2009 PDC World Darts Championship
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The 2009 Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship was the 16th
World Championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
organised by the
Professional Darts Corporation The Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) is a professional darts organisation in the United Kingdom, established in 1992 when a group of leading players split from the British Darts Organisation (BDO) to form what was initially called the Wor ...
since it separated from the
British Darts Organisation The British Darts Organisation (BDO) was a darts organisation founded on 7 January 1973 by Olly Croft. Made up of 66 member counties, it oversaw professional, semi-professional and amateur darts competitions in Britain. The BDO was a founder ...
. The event took place at
Alexandra Palace Alexandra Palace is a Grade II listed entertainment and sports venue in London, situated between Wood Green and Muswell Hill in the London Borough of Haringey. It is built on the site of Tottenham Wood and the later Tottenham Wood Farm. Origi ...
in
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
from 19 December 2008 and 4 January 2009.
John Part John Part (born June 29, 1966) is a Canadian former professional darts player and current commentator. Nicknamed Darth Maple, he is a three-times World Champion, having won the 1994 BDO World Darts Championship on his world championship debut, a ...
was the defending champion, having won the PDC World Championship for the second time in the previous year's final against
Kirk Shepherd Kirk Shepherd (born 5 October 1986) is an English former professional darts player who competed in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) tournaments. He was the youngest player ever to reach the final of the World Professional Darts Championshi ...
. However, he was eliminated by
Bill Davis William Grenville Davis, (July 30, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was a Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Ontario from 1971 to 1985. Davis was first elected as the member of provincial Parliament for Peel in the 1959 provincia ...
on the opening night. Shepherd's poor form in 2008 continued, as he was also eliminated in the first round, by Dutchman
Jan van der Rassel Jan van der Rassel (born 5 January 1964) is a former Dutch professional darts player. He used the nicknames The Project and Rassel Dazzle for his matches. Career He began his darts career competing on the BDO circuit in 2002, and reached the ...
. Eventually, the title was won by Phil Taylor, with a 7–1 victory in the final over
Raymond van Barneveld Raymond van Barneveld (born 20 April 1967) is a Dutch professional darts player. Nicknamed Barney, although originally known as The Man, he is one of the most successful darts players in history. Van Barneveld is a five-time World Darts Cham ...
. This was Taylor's twelfth PDC world title, and his fourteenth in all; his average of 110.94 against van Barneveld remains a record for the PDC World Championship final. The tournament was also notable for featuring the first ever
nine-dart finish A nine-dart finish, also known as a nine-darter, is a perfect leg or single game in the sport of darts. The object of the game is to score a set number of points, most commonly 501; in order to win, a player must reach the target total exactly a ...
at the PDC World Championship, completed by van Barneveld in his quarter-final match with Jelle Klaasen.


