Friday 17 March 2017
Darts Weekly
Rampant in Rotterdam! KLAASEN CONCEDES
CROSS IS ON THE RISE
DELIGHT FOR HIRST
Jelle Klaasen set to have an operation on wrist in May P4
Relive Rob Cross’ maiden PDC Pro Tour title triumph P5
Jonathan Hirst wins BDDA Winmau Open title P6-7
LAWRENCE LUSTIG/PDC
Raymond van Barneveld thrashes Gary Anderson 7-2 to move into the Premier League top four P2-3
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Friday 17 March 2017 Darts Weekly
Dutch duo van Barneveld and van Gerwen delight sell-out Rotterdam home crowd Raymond van Barneveld and Michael van Gerwen thrilled the 10,000-strong Dutch crowd with victories as the Betway Premier League visited Rotterdam last night, where Peter Wright regained his advantage at the top of the table. Five-time world champion van Barneveld was spurred on by the incredible reception he received at the Rotterdam Ahoy as he defeated Gary Anderson 7-2. Van Barneveld hit 180s in the opening three legs as he took a 3-0 lead and also finished a sensational 156 checkout and a ten-darter on his way to a third win of the season. The victory also moved the 2014 Premier League champion up to fourth in the league table above Anderson, for whom a 108 finish was not enough. “It was massive for me, a brilliant night,” said van Barneveld, who emotionally addressed the Rotterdam crowd afterwards. “Gary has beaten me the last 11
Home victory: Michael van Gerwen celebrates beating Phil Taylor in Rotterdam times, but I kept believing in myself and tonight everything went well. “I was finishing well, and in the end a 7-2 result against the world number two is a big effort. Gary’s hard to beat and a tough
“I’m really happy with this victory and I believe I can make the play-offs” competitor but I know I can beat anyone. “To play in front of your home crowd means a lot and I didn’t want to let them down. I’m really happy with this victory and I believe I can make the play-offs.” World champion van Gerwen was also given a heroes’ welcome as he took to the stage in his homeland, and he overcame a slow
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start to defeat Phil Taylor 7-4. Taylor hit finishes of tops, 96 and 73 as he opened up a 3-0 lead, but van Gerwen clawed his way back level before finishing 82 and 78 to assume command. Taylor hit back in leg nine, but the Dutchman was not to be denied as he picked up a fourth win of the season to remain second in the table ahead of his doubleheader in Manchester next week. “It was difficult and it was a different kind of pressure for me tonight,” said van Gerwen. “You want to give the fans something back and maybe we both didn’t play as well as we could. “I got the job done and won, which was the most important thing.” World number three Wright remains a point clear of van Gerwen at the top of the league table following his 7-4 win over Dave Chisnall. Wright - whose orange mohawk matched the majority of the 10,000-strong sell-out crowd at
Darts Weekly Friday 17 March 2017
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the Ahoy arena - took leads of 2-0 and 5-2 before denying Chisnall any hope of a fightback. James Wade temporarily silenced the Dutch crowd in the night’s opening game with a 7-3 win over bottom-placed Jelle Klaasen, who is now facing elimination in a fortnight. Wade took an early 2-0 lead to take control, and mid-range checkouts of 76, 82, 64 and 71 helped the left-hander maintain his own push for a play-off place. Klaasen now sits three points adrift at the foot of the table alongside Kim Huybrechts after the Belgian’s 7-3 loss to Adrian Lewis, whose second successive win eases his worries of being drawn into the elimination battle. The Betway Premier League continues at The Manchester Arena next Thursday, with van Gerwen playing twice to make up his game in hand after being forced to miss the visit to Exeter and the UK Open a fortnight ago with a back injury.
