Issue 37 (September 16, 2016)

Friday 16 September 2016

Darts Weekly

“I want to be the best!”

Exclusive interview with Challenge Tour winner Rob Cross P4-5

LAWRENCE LUSTIG/PDC

LUCKY 13 FOR MVG

PORTER HAS HIS SAY

REYNOLDS ON FIRE

Van Gerwen claims another European Tour title Pages 2-3

PDC chief executive Matt Porter chats to us Pages 6-7

Welshman hits nine darter and wins Classic Page 9 & 11

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Friday 16 September 2016 Darts Weekly

Not so unlucky 13 for MVG as he clinches European Darts Trophy title in thrilling final Alex Moss CHIEF DARTS WRITER It may not have the prestige or financial benefit of a major televised tournament victory, but Michael van Gerwen’s triumph in the HappyBet European Darts Trophy has to go down as one of the most impressive of his career.

The world number one, who pulled out of the HappyBet International Darts Open the previous weekend with an ankle injury, was in fine form as he edged past Mensur Suljovic 6-5 in the final on Sunday.

Van Gerwen averaged 106.77 in the final against the in-form Austrian, and just hours earlier had posted a stunning 115.13 average in his 6-2 quarter-final win over his fellow Dutchman Jelle Klaasen.

From sitting at home recovering from injury to lifting the winner’s trophy and pocketing £25,000, van Gerwen could hardly contain

his delight as he got back to winning ways at the first attempt.

“Last week I wasn’t sure whether I was going to play and on the Thursday I rang the organisation and said I will come tomorrow,” van Gerwen explains.

“And the day after I woke up with a bad foot and I thought to myself I better skip this now and make sure I rest.

“I was on the sofa for four days

“I can’t really complain. The best medicine is to win the tournament” and didn’t move at all. I wasn’t ok until like two or three days ago to be fair.

“But in the end I felt good yesterday so I started the tournament, and I think it went quite well. I can’t really complain.

“The best medicine is to win the tournament. I probably needed the rest in the end. You can’t perform

stores.ebay.co.uk/Mojo-DARTS

365 days a year, it’s impossible but I think I’m doing really well and I’m glad I won this weekend.”

Suljovic, playing in his second consecutive final after winning the International Darts Open the previous weekend, looked to be on course for his second PDC title when he established leads of 4-2 and 5-4 in the best of 11 legs final.

But van Gerwen produced two breath-taking legs to snatch it in a last leg decider and clinch his 13th European Tour title.

Having shared the opening two legs, an early break in the third leg put MVG in the driving seat.

Suljovic then pegged him back immediately and won the next two legs, which included an 84 checkout, for another break of throw and a 4-2 lead.

However, van Gerwen dug deep with back-to-back 13 darters to level the final up at 4-4, but still required another break of throw to win the match.

Suljovic was on the brink of victory when he held throw to go

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5-4 in front, but it was here that the Dutchman produced his best darts.

A 12-dart hold of throw followed by an 11-dart break of throw in the next two legs saw him snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

“It was not easy because he’s one of the most difficult players to play against, especially when he’s playing this well,” van Gerwen said.

“My confidence was great. I played fantastic against Jelle earlier on with a 115 average. The European Tour titles won 13 - Michael van Gerwen 4 - Phil Taylor 3 - Michael Smith 2 - Kim Huybrechts, James Wade 1 - Simon Whitlock, Adrian Lewis, Raymond van Barneveld, Justin Pipe, Steve Beaton, Dave Chisnall, Wes Newton, John Part, Mervyn King, Peter Wright, Vincent van der Voort, Gary Anderson, Robert Thornton, Mensur Suljovic

semi-final against Kim was also good, only on one leg I missed loads of doubles.

“But I had to believe in myself and I just had to keep myself calm in this game and that’s exactly what I did.

“Then you also need a bit of luck on your side and make sure you produce legs like the last two.”

On his way to the final, van Gerwen produced another final leg break in the semi-finals to overcome Kim Huybrechts 6-5.

The former world champion was leading 5-4 with the throw, only to see Huybrechts produce a stunning 103 checkout under pressure to level and swing the game back in his favour.

But van Gerwen again found a last leg break in the decider to squeeze through to set up the clash with Suljovic.

Victory for the world number one in Mulheim now confirms him as the top seed for the Unibet European Championship, which takes place in Belgium next month.

Barney to make late bid to get into European Championship Raymond van Barneveld is making a late bid to try and qualify for next month’s Unibet European Championship.

The five-time world champion has been absent from the first eight events on this year’s European Tour, but last night came through the European Qualifiers for this weekend’s HappyBet European Darts Grand Prix.

The penultimate European Tour event of the season gets underway in Sindelfingen, Germany today, with van Barneveld scheduled to take on Scott Dale in the final match of the afternoon session.

With the qualifying criteria for the European Championship Late bid: Raymond van Barneveld has qualified for this weekend’s event changing this year, and now solely based on money earned on the European Tour, van Barneveld will need to reach the final at least to stand a chance of qualifying.

“I need to make a final or two semi-finals,” he told Darts Weekly before last night’s qualifiers, which saw him lose in the final qualifier for the 10th European Tour event.

The European Darts Grand Prix will include six Host Nation Qualifiers in the draw, following the withdrawals of third seed Dave Chisnall and Daryl Gurney earlier this week.

