“ It takes 15 minutes to learn it, and your lifetime to get good at it. You’ re never as good as you can be.”
— Hondo Thompson
Participants play in randomly selected teams of two.
more than 20 regulars throwing darts every Tuesday evening at Mike’ s Dance Barn.
While anyone is welcome to join, newcomers may have a tough time participating in the tournament because it has 24 spots, and 22 regulars usually show up, Thompson said.
However, newcomers can still throw darts outside of the tournament, mingle, watch, eat, and listen to some musicians jam. The club has only one rule, Thompson said.“ If you look over there and look at the Dart Club Rules, on the back of the board it says,“ Rule One: Be Kind. Rule two: See Rule No. 1.’ And underneath it says,‘ If you can be kind, you can be here.’”
However, trash talking, or at least friendly ribbing, is allowed.
Someone may have a poor throw and get a comment such as,“ That’ s why you don’ t get any Christmas cards,” Thompson said. Or someone may step up to the line and get a comment such as,“ Did your mother cut your hair?”
Soon after he said the words, club member David
Denman approached and said,“ Almost about 79 % of what he( Thompson) says is true.”
Turning serious, Denman said Thompson does not toot his horn, but the club wouldn’ t be there without him.
Thompson waved away the praise, saying,“ I literally hung the boards on the wall, and people started showing up.”
Participants play in randomly selected teams of two, and they typically play a game called cricket, which involves a bit more strategy than the usual 301 or 501, where players simply try to get from those numbers to zero with as few throws as possible.
Lisa Gore began playing with the club a bit over a year ago after first accompanying her husband, Kevin, who has been throwing darts with the club for about two years.
The couple put up a dartboard at the employee lounge at Out of the Ordinary, a restaurant and bar on Van Buren Street in Nashville, where they played after work.
Lisa Gore said the couple plays for fun and to keep busy and active, and eventually joined Muddy Boots, in part to get better.
She said she especially enjoys the camaraderie at the club.“ Everybody has fun,” she said. Thompson said Mike’ s Dance Barn owner Mike Robertson provides food, bar tenders offer drinks, and local musicians join the festivities, bringing anything from guitars and banjos to fiddles and flutes. Robertson may do a taco night, or the club members may have a pitch-in.
Thompson said club member Scott Wertz walked into the Pine Room and asked to play a couple of months after Thompson had hung the first board.
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March / April 2025 • Our Brown County 23