Maiden title for Cross pushes him to the brink of the top 64 Rob Cross claimed his maiden PDC Pro Tour title as he beat Mervyn King 6-5 in the final of Players Championship 3, on a day that also saw Kim Huybrechts hit a nine-dart finish. Sussex’s Cross, who only joined the PDC Pro Tour less than three months ago, began his day with impressive victories over Alan Norris, Max Hopp and then Richie Burnett at the Barnsley Metrodome on Saturday. Last year’s PDC Unicorn Challenge Tour winner then faced Jamie Caven in the last 16 where he secured a 6-4 win to book his place in the quarter-finals. There, he defeated five-time world champion Raymond van On the up: Rob Cross is up to 66th on the PDC Order of Merit
How they stand P W D L LD Pts P Wright 7 5 1 1 +11 11 M van Gerwen 6 4 2 0 +12 10 J Wade 7 3 2 2 +5 8 R van Barneveld 7 3 2 2 +1 8 A Lewis 7 3 1 3 +2 7 G Anderson 7 2 3 2 +1 7 P Taylor 7 2 3 2 +1 7 D Chisnall 8 3 0 5 -10 6 K Huybrechts 7 0 3 4 -11 3 J Klaasen 7 1 1 5 -12 3 4 *Gary Anderson is above Phil Taylor on 4 tournament average (102.23 to 96.54) Remaining fixtures Thursday, March 23 (Manchester Arena, Manchester); March 30 (Motorpoint Arena Cardiff, Cardiff); April 6 (3Arena, Dublin); April 13 (Echo Arena Liverpool, Liverpool); April 20 (SSE Arena Belfast, Belfast); April 27 (Barclaycard Arena, Birmingham); May 4 (Sheffield Arena, Sheffield); May 11 (GE Oil and Gas Arena, Aberdeen); May 18 Play-Offs (The O2, London). Tournament statistics Highest tournament average - M van Gerwen (104.57) Legs won against the throw - J Wade (16) Highest checkout percentage - M van Gerwen (43.96%)
Barneveld 6-4 to set up a semifinal encounter with recent UK Open runner-up Gerwyn Price. The Welshman took a commanding 3-1 lead before Cross won five of the following seven legs to make his way into a first PDC Pro Tour final, as he took on the experienced King. The final was a tense encounter which saw the pair break the others throw in the opening two legs. From that point both King and Cross finished well and held throw to take the match to a deciding leg, despite Cross missing the bullseye to claim the victory in leg ten. Cross opened the last leg with 134 to put himself in control, and eventually went on to secure his first title and the £10,000 prize on double two. ◊ Simon Whitlock won his third PDC ranking title of 2017 on Sunday, as he defeated surprise package Darren Johnson 6-3 in the final of Players Championship 4.
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Friday 17 March 2017 Darts Weekly
ALEX MOSS CHIEF DARTS WRITER
Klaasen is resigned to his Premier League fate By his own admission, Jelle Klaasen’s return to the Premier League has so far not gone according to plan. The 2006 BDO world champion returned to the field for the tournament this year, eight years after his debut season in 2009, but with Judgement Night now less than a fortnight away, it is becoming increasingly likely that Klaasen will be one of the two players eliminated. Three points from seven games tells its own story but, as well as his battle to try and beat the world’s best, Klaasen is also trying to deal with an injury to his throwing arm. The Dutchman has struggled since the end of last year with his wrist and, ahead of his 7-3 defeat to James Wade in Rotterdam last night, had a further two antiinflammatory injections in his throwing arm. Speaking earlier this week, Klaasen said: “I know what I can do and I feel perfect, but I’ve got the tendonitis in my wrist. “The commentators say I can’t finish games and it’s difficult to hear because I know what the problem is and I know it’s about my injury and not that I get nervous at the end. “I had two more antiinflammatory injections in my wrist this week, and if it’s not better in the next two months I need surgery.” During Sky Sports’ coverage in Rotterdam last night, it was revealed that Klaasen is now earmarking the first week of May to have an operation on his injured
wrist, a move which suggests he has given up hope of avoiding elimination in this year’s Premier League. On May 4, the eight remaining players in the Premier League will be at the Sheffield Arena for week 14 of the competition but, barring a remarkable upturn in results, Klaasen will not be there. As we head into week eight in Manchester next Thursday, Klaasen is three points adrift of safety, and a defeat to Adrian Lewis next week will mean he can no longer avoid elimination. With Dave Chisnall, who is in eighth place on six points, not in action next week, a victory for Klaasen over Lewis, a feat he has achieved in two of their three previous meetings on the TV, would see
Klaasen move to within a point of safety heading into Judgement Night in Cardiff the following week. And with Chisnall facing Michael van Gerwen that night, a player he has not defeated on TV since October 2013, Klaasen’s clash with Phil Taylor would suddenly become a lot more interesting. Of course, it all rides on how Klaasen gets on in Manchester next week. Even a draw, although mathematically still possible, you would think is not going to be enough for him. But with surgery on his wrist seemingly pencilled in for early May, it looks like Klaasen may have just thrown in the towel on his fading survival hopes.
