The double life of Wolfie…

A 3x World Champ, but will 'Wolfie's greatest success come off the oche?

With the BDO World Championships now underway, a recent article on the BBC website drew my attention as it discussed Martin ‘Wolfie’ Adams’s double life. This as a man bidding for a hat-trick of Lakeside victories but also a man intent to give his beloved BDO the spotlight he believes it richly deserves.

‘Wolfie’ is the reigning champion at Lakeside and started the defence of his crown earlier today with a 3-0 whitewash of Scott Mitchell in an at-times scrappy affair. However, his role at the top of the BDO pyramid is also mirrored in the champ’s life off the oche as he combines playing with his position on the BDO board, after being voted in during the summer.

“Everybody thought it would affect my game but I like to think it hasn’t. I still believe I’m playing great darts,” Adams told BBC Sport. “I just have to make sure that, when I’m at a tournament, if any decisions need making then I have to step back from them. I can’t be making decisions that might affect me in a particular event. It wouldn’t be right to do that.”

It’s a position though that I can’t say I envy with rivals the PDC continuing to cherry-pick the top BDO talent, the most recent of which being 2010 Lakeside finalist Dave Chisnall who beat Phil Taylor in this year’s PDC World Championships and seems to have a very bright future in the game. Although, the man who beat ‘Chizzy’ in his Lakeside final is determined to see this rampant one-way traffic to Barry Hearn’s boys come to an end under his watch.

Adams said: “It’s always disappointing when you lose a player to the other side, but I dare say it would be disappointing for Barcelona if Lionel Messi suddenly decided he wanted to leave. You wouldn’t stand in anyone’s way because, if you did, you wouldn’t get the performance out of him anyway. That’s the situation we don’t want to be in. The new board recognises that we need to make sure our system is attractive to these players, that they haven’t got a desire to go elsewhere, that they’re happy to stay with the BDO system.”

One way of making the BDO more “attractive” for players is an obvious one. Money. The best example of the difference in this regard can be seen in the prize money given for the respective World Championships. Even if Wolfie does claim a third consecutive title on Sunday he will pocket only half the money, at £100,000, which was won by Adrian Lewis last week in the PDC equivalent. Although clearly not an issue to Wolfie, this will surely come under serious consideration for any player looking to jump ship and is a major problem for the BDO in attempting to retain their top stars.

Nevertheless, this is an undertaking that will be carried out with relish by the England captain Adams and as the BBC article poignantly ends, “if he succeeds, Adams’s legacy to the BDO could be much greater than that of a three-time world champion.”

PDC Annual Awards Dinner

Fresh off the conclusion of a stunning 2012 World Championships, the dinner jackets and dickie bows were out in full force tonight for the darting equivalent of the Oscars as trophies were handed out at the PDC Annual Awards dinner.

The black-tie bash, which took place at the Dorchester on Park Lane in London, provided a great opportunity to reflect back on another chaotic year and to deservedly give recognition to its fine competitors.

PDC Player of the Year – Phil Taylor

Despite failing to claim his sixteenth world crown, ‘The Power’ still enjoyed a fantastic 2011 and the award was his just rewards for the five major titles he had won during the year including The World Matchplay, European Championship, World Grand Prix, Championship League Darts and Grand Slam of Darts.

PDC Fans Player of the Year – Phil Taylor

It seems the fans also agreed with the above decision that Taylor had been the player of the year as he edged past Gary Anderson and Justin Pipe on a poll on the PDC’s official website to pick the year’s fan favourite.

PDPA Player’s Player of the Year – Justin Pipe

Voted by his fellow professionals, Pipe took home the prize after a storming 2011 which has seen ‘The Force’ rise to 22nd in the Order of Merit, picking up three tour titles along the way.

Best PDC ProTour Player – Gary Anderson

Speaking of the tour, the reigning Premier League Champion Anderson picked up the award for best floor player as he won seven Players Championships and UK Open Qualifiers during the year.

PDC Best Newcomer – Dave Chisnall

Since switching from the BDO a year ago, ‘Chizzy’ has started on a slow rise up the Order of Merit, reaching that vital 32nd spot and is sure to be a major contender over the next few years with his huge scoring power. If you are in any doubt of his potential, ask Phil Taylor who was dumped out by Chisnall in this year’s World Championships in only the second round.

