Ok after my last convo with Winmau it has got me thinking about favourite doubles. We all have them but other than the obvious 16 purely because it splits down do easily and right to the madhouse D1 so you keep getting a shot, why do we call them our favourites? All doubles are the same size all the same distance from the Bull. Does having a FAVOURITE put the pressure on you as a player because you expect to hit it, and what happens if you miss it with 3 or 6 darts do you panic? I believe most do purely because it is your SPECIAL number and the expectation is high. So why not choose double 19 or 3 as your favourite and not tell anyone then there would be no pressure on you as no one would expect you to hit it. They might think your a bad counter for leaving it but you would just bang it in and win the game right cos it's your Special number. I never have a favourite I do have preferences like 16's 18's 12's 10's purely for their positions on the board but on my day when confidence is high I can hit any double with 3 darts in my hand so maybe that's why I go straight for the Bull when left with 50.
Does this mean we don't practice our other doubles enough and that as players we are selling ourselves short? For example would a body Builder win a competition for just having big arm or legs the answer is a resounding NO he has to have the whole package and all in proportion to each other and I believe Darts to be the same. Practice all your doubles and make them all your favourites.
The way you throw could determine preferences as I block 16 if I put 1 dart on the wire as I flight my darts so they stick up and block not only the 16 bed but the 8's as well so my preference is the right side of the board but because I practice how to get around my 16's problem by throwing at the top half of the D16 bed it doesn't make me scared to leave it as a finish I am still confident it will go in 3 darts. Let me know your thoughts

To be honest you can have any double as your favourite but if I don't give you a shot at it how will you ever beat me? A genuine question not me being cocky just in case people who don't know me as the kind, nice and positive person I am who will read this.

Thats a great point Kev, in reality we should practice all doubles but its inevitable that we will be better at some more than others. I have a lot of trouble with double 10 I dont know why, but I can hit double 6 well which is only a little higher? I seem to naturally hit double 17 and 19 quite easily but have a nightmare on double 3, seems crazy when there is only a few millimetres difference either side? I like double 11 too but double 9 is another nightmare double yet double 14 is usually ok.

Good topic BG.

I have to say that my all time favorite double is the BULL.

There is just nothing like the excitement of taking an out on the bull.

Without hitting a triple, the bull is a massive part of my game from the number 81 on up.

Not that I try to leave the bull from 81 or higher, but if the other guy is sitting pretty on a nice 1 or 2 dart out

then it's a must to at least have a look at it.

I hold the "unofficial" consecutive bull record and I've put in massive amounts of time to be able to do that.

It will always remain my favorite way to finish, but at the same time least desirable. If that makes sense.

A good example would be a 90 out. I'll be looking to leave 30, which is dangerous, but at the worst case scenario I want to leave

50. Or 126 is another one. It would be a perfect world to hit 2 trip 19's to leave 12. But I'd settle for 4 19's to have a go at the bull.

Even though bull is my fav, 100% of the time I'd prefer a larger double on the outside of the board.

I'll tell you big gun what I tell everybody around here where I play when they ask me what my favorite double is... The one I hit to win the game is my favorite double!! I agree 100% with everything you said about doubles and putting undue pressure on yourself by saying you have a favorite cause wether you believe it or not just by saying that it really does make pressure for yourself..

Hat

I know what your sayin winmau I also practice the bull quite a bit.. and the part about the bull being a favorite but not a desireable choice is dead on.. lol We play a lot of cricket here in the states so bulls are vital!!

Hat

Tops me fav, having a hard time with db 16. I know its a mental thing which I will over come. So aiming at the top wire on 16's good tip. will try it

Its solely a confidence thing. If you believe that you have a better chance of hitting one double over another then statistically you probably will hit that favourite double. Confidence is a key issue in the game we love so much.

My personal favourite is 16 but that is because I lived at no.16 growing up and my favourite player ( Roy Keane ) was no.16 so I saw it as an omen, I suppose it helps that it splits to madhouse but if I have 3 darts at D16 and fail to hit it then I`d be annoyed. I wouldn`t panic though if I missed 6-9 darts at it. I`d simply try to compose myself and remember that I am usually competent when targeting it.

I don't really have a favourite double but i do prefer to go the tops/10 or 16/8 routes when possible. That said, if I was playing doubles or the likes and got left with a 19 or something along those lines I would be confident of taking it out. Like Gun said they are all the same size and thats the way I try to look at it. If I went up and wasn't confident of hitting it or coming close I would be miles of....I remember when I first started i hated 19's and this came across in the way I threw at it, the darts usually ended up in the wall below the board

I do find though if i miss 6/9 at a double i do put more pressure on each dart and get more frustrated every time i miss. All of which puts me off for my next shot before i have even threw the dart which isn't really a good thing especially in a match. Hopefully the more match experience I gain the less this will happen. Just another learning curve for me I suppose.

I have tried to bring the Bull into my game more lately as it's something I never used to do. I will play the odds and leave a dart at bull if my opponent is on a finish. Hitting the thing is different story completely though.