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\n\tStacy Bromberg throws during a meeting of the Las Vegas Darts league Wednesday, July 2, 2014 at the Crowbar<\/p>\n
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\n\tStacy Bromberg throws during a meeting of the Las Vegas Darts league Wednesday, July 2, 2014 at the Crowbar<\/p>\n
\tBy Ray Brewer
\n\tDavid Flowers receives a message on Facebook from a friend challenging him to a game of darts. They agree to play in an hour.<\/p>\n
\n\tWhen Flowers arrives at his soft-tip darts home, the Crowbar, 1113 S. Rainbow Blvd., he gets back on social media with his smartphone and messages he\u2019s ready to begin.<\/p>\n
\tIt\u2019s 2 a.m. in Las Vegas and Crowbar is virtually empty, especially near the row of five electronic dartboards where Flowers stands alone. His challenger isn\u2019t a member of his local leagues, the Southern Nevada Darts Association or Las Vegas Darts.<\/p>\n
\tRather, the challenger is in Japan. Electronic dartboards keep score for the competitors in different locales, then log the information online with the DARTSLIVE app to calculate player ratings. Flowers has the app on his smartphone.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cIt\u2019s global. You can play anyone in the world,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ve played against people I have never met (in person).\u201d<\/p>\n
\tLas Vegas Darts League
\n\tMembers warm up during a meeting of the Las Vegas Darts league Wednesday, July 2, 2014 at the Crowbar. Launch slideshow \u00bb
\n\tWhere to play
\n\t\u2022 Crowbar, 1113 S. Rainbow Blvd.<\/p>\n
\t\u2022 Aqua Lounge, 6000 Spring Mountain Road<\/p>\n
\tFor steel-tip:<\/p>\n
\t\u2022 CD\u2019s Sports Lounge, 3025 E. Desert Inn Road<\/p>\n
\t\u2022 Rum Runner, 1801 E. Tropicana Ave.<\/p>\n
\t\u2022 Little Crown & Anchor, 4755 Spring Mountain Road<\/p>\n
\tFees
\n\tIt\u2019s $10 for a 14-week season with Las Vegas Darts, the area\u2019s soft-tip organization. Competitors spend about $4 in game fees each week. Contact Las Vegas Darts through its page on Facebook. The Southern Nevada Darts Association charges a $20 annual membership fee, which covers the league\u2019s affiliation with the American Darters Association. Contact the association at sndadarts.com. Most players join both groups. The groups frequently work together on socials and tournaments.<\/p>\n
\tHow to throw like a pro
\n\tTips from Stacy Bromberg, multitime world champion:<\/p>\n
\t1. Similar to excelling in other sports, winning at darts starts with focus and concentration. You have to be zeroed in on the target before throwing.<\/p>\n
\t2. Don\u2019t bend your knees or bounce; lock your leg \u2014 if you throw right-handed; lock your right leg<\/p>\n
\t3. Follow through on your shot.<\/p>\n
\tMeasurements
\n\tThe standard height from the floor to the bull\u2019s-eye is 5 feet, 8 inches. Throwing distance from the front of the board to the toeline is 7 to 9.25 feet for steel-tip and 8 feet for soft-tip.<\/p>\n
\tDid you know?
\n\tIn major darts tournaments, air conditioning is turned off so it doesn\u2019t interfere with participants\u2019 throws.<\/p>\n
\tNot needing your opponent at your side isn\u2019t the only way technology has transformed darts, the throwing game played mostly in bars or basements.<\/p>\n
\tThe interactive electronic dartboard keeps score and instructs competitors how many points they need on a specific throw and where to aim to collect those points. Each opponent starts with 501 points and works to lower that number to zero with three throws per turn.<\/p>\n
\tIn steel-tip darts, competitors have to calculate the score themselves. It\u2019s part of the game\u2019s challenge. A bad calculation, regardless if you hit your point, can lead to a loss. A dry-erase board is next to the dartboard for keeping the running tally.<\/p>\n
\tThe technique and scoring are the same in both steel- and soft-tip darts. But in steel-tip darts, a dart can \u2018bounce-out,\u2019 meaning the throw doesn\u2019t stick to the board and no points are awarded. That\u2019s not a problem with soft-tip. As long as the dart hits the board, even if it doesn\u2019t stick, points are credited.<\/p>\n
\tAnd there\u2019s no online interactivity for steel-tip darts.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cBecause of the electronics age with iPads and social media, this brings a younger generation into (darts),\u201d said Pat Carrigan, president of the Southern Nevada Darts Association, the area\u2019s steel-tip group.<\/p>\n
\tSoft-tip games cost fifty cents or $1 at Crowbar, depending on whether it is a league match. For steel-tip games, which also are offered at Crowbar and other establishments across town, play is typically free. Players can leave their ID to borrow darts from the bar or bring their own.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cThis game is for everybody,\u201d said Stacy Bromberg, who heads Las Vegas Darts and is a multiple-time Women\u2019s World Darts champion. \u201cYou don\u2019t have to be physically fit to play. You don\u2019t have to spend days practicing. You can just show up, make new friends and have a good night.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tBromberg, 58, makes a decent living off the game and even has her own line of darts. She has traveled around the globe competing in and winning events. She\u2019s won so many prizes, she\u2019s lost count of her accomplishments and medals. Most victories included a cash prize. Later this summer, one of her sponsors is sending her to Japan so she can participate in an exhibition.<\/p>\n
\tShe understands both sides of the sport \u2014 the competitive and the camaraderie.<\/p>\n
\tBut on Wednesdays during one of Las Vegas Darts\u2019 league play nights, she\u2019s in her element helping beginners and recreational players.<\/p>\n
\tWhether it\u2019s working with Flowers, who is in his 20s and is considered the area\u2019s best player, or a retiree still learning the ins and outs of darts, Bromberg\u2019s passion is obvious. Her energy level is unmatched.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cShe\u2019s the real deal. Nobody is better. Nobody is more knowledgeable,\u201d Flowers said.<\/p>\n
\tThe scene on league play nights tells the story: Most players have a beer and eat chicken wings between throws. They talk about their day, families get to know each other, and frequently, players are so occupied socializing they don\u2019t realize when it\u2019s their turn.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cThis is all social,\u201d said Richard Rehm, 66.<\/p>\n
\tCarrigan met his wife, Rose, during a league night almost 20 years ago. They both continue to play.<\/p>\n
\tWhen Bromberg was diagnosed with cancer, she turned to her dart friends for support. She\u2019s beaten cancer multiple times, using darts for a sense of normalcy and fellowship.<\/p>\n
\tThat\u2019s why she has no hesitation using darts to give back to others. For each set of three darts sold from her signature collection, $10 is donated to her \u201cScore For Charity\u201d program. A set of three darts typically costs $55. Since 1996, she says the program has donated more than $100,000 to Make-A-Wish Foundation.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cI just love (darts). This is an incredible group of people,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Posted by:<\/strong> Skinny on July 27, 2014, 7:02 pm<\/p>\n Stacy Bromberg throws during a meeting of the Las Vegas Darts league Wednesday, July 2, 2014 at the Crowbar By Ray Brewer David Flowers receives a message on Facebook from a friend challenging him to a game of darts. They…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7742","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-other-games"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7742","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/36"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7742"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7742\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7742"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7742"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumarchives.tmsites.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7742"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Very interesting. Amazing how technology has expanded our lives.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"