Chisnall, who turned 36 on Monday, has pulled out of this weekend’s tournament with a neck injury, while Gurney’s absence from competition is extended with the injury to his throwing hand.

Gurney has missed the last two European Tour events and has also ruled himself out of next week’s Players Championship triple header, which starts in Barnsley on Tuesday.

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Friday 16 September 2016 Darts Weekly

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

“I always look high and I want to be the best. To make it into the top eight would be a dream”

Rob Cross chats to Alex Moss about winning the Challenge Tour and a twoyear tour card with the PDC

ho would have thought a a trip to Riley’s Norwich on one Saturday afternoon in February would lead to a two-year tour card on the PDC circuit barely seven months later?

Rob Cross certainly didn’t, but two tournament victories on the final weekend of the Unicorn Challenge Tour last weekend saw him finish top of the tour’s Order of Merit, and with it a guaranteed tour card for 2017 and 2018.

Yet if it wasn’t for his uncle persuading him to travel close to 200 miles to have one last go at the Riley’s UK Open Amateur Qualifiers in Norwich, all of this may never have happened.

“I wasn’t planning to go to the Challenge Tour but the run I had in the UK Open pressed me to go there,” the 25-year-old explains.

After winning the Norwich Qualifier, Cross then enjoyed an astonishing run to the last 32 of the Coral UK Open, a run which saw him claim the scalps of Ken MacNeil, Wes Newton and Jeffrey de Graaf along the way.

The Hastings thrower was then beaten 9-5 by world number one Michael van Gerwen on the main stage, in a match which saw his opponent hit two 170 checkouts and a nine dart finish.

It was the electrician’s first taste of the big stage and he was hooked straight away.

“After the UK Open I changed my job to benefit the darts,” he said. “I came back after the UK Open and decided to go for it.

“The family sat down and had a

“When I came back from the UK Open I decided to go for it and changed my job”

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chat about it. I was an electrician and I went through a tough period with the previous company I worked for trying to get the time off to play darts.

“The last six months has been a bit of a dream. It’s all progressed nicely.”

After falling short in the South Benfleet Qualifier the previous weekend, Cross’ hopes of qualifying for the UK Open looked to be over for another year, but a late decision to try another qualifier the next weekend proved to be life-changing.

“Going to the Norwich Qualifier it was my uncle who forced me to go into it to try and give it one more go,” Cross said.

“I went to the South Benfleet Qualifier and fell short, so the last one I could do was Norwich. It was all or nothing.”

Cross won the qualifier to book his place at Minehead for the UK Open and his first experience of playing in a major PDC event.

“I loved every second of it at Minehead,” he said. “I felt a bit rough on the Friday so I was just pleased to get through to the Saturday.

“The nerves weren’t really a problem when I played Michael on the stage. He played exceptional.

“It was the catalyst for me, the push I needed to get to where I am now. It showed me where I was and where I needed to be.”

Cross has always had a winning mentality from a young age. Only three months after picking up a set of darts at the age of 11, he won his

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first youth competition at the age of 12 when he won an Under-15s tournament, and on the same day he reached the semi-finals of the Under-18s event.

“I had a little break from it and then when I was 18 I was playing well then,” he said. “My other half then got pregnant so I gave it up for another two years.

“I got back into it at 22 or 23

“In the Challenge Tour there are no easy games - you’ve got to be sharp” playing down the pub just for a laugh.”

Now with a two-year tour card in the PDC starting in January, darts is serious business now for Cross, and he has big ambitions for what he wants to achieve in the sport.

“Honestly? I always look high,” he said. “I want to be the best.

“I want to make it into that top flight, to be in the top eight would

PICTURE: LAWRENCE LUSTIG/PDC be a dream. Ideally I want to be number one, the same as all the others want to be.

“The first year I’ve got to get used to the travelling. I’d like to break into the top 32 if I can but the boys in the top 32 are on a lot of money but I’ll try and get up there as quick as I can.”

After conquering a Challenge Tour which included the likes of former world champion Richie Burnett, and his fellow Riley’s Qualifier Barry Lynn, Cross knows how tough it will be going on the main tour next year.

“There’s no one on the Challenge Tour without ability there,” he said. “It’s just the top 10 players probably have a bit more consistency on the doubles when under pressure.

“I had a nine darter and five or six 10 darters at the weekend. I also missed another two nine darters, so I’m playing well!”

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Mohammad to present PDC’s first event on the BBC Jason Mohammad will front the BBC’s coverage of their first venture into PDC darts next weekend.

The Cardiff-born presenter, who recently worked for the BBC during their coverage of the European Championships football tournament and the Olympic Games, has been announced as the presenter for the inaugural staging of the tournament.

The Unibet Champions League of Darts takes place at the Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff on September 24-25 and will be the first PDC tournament shown live on the BBC. Vassos Alexander and Dan Dawson will be joined in the commentary box by Paul Nicholson, Mark Webster and Alan Warriner-Little.

Cross and Searle hold on to top two to win tour cards CHALLENGE TOUR Rob Cross and Ryan Searle both won tour cards onto the main PDC circuit after finishing in the top two of the final Unicorn Challenge Tour Order of Merit on Sunday.