Format and qualifiers

The televised stages featured 70 players, an increase of two from the previous year. The top 32 players in the
PDC Order of Merit The PDC Order of Merit is a world ranking system used by one of the darts organisations, the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Following the 2007 PDC World Darts Championship it superseded a world ranking system based on points being awarded f ...
on 1 December 2008 were seeded for the tournament. They were joined by 16
PDPA PDPA can refer to: *People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan – a communist party * Personal Data Protection Act 2012 – a Singapore law governing the use and protection of personal data *Professional Dart Players Association – a trade associ ...
members and 22 international qualifiers determined by the PDC and PDPA. The 16 PDPA members were made up from the top eight players who had not already qualified in the
PDC Pro Tour The PDC Pro Tour is a series of non-televised darts tournaments organised by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). They comprise Professional Dart Players Association (PDPA) Players Championships and European Tour events. Only four players ...
events during 2008 and eight other qualifiers were determined at a PDPA Qualifying event which was held on 6 December 2008 in
Telford Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in t ...
. These 48 players were joined by 22 international players who qualified through various means. Some of the players, such as the top American, Australian, Danish and Eastern European players were entered straight into the first round, while others, having won qualifying events in their countries, were entered into the preliminary round. Order of Merit Pro Tour # Robert Thornton #
Jamie Caven Jamie Robert Caven (born 10 March 1976) is an English former professional darts player who plays in British Darts Organisation (BDO) events. He has won seven events on the PDC Pro Tour, including two in the same weekend in May 2013. Caven was ...
#
Steve Maish Stephen Maish (born 22 November 1963 in Southend, Essex) is a retired English professional darts player who competed in Professional Darts Corporation events. He used the nickname Mr Magic for his matches. Career Maish made his televised deb ...
#
Felix McBrearty Felix McBrearty is a former Northern Irish professional darts player who has played in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Career McBrearty began playing in PDC ranked event in 2004, playing mainly in irish tournaments . McBreart ...
#
Steve Beaton Steve Beaton (born 5 April 1964) is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won the BDO World Darts Championship in 1996 and is a former World No. 1. Background Beaton was born in Co ...
#
Matt Clark Matthew Clark is a United Kingdom-based drinks distributor. Matthew or Matt Clark may also refer to: *Mat Clark (born 1990), Canadian ice hockey defenceman *Matt Clark (actor) (born 1936), American actor and director *Matt Clark (baseball) (born 19 ...
#
Kevin McDine Kevin McDine (born 23 May 1985 in Wallsend) is an English professional darts player currently residing in Wallsend. Career In November 2004 he reached the last 16 of the JR & Vauxhall Holiday Park 128 Plus Classic. He improved on that perfor ...
# Carlos Rodriguez PDPA Qualifiers # Tony Ayres # Michael Barnard #
Brendan Dolan Brendan Gabriel Dolan (born 2 August 1973) is a Northern Irish professional darts player from County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He is best known for becoming the first player to hit a ...
#
Nick Fullwell Nick Fullwell (born 6 June 1969 in Wolverhampton) is an English professional darts player who plays for the Professional Darts Corporation events. Career Fullwell joined the PDC circuit in 2005 and narrowly missed out qualifying for the ...
#
Steve Grubb Steve Grubb (born 19 September 1968 from London) is an English professional darts player who plays in World Darts Federation events, he was nicknamed Grubby. Career Grubb fell two games short of qualifying for the 2006 World Matchplay, losin ...
#
John MaGowan Johnny "John" Magowan (born 10 June 1941 in Newtownards, County Down) is a Northern Irish former professional darts player who competed in the Professional Darts Corporation and British Darts Organisation events. BDO career MaGowan reached th ...
# Dennis Smith # Mark Stephenson European Order of Merit
''First Round Qualifiers'' *
Co Stompé Jacobus Wilhelmus "Co" Stompé (born 10 September 1962) is a Dutch former professional darts player. He was nicknamed The Matchstick because of his almost bald head and very thin appearance, making him look like a matchstick. He was also one of ...
* Jelle Klaasen *
Mensur Suljović Mensur Suljović (Serbian Cyrillic: Менсур Суљовић; born 5 March 1972) is an Austrian professional darts player. He plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, having previously played in the British Darts Organisation (B ...
*
Jan van der Rassel Jan van der Rassel (born 5 January 1964) is a former Dutch professional darts player. He used the nicknames The Project and Rassel Dazzle for his matches. Career He began his darts career competing on the BDO circuit in 2002, and reached the ...
