THREE darts players in Dulverton were left seeing double after stepping up to the oche to throw arrows for a marathon 12 hours without a break.

The determined trio at the Rock House Inn took turns to throw and have unofficially smashed the world record for the highest total score during 12 hours with 364, 362.

The current record stands at 286,798, set in 1989 by four players, but confirmation should be soon arriving from the Darts Association that the total has been topped.

For the three participants - from the left, Derek Shotter, landlord Tony Wright and Terry Thomas - it was surely the longest day of their lives with the first dart thrown at 10.45am and the last just before time was called.

They were all sponsored before the marathon and organisers estimate that more than £500 has been raised for the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance.

The event was not only a strain on their arms but also their legs with Tony calculating that they each walked a total of eight miles as they trudged up and down the oche.

Locals at the pub were able to cheer the players on but to avoid overcrowding a colour CCTV camera was aimed at the dart board to beam live pictures to the widescreen TV.

Plates of chips and refreshments were ferried out to the players as they waited to throw while landlady Lindsay Wright was in charge of the scoring for the entire day.

"It was a really fun event and everyone had a good time," she said. "The three of them certainly needed a drink after the day was out and I filled in about 20,000 little boxes with their scores.

"Derek managed to throw nine 180s while Tony scored a 180 as well and also managed to quickly change two barrels behind the bar."

The marathon is just the first of many events planned by the Rock House Inn, whose darts team play in the Dunkery Darts League, with the money raised being presented to the air ambulance at the end of next season. Photo: Steve Guscott