PDC Young Player of the Year – Michael van Gerwen

The 22 year-old van Gerwen is now starting to unlock that potential that had been hyped since his win in the BDO’s Winmau World Masters way back in 2006 and the Dutchman will now look to keep this consistency through to 2012. Defeated another good youngster Arron Monk in the inaugural PDC Under-21 World Championships last year and another strong performer at this year’s senior World Championships.

PDC Televised Performance of the Year – Adrian Lewis, vs James Wade – 2012 PDC World Championships Semi-Final

Although still fresh in the minds with the match only two days old, this contest will go down as one of the most incredible of all time. With the infamous draft causing major problems for Lewis, the champ looked in real trouble and many thought ‘Jackpot’ lacked the mental fortitude to bounce back as he fell 5-1 behind in a race to six. With Wade’s consistency, especially on the key doubles of tops and tens, Lewis’ comeback was made all the more remarkable as he won five straight sets to defeat ‘The Machine’ and set up a date with Andy Hamilton for the following day in the final. The rest, as they say, is history.

The following names list those who achieved that most special of darting accomplishments, a nine darter, during the year.

Nine Dart Club – Silver Pin Badge (non-televised)

Dave Chisnall

John Henderson

Michael Smith

Wayne Atwood

Dennis Priestley

Simon Whitlock

Justin Pipe

Phil Taylor

Raymond van Barneveld

Wes Newton

Mark Webster

Nine Dart Club – Gold Pin Badge (televised)

John Part – World Matchplay

Adrian Lewis – European Championship

Brendan Dolan – World Grand Prix

Simon Whitlock – Championship League Darts

Phil Taylor – Championship League Darts

A Christmas dinner down the Ally Pally…

The table's set, but who's on the menu?

 

I’m sure most of you after stuffing yourself silly with all the foods Christmas has to offer would like nothing more than to consign words such as ‘turkey’, ‘stuffing’ and, most of all, ‘sprouts’ to the history books for at least another year. But at doubletopdarts we take another look at that most traditional of festive treats, the Christmas dinner, while chucking in a few darting analogies to lighten the mood a tad.

 

The Turkey – Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor

 

Well it has to be hasn’t it? The main draw of the dinner table meets the main draw of the oche. Perhaps not always a fan favourite but seems to get the job done on the big day. One notable difference, however, is that the Power is rarely, if ever, stuffed by an opponent.

 

The Potatoes – James ‘The Machine’ Wade

 

Like the potatoes, Wadey is a constant on the Sunday dinner table as well as Christmas day as the Machine lines up behind Phil Taylor in the majority of the major finals.

 

Pigs in Blankets – Terry ‘The Bull’ Jenkins

 

Pigs in blankets are designed for the big stage of Christmas and so is Jenks. Although sometimes criticised for his lack of form in the major tournos, at the World Champs Terry rises to the occasion and becomes a major player, and a crowd favourite, on the big day at the Ally Pally.

 

The Carrots – Simon ‘The Wizard’ Whitlock

 

With its bright orange colour standing out on your plate, you may have been fooled in your early youth into thinking that this piece of veg was going to give a strong taste. Whitlock, with his distinct appearance and fantastic beard, may give you the same expectation of a loud, trash talking kind of guy. Although this is not the case, Whitlock, like carrots in a Christmas dinner, is most certainly good for the tournament and good for your enjoyment of the day.

 

The Sprouts – Paul ‘The Asset’ Nicholson

 

The villain of the piece for so many. And that’s just the way he likes it. Over the past year, Nicho has burst onto the elite scene and will be a serious contender for a 2012 Premier League place. But, like his veggie equivalent, love him or hate him, he looks here to stay.

 

The Gravy – Vincent “The Dutch Destroyer’ van der Voort

 

The Dutchman is a silky smooth competitor and, despite an early exit from the 2012 PDC World Championships, is a fine one at that. And like a good gravy, provides a great compliment to the main players of the event with his rapid speed, ensuring the event runs at a rythymed pace.

Magnus Caris – How not to deal with a darts crowd

Just a quick post here to discuss a major talking point from these opening matches of the 2012 PDC World Championship, with my review of all the first round action to come in the next few days.