International Qualifiers
''First Round Qualifiers'' *
Darin Young Darin may refer to Places *Darin, Anbarabad, a village in Kerman Province, Iran *Darin, Jebalbarez-e Jonubi, a village in Kerman Province, Iran *Darin, Sistan and Baluchestan, a village in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran *Darin, Yazd, a villa ...
*
Bill Davis William Grenville Davis, (July 30, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was a Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Ontario from 1971 to 1985. Davis was first elected as the member of provincial Parliament for Peel in the 1959 provincia ...
* Paul Nicholson *
Russell Stewart Russell "Rusty" Stewart (born 9 October 1960 in Melbourne) is an Australian former professional darts player. He used the nickname Rusty for his matches. Playing career Stewart was one of the most successful Australian darts players of the 1 ...
* Nándor Bezzeg *
Per Laursen Per Laursen (born 16 April 1966) is a Danish professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) and British Darts Organisation (BDO) tournaments. BDO career Laursen reached the final of the WDF World Cup in both singl ...
International Qualifiers
''Preliminary Round Qualifiers'' *
Anastasia Dobromyslova Anastasia Petrovna Dobromyslova-Martin (russian: Анастаси́я Петро́вна Добромы́слова; born 26 September 1984) is a professional darts player. She is a three-time Women's World Professional Darts Champion of the B ...
*
Remco van Eijden Remco van Eijden (born 12 September 1977) is a Dutch former darts player. Career Van Eijden previously played in the British Darts Organisation and he played in the 2008 BDO World Darts Championship, beating fellow Dutchman Mario Robbe in the ...
*
David Fatum David "Dave" Fatum (born August 4, 1968, in Prince Rupert, British Columbia) is a Canadian- American professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation events. His nickname is The Scorpion. He is not a full-time professional an ...
*
Sudesh Fitzgerald Sudesh P. Fitzgerald (born 8 August 1986, in Georgetown) is a Guyanese professional darts player. His nickname is His Majesty. Playing career Fitzgerald reached the semi-final of the 2008 WDF Americas Cup Singles, losing to Canada's Jerry Hul ...
*
Warren French Warren French (born 26 March 1963) is a former New Zealand professional darts player. He lives in Ashburton and uses the nickname Frog for his matches. Career French reached the final of the 2006 New Zealand Open, losing to former world cham ...
* Lourence Ilagan *
Marko Kantele Marko Kantele (born 24 August 1968 in Mäntyharju) is a Finnish darts player. Career Kantele made his major debut in the 1997 Winmau World Masters, beating defending champion Colin Monk in the first round but lost in the second round to Mark D ...
*
Charles Losper Charles Losper (born 18 March 1969) is a South African professional darts player who currently played in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Darts career Having started playing darts in 1991, Losper's first major tournament appea ...
*
Akihiro Nagakawa is a Japanese former professional darts player. Career Nagakawa qualified for the 2008 PDC World Darts Championship, losing in the preliminary round to Anthony Forde. He qualified again for the 2009 PDC World Darts Championship, but lost agai ...
* Shane O'Connor *
Hannes Schnier Johann "Hannes" Schnier (born March 23, 1977 in Vienna) is an Austrian darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation events. Career In June 2006, Schnier won the Austrian National Championship, beating Dietmar Burger in the final. Sin ...
*
Shi Yongsheng Shi Yongsheng (born September 2, 1970 in Xinyang) is a former Chinese professional darts player who competes in the Professional Darts Corporation tournaments. Career In 2004, he lost to Phil Taylor of England 0–3 whitewashed on the 2004 PD ...
There were two notable absentees from this year's tournament. Bob Anderson had resigned from the PDC in 2008 to take part in the
BetFred League of Legends Betfred is a bookmaker based in the United Kingdom, founded by Fred Done.Pronounced to rhyme with "bone". It was first established as a single betting shop in Ordsall, Salford, in 1967. Its turnover in 2004 was reported to be more than £3.5 bi ...
, thus ending a run of 25 consecutive appearances in a World Championship stretching back to 1984, while
Alan Warriner-Little Alan Warriner-Little (born Warriner; 24 March 1962) is an English former professional darts player. Nicknamed The Iceman, he is a former World Grand Prix champion and a former runner-up at the World Professional Darts Championship. Darts car ...
also did not participate, having made 20 consecutive appearances stretching back to 1989. This meant that Phil Taylor now had the longest unbroken run in World Championships, making his 20th consecutive appearance, while Dennis Priestley was the only other remaining player to have played in every WDC/PDC World Championship since the inaugural event in 1994.