The final weekend of this year’s Challenge Tour took place at the Robin Park Tennis Centre in Wigan last weekend, with four events left to determine who would claim the two coveted tour cards on offer.

Cross finished top of the Order of Merit after winning Events 13 and 15, with the first of those on the Saturday including a nine darter.

Richie Burnett won Event 14 to keep his hopes alive, but Searle’s victory in Event 16 was more than enough to keep him in second.

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Friday 16 September 2016 Darts Weekly

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

“We give the players plenty of opportunities, it’s up to them to take them”

Matthew Porter, chief executive of the PDC, chats to James Wade about his ‘PDC and the invisible 90 per cent’ column

couple of weeks ago I wrote an article entitled ‘The PDC and the invisible 90 per cent’, which criticised the PDC for constantly putting on invitational televised events which featured the same handful of players playing each other seemingly ad infinitum.

Consequently, I was offered the opportunity to interview the chief executive of the PDC, Matthew Porter, about my concerns, with the results of this interview below.

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James Wade: Why are the majority of the PDC’s TV events non-ranking exhibitions with limited fields?

Matthew Porter: For a start, you have to distinguish the World Series events from the rest of the circuit.

They grow the game beyond the UK and western Europe, and half the crowd will be aspiring dart players who want to see the best players.

It wouldn’t be fair on them if we brought a product which didn’t include these players, especially as the time difference makes it difficult for them to watch UKbased PDC tournaments.

“The World Series events grow the game beyond the UK and western Europe”

JW: The PDC varied the field in the World Series in 2014, bringing in Stephen Bunting who made the final in Sydney that year.

MP: It didn’t work as well, there was no synergy between the events. It has to be the same players.

JW: On that subject, we’ve seen international players in the World Series, World Championship and World Cup of Darts, and the vast majority are well below the required standard. How does this change going forward?

MP: It’s going to be extremely difficult, but it’s up to them to take the opportunities when they get them and get a sponsor so that they can play the Pro Tour every week.

In the future, as we expand the game beyond the UK and western Europe, they’ll get more chances.

You can’t do everything in year one.

JW: Do you feel that having the same players playing each other so frequently on television risks overexposure?

MP: If you feel like that, you don’t have to watch everything. We give the players plenty of opportunities, it’s up to them to take them and get into that elite group.

It’s not like they have a short shelf-life. Look at Peter Wright, he’s only established himself as an elite player in the last few years having been on and off the scene for two decades.

JW: Then again, we had a European Tour event in Riesa earlier this month with none of the top players in the latter stages, which was very entertaining because you didn’t know who was going

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“The goal is a worldwide circuit much like the PGA or the ATP tours” to win at the end of it.

MP: It was entertaining, but you wouldn’t want that every week.

Like every sport, darts needs its top players playing in its biggest matches.

What was great about Riesa was that it gave other players a taste of the latter stages of a big event.

Hopefully, this experience will spur them on to reach that level more regularly.

JW: Talking of elite players, this year the Premier League featured the top 10 in the rankings. Was this a coincidence?

MP: Yes, it just so happened to work out that way. Players are picked based on a combination of world ranking, form, popularity

PIC: LEYTONORIENT.COM and historical achievement. Sky also have a say with their two wildcards.

JW: Why has there been such a concerted effort to hold most of the European Tour events in Germany?

MP: It’s a great market where darts is very popular. It’s such a large country that the difference between holding events in north and south Germany is like that between Inverness and Bournemouth.

It’s not like every event is hitting the same people, but in time we will look to expand the European Tour to more destinations.

JW: Finally, where do you see the future of the game going?

MP: The goal is a worldwide professional circuit, much like the PGA or the ATP tours. It’s going to take time to build though, and there’s no point rushing things.

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Darts presenter Dave Clark five days into Coastto-Coast walk Sky Sports presenter Dave Clark completed day five of his 200-mile charity walk for Parkinson’s UK yesterday.

Despite suffering from Parkinson’s, the darts anchorman is walking from St Bee’s in Cumbria across the Lake District, Yorkshire Dales and North Yorkshire Moors to Robin Hood’s Bay across two weeks.

Clark, who has been joined by a number of famous faces during the challenging walk, began on Sunday by walking 16 miles.

On Monday the Yorkshireman completed 18 miles in the driving rain, before climbing up to 2,100 feet during an 11-mile walk the following day.

That day saw Clark joined by former darts professional turned Sky Sports pundit Wayne Mardle, while Tuesday’s walk also brought an end of PDC chief executive Matthew Porter’s three-day stint on the walk.

On Wednesday, Clark broke through the 50 mile mark after climbing 2,000 feet during a 12 mile walk.

While yesterday’s walk saw him cover 16 miles and climb up to 2,500 feet, and was the last day of darts master of ceremonies John McDonald’s involvement in the walk.

Clark tweeted this morning: “I have now walked across the entire width of the Lake District. Tough yesterday, 11 hours with a climb to 2,500 feet.”

To donate go to www.justgiving. com/fundraising/ClarkysC2C

UK Open star Cross in pole position ahead of final events

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Friday 16 September 2016 Darts Weekly

RICHARD EDWARDS ASIAN DARTS CORRESPONDENT

An eventful few weeks in soft tip darts in Korea It has been an eventful couple of weeks for soft tip darts in Korea.