LAWRENCE LUSTIG/PDC
Darts Weekly Friday 17 March 2017
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CHRISTOPHER KEMPF MATCH OF THE WEEK - ROB CROSS 6-5 MERVYN KING (PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP 3)
Had Rob Cross not drawn the eventual winners of the two UK Opens he contested before the quarter-finals of that event, who knows what he might have achieved. Last year, Michael van Gerwen fired in 19 consecutive perfect darts to pull away from Cross in their fourth round UK Open clash, in spite of the Englishman’s seven 180s and 95 average. And earlier this month, a 99 average in Minehead sufficed only to get six legs on the board against Peter Wright. Cross was, in fact, the only player to draw both MVG in 2016 and Wright in 2017 - a pair of enormous obstacles that spurred him on to throw excellent darts, even if he came up short against both opponents. For a player of such high calibre, it seems astonishing that Cross has been entirely absent from our TV screens apart from those two defeats. To the TV viewer, he might have seemed like a talented whipping boy for the elite players. But the Hastings darter has turned heads in the floor tournaments so far this year, and did so again by winning the third Players Championship event of 2017, beating three of the eight quarter-finalists from the previous weekend. His opponent in the final, Mervyn King, had not won a Players Championship since October 2011. Currently the PDC world number 21, King has slowly dropped down the rankings from his 2009
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darting apogee. His performance on Saturday justified that rank: intermittently brilliant (and deadly on the double 16) but without the scoring power that would particularly trouble van Gerwen, Anderson or Wright. As neither player was able to break his opponent’s throw at any point in the final, King and Cross relied upon checking out small combination finishes to escape under pressure. With both men averaging in the
18 - double six route to a 66 finish killed the seventh leg in five darts after leaving a bogey 163. King’s leave of 36 after 15 darts then pressurised Cross’ 35 in the ninth, but the man from Sussex coolly cleaned it up in two darts. With break opportunities running short, King found himself in a difficult position. Despite making a mess of a 36 checkout in the tenth leg, King saved the match after his opponent missed the bull. However, Cross had thrown first in the opening leg and would do likewise in the last. After nine darts in the decider, both players had set up big threefigure outshots - King’s 160 to Cross’ 167, King’s marginally easier after a wise 145 visit. But it was the advantage of throwing first that proved decisive, as Cross cleaned up the 68 remaining from his fourth visit to hold throw for a sixth time. In the last seven legs, King had not thrown a single dart at double to break Cross. Thanks to the £10,000 earned from winning the event, Cross rocketed to 66th on the Order of Merit - and to within a few more solid outings of becoming the TV mainstay he proved he can be.
