First World Dart Problems - Technique

[Rybro]

I'm a very technical person. I always have been when it comes to sports/hobbies. I understand that when it comes to throwing darts, it is important to do what feels natural. But, like in golf, that isn't always the case. I play a lot of golf, probably why I have this obsession with technique. I'm a soft tip player, and I don't see many of the top tier pros with bad technique. None of them "snatch", they always follow through, very rarely do they roll there dart grip, etc.

So I guess my question is, I am yet convinced all this advice on just keeping everything natural. Like I said before, most of the top pro's in soft tip have wonderful technique...must be a good thing right? They are all similar in form and I highly doubt that they all have the same natural feeling. I'm guessing they worked very hard through some awkward phases.

I have tried to incorporate better technique, and it is tough and awkward. Makes my game worse right off the bat. MY BIGGEST CONCERN, and I mean what weighs on me the most, is that I have been improving at such a rapid pace doing things naturally. I'm afraid I will eventually hit a point where improvement isn't much possible due to poor technique. I'm afraid of having years worth of playing naturally that it will be too hard to change anything because that muscle memory will be so ingrained.

Right now, as I sit, I am thoroughly convinced that having good technique early on is vital in order to have major success and get to that "professional" type of level. Tips? Thoughts? Does any of this make sense? Should I just implement good form and technique and screw most of the natural stuff and fight through it?

Help a very frustrated Dart player. Just starting my 4th year of darts.

[*Saber*]

Your thinking too much which is the bane of good darts, trust me.

[Getagrip]

Of course there is elements of a darts throw that can be considered good technique, I think the main thing is to make sure you do the same each throw no matter what you do, that will improve consistency, accuracy can be fine tuned as you go along. But some things I think everyone should strive for is to have a good release with a good follow through. Its a difficult thing to break down individually as we are all so different but keep a nice solid stable stance, and try to keep that dart following an imaginary line towards your target, try to release it cleanly at the same point in the throw each time and follow through. A lot is just practice, practice, practice. Keep it simple and efficient and less can go wrong, don't grip the dart too tightly, just enough so you have control of it and keep your arm movement as smooth as you can without unnecessary jerks.

[LionCityDarter]

Unless you're looking at winning major titles, getting the consistency right is the most important, good technique or not. Some of the better players in my country don't follow through, snatch, and sometimes don't even have a consistent stance or release.

However, my personal opinion is that good technique helps with quicker improvement and also a higher performance ceiling. In terms of good technique, certain things, such as grip and release should be as natural as possible, without affecting the fundamentals you need. For example, I used to grip the stem of the dart with 3 widely spaced fingers - thumb pushing on the flight, index finger in the middle of the barrel and middle finger against the tip. I was improving, but when my mentor told me to change my grip i improvee much quicker. Initially i complained that it was feeling unnatural, but after half an hour or so it felt like i'd be doing it all the time, and it's the grip i use up to now.