Two weeks ago saw the ‘KINTEX’ venue in Korea host the Phoenix Masters and last week saw the same venue host the DARTSLIVE Korean Open.

The Korean Open consisted of a doubles tournament on Saturday and the Korea stage of the World Soft Tip Darts Championships on the Sunday.

I made my first appearance in the ‘Platinum’ bracket of a Phoenix tournament a fortnight ago.

I was amazed to see that such darting greats as myself were given our own lounge away from the rookie, bronze, silver and gold players.

I did not get to try the massage chairs or in fact throw a single dart on one of the practice boards, but boy I ate some sushi! I got knocked out in the group stages by the way.

As for the weekend just gone, I was honoured to play with my nemesis from the PDK circuit: DoWook Jeon.

We managed to win our first two group games, both playing well in the first game (I was particularly pleased/surprised by my 151 checkout), in the second game I fell apart but DoWook carried me well.

Unfortunately, he was unable to carry me any further as we took a pasting in our third match from Royden Lam and Howei Tsai.

In our winner takes final match, our opponents took it all; a fairly close game but alas we didn’t throw well enough and fell to Donny Joe and Mark Pundt from the USA.

As for the Sunday, Paul Lim beat Boris Krcmar in the final.

With only one more stage (Malaysia in October) before the Grand Final in Hong Kong on December 4, Krcmar still sits at the top of the rankings.

I did not participate in the big event as I did not register in time.

Registration was a couple of months ago when all this was new to me and I was not even close to

‘Krcmar still sits at the top with one more stage before the Grand Final’ getting a spot.

The spaces filled up within minutes so, unfortunately, I was not the only darting addict who missed out.

After being dumped out of the doubles tournament on Saturday, I managed to have a few words with Sam Kim from Shotgear Darts.

Sam is director of global marketing and sales at Shotgear Darts, who are an exciting,

fledgling darts company based in Korea. He told me about the innovative ideas they have and told me more about the darts they produce.

“Our production team is composed of professionals with various engineering backgrounds, our love for darts united us and we started developing prototype barrels under the Darts Vader Technical Team identity.

“Having spent three long years of R&D phase, we registered darts barrel-related patents and started our own darts barrel brand Shotgear.”

He went on to tell me more about the make-up of Shotgear and what makes it unique from other darts manufacturers.

“We are a subsidiary of one of the top precision manufacturing companies in Korea with partners in the military and medical device industries.

“Merging precision design and manufacturing technology, we produce darts barrels that feature innovative design and technology.

“Our barrels are manufactured in

Darts Weekly Friday 16 September 2016

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Hat-trick of titles for Duzza in Selsey New darts: Shotgear’s newest release, The Wolf, which features a tapered hole to maximise straightness in flight trajectory the state-of-the-art production facility and our military-certified quality assurance team assure that all products are in superb quality.”

At the Phoenix Masters tournament, I was able to have a hold of a couple of their darts and can testify to how innovative and unique some of them are.

What was particularly interesting for me was their ‘Tomahawk’ dart which features stabilizing fins at the front of the barrel.

There are actually two different versions, with different sized fins. I asked Sam how they came about the idea of the Tomahawk.

“The market is currently overfilled with darts barrels that look and feel the same wrapped in fancy covers.

“The industry is very reluctant to try new things. Our engineers are encouraged to think outside the box and spend many hours coming up with something new.

“Tomahawk barrel is a true example of what we envision as innovative design.”

Sam concluded by telling me his ambitions for Shotgear.

“Shotgear is slowly expanding outside of Korea.

“We are now partnered with great people in a couple of Asia’s biggest markets: Hong Kong and Japan.

“My ambition in the near future is to get our products more exposure in the global market.

“Just like that memorable scene in the V for Vendetta movie, where people wearing Guy Fawkes masks filled the streets to fight for the revolution, I dream that one day our brand of barrels are used by people in every part of the world for recognition of our efforts and innovation in the sport of darts.”

Glen Durrant picked up three titles in Selsey last weekend, but it was Dean Reynolds who was the star performer, hitting a nine darter and winning the England Classic.

The first tournament win for the BDO number one came in the England Matchplay, where he beat Allan Edwards and Jamie Hughes, before overcoming Scott Mitchell 6-3 in the final.

Duzza took the men’s pairs title with Martin Atkins as they proved too much for Steve Carrett and Dennis Harbour in the deciding game, while the third title was secured shortly after with a 6-3 win against Ross Montgomery in the final of the England Masters.

Reynolds brought a close to the weekend’s action in Selsey by holding aloft the England Classic trophy, after he beat Scott Baker 6-3 in the final on Sunday night.

The PDC Development Tour Order of Merit leader continued his recent good form as he picked up his first BDO ranking title of the season.

The previous weekend had seen the Welshman claim a stunning hat-trick of Development Tour titles in Wigan to guarantee himself a tour card on the PDC circuit next year.

However, the 24-year-old’s eyes will now be on trying to win the

leg my opponent took me to pieces

two biggest tournaments on the BDO calendar, the Winmau World Masters and the Lakeside World Championship over the next four months.

Now up to sixth in the BDO Men’s Seasonal Invitational Table following Sunday’s win in Selsey, Reynolds could still make a late charge for the Grand Slam of Darts in November.