‘Cross is within a few more solid outings of becoming a TV mainstay’ mid-90s, the match turned on a few missed doubles and missed opportunities. King’s two-dart 56 checkout with Cross waiting on 71 kept him at level pegging in the match, and after Cross hit tops for a 16-darter, King fired back five consecutive treble 20s to set up a 62 finish on double 16 and a 15-dart leg to level the match again at 3-3. But Cross proved himself just as capable in the finishing department. His unorthodox treble
LAWRENCE LUSTIG/PDC
King crucified by newcomer Cross in Barnsley final
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Friday 10 March 2017 Darts Weekly
Hirst beats Chilton to win the BDDA Winmau Open crown Jonathan Hirst was crowned BDDA Winmau Open champion after beating Ricky Chilton 3-1 in the final on Sunday. The Road to the Winmau Tour began last weekend with the first event of the 2017 season, as players competed for the title and also ranking points towards qualifying for the Winmau WDDA World Masters later this year. Hirst took the plaudits at the Weoley Castle Working Men’s Club, in Birmingham, on Sunday as he came through a field of almost 40 players to win the Open title. After recording a 3-1 win over Derek Meakins in the last 32, Hirst reeled off whitewash wins against Paul McMahon, Ben Beardmore and Paul Gelder to reach the final. In the final he took on Chilton, who himself had also dropped just one leg on his way to the decider, beating John Greensmith (3-0), David Gill (3-0), Pete Bramley (31) and Kevin Stringer (3-0). Hirst saw off Charlton 3-1 in the
final to win the title and make a fine start to his bid to qualify for the WDDA World Masters at the end of the season. It was Hirst’s second trumph of the weekend, having beaten Kevin Turner 3-1 in the final of the standing darters category of the BDDA Winmau Classic the day before. Meanwhile, Stringer edged past Darren Brook 3-1 to win the wheelchair category of the BDDA Winmau Classic. ◊ Martin Phillips denied Andy Fordham his first BDO title in more than a decade as the Welsh veteran edged the PokerStars Isle of Man Open final 5-4 on Sunday. Fordham, the 2004 BDO world champion, enjoyed a fine run to the final, his first on television since 2005, but was pipped to the title in a deciding leg. Phillips, who won the Turkish Open last October, claimed his second title of the 2016-17 season with victory in the Isle of Man. The former World Masters
Season opener: The finalists and winners from the BDDA Winmau Open and Classic
Gurney bt G Anderson 6-4. Last 16 - R Edhouse bt W O’Connor 6-5; M King bt M Schindler 6-1; S West bt D Chisnall 6-4; M Smith bt J Lewis 6-4; R van Barneveld bt P Nicholson 6-5; R Cross bt J Caven 6-4; G Price bt J Pipe 6-1; D Gurney bt M Suljovic 62. Quarter-finals - M King bt R Edhouse 62; S West bt M Smith 6-1; R Cross bt R van Barneveld 6-4; G Price bt D Gurney 6-4. Semi-finals - M King bt S West 6-5; R Cross bt G Price 6-5. Final - R Cross bt M King 6-5.
Price 6-4; G Anderson bt M Suljovic 6-5. Quarter-finals - M van Gerwen bt I White 6-3; D Johnson bt B van de Pas 6-5; K Huybrechts bt D van Duijvenbode 6-5; S Whitlock bt G Anderson 6-5. Semi-finals D Johnson bt M van Gerwen 6-5; S Whitlock bt K Huybrechts 6-4. Final - S Whitlock bt D Johnson 6-3.
champion climbed up to 13th in the latest BDO rankings with this victory, while Fordham’s run to the final propelled him to 23rd spot. BDO world number two Jamie Hughes picked up his first title of the season with victory in the Isle of Man Classic. Hughes saw off Belgium’s Geert de Vos 7-2 in the final to clinch his first winner’s prize of the 2016-17 campaign. Elsewhere, Deta Hedman claimed the Isle of Man ladies crown with a 5-4 victory over Aileen de Graaf in the final. Australia’s Corrine Hammond took the plaudits in the Isle of Man Classic ladies event, beating Lorraine Winstanley 4-2 in the final on Saturday. The victory, coupled with her run to the semi-finals of the Open, helped Hammond move up to fifth in the ladies rankings.