Prize money

The 2009 World Championship featured a prize fund of £724,000.


Draw

The draw for the first round of the championship was made on 8 December on
Sky Sports News Sky Sports News (SSN) is a British paid television sports news channel run by Sky, a division of Comcast. History Since 1992, Sky Sports had broadcast sports news, initially a brief ''Football Update'' and later this was expanded into a ...
by
Sid Waddell Sid Waddell (10 August 1940 – 11 August 2012) was an English sports commentator and television personality. He was nicknamed the 'Voice of Darts' due to his fame as a darts commentator, and worked for Granada, Yorkshire, BBC and Sky Sports. D ...
and
Eric Bristow Eric John Bristow, (25 April 1957 – 5 April 2018), nicknamed "The Crafty Cockney", was an English professional darts player. He was ranked World No. 1 by the World Darts Federation a record five times, in 1980, 1981 and 1983–1985. He was ...
. The preliminary round draw was made on the morning of that date.


Preliminary round

These matches were played over the course of the first six sessions of the championship, between 19–22 December. The winners enter the main draw, and played their first round matches over the course of 20–23 December. The matches were the best of nine legs, and had to be won by two clear legs unless the score reaches 7–7 in which case the 15th leg would be decisive. The preliminary round draw were as follows: * All games that went to a final set had to be won by 2 clear legs, if after six more legs the players still couldn't be separated, a sudden death leg would take place to decide the winner, i.e. if the set goes to 5–5, a decider would be played. Scores after player's names are three-dart averages (total points scored divided by darts thrown and multiplied by 3)


Statistics


Representation from different countries

This table shows the number of players in the World Championship, the total number including Preliminary round. * In darts, as in many other sports, some non-
sovereign ''Sovereign'' is a title which can be applied to the highest leader in various categories. The word is borrowed from Old French , which is ultimately derived from the Latin , meaning 'above'. The roles of a sovereign vary from monarch, ruler or ...
sub-national entities of the United Kingdom are treated as separate
countries A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state (polity), state, nation, or other polity, political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, so ...
for sport governance purposes.


International qualifying

The international contingent for the championship have qualified through various means, detailed here:


Continental Europe Order of Merit

The Continental Europe Order of Merit was used to decide four of the international qualifiers for the event, all of whom would be entered in the first round. The top four players in the Order of Merit who had not already qualified via the full Order of Merit or the Players Championship Order of Merit were, from the Netherlands,
Co Stompé Jacobus Wilhelmus "Co" Stompé (born 10 September 1962) is a Dutch former professional darts player. He was nicknamed The Matchstick because of his almost bald head and very thin appearance, making him look like a matchstick. He was also one of ...
(who was the top ranked player on the ranking system mainly by virtue of his German Darts Championship win), second placed Jelle Klaasen, and fourth placed
Jan van der Rassel Jan van der Rassel (born 5 January 1964) is a former Dutch professional darts player. He used the nicknames The Project and Rassel Dazzle for his matches. Career He began his darts career competing on the BDO circuit in 2002, and reached the ...
. Third place went to the Serbian-born Austrian
Mensur Suljović Mensur Suljović (Serbian Cyrillic: Менсур Суљовић; born 5 March 1972) is an Austrian professional darts player. He plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, having previously played in the British Darts Organisation (B ...
. Of the four qualifiers, three had played in the
2008 PDC World Darts Championship The 2008 Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship was the 15th World Championship organised by the Professional Darts Corporation since it separated from the British Darts Organisation. The event took place between 17 December 2007 and 1 January ...
, with Stompé being the only debutant having joined the PDC in June. Klaasen, on his debut in 2008, fell in the first round (albeit in a sudden death leg) to fellow countryman
Vincent van der Voort Vincent van der Voort (born 18 December 1975) is a Dutch professional darts player on the PDC circuit. As of the 2012 PDC World Darts Championship, his nickname is the "Dutch Destroyer", although he used to go by "Grease Lightning". He is bes ...
, having missed ten darts to win the match. Van der Rassel fared better in 2008, beating
Colin Lloyd Colin Edward Lloyd (born 7 August 1973), nicknamed Jaws, is an English retired professional darts player. He is a former world number one ranked player and has won two major television titles in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) – th ...
3–2 in his first-round match before dispatching
Denis Ovens Denis Ovens (born 1 July 1957 in Enfield) is an English retired professional darts player. He is nicknamed ''The Heat'' and is now based in Stevenage. Ovens is widely regarded as one of the most consistent players in the circuit, though he h ...
4–1 in the second round; however he fell by the same scoreline to
Peter Manley Peter David Manley (born 7 March 1962) is an English former professional darts player who played in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events from July 1996 until 2017. He won one major title, the Las Vegas Desert Classic, in 2003, and twic ...
in the last 16. Van der Rassel has made two other appearances in the PDC World Championship – in the 2006 event he lost in the second round and in
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight ...
he lost in the first round. Suljović is making his second appearance in the tournament – in 2008 he defeated Andy Smith 3–2 in the first round before losing out 4–1 to eventual champion
John Part John Part (born June 29, 1966) is a Canadian former professional darts player and current commentator. Nicknamed Darth Maple, he is a three-times World Champion, having won the 1994 BDO World Darts Championship on his world championship debut, a ...
in his second match.