Steve Beaton vs Magnus Caris

To set the scene for those who weren’t watching last night (where were you by the way!?), it was a match that Steve Beaton was expected to win, as by some ‘The Bronzed Adonis’ was seen as a dark horse for an extended run in the competition. However, that run was looking a long way off a few sets into his match against Magnus Caris as both Beaton’s scoring and finishing deserted him, eventually leaving Caris with shots at double top to wrap up a shock 3-0 win.

That’s when the booing began. With the crowd fully behind fan favourite Beaton, and with a desperate desire to see the match extended, whistles and jeers rained down and Caris missed all three darts. In response to what he felt were malicious chants that had cost him a huge win, Caris then turned towards the crowd and threw his arms up in the air aggressively. It would turn out that this moment of weakness, in indulging himself to his frustrations would prove his death knell. Beaton, still not playing anywhere near his best, struggled back to win the match 3-2 with Caris clearly affected by a crowd who had shown him no mercy.

Now the major question that remains. Did the crowd step too far in their jeering of Caris? Sky Sports thought they did. Most of the media too, referring to the match as “controversial”. For me though, I lay the blame at Caris’ door. The man nicknamed ‘Poker Face’ was anything but and should have been more professional, especially for a player so experienced. Obviously, it’s probable that the Swede will have regretted his actions in the cold light of today and I don’t want to knock the guy too much because I’m sure that if I was in his position I would have been frustrated too. But personally I think that dealing with the crowd is an integral part of being a modern darts player, not to mention any other sportsman, so I really don’t believe the Ally Pally crowd had gone too far. Going too far would be emulating what happened in the Premier League in Glasgow earlier this year, where actions become abusive and nasty as opposed to pantomime booing.

But what do you think? I’d also be interested to know that if you disagree with me and you felt last night’s crowd were out of order, would there be any strategy you’d like to see implemented to clamp down on poor behaviour from the crowd? e.g. more security, further banning orders etc

2012 Premier League Darts visits Cardiff – Preview

‘I’ve got a golden ticket’……..well, for last year 

On the eve of the opening night of the PDC World Championships at the Ally Pally, doubletopdarts looks ahead to the tournament most affected by its results, the 2012 PDC Premier League and how vital a role you ticket-holders could have in shaping the evening when it rolls into town on the 29th March.

Also, after just recently buying your tickets you most probably are now looking for some justification in shelling out your hard-earned money in such tricky financial times. Well, look no further!

The Info

The PDC calendar is filled with huge events, from the World Darts Championship that finish in the early days of January to the final Players Championship which comes to a conclusion in mid-December. However, nothing quite compares to the Premier League in both longevity and the calibre of players on show week-in, week-out.

For a start, the 888.com Premier League is not a traditional darts tournament by any standards. It takes place over fifteen weeks and includes sixty matches between eight of the most eagerly anticipated darts players in the world. I say ‘eagerly anticipated’ and not ‘best’ with good reason as importantly the eight players are not simply picked from the usual PDC Order of Merit. As the Professional Darts Corporation explains:

“The 2012 Premier League of Darts will feature the top four players in the PDC Order of Merit following the Ladbrokes World Darts Championship plus four wild cards, with the eight players competing over fourteen weeks in the league phase before the top four players head to the O2 in London on Thursday May 17 to contest the play-offs.”

What it doesn’t state is that two of the ‘wild cards’ are chosen by the PDC and the other two are picked by Sky Sports, which broadcast the event every Thursday evening.  This sometimes-confusing but always-entertaining process can lead to some interesting combinations and probably favour more of the characters of the game, while also rewarding fantastic performances e.g. Mark Webster’s victory over Phil Taylor in the PDC World Championship’s Quarter-Final last year. It also meant that young Dutchman Jelle Klassen was picked in 2009 as a ‘wild card’ when way down at 25th in the Order of Merit at the time of his selection.

Another key facet of the tournament, and one that contributes to its immense popularity, is that each night takes place at a different arena in a different city in the UK. This gives the event the feel of a roadshow, showcasing the cream of the PDC darting crop.

