When (in my extremely limited experience of) watching professional darts, I’ve noticed that if someone is having a hard time hitting 20 (and 3x thereof) they will switch to 19 - I assume this is just to change things up and try to regain their aim/confidence using a different area of the board?
More likely their preferred trajectory is blocked by another dart.
Plus when they get to checkout territory it may be more beneficial to switch to other trebles.
Personally, I rarely used the treble 19. My fairly flat and straight trajectory meant that a blockage was rarely so bad that I couldn’t hit the treble 20.
In the UK we have two main darts competitions - the BDO and the PDC [there used to be just the one but they split acrimoniously over funding issues]. The PDC is the higher standard and probably serves as the world championship for darts, such is the quality. The likes of Phil Taylor or Michael Van Gerwen would never start hitting 19s because they’re struggling with the 20 - doesn’t happen. If they’re going low it’s due to a blockage, as mentioned.
The BDO, on the other hand, is a lower standard and you get players who are stepping up from pub leagues and may never have been on tv before. You can see some nervous darts here, and guys will change down from the 20 if they’re struggling with it.
Seen ‘the madhouse’ in BDO darts a couple of times - guys checking out on double 1. That’s the type of thing that happens in an alehouse game with your mates, pretty embarrassing to see in a pro-event (I do like the BDO in general, though - bit more grassroots).
That’s a spot-on description of the difference between the BDO and PDC. I live within walking distance of Lakeside in Frimley Green where the big BDO tournament happens. One of the pubs nearby sets up extra dartboards while it’s on. I was watching both the BDO on telly and a couple locals having a friendly game. The locals were getting higher averages than the pros.
Even though I’m so close I’ve never been to Lakeside. But I’ve been to a session of PDC at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool.
I don’t doubt it, because the locals were playing in front of an audience of 3 for beer money whereas the pros are playing in front of thousands for their paycheck. It’s a factor often forgotten in any sport where fine motor co-ordination is required - the adrenalin and pressure of playing on the big stage is what causes you to miss the 20 entirely 3 darts in a row, or that crucial double 16 - it’s not down to lack of practice or a flawed technique. I guarantee that if you put those locals on the big stage their averages would plummet, otherwise they would be there themselves already.
In other words, Busy Scissors is quite right - the pros in the PDC are of a better standard than the BDO precisely because they have managed to overcome the initial nerves and pressure of competing at the highest level.
Having said that, I disagree that a PDC pro would never switch to 19s for a set of 3 if they had lost confidence in the 20 - sure, it’s extremely rare (and probably more so nowadays as the sport becomes richer and more professional) but it has happened. I agree that a switch due to a blocking dart is far more likely (and if fact should probably be taken more often than it actually is).
I’m also pretty sure I saw Van Gerwen have to check out on double 1 last week, though I could be mistaken and again it is quite a rarity.