International representatives

Australia qualifiers
The first Australian qualifier was
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...
-born Paul Nicholson, making his debut in the PDC World Championship. After the William Cross Pro-Am series of events in
Shoalhaven The City of Shoalhaven is a local government area in the south-eastern coastal region of New South Wales, Australia. The area is about south of Sydney. The Princes Highway passes through the area, and the South Coast railway line traverses t ...
, Nicholson took an unassailable lead at the top of the Australian Grand Prix rankings – the top ranked player here would earn a place in the first round of the World Championship. His performances in Shoalhaven also earned him a place in the
2008 Grand Slam of Darts The 2008 PartyPoker.com Grand Slam of Darts was the second staging of the darts tournament, the Grand Slam of Darts organised by the Professional Darts Corporation. The event took place from 15 to 23 November 2008 at the Wolverhampton Civic Hall ...
. The second Australian place was given to veteran
Russell Stewart Russell "Rusty" Stewart (born 9 October 1960 in Melbourne) is an Australian former professional darts player. He used the nickname Rusty for his matches. Playing career Stewart was one of the most successful Australian darts players of the 1 ...
, who made 11 appearances between 1984 and 2002 in the BDO World Championship. Stewart won the Oceanic Masters, an event open to all Australian and New Zealand players, to secure his debut in the PDC World Championship, at the first round stage. Caribbean qualifier
Sudesh Fitzgerald Sudesh P. Fitzgerald (born 8 August 1986, in Georgetown) is a Guyanese professional darts player. His nickname is His Majesty. Playing career Fitzgerald reached the semi-final of the 2008 WDF Americas Cup Singles, losing to Canada's Jerry Hul ...
, of Guyana, won the Caribbean and South American Masters to become the second ever Guyanese player to appear in the PDC World Championship, after
Norman Madhoo Norman Madhoo (born April 9, 1964) is a Guyanese professional darts player. He is a three-time winner of the Caribbean and South American Masters, claiming the titles in 2003, 2009 and 2010. Madhoo first qualified for the PDC World Darts Champio ...
who qualified for the 2004 event. Fitzgerald is entered in at the preliminary stage of the tournament. China qualifier
Shi Yongsheng Shi Yongsheng (born September 2, 1970 in Xinyang) is a former Chinese professional darts player who competes in the Professional Darts Corporation tournaments. Career In 2004, he lost to Phil Taylor of England 0–3 whitewashed on the 2004 PD ...
became the Chinese representative at the tournament, making this his third successive appearance in the PDC World Championship. Yongsheng played in the 2008 PDC World Championship, beating Indian qualifier
Ashfaque Sayed Ashfaque Sayed (born 17 October 1964) is an Indian professional darts player who played in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Darts career Ashfaque Sayed's first major tournament came in the 2005 WDF World Cup, against Brazilian Art ...
in the preliminary round but losing to
Alan Warriner-Little Alan Warriner-Little (born Warriner; 24 March 1962) is an English former professional darts player. Nicknamed The Iceman, he is a former World Grand Prix champion and a former runner-up at the World Professional Darts Championship. Darts car ...
in the first round. He also played in the 2007 PDC World Championship but fell at the first hurdle in a loss to Andy Smith. Yongsheng won the Chinese National Championship to secure his place in this year's event, at the preliminary stage. Denmark qualifier
For the third year in a row,
Per Laursen Per Laursen (born 16 April 1966) is a Danish professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) and British Darts Organisation (BDO) tournaments. BDO career Laursen reached the final of the WDF World Cup in both singl ...
topped the Danish Darts League to win a third successive place in the PDC World Championship. He was entered in at the first round stage. In 2007, Laursen defeated