Glen Durrant, Scott Mitchell, Darryl Fitton and Jeff Smith make up half of the BDO contingent for this year’s cross-code event, while the other four spots go to the next four highest ranked players in the rankings on September 30.

And with the British Classic (category A) and British Open (category A+) taking place in Bridlington this weekend, the Welsh ace is now 16 points behind Martin Adams in the fourth and final spot up for grabs.

September 30 is also the cut-off date for the World Championship at Lakeside, with former world champions Andy Fordham and Ted Hankey both currently set to miss out on a place in January’s event.

The top 26 qualify automatically for the tournament and Gary Robson in the coveted 26th position heading into the weekend, but Nick Kenny and Bradley Kirk are both just a point behind.

Darts Weekly Friday 16 September 2016

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CHRISTOPHER KEMPF MATCH OF THE WEEK - DEAN REYNOLDS 5-4 JAMIE HUGHES (ENGLAND CLASSIC) DAVID GILL

Reynolds dazzles in England Classic If the BDO has an analogue to the PDC’s Michael van Gerwen, that player is surely Welsh ace Dean Reynolds.

Both young, strikingly similar in appearance, visibly expressive at the oche and supremely talented, the two differ only in the extent of their exploits in the biggest tournaments.

However, the 24-year-old Reynolds has done much in his 2016 campaign thus far to prove his mettle as an elite player.

The Welshman, already a World Trophy semi-finalist and five-time PDC Development Tour winner, achieved his greatest triumph of the year with a magical weekend at the England Darts Organisation’s premier event in Selsey, West Sussex at the weekend.

Reynolds followed up a nine-dart leg in a quarter-final of the England Masters with a 6-3 victory in the England Classic final over Scott Baker.

Along the way he defeated the BDO’s number five ranked player Jamie Hughes.

Though the Welshman strode out to a 4-1 lead, Hughes, a former Zuiderduin Masters champion, applied relentless pressure to Reynolds throughout their semifinal encounter.

While only recording one maximum score of 180, 66 per cent of Hughes’ visits featured at least one treble.

Reynolds’ two maximums, on the other hand, barely compensated for his most erratic scoring and troubles around the double ring.

Six missed darts - three at double 10 and three at double four -

nearly allowed a hard-charging Hughes to break Reynolds’ throw in the first leg after initially failing more than 200 points behind.

Identical 72 finishes from Reynolds (treble 16, double 12) closed the third and fourth legs, as his opponent could not muster the scoring to compete with two 14dart legs.

Inaccuracy at the bullseye, moreover, spoiled Hughes’ chance at a break of throw in the fifth leg.

But Hughes mounted a comeback

‘The weekend could not have augured better for his darting future’ after the descent into a 4-1 deficit.

In the final four legs, Hughes’ first nine dart average was 116.3, far exceeding the 90.8 he recorded in the initial five legs.

It seemed that Hughes had found his range just in time to avoid a decisive defeat. Inconsistent scoring from Reynolds and four missed match darts in the seventh leg allowed his English opponent to win three consecutive legs and

force a deciding ninth leg.

In that ninth leg, Hughes produced one of his best legs of the match, reaching a score of 48 after 12 darts and setting himself up, it seemed, with two match darts to break Reynolds’ throw and advance to the final.

And then came the coup de maître.

Without hesitation, Reynolds poured two darts into the treble 20 bed, shifted over to his right and fired his last dart at tops.

After the third dart hit the board, Reynolds ducked his head slightly for a better view at double 20, almost out of astonishment that he had completed such a huge outshot to win the match.

But the referee affirmed his victory and the partisan crowd exploded in celebration.

Reynolds’ fearless performances against the best players in the BDO recall similar achievements for a teenage van Gerwen nearly a decade ago.

Time will tell if the Welshman can achieve similar greatness, but the weekend’s events could not have augured better for Reynolds’ darting future.

Darts Weekly Friday 16 September 2016

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Tributes paid to ex-England player Haywood after death An ex-England international and British Professional quarterfinalist, Gerry Haywood, has died at the age of 66.

The darting community have been paying tribute to Haywood following the announcement that he had sadly passed away on Monday.

In a post on the BDO website, the organisation’s board of directors wrote: “It is with great sadness that we have to report the passing of Gerry Haywood, a Yorkshire legend.

“Gerry was a proud Yorkshireman who was renowned throughout the darting world and was a true gentleman of the game both on and off the oche.

“Our deepest sympathy goes out to his wife Jean and his family.”

Darts commentator John Gwynne posted on Twitter: “Sad to learn of the passing of Gerry Haywood, a Yorkshire ‘great’ and a lovely man. Always at his best in Roses matches. Condolences.”

Both former and current players also paid tribute on social media, with player-turned-commentator Alan Warriner-Little tweeting: “RIP Gerry Haywood: Had the pleasure of playing him a few times

in the early days. #OldSchool” PDC player Joe Cullen tweeted: “Gutted to hear about the passing of Gerry Haywood. He was the first real big personality I met starting out in darts. Helped me loads true gent.”

Three-time Lakeside finalist Tony O’Shea also paid his respects, posting: “Gonna miss this legend, so sorry Jean and family, hope you all ok.”

Former world champion Scott Mitchell posted: “we had a fabulous long chat at Selsey in June, it seems it was to be our last.

