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12-01-2014, 09:24 AM
(This post was last modified: 12-01-2014, 09:28 AM by Kon.)
I'm not sure if this is normal or not, but I normally average in the 80's and I play 3-4 times a week. About a week ago I was midway through a game (501), hitting nothing but high scores, when my aim went down the tube. I was really struggling to hit more then 45/41/43, I may as well had been throwing with my eyes closed. I figured I was just tired and didn't think to much of it. But the issue seems to be sticking around and I can't seem to fix it. I played the Saturday night that just passed and was able to get a few good games in until my aim went down the tubes again. From what I can tell I'm not doing anything differently, it all feels the same.
I guess what I'm asking is if anybody else has encountered this, and if so what did you do to fix it? Or does it come down to me just needing more practice?
P.S. Sorry if my post is all over the place.
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If you are averaging in the 80's usually then you are a really good player, really good. Sounds like a problem as occurred by you having an off day ,this in turn as crept into your head and is messing with your confidence. Id suggest talking a small break from playing.
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Thanks for the replies guys. Now that I think about it, I went through this same thing with almost everything I do (golf, shooting clays, paintball, soccer, etc.) I go nuts with something, get good and then it just all seems to fall apart it seems to go in spirts, I think I may try scaling back to just playing once a week and if that doesn't work take a break and reassess.
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12-01-2014, 10:47 AM
(This post was last modified: 12-01-2014, 10:53 AM by Kon.)
I think I used the term average wrong, sorry that's my mistake. What I meant was each turn at the oche I can fairly consistently score in the 80's. I normally just play at the pub or with my family so I get the terminology wrong some times.
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I'm (thankfully) experiencing the exact opposite. I'm in the middle of my first slump, so I am more "oh god, what if I miss" rather than "why did I miss that". I'm pretty sure it's both mental and a matter of practice. At this moment I'm having a break from practice, just to hop in here to share some of my experience so far: I am currently not really trying to hit a specific segment of any number, it's more a random choice, then I try to group the darts together as good as I can. What I feel I lack the most is focus and confidence, being "in the zone". When I concentrate on these two the most, and have a good look at my target, I actually get that old feel again, and the darts just go where I want them to. Had three 140's in a row, which could have been 180's, too. Meh, next time. Once the focus is high, I even dare to fine-aim around the treble bed (free kicks in football - "hit the upper right corner").
These are mere spikes though. They happen for 6, maybe 9 out of 40+ shots. Still need to work on my mental weakness, because that's what is influencing my aim alot. Including the fact that I still catch myself not pulling back and following through properly.
I had my aim go down the drain while I was playing my best darts so far aswell, but I wasn't tired, mostly it was weaker opponents that made the game boring and I just threw by muscle memory.
Thomas - crazed dart player from Italy - fighting his first big slump
Darts in use: Dave "Chizzy" Chisnall's pixel 90% tungsten 18g soft tip, 22g steel tip
Leftie, and proud of it