Colin Monk Colin Monk (born 29 September 1967) is an English former professional darts player who played in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) and British Darts Organisation (BDO) events. Career Monk won the Winmau World Masters in 1996, where he ...
3–0 in the first round but narrowly lost 4–3 to third seed Dennis Priestley in the second round, having had eight darts to win the match. In 2008, he lost 3–1 in the opening match of the event to
Alan Tabern "The Saint" Alan Tabern (born 29 September 1966) is an English darts player who plays in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Darts career A left-hander, Tabern made his PDC World Championship debut in 2006 with a surprising ...
. Eastern Europe qualifier The Eastern European qualifier took place on 31 October and was open to players from 14 countries in the area. Hungary's Nándor Bezzeg won the event to become the first ever Hungarian representative at the PDC World Championship, being given a first round place at the tournament. He succeeds the Czech Republic's
Miroslav Navratil Miroslav (Friedrich) Navratil (19 July 1893 – 7 June 1947) was a Croatian soldier, pilot, and general who served in the armies of Austria-Hungary, the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, and the Independent State of Croatia. Until the end of World War I ...
who won the previous year's Eastern European qualifier to earn a place in the 2008 World Championship. Navratil then went on to defeat Philippines qualifier Rizal Barellano 5–0 in the preliminary round before losing 3–2 to
Andy Jenkins Andrew Jenkins (born 11 March 1971) is an English professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He was nicknamed "Rocky" due to his rough personality. Jenkins has reached high rankings in the PDC, but ha ...
in the first round. Finland qualifier
Marko Kantele Marko Kantele (born 24 August 1968 in Mäntyharju) is a Finnish darts player. Career Kantele made his major debut in the 1997 Winmau World Masters, beating defending champion Colin Monk in the first round but lost in the second round to Mark D ...
will be making his debut at the PDC World Championship (and is Finland's first ever representative in the event) in 2009 having won the Finnish Pro Darts Championship. He entered at the preliminary phase. Germany/Austria qualifier This qualifying place was decided by the German Darts Corporation rankings, which ranks all German/Austrian players from darts events held in the two countries. Austrian Mensur Suljović topped the rankings, however he had already qualified via the Continental Europe Order of Merit. Therefore his fellow Austrian, second-placed
Hannes Schnier Johann "Hannes" Schnier (born March 23, 1977 in Vienna) is an Austrian darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation events. Career In June 2006, Schnier won the Austrian National Championship, beating Dietmar Burger in the final. Sin ...
, received the invitation to make his debut in the event. He entered at the preliminary round. Ireland qualifier
Shane O'Connor won the Irish qualifying event, the inaugural Irish Matchplay, meaning he was entered into the preliminary round of the World Championship, his debut in the event. Japan qualifier
Akihiro Nagakawa is a Japanese former professional darts player. Career Nagakawa qualified for the 2008 PDC World Darts Championship, losing in the preliminary round to Anthony Forde. He qualified again for the 2009 PDC World Darts Championship, but lost agai ...
was the Japanese representative having won the Japanese National Championship to qualify. Nagakawa played at the 2008 PDC World Championship but lost to Anthony Forde from Barbados in the preliminary round. He will once again appear at the preliminary round this year. New Zealand qualifier The New Zealand qualifier was
Warren French Warren French (born 26 March 1963) is a former New Zealand professional darts player. He lives in Ashburton and uses the nickname Frog for his matches. Career French reached the final of the 2006 New Zealand Open, losing to former world cham ...