My thoughts with Jean and family at this sad time. RIP Gerry.”

Another former world champion Stephen Bunting also paid his respects when he posted: “Such sad news. Gerry Haywood was a wonderful and inspiring person who always had time for a chat.

“Had a lovely chat with him at Selsey and he always made me smile.

“Rest in peace my friend. My thoughts and prayers are with Jean Haywood at this sad time.”

PDC referee Paul Hinks posted: “A very good friend of mine and a true gentleman sadly passed away today, Gerry Haywood, words

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cannot express how I feel, my thoughts go out to Jean and the family at this sad moment in time.

“RIP Gerry you will never be forgotten, a true legend and I was proud to call you a friend.”

Haywood reached the quarterfinals of the 1983 British Professional after beating Keith Deller 3-0 and Dai Furnish 4-0.

Funeral arrangements will be published when announced.

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Friday 16 September 2016 Darts Weekly

EVERY MATCH. EVERY TABLE. EVERY STAT PROFESSIONAL DARTS CORPORATION EUROPEAN DARTS TROPHY

First round - K Brown (74.56) 61 J Webers (66.97), R Evans (86.19) 6-1 J Artut (77.00), C Reyes (87.32) 4-6 J Payne (87.25), V van der Voort (95.53) 6-1 M Hopp (76.09), J Caven (88.02) 6-5 K Munch (85.14), J Wattimena (85.90) 6-4 S Stevenson (85.52), K Anderson (94.93) 6-0 D Webster (86.87), J Murnan (87.69) 2-6 Z Lerchbacher (94.55), R Green (91.63) 1-6 A Smith (98.66), J Lewis (91.89) 5-6 J Cullen (93.35), D Petersen (81.31) 6-5 M Dennant (80.51), R Huybrechts (92.10) 5-6 V KamphuisSWEDISH (93.25), M King (86.31) 3-6 D van den Bergh OPEN (88.07) 6-3 J (93.24), M Schindler Vesgo (86.76), J Pipe (84.03) 6-1 R Edhouse (87.74), S West (91.37) 36 A Jenkins (90.77). Second round - M van Gerwen (99.99) 62 K Brown (93.62), S Whitlock (98.11) 6-5 R Evans (98.86), B van de Pas (88.01) 6-2 J Payne (86.84), J Klaasen (111.23) 6-1 V van der Voort (86.90), D Chisnall (98.71) 6-5 J Caven (96.14), G Price (84.30) 6-2 J Wattimena (81.70), K Huybrechts (106.09) 60 K Anderson (89.07), T Jenkins (86.87) 6-5 Z Lerchbacher (78.69), P Wright (101.33) 6-0 A Smith (82.96), S Bunting (98.50) 4-6 J Cullen (99.60), I White (86.20) 65 D Petersen (86.98), M Suljovic (92.02) 6-0 V Kamphuis (84.68), M Smith (100.20) 6-0 D van den Bergh (82.97), R Thornton (88.34) 6-5 M Schindler (78.93), J Wade (91.61) 6-5 J Pipe (89.16), A Norris (85.03) 5-6 A Jenkins (88.08).

Third round - M van Gerwen (91.86) 6-3 S Whitlock (87.60), B van de Pas (11.34) 5-6 J Klaasen (106.68), D Chisnall (100.90) 3-6 G Price (98.22), K Huybrechts (89.27) 6-5 T Jenkins (85.89), P Wright (88.85) 6-5 J Cullen (93.02), I White (104.56) 3-6 M Suljovic (103.39), M Smith (100.91) 6-4 R Thornton (97.12), J

Wade (98.01) 6-3 A Jenkins (88.03). Quarter finals - M van Gerwen (115.13) 6-2 J Klaasen (107.11), G Price (94.97) 4-6 K Huybrechts (97.73), P Wright (92.67) 1-6 M Suljovic (99.17), M Smith (92.14) 5-6 J Wade (100.54). Semi finals - M van Gerwen (97.57) 6-5 K Huybrechts (93.46), M Suljovic (100.81) 6-3 J Wade (100.52). Final - M van Gerwen (106.77) 6-5 M Suljovic (101.26).

EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP ORDER OF MERIT 1 M van Gerwen 2 M Suljovic 3 P Wright 4 J Wade 5 D Chisnall 6 K Huybrechts 7 M Smith 8 P Taylor 9 B van de Pas 10 J Klaasen 11 T JenkinsFIXTURES = I White 13 D Gurney 14 S Bunting 15 S Whitlock 16 G Anderson 17 R Thornton 18 G Price 19 K Anderson = J Cullen 21 A Norris = M King 23 D Petersen = J Richardson 25 J Caven = J Wattimena = M Hopp 28 Jam Wilson = C Dobey 30 J Pipe = A Lewis 32 S West 33 D van den Bergh = K Painter

£133,500 £53,500 £39,500 £37,500 £33,000 £31,500 £28,000 £25,000 £21,500 £20,000 £19,500 £19,500 £17,000 £16,000 £15,500 £14,000 £12,000 £11,500 £11,000 £11,000 £10,500 £10,500 £9,000 £9,000 £8,500 £8,500 £8,500 £8,000 £8,000 £7,500 £7,500 £7,000 £6,500 £6,500

 Order of Merit following the HappyBet European Darts Trophy (two events remaining)

UNICORN CHALLENGE TOUR

Event 13 last 16 - M Barnard 5-1 J Bain, A Roy 5-3 P Borthwick, A Monk 5-4 M Dudbridge, T Pehkonen 5-4 N Daniels, R Cross 5-2 G Stone, C Quantock 5-1 E White, R Burnett 5-1 D Stewart, K Shepherd 5-3 K Parry. Quarter finals - M Barnard 5-1 A Roy, A Monk 5-2 T Pehkonen, R Cross 5-1 C Quantock, K Shepherd 5-4 R Burnett. Semi finals - M Barnard 5-2 A Monk, R Cross 5-2 K Shepherd. Final - R Cross 5-1 M Barnard.