Database PDC GERMAN DARTS CHAMPIONSHIP UK QUALIFIER (Barnsley Metrodome, Barnsley) Final round - R Searle bt K Anderson 6-2; J Bain bt N Aspinall 6-5; D Johnson bt S Beaton 6-1; K Shepherd bt D Smith 6-3; C Dobey bt J Worsley 6-4; S Burton bt S Stevenson 6-3; M King bt R Cross 6-4; P Nicholson bt H Robinson 6-4; D Portela bt J Pipe 6-4; M McGowan bt D Webster 6-5; R Meikle bt D Brown 6-5; C Quantock bt A Boulton 6-4; P Harvey bt P Rowley 6-3; J Bowles bt R van Barneveld 6-4; D Pallett bt M Webster 6-2; R Corner bt J Murnan 6-4; K Painter bt J Henderson 6-4; A Hunt bt R Edhouse 6-4. PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP 3 (Barnsley Metrodome, Barnsley) Last 32 - W O’Connor bt M van Gerwen 6-4; R Edhouse bt J Michael 6-3; M Schindler bt R Huybrechts 6-5; M King bt J Wade 6-4; D Chisnall bt J Henderson 6-2; S West bt M Webster 6-5; J Lewis bt B van de Pas 6-1; M Smith bt S Preston 6-5; P Nicholson bt W Scheffer 6-3; R van Barneveld bt K Anderson 6-4; R Cross bt R Burnett 6-2; J Caven bt J Wilson 6-0; J Pipe bt S Hine 6-4; G Price bt C Dobey 6-4; M Suljovic bt J Wattimena 6-5; D
PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP 4 (Barnsley Metrodome, Barnsley) Last 32 - M van Gerwen bt J Payne 6-1; S West bt J Cullen 65; I White bt R Cross 6-4; J Wade bt M De Decker 6-2; D Johnson bt J Hendriks 6-3; S Hine bt C Dobey 6-3; B van de Pas bt R Green 6-3; J Klaasen bt S Beaton 6-4; C Kist bt J Henderson 6-2; D van Duijvenbode bt C Reyes 6-2; D Pallett bt T Newell 6-5; K Huybrechts bt J Wilson 6-4; S Whitlock bt A Jenkins 6-4; G Price bt D Gurney 6-4; M Suljovic bt W O’Connor 6-4; G Anderson bt K Anderson 6-2. Last 16 - M van Gerwen bt S West 6-2; I White bt J Wade 6-3; D Johnson bt S Hine 6-5; B van de Pas bt J Klaasen 6-5; D van Duijvenbode bt C Kist 6-5; K Huybrechts bt D Pallett 6-4; S Whitlock bt G
BETWAY PREMIER LEAGUE (Ahoy, Rotterdam) Week Seven - J Wade (94.32) bt J Klaasen (86.21) 7-3; P Wright (93.79) bt D Chisnall (90.52) 7-4; R van Barneveld (103.71) bt G Anderson (102.69) 7-2; A Lewis (96.18) bt K Huybrechts (90.17) 7-3; M van Gerwen (100.50) bt P Taylor (93.87) 7-4. Highest checkout - R van Barneveld (156). Night’s 180s - 21. BDO POKERSTARS ISLEOF MAN FESTIVAL (Douglas, Isle of Man) Men’s Classic last 16 - C Menzies bt A Smith-Neale 4-2; G de Vos bt A Edwards 4-0; K McKinstry bt D Reynolds 4-0; J Williams bt M Atkins 4-0; J Hughes bt P Frewer 4-0; M Phillips bt S Carroll 4-3; G Robson bt M C Atkins 4-0; S Mitchell bt R Joyce 4-0. Quarter-finals - G de Vos bt C Menzies 4-3; K McKinstry bt J Williams 4-1; J Hughes bt M Phillips 4-1; S
Darts Weekly Friday 10 March 2017
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Away defeat: Jamie Hughes and his Warwickshire side were beaten by Glamorgan
Away defeat: Jamie Hughes and his Warwickshire side were beaten by Glamorgan
the women’s A fixtures 5-1 and the men’s A fixtures 8-4. Captain Brian Dawson (30.18) was the man-of-the-match for Yorkshire, while there were also wins for Lorraine Winstanley and Beau Greaves too. Cambridgeshire moved above Cheshire into third place after edging past basement side Essex in a tight contest, 19-17. Essex got off to a strong start as they opened up an 11-7 lead overnight, before Cambridgeshire battled back to level the match up at 12-12 heading into the men’s A fixtures. And it was Martin Adams (30.23) who inspired Cambridgeshire to win the men’s A fixtures 7-5 to seal a comeback 19-17 victory. In the other Premier Division tie, Nottinghamshire climbed two places to sixth after a 19-17 win away at Lincolnshire.
the women’s A fixtures 5-1 and the men’s A fixtures 8-4. Captain Brian Dawson (30.18) was the man-of-the-match for Yorkshire, while there were also wins for Lorraine Winstanley and Beau Greaves too. Cambridgeshire moved above Cheshire into third place after edging past basement side Essex in a tight contest, 19-17. Essex got off to a strong start as they opened up an 11-7 lead overnight, before Cambridgeshire battled back to level the match up at 12-12 heading into the men’s A fixtures. And it was Martin Adams (30.23) who inspired Cambridgeshire to win the men’s A fixtures 7-5 to seal a comeback 19-17 victory. In the other Premier Division tie, Nottinghamshire climbed two places to sixth after a 19-17 win away at Lincolnshire.
