Darts Sets and Legs

There are many words and phrases used within the world of darts. For newcomers to the game, it might be a little daunting at first to try to understand all the different terms mentioned, especially if you are watching darts on television.

One of the most asked questions is what are sets and legs in darts and how do they work? This blog will give you an understanding on everything you need to know about darts legs and sets and how they fit into the format of a game of darts.

Sets and Legs in Darts Explained

A leg of darts equals one game of 501 (or whatever format you decide), with the winner of the leg being the first player to get from your starting point to zero by finishing on a double. Each game of 501 (the most commonly played format) is worth one leg and the overall winner of the match is the first player to win a predetermined number of legs that is set out before the match begins. For example, if a match is played over ‘the best of 11 legs’ then the winner is the first player to get to six legs.

Some darts tournaments will adopt a set play format, with the most well known example being the PDC World Darts Championship. Similar to tennis where players will play ‘games’ to try and win ‘sets’, the darts sets and legs format sees players compete against each other in a sequence of legs in order to win sets.

Some frequently asked questions for first-time viewers of darts during the World Championships are ‘how many legs in a set of darts’ and ‘how many legs to win a set in darts’. Taking the World Championship as an example, each set is played over the best of five legs, with the first player to win three legs declared the winner of that particular set. The overall winner of the match will be the first player to win a predetermined number of sets.

How many sets in darts? It depends.

The set play format is reserved for a select few of the biggest darts tournaments on the professional tour, including the PDC World Darts Championship and the World Grand Prix. These two competitions see the world’s best players face each other over a number of legs, with the aim of winning three legs to win a set, and reaching the required number of sets to be declared the overall winner.

The World Masters is a tournament that was previously played over sets and legs, before reverting to a legs-only format in 2022. The old format of the World Masters was unique as each set was contested as the best of three legs, rather than the best of five legs that is commonly seen in the World Championships.

In October 2024, the PDC announced that its Masters tournament would be changing to set play and be rebranded as the World Masters from 2025 onwards. The competition will adopt the popular format used in the BDO-ran World Masters with each set the best of three legs.

Every other competition on the PDC tour is played over a legs-only format, which is sometimes referred to as a ‘matchplay’ format. Popular tournaments like the UK Open and Grand Slam of Darts adopt this kind of format, whereby players are required to win a specific number of legs to win the match. For example, the final of the UK Open is the best of 21 legs, whilst the Grand Slam final is longer and played over the best of 31 legs.

Set Mode

Luke Humphries beat Luke Littler 7-4 in sets to win the final of the 2024 PDC World Darts Championship

How many sets do you have to win to win in darts? This depends on the tournament and what round it is. An example of this is the first round of the World Grand Prix is played over the best of three sets, whilst the opening round at the World Darts Championship is a slightly longer format being contested over the best of five sets.

How many sets in World Darts final? The final of the PDC World Darts Championship is played over the best of 13 sets, which is a race to seven sets.

How many sets in Darts World Championship matches? This varies depending on what round of the competition it is. Below is a breakdown of the format currently used for the sport’s flagship event at Alexandra Palace:-

First/Second Rounds – best of five sets
Third/Fourth Rounds – best of seven sets
Quarter-Finals – best of nine sets
Semi-Finals – best of 11 sets
Final – best of 13 sets

NB: From the second round onwards, if a match goes to a final set, then the set must be won by two clear legs. If the leg score in the final set reaches 5-5, a sudden-death leg will be played to determine the winner.

Matchplay

Gary Anderson in action during the 2024 UK Open – a tournament which is played over a leg-play format

The number of legs played in a ‘matchplay’ style game of darts will vary from tournament to tournament. The majority of professional competitions use a leg-play format for their matches, including the lucrative Premier League of Darts. This tournament runs between February and May each year and is held in some of the biggest indoor arenas across the UK, Ireland, Germany and the Netherlands.

The first 16 weeks of the Premier League features eight of the world’s best players competing in nightly tournaments, where all matches are played over the best of 11 legs. Points are awarded to the winner of each match and go towards a league table, and at the end of the 16th week the top four players in the table qualify for the play-offs. The format is extended for the end of season play-offs as the semi-finals are the best of 19 legs and the final even longer as the best of 21 legs.

A Perfect Leg

Golf has a hole in one. Snooker has the 147 break. The holy grail in darts is the nine-dart leg, also referred to as a nine-dart finish, nine darter or the perfect leg. A nine-dart leg is achieved when a player finishes a leg of 501 in nine darts – the minimum number of darts required. Throwing a nine-dart finish requires an incredible amount of precision and skill with the most common route being 180 (3x treble 20s), 180 (3x treble 20s) and 141 (treble 20, treble 19, double 12).

Three-time world champion John Lowe was the first player to complete a nine-dart finish on television in 1984, whilst it was the late Shaun Greatbatch who would be the first player to strike perfection on live TV when he threw a nine-darter in the 2002 Dutch Open, which was broadcast on Dutch television. Many other nine-dart milestones have followed in recent years, such as when Luke Littler became the youngest player to hit a televised nine-darter at the age of 16 during the 2024 Bahrain Darts Masters.

Watch the video below to see Michael Smith’s nine-dart leg during the 2023 PDC World Darts Championship final!

Practice Like a Pro

Sets and legs are the two staples of darts competitions, from the grassroots level all the way up to the professional game. Wherever you play or watch your darts, you will find matches played over the leg-play format, and in some cases, such as the PDC World Darts Championship, the set play format.

We hope this blog has given you a better grasp on how do darts sets work and how many sets in darts matches are typically played. Now that you know how the format works for darts matches, why not give it a go for yourself? Challenge your friends to a match over a number of legs or sets to get more used to how darts matches are played. Read our ‘Darts Games To Play’ blog for an extensive list of different games you can try out on your own or with your friends.

Check out the ‘How To’ section of the Darts Corner blog for more beginner guides and in-depth blogs to enhance your darting knowledge even further. You can also take a look at the ‘Darts Fun’ section for a deeper dive into the world of darts and there are some fun quizzes to try out too!

Pictures: PDC