who won New Zealand's National Singles Championship. French is no stranger to the PDC World Championship, having accompanied fellow New Zealander
Warren Parry Warren "Wazza" Parry (born 9 January 1964) is a New Zealand professional darts player who played in the World Darts Federation (WDF) events. Parry is widely considered the greatest New Zealand player of all time. Career Parry reached the final o ...
to the 2008 event and having played in the 2007 event, where he lost to
James Wade James Martin Wade (born 6 April 1983) is an English professional darts player, currently playing in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He became the youngest player to win a major PDC title, when he won the 2007 World Matchplay at th ...
in the first round. This year he enters in at the preliminary rounds. North America qualifiers The 2008 North American Order of Merit was used to decide the three North American qualifiers. Pennsylvanian
Darin Young Darin may refer to Places *Darin, Anbarabad, a village in Kerman Province, Iran *Darin, Jebalbarez-e Jonubi, a village in Kerman Province, Iran *Darin, Sistan and Baluchestan, a village in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran *Darin, Yazd, a villa ...
topped the rankings, after a second round appearance in the
2008 Las Vegas Desert Classic The 2008 partypoker.com Las Vegas Desert Classic was the seventh installment of the Las Vegas Desert Classic, a darts tournament organised by the Professional Darts Corporation. It was held in the evenings (GMT, morning local time/ PST) between ...
and victory in the inaugural North American Darts Championship. As well as qualifying him for the first round of the 2009 PDC World Championship, these results gave him a place in the 2008 Grand Slam of Darts. Young has twice appeared before in the PDC World Championship, but failed to win a game in either 2005 or 2006.
Bill Davis William Grenville Davis, (July 30, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was a Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Ontario from 1971 to 1985. Davis was first elected as the member of provincial Parliament for Peel in the 1959 provincia ...
finished second in the North American Order of Merit having performed consistently well in all American events, and was the only American to qualify for the televised stages of both the 2008 US Open and the 2008 Desert Classic. This ensured him a place in the first round of the 2009 World Championship. Davis appeared in the World Championship in 2007 but lost his first game 3–1 to Andy Jenkins. Third placed Canadian
David Fatum David "Dave" Fatum (born August 4, 1968, in Prince Rupert, British Columbia) is a Canadian- American professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation events. His nickname is The Scorpion. He is not a full-time professional an ...
qualified for the preliminary round of the event, his debut in the World Championship. Fatum's high placing was mainly on merit of his run to the semi-finals of the 2008 US Open, where he was narrowly beaten 3–2 by Colin Lloyd. Philippines qualifier Lourence Ilagan succeeded Rizal Barellano (who lost in the preliminary round of the 2008 event) to become the 2009 Philippines qualifier. Ilagan won the National Darts Federation of the Philippines qualifier to earn a place at the preliminary round at the
Alexandra Palace Alexandra Palace is a Grade II listed entertainment and sports venue in London, situated between Wood Green and Muswell Hill in the London Borough of Haringey. It is built on the site of Tottenham Wood and the later Tottenham Wood Farm. Origi ...
. Russia qualifier Current BDO Ladies' World Champion
Anastasia Dobromyslova Anastasia Petrovna Dobromyslova-Martin (russian: Анастаси́я Петро́вна Добромы́слова; born 26 September 1984) is a professional darts player. She is a three-time Women's World Professional Darts Champion of the B ...
received qualification following the withdrawal of the Indian qualