — and you want to see your own column stay low while your opponents' columns grow.

A clear scoreboard is essential when playing with four or more people. It is easy to miscalculate whose score gets hit, especially when multiple opponents have not closed a number.

Cut-Throat Cricket Strategy

The strategy in Cut-Throat Cricket is fundamentally different from standard Cricket. Understanding these shifts is what separates players who win consistently from those who keep ending up with 300 points.

Close Numbers Fast — but Not Recklessly

Closing numbers serves two purposes in Cut-Throat Cricket. First, it protects you — once you close a number, opponents cannot score on you with it. Second, it gives you a weapon — you can then dump points on players who have not closed it.

The temptation is to race through closings as fast as possible. But closing a number no one else has touched yet is wasted effort. Prioritize closing numbers that opponents are close to opening for scoring, so you can use them against the players most likely to dump points on you.

Target the Biggest Threat

In a three-player game, the biggest threat is whoever has the most numbers closed and the fewest points. They can score on you without taking return fire. Focus your scoring darts on them — keeping their score elevated prevents them from winning.

In a four or five-player game, this becomes a multi-front calculation. Watch the scoreboard before every turn and ask: who is closest to winning, and can I push their score up before the game ends?

Alliances and Betrayals

This is where Cut-Throat Cricket earns its name. With multiple players, informal alliances form naturally. Two players might both hammer the same opponent to keep their score high. But the moment that common enemy is no longer the biggest threat, the alliance dissolves.

Do not expect these alliances to hold. Play your own score first and use cooperation opportunistically.

The Bullseye Question

The bullseye is 25 points for the outer bull and 50 for the inner bull. In a multi-player game, a closed bullseye is one of the most dangerous weapons. A player who closes the bull while opponents are still open can throw inner bulls all day — 50 points per dart to everyone who has not closed it.

Close the bull when you have a comfortable position. Leave it open and someone else will use it to punish the field.

When to Score vs When to Close

The calculus here is different from standard Cricket. In standard Cricket, you score when you are behind on points. In Cut-Throat Cricket, you always want to score on opponents when you can — because every point you give them is a point you do not have to carry.

The question is not whether to score but who to score on. Target the player with the lowest score, because they are closest to winning. Dumping 60 points on someone who already has 200 is less useful than dumping 60 on the player sitting at 40.

How to Play: Step by Step

1. Each player throws one dart at the bullseye to determine turn order. Closest to the bull goes first.
2. Players take turns throwing three darts per turn, targeting Cricket numbers (15–20 and bull).
3. Mark off hits. Three marks closes a number for that player.
4. After closing a number, additional hits on it add points to any opponent who has not yet closed it.
5. The game ends when at least one player has closed all seven numbers.
6. The player with the lowest point total at that moment wins.

Common Questions

Can you play Cut-Throat Cricket with 2 players?

Technically yes, but it loses most of its appeal. With two players, scoring against your opponent is identical to scoring for yourself in standard Cricket — just with flipped math. The social dynamics, shifting alliances, and multi-target decisions that define Cut-Throat Cricket only exist with three or more players.

Do you have to close all numbers to win?

No. The game ends when one player closes all seven numbers, but the winner is determined by the lowest score at that moment. You can win without having closed everything.

What if two players tie on points?

Play a sudden-death round: each player throws one dart at the bullseye. Closest to the bull wins. Repeat until the tie is broken.

Quick Reference

Putting It Together

Cut-Throat Cricket is standard Cricket with the social dynamics cranked up to maximum. Everything you know from regular Cricket applies — the marking system, the seven targets, the three-dart turns — but the reversed scoring turns every decision into a group calculation.

For a full foundation on the closing mechanics, marks system, and Cricket board targets, the Cricket darts strategy guide covers everything in depth. If you want more group-friendly formats to add to the rotation, our best darts games guide has ten options for every group size and skill level.

Ready to play? Set up a Cut-Throat Cricket game on Dartsy, add your players, and let the app track everyone's score automatically — so you can focus on working out who to target next.