Event 14 last 16 - R Cross 5-1 S Gallimore, R Burnett 5-2 M Padgett, R Sudale 5-4 T Pehkonen, K Dowling 5-3 R Searle, B de Hoog 5-4 P Hudson, D Stewart 5-0 G Stone, B Bates 5-3 D Portela, A Monk 5-0 C Littlecott. Quarter finals - R Burnett 5-1 R Cross, R Sudale 5-1 K Dowling, D Stewart 51 B de Hoog, A Monk 5-1 B Bates.

Semi finals - R Burnett 5-2 R Sudale, A Monk 5-2 D Stewart.

Final - R Burnett 5-1 A Monk.

Event 15 last 16 - M Turner 5-2 M Baynham, R Burnett 5-3 M Michels, T Burkhill 5-1 M Hylton, R Hosey 5-2 T Pehkonen, R Cross 5-4 C Loose, E White 5-3 J Newland, M Dawson 5-0 P Coughlin, R Searle 5-3 J Landon.

Quarter finals - M Turner 5-2 R Burnett, T Burkhill 5-2 R Hosey, R Cross 5-1 E White, R Searle 5-1 M Dawson. Semi finals - M Turner 5-2 T Burkhill, R Cross 5-0 R Searle. Final - R Cross 5-0 M Turner.

Event 16 last 16 - H Ward 5-3 S Marsh, R Searle 5-2 M Forman, P Coughlin 5-3 R Hosey, R Cross 5-2 B Lynn, B Bates 5-3 R Baillie, M Dawson 5-3 D Stewart, S Taylor 53 J Bain, M Thomas 5-4 A Hunt.

Quarter finals - R Searle 5-1 H Ward, P Coughlin 5-3 R Cross, B Bates 5-4 M Dawson, S Taylor 5-3

Darts Weekly Friday 16 September 2016

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EVERY STAT YOU NEED HERE. BRITISH DARTS ORGANISATION M Dawson. Semi finals - R Searle 5-2 P Coughlin, B Bates 5-2 S Taylor. Final - R Searle 5-1 B Bates.

UNICORN CHALENGE TOUR FINAL ORDER OF MERIT 1 R Cross £9,700 2 R Searle £7,400 3 R Burnett £5,000 4 B Lynn £4,650 5 A Hunt £4,150 6 M Dudbridge £3,950 7 B de Hoog £3,850 8 S Taylor £3,700 9 N Fullwell £3,600 10 C Quantock £3,250 FIXTURES TODAY HappyBet European Darts Grand Prix first round - N Aspinall v J Foreman, R Owen v M Frost, J Murnan v D Horvat, A Tabern v S Taylor, R Allenstein v D Webster, M McGowan v R Huybrechts, J Hubbard v M Hopp, R van Barneveld v S Dale, C Kist v B Dolan, T West v J de Graaf, G Clemens v J Clayton, R Green v A Monk, A Boulton v M Schindler, C INTERNATIONAL Reyes v R Marijanovic, JDARTS Wattimena v FQUALIFIERS Herz, D Petersen v OPEN J Wilson.

TOMORROW HappyBet European Darts Grand Prix (second round) SUNDAY HappyBet European Darts Grand Prix (third round, quarter finals, semi finals and final) TUESDAY Players Championship 14 WEDNESDAY FIXTURES Players Championship 15 THURSDAY Players Championship 16

ENGLAND MATCHPLAY Men’s quarter finals - M McGeeney 4-3 G Robson, S Mitchell 4-1 T O’Shea, J Hughes 42 P Hogan, G Durrant 4-1 A Edwards. Semi finals - M McGeeney 2-5 S Mitchell, J Hughes 2-5FIXTURES G Durrant. Final - S Mitchell 3-6 G Durrant.

Ladies quarter finals - D Hedman 4-3 T Gulliver, F Sherrock 4-3 A Dobromyslova, C Brookin 4-0 P Jacklin, L Ashton 40 M Sutton. Semi finals - D Hedman 5-2 F Sherrock, C Brookin 2-5 L Ashton. Final -D Hedman 5-6 L Ashton.

Boys final - J Vincent 3-2 L Gurney. Girls final - N Eaves 3-2 A Collins.

ENGLAND MASTERS PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP Men’s last 16 -13 G Durrant 4-3 D Clifford, S Lovett 1-4 D Reynolds, M Atkins 3-4 N Kenny, G Robson 3-4 D Fitton, B Kirk 2-4 R Montgomery, M Stead 4-3 K Smith, S Rose 4-1 C Whitehead, D Harbour 4-2 B Suckley. Quarter finals - G Durrant 5-4 D Reynolds, N Kenny 0-5 D Fitton, R Montgomery 5-2 M Stead, S Rose 5-1 D Harbour. Semi finals - G Durrant 6-4FIXTURES D Fitton, R Montgomery 6-2 S Rose. Final - G Durrant 6-3 R Montgomery.

Ladies last 16 - D Hedman 4-0 J Paterson, S Gulliver 1-4 R Griffiths, R Brooks 4-0 S Carrett, T Gulliver 4-2 L Winstanley, A Dobromyslova 4-0 P Jacklin, S Chick 4-3 B Dyer, M Noijens 4-3 A Zijlstra, J Maiden 0-4 L Ashton.

Quarter finals - D Hedman 4-1 R Griffiths, R Brooks 2-4 T Gulliver, A Dobromyslova 4-2 S Chick, M Noijens 0-4 L Ashton.

Semi finals - D Hedman 4-2 T

Gulliver, A Dobromyslova 4-3 L Ashton. Final - D Hedman 5-1 A Dobromyslova.

ENGLAND CLASSIC Men’s last 16 - R Edwards 1-4 A Beck, D Reynolds 4-3 D Labanauskas, B Kirk 3-4 T O’Shea, R Veenstra 3-4 J Hughes, S Baker 4-2 R Hayden, B Dawson 3-4 W Harms, N Kenny 4-2 J Williams, D Clifford 4-2 C Prior. Quarter finals - A Beck 1-5 D Reynolds, T O’Shea 2-5 J Hughes, S Baker 5-2 W Harms, N Kenny 5-4 D Clifford.

Semi finals - D Reynolds 5-4 J Hughes, S Baker 5-3 N Kenny.

Final - D Reynolds 6-3 S Baker.

Ladies last 16 - D Hedman 4-2 C Gallagher, F Blay 3-4 C Brookin, F Sherrock 4-2 D Bateman, T Mackenzie 0-4 L Winstanley, A Dobromyslova 4-0 M Noijens, P Jacklin 1-4 T Gulliver, A Zijlstra 42 K Mitchell, J Paterson 0-4 L Ashton. Quarter finals - D Hedman 4-1 C Brookin, F Sherrock 4-3 L Winstanley, A Dobromyslova 4-2 T Gulliver, A Zijlstra 1-4 L Ashton. Semi finals - D Hedman 4-2 F Sherrock, A Dobromyslova 0-4 L Ashton. Final - D Hedman 2-5 L Ashton.

Boys final - T Radlett 3-2 L Gurney. Girls final - N Bidgway 3-0 N Eaves.

FIXTURES TODAY BDO British Open Pairs TOMORROW Auckland Open BDO British Classic SUNDAY BDO British Open Singles TUESDAY Europe Cup (starts) To find out more about

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Friday 16 September 2016 Darts Weekly

DAVE McNALLY DARTS WRITER

Darts in pubs gone? Not a chance! Is this the future?

In one of my recent articles a few issues ago, I suggested that darts in pubs could well be on the wane and soon be gone from pubs altogether.

No sooner had the article surfaced, Bitter Twisted launched the Cork and Bull in Manchester, utilising the old Granada Studios and turning it into a darting super pub.

It is only a temporary home, but the plans could well be in place for full time permanent venues.

Imagine the floor at any darts tournament, boards set up all around the walls, interactive screens for scoring automatically and recording results, with the addition of a dedicated app that links to the screens.

It would allow you to play many different games, with a huge bar area and plenty of space for friends to watch the games. That gives you a rough idea of what’s going on.

The dartboards are named after icons such as David Bowie and Michael Jordan along with luminaries from the silver screen.

But why? The idea of darts being associated with sticky carpets, warm beers and nylon shirts normally played by a handful of locals is not how Ghislaine West, the business marketing and PR manager of Bitter Twisted sees it.

“It’s time to forget all that - darts is getting cool,” West said. “We are completely different but also fit into the Manchester bar scene.

“We offer social darts, darts on a much bigger level. It’s for groups of friends, colleagues and even complete strangers.

“It doesn’t matter about your

x

ability or darting experience. All of our dartboards are equipped with full size monitors above the boards.

“These can be synchronised to an app we have developed to automatically do the scoring, taking away the need for the mental arithmetic.

“Not only this, our dart players

“It’s time to forget about the old school pub clichés - darts is getting cool” can also access different games that they can launch from the app to play.”

The constant buzz around the bar suggests that this is a winning formula, with groups of people cheering and shouting as winning doubles are planted in the board.

“We wanted to pull the darts cliché away from an old school pub

culture and bring it into modern day bars for young professionals to play and deliberately target darts players and fans.”

With the popularity of the sport and the changing demographic of its fans, this is a market that could be developed and extended upon.

“We wanted darts players who would become regulars but also wanted the casual or curious customer who would venture into the premises and end up playing darts,” West said. “This proved to be the case and it was a 50/50 split with both parties really enjoying it.”

The purist may be sceptical about all of this, preferring the traditional pub leagues, while some may see it as a great step forward to rejuvenate darts in pubs.

Whatever way you look at it, more participation, offering more opportunities to play and with companies like Bitter Twisted creating these type of ventures, it can only be a good thing for darts.