Williams 4-1; J Hughes bt M Phillips 4-1; S Mitchell bt G Robson 4-3. Semi-finals - G de Vos bt K McKinstry 6-4; J Hughes bt S Mitchell 6-5. Final - J Hughes bt G de Vos 72. Ladies Classic last 16 - P Jacklin bt D Hedman 4-3; F Sherrock bt A M Potts 4-1; C Hammond bt J Leggatt 4-0; T Wright bt D Davies 4-2; S Edwards bt P Brown 4-0; L Winstanley bt R Griffiths 4-3; J Wilson bt D Epuran 4-1; L Ashton bt M Paine 4-1. Quarter-finals - F Sherrock bt P Jacklin 40; C Hammond bt T Wright 4-2; L Winstanley bt S Edwards 4-1; L Ashton bt J Wilson 4-1. Semi-finals - C Hammond bt F Sherrock 4-3; L Winstanley bt L Ashton 4-2. Final - C Hammond bt L Winstanley 4-2. Men’s Open last 16 - R Veenstra bt G Durrant 4-3; A Fordham bt K McKinstry 4-3; D Reynolds bt N Birkin 4-1; M McGeeney bt J Hurrell 4-3; Y Duijster bt J Hughes 4-1; M Phillips bt D Fitton 4-3; N Kenny bt M Adams 4-2; S Dockerty bt D Day 4-3. Quarter-finals - A Fordham bt R Veenstra 4-2; M McGeeney bt D Reynolds 4-0; M Phillips bt Y Duijster 4-2; N Kenny bt S Dockerty 4-1. Semi-finals - A Fordham bt M McGeeney 5-3; M Phillips bt N Kenny 5-3. Final - M Phillips bt A Fordham 5-4. Ladies Open last 16 - D Hedman bt A M Potts 4-0;
F Sherrock bt M Sutton 4-1; C Hammond bt G Jones 4-3; B Greaves bt P Jacklin 4-0; A de Graaf bt J Thompson 4-1; L Winstanley bt D Shaw 4-0; S Prins bt J Clements 4-0; L Ashton bt D Ijpelaar 4-0. Quarter-finals D Hedman bt F Sherrock 4-3; C Hammond bt B Greaves 4-0; A de Graaf bt L Winstanley 4-3; S Prins bt L Ashton 4-2. Semi-finals D Hedman bt C Hammond 4-3; A de Graaf bt S Prins 4-2. Final - D Hedman bt A de Graaf 5-4.
F Sherrock bt M Sutton 4-1; C Hammond bt
FIXTURES TOMORROW GIBRALTAR OPEN HAL OPEN (Venray, Netherlands) TOMORROW - SUNDAY UNICORN DEVELOPMENT TOUR 5-8 (Robin Park Tennis Centre, Wigan) YORKSHIRE CLASSIC (Sand Le Mere Holiday Park, Tunstall) SUNDAY HAL MASTERS (Venray, Netherlands) THURSDAY BETWAY PREMIER LEAGUE WEEK EIGHT (The Manchester Arena) GERMAN DARTS CHAMPIONSHIP WEST EUROPE & HOST NATION QUALIFIER (Hildesheim, Germany)
DARTS WEEKLY DOZEN (09/03/2017) Data compiled by Christopher Kempf Player M van Gerwen P Taylor R van Barneveld D Gurney M Suljovic B van de Pas A Norris S Whitlock S Beaton J Klaasen M King J Cullen
LLE 15.127 16.815 16.970 17.128 17.302 17.857 17.937 18.004 18.216 18.218 18.728 18.739
Change -0.111 0.002 -0.113 N/C N/C N/C N/C N/C N/C -0.190 N/C N/C
◊ The Darts Weekly Dozen estimates and compares the length of the average leg over players’ last 180 stage legs. ◊ Michael van Gerwen, after his return from back injury recuperation, declines slightly in all metrics. ◊ Jelle Klaasen plunges to his lowest rank in the DW12 after a disappointing loss to Raymond van Barneveld and very poor form on the doubles. ◊ Gurney, Suljovic, van de Pas, Norris and co not in action and stay the same.
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Friday 17 March 2017 Darts Weekly
DAVE McNALLY DARTS WRITER
Is the nine darter no longer the ‘Holy Grail’ that it once was? xxx
LAWRENCE LUSTIG/PDC
With Joe Cullen hitting a perfect nine-dart leg over in Barnsley the other week, it caused a bit of a debate in my local darts league about the number of nine darters hit and questioned whether it is now being watered down and is no longer the ‘Holy Grail’ of darts. With Joeare Cullen perfect nine-dart leg over in Barnsley the other week, it caused a bit of a debate in my Players nowhitting hittingathem localalarming darts league about the of nine darters hit and questioned whether it is now being watered down and with regularity andnumber it is no longer the ‘Holy seems to becoming lessGrail’ of anof darts. Players are than now it hitting achievement did inthem the with alarming regularity and it seems to becoming less of an achievement than it did inSothe past. what are the reasons? past. what areSothe reasons? muchlarger largertarget targetarea areais is definitely adding to the ease at which the nine darters are flying in. AAmuch Players’adding professionalism, definitely to the easean atincrease in practice and competitions, is also a contributing factor, as is the technology associated the modern dart. which the nine darters with are flying in.It is a fact that TV companies and the powers that be want big scores, in the same way that they did with snooker, apparently thatan makes for great viewing, but I’m not so sure. Players’ as professionalism, I’m suggesting that in order to make the nine-dart leg a special achievement once again, that the double and increase in practice and treble target area areascaled down to something like what they used to be. competitions, is also contributing The segments on the board are only separated by the width of a razor blade these days and help with limiting factor, as is the technology bounce outs, but they also make associated with the modern dart. scoring a lot easier. The outs spoil the game is hardly a new one, but it does add to the drama and excitement. It is aidea factthat thatbounce TV companies and all, it willbebewant the same for both players and the more accurate darts will not be theAfter powers that big scores, in the same way that they did with snooker, as apparently that makes for great viewing, but I’m not so nine-dart leg, rather than them sure. for Corrine Hammond, who was being commonplace and hardly I’m suggesting that in order to recently featured in this magazine. making news, as is now the case. make the nine-dart leg a special The Australian took the women’s It may be worth thinking about achievement once again, that the Classic title, edging out Lorraine as the game moves forward. double and treble target area are Winstanley (4-2) in the final, while scaled down to something like Deta Hedman added another title Last weekend saw the Isle of Man what they used to be. to her name, collecting the Open Open and Classic events held in The segments on the board are prize with a last leg decider win Douglas, and it was great to see only separated by the width of a against Aileen de Graaf (5-4). ‘The Viking’ Andy Fordham getting razor blade these days and help The event was covered live by free with limiting bounce outs, but they back to where he should be, mixing to view Front Runner TV and we it with the favourites on finals also make scoring a lot easier. will have to wait for their feedback night. The idea that bounce outs spoil of the event to see if it Fordham just lost out in the game is hardly a new one, but has a future with the BDO. dramatic fashion, losing a last leg it does add to the drama and Whether you are a fan of the BDO decider against Martin Phillips (5excitement. or not, it is always good to see darts 4) in the Open final, while Jamie After all, it will be the same for on the TV, free of charge, although Hughes destroyed Geert de Vos (7both players and the more some areas were unable to get the 2) in the Classic final a day earlier accurate darts will not be signal it still managed to reach on the Saturday. punished. Maybe if this is acted most of the country via the Congratulations are also in order upon it will revitalise the glory of a Freeview platform.