Old post - My day as a 'professional' dart player

(originally posted 12.1.11)

The Professional Darts Corporation, one of darts’ two governing bodies, hold a series of qualifying tournaments around the country for the UK Open which is held at Bolton Wanderers’ Reebok Stadium in June. The top 96 players in these qualifying rankings go through to Bolton so the best players need to attend to earn their way through. In February 2006 I decided to join them.

I was pleasantly surprised when I found out that the South-West qualifier was to be held in Swindon, at the Merlin and the Woodlands Edge. At first I thought it would be great to go and watch the big names of the game in action but that quickly changed to ‘why don't I enter?’ I decided it would be a birthday present to myself.

I was expecting to lose easily (the previous year I had won a pub qualifier for the UK Open before being beaten comfortably in my first match at the Regional Finals) but to get beaten by one of the top pros would have been something special. As it was, so many people entered the tournament that the top 64 ranked players had a bye into the second round and I had a feeling I'd be long gone by then!

It was quite a surreal experience at the Woodlands, rubbing shoulders with former world champions (John ‘Darth Maple’ Part, Richie ‘The Prince of Wales’ Burnett) and other people who've been on the telly in front of crowds of a couple of thousand plus. (Didn't want to rub shoulders too much though, the nylon shirts could have given a nasty static charge!)

I drew the then world no. 104, Deta Hedman. Deta is one of the top lady players in the world. My match was third on my board (there were eight crammed in to the pub) and after Deta had kept me waiting five minutes she stuffed me 4-0. I would have loved to have won a leg but I was far too tense for the first three. I would have had to have thrown a hedgehog at the board to have scored more than sixty!

I popped in a nice ton-40 in the last leg and was poised on double 12 but Deta took out the sixty she needed to complete the whitewash. I then had to score the next match which was even more nerve-wracking.

So that was me and professional darts. I've managed to get worse since then (shall I blame an old shoulder injury or the dartitis?) so I won't be having another go any time soon.