As you can see, Cardiff’s Motorpoint Arena, formerly the Cardiff International Arena until March 2011, is a stop on this roadshow and has been since 2007, even hosting the tournament’s coveted play-off finale in 2008.

The Experiences

But what do the punters think? In the video below, there is a smattering of views on previous experiences of the event from past visitors and what tips they would give to anyone lucky enough to have claimed tickets for the 2012 event. (Apologies for the low volume)

I also spoke to another female patron of the event on how darts is sometimes perceived as a man’s game and how she wanted this myth dispelled to encourage more women to get involved on the night. (Please remember to turn your volume back down after watching my earlier video. I do not want to become a common cause of deafness)

The Crowd

So you’ve got your tickets, you’ve got your beer, now it’s time to get involved! Darts is as much an audience participation sport as any other. Cheering your favourites and booing the pantomime villains is all part of the night’s frivolity.

One of the favourite moments mentioned in the testimonies was the involvement of Mark Webster in last year’s competition who, although hailing from Denbigh in North Wales, was given a fantastic reception here in Cardiff. Despite losing to reigning World Champ Adrian Lewis 8-1 on the night, it still brought about a unique atmosphere and proved firm evidence of how the involvement of a ‘hometown hero’ is a welcome addition to the event.

This is contrasted to one night in Glasgow during last year’s event that left a bitter taste in the mouth for all concerned. The Scot, and eventual champion, Gary Anderson was on in the final match of the evening against Adrian Lewis when a portion of the crowd turned nasty. During Lewis’ walk on, ‘Jackpot’ was pelted with coins and had a pint of beer thrown on him. Even during the match, the small pocket of fans wouldn’t stop and what should have been a fantastic contest was ruined. Ironically it was a visibly-upset Anderson who was most affected by the disruptions and lost the match 8-3, saying after the event that it had completely ruined his night.

However, it has to be pointed out that this is most definitely a very unusual circumstance and it is the events like at Cardiff and at Aberdeen (with Anderson’s fantastic quote: “What happened in Glasgow ripped my heart out. This has filled it back up again.”) that are the true reflection of what the Premier League is really all about.

 

A Qualifiers Tale

Darts has always had its crowd favourites, the pantomime aspect of the sport a vital part of its popularity, and at last year’s PDC World Championships we welcomed another to the fold in Morihiro Hashimoto and his wonderfully lyrical last name.

A nice, and unexpected, memory as Hashimoto beat Matt Padgett in the Preliminary Round before losing to eventual Gary Anderson in his first round match later that night.

A brilliant example though of the power of the darts crowd and why it’s the best in the world as it enlivened what in other sports may have been a dull early round match with an unknown competitor.

It also proves how vital it is to give international qualifiers the chance to compete on stage at the Ally Pally in front of a raucous crowd. Moments like this are special and help show that darts is bidding to be a truly global sport in giving these players a chance to experience a match under the lights against some of the world’s greats.

Whose your money on?

A kiss goodbye?

It’s nearly here…….the granddaddy of them all, the PDC World Darts Championships! They say it’s only twenty one days until Christmas, well to me it’s only eleven days until it all kicks off at the Ally Pally where reigning champ Adrian Lewis puts his trophy on the line against the cream of the darting crop.

Eleven months ago Lewis stormed to the title after beating Gary Anderson 7-5 in a final that included a stunning nine darter. OK, lets watch it again…….

Never gets old.

Anyway, returning  to this year’s tournament, the draw has been made and with some belting first round matches to play there is a real anticipation for that opening night.

But what I want to know is who you think will take the crown? The bookies from their backing clearly see a dominant quartet in Taylor, Lewis, Anderson and James Wade, but what does your gut tell you? Now I know that any event with Mr T in will give my poll a lop-sided nature so I have also posted a poll to see who you would like to see as champion come the 2nd January.

During the next week I will now be profiling each of your contenders and looking in depth to see whether they have what it takes to take the trophy or at least cause a stir!

PDC Premier League…..oh what a night!

A typical night down the darts…

 

 

Coming up on the horizon for all of you darting fans, we have the Christmas feast of two World Championships which are much anticipated by all involved (As a dour Barney once said following his exit from the PDC competition a couple of years back: “The year is over for me now”…….it was the 2nd of January). However, for the moment I would like to briefly pass over these two massive events for a different take on the tournament which dominates the PDC calendar from February to May, the PDC Premier League.

 

Although much of the excitement leading up to the event comes from the debate as to who deserves a place (don’t worry, that will be much discussed in this blog in the coming months too), the actual evening of action is a wonder to behold in itself. As I mentioned in my first post, it was a chance night at a Premier League event that hooked me into the sport and it’s an atmosphere that’s certainly one of a kind.

 

However, I want to know what your experiences are of the PDC circus visiting your town and I also want to hear from those of you who have claimed your tickets for the 2012 event? Any tips on where to have a pre-match pint or meal for those future visitors? Or any advice for those who are looking to put the miles in and need a place to rest their weary heads? These comments will help to produce a preview package for when the tournament kicks off in just over two months time.

Taylor beats Anderson for 4th Grand Slam crown

So that's how he does it ey? Connection with a higher 'Power'

It was inevitable wasn’t it? Phil Taylor, Grand Slam champion once more and with a 103.32 three-dart average to boot. But how did the Power rise to the top so readily at the Civic Hall in Wolverhampton?

Road to the Final

Phil Taylor – after a relatively straightforward progression from his group, the Power’s first opponent/victim was Wes Newton the world number 7 who has enjoyed a fabulous recent year on the PDC tour. However, he was no match for Taylor who secured a stunning 10-3 victory with a tournament-high average of 112.37 in the process. Next up was the self-styled CM Punk of darts, Paul Nicholson who, like Newton, had enjoyed a rapid recent rise to the top in the PDC and was looking for the scalp of Taylor to further their recent feud. Again though, Taylor was in dominant form and glided past ‘The Asset” to secure a semi-final place against former protegé Adrian Lewis. During the match, Lewis had a 101.1 average and several ton-plus finishes but to no avail as ‘The Power’ stormed through with a 16-9 victory.

Gary Anderson – Anderson, after losing his opening match to qualifier Nigel Heydon, said he strongly considered taking a month or so off from the oche to get in the right frame of mind before the World Championships begin in mid-December. However, following the shock loss, the ‘Flying Scotsman’ bounced back to win both of his remaining group games to book a place against James Wade in the first knockout round. With ‘The Machine” certainly no slouch most were expecting a tighter affair than the 10-3 victory that Anderson produced, although most would struggle to compete with the immense scoring power that the Scotsman is capable of. ‘Ando’ knocked in nine maximums to set up a clash with Terry Jenkins in the quarters and although ‘The Bull’ put up stubborn resistance, Jenks would fall 16-12 to the 2010 PDC Premier League Champion. In the semis, Anderson found himself up against Mark Walsh who had enjoyed a fine tournament and took an early 10-6 lead. However, this proved a false dawn and Anderson powered back winning 10 of the next 11 legs to clinch his spot in the final.

The Final

The eagerly anticipated contest began well for both players as Anderson took out 140 and 128 finishes to hold his throw in his first couple of legs while ‘The Power’, a supposed slow-starter, also held confidently. The first break would come with the scores at 2-2, just before the first commercial break, as Phil Taylor pounced at the opportunity given to him by his opponent. This break would prove pivotal, as Taylor then reeled off six more legs on the spin, despite a bizarre miscount from the 15x world champ when on 57 (scientific proof that he is human). Although Anderson briefly threatened with a break of Taylor, this only served to wind up ‘The Power’ who promptly won seven more legs without reply to claim the title, and £100,000. It was a fully deserved victory for Taylor who had dominated throughout the entire week and finished off with a flourish in the demolition of a fine player in Gary Anderson.

Top Stats

Highest 3-dart average – Phil Taylor (vs Wes Newton) – 112.37

Highest checkout – James Wade (vs Dave Chisnall) and Ted Hankey (vs Ian White) – 161

Reasons to be cheerful

Phil Taylor: pure unbridled domination, so as is really….

Gary Anderson: after a poor opener against Heydon got us all concerned for ‘The Flying Scotsman’, he then secured five straight wins before coming up against an immovable object in Taylor

Dean Winstanley: did the BDO proud at this year’s Grand Slam with a 100% record in the group stage and was unlucky not to progress against Mark Walsh in the first knockout round with an average of 104.55

Cause for concern

Raymond van Barneveld: Well what more can you say about the 5x world champion? Lost all three of his group games and there are just so many times where you want to shake him and say if this doesn’t motivate you, nothing will

Scott Waites: Last year’s champion suffered a poor opening day defeat to Michael van Gerwen and things didn’t get much better from there with a group stage KO for ‘Scotty 2 Hotty’

Barrie Bates: I really don’t mean to knock Barrie because he is a top guy (and a Cardiff City fan!) but it really was an awful tournament for him and his arthritis looks to be taking its toll on his darts.

Moment of the Tournament: Phil Taylor miscounting on 57 in the final…….you just couldn’t believe it. Only flaw in an otherwise flawless championship.

What did you think of this year’s Grand Slam? Who were its star men and what was your favourite moment?

Grand Slam of Darts 2011 Round Robin Round-Up

After a whirlwind five days of fantastic darting action, the GSoD 2011 has now moved into it’s knockout phase with the eight last 16 matches already set:

Michael Van Gerwen vs Ted Hankey

Dean Winstanley vs Mark Walsh

Gary Anderson vs James Wade

Terry Jenkins vs Wayne Jones

Phil Taylor vs Wes Newton

Paul Nicholson vs Steve Beaton

Mark Webster vs Martin Phillips

Adrian Lewis vs John Part

But how did they get there?

Group A

Group A kicked off with a 5-3 victory for PDC world number twelve Mark Walsh against BDO stalwart Tony O’Shea. The group also produced the first shock of the night as last year’s champion Scott Waites was defeated by former boy wonder Michael van Gerwen, who achieved an impressive 101.84 average in the process. The task for Waites to qualify was left even harder after his next match when he lost a nailbiter to fellow BDO man O’Shea which virtually put him out of the competition. Van Gerwen’s loss to Mark Walsh then set up a shoot out between the young Dutchman and ‘Silverback’ O’Shea to join Walsh in the last 16. In a back and forth contest, Van Gerwen held his nerve to win 5-2 and top the group due to leg’s difference.

Group B

There was a last-minute alteration to the line up of the group as Simon Whitlock was forced to pull out of the competition after breaking a bone in his ankle, to be replaced by Ian White who finished third in the wildcard qualifier. White’s inclusion was immediately justified as ‘Diamond’ beat a legend of the game, although waning, in Raymond van Barneveld 5-4 on the opening night. In the other opener, in an all-BDO clash, Dean Winstanley thrashed Ted Hankey 5-0, to set himself up nicely for the rest of the tournament. However, Hankey was certainly not down and out and in his second match, defeated van Barneveld 5-2 in another ‘head-shaking’ contest for the Dutchman. Winstanley, on the other hand, maintained his 100% record in the competition with victories in his final two matches against White and Van Barneveld to top the group, leaving only one spot available to either White or Hankey who met in the final match. A 5-2 victory for ‘The Count’ saw the ever-entertaining Hankey progress and dump out White along with Barney, who shockingly finished rock bottom in the group.

Group C

Group C contained home-town hero Wayne Jones who confidently dispatched 2011 World Grand Prix finalist Brendan Dolan 5-2 in his first match and then beat qualifier Nigel Heydon in his second match to book himself a place in the knockout stages of the competition to the delight of the crowd. Heydon, however, had caused a shock in his first match as he defeated an out of sorts Gary Anderson to leave himself a chance of qualifying going into his final match. Anderson, the reigning PDC Premier League champion, spoke in subsequent interviews that he was going through a tough spell both on and off the oche, but put these worries aside after the defeat to register two wins against Dolan and Jones to book his place in the last sixteen as expected. Heydon’s loss to Dolan in the final match extinguished his chances of qualification as the two favourites pulled through.

Group D

I had earlier predicted that this group would be the most difficult to call with four quality players, all with a great chance of qualifying. James Wade was the quickest out of the traps and secured two tight victories over David Chisnall and Justin Pipe in his first two matches, which gave him a commanding position at the top of the group. Terry Jenkins, on the other hand, looked all at his sea in his first match, losing 5-1 to Justin Pipe and seemingly in line for a quick exit from the competition. However, a win in his next round against Dave Chisnall, ‘Chizzy’s second defeat, gave him a sniff although he would have to beat Wade in his last match to pip Pipe who had lost his final two matches. In a classic bit of darting drama, Jenkins fought back from a 3-1 deficit to beat Wade 5-3 and, in fact, overtake ‘The Machine’ to the top spot in the group, with a gutted Pipe watching on from the practice rooms.

Group E

In any group which has Phil Taylor in, it’s more than likely that the other three competitors are going to be fighting out for the other remaining qualifying spot. Indeed it would play out like this as ‘The Power’ stormed through with three wins out of three against James Hubbard, Steve Beaton and Mervyn King respectively. But who would claim that second place? Beaton began well as he defeated fellow experienced competitor Mervyn King on the opening night before the customary loss to Taylor in his second match. For James Hubbard, after losing to the 15x world champion on the opening night, despite an admirable display, he then fell to King in a must-win match to edge the youngest player in the tournament towards the trap door. The final push through this door came on the final night as a loss to Beaton put Hubbard out and put ‘The Bronzed Adonis’ into second spot after King’s inevitable defeat to Phil Taylor.

Group F

With Paul Nicholson and Wes Newton the clear favourites given the year they have had, it was always going to be an uphill battle for qualifier Magnus Caris and Barrie Bates, whose darts is struggling due to arthritis. Sadly a 5-0 whitewash to Nicholson on the opening night was a indicator of what was to come for Bates who lost to Magnus Caris and Wes Newton in his other two games, with only two legs won in the process. Caris’s win over Bates, however, had given the Swede a chance of progressing and with Wes Newton losing a squeaker to Nicholson it was ‘The Warrior’ who was in Caris’s sights. To do this though, Caris would have to comprehensively beat Paul Nicholson in his final match and this never seemed on the cards with ‘The Asset’ victorious to maintain his 100% record into the last sixteen.

Group G

Group G could otherwise be called the ‘multi-national group’ as all four of its competitors were of different nationalities, which perhaps added an extra spice to proceedings. It was the Canadian and Welsh flags that were flying highest on the opening night as John Part and Mark Webster overcame Jan Dekker and Arron Monk respectively to take the early advantage. Webster then carried this form on through the rest of the group to beat John Park and Jan Dekker to secure top spot and leave only the second spot up for grabs. Although Part seemed well placed to take this spot, his poor 5-1 defeat to the Denbigh dynamo in the second set of matches, let in Jan Dekker who comprehensively beat Arron Monk by the same score on the same night. However, after Webster had sneaked past Dekker on the final night, a ‘Darth Maple’ (the worst, and at the same time, best nickname in darts) victory over Arron Monk was enough to allow a relieved Part through to the knockout stages.

Group H

There was a Dutch civil war of sorts on the opening night for this group as Co Stompe took on Vincent van der Voort, looking for a key first win. It was Stompe who would come out on top in this clash to join world champ Adrian Lewis, who defeated Martin Phillips, as the first two men out of the blocks. It was as predicted that Lewis would be the comfortable qualifier from the group and ‘Jackpot’ lived up to this expectation with two more victories over Stompe and van der Voort to book his place in the next round. A loss for van der Voort against Phillips in his second match put the Dutchman, of whom much better was expected, out of the tournament and put Phillips in the position of a winner-takes-all final match with Stompe. The Welshman triumphed on this occasion to set up a contest with countrymen Mark Webster in the last sixteen.

Key Stats

A GSoD group stage to remember (100% record) – Dean Winstanley, Phil Taylor, Paul Nicholson, Mark Webster, Adrian Lewis

A GSoD group stage to forget (0% record) – Raymond van Barneveld, James Hubbard (although with an honourable mention in his first televised tournament in Phil Taylor’s group!), Barrie Bates, Arron Monk, Vincent van der Voort

Highest Checkout – James Wade (vs Dave Chisnall) – 161

Highest 3-dart average – Gary Anderson (vs Brendan Dolan) – 104.60

Lowest 3-dart average – Barrie Bates (vs Paul Nicholson) – 71.30

See the PDC Official Website for full tables and info for (the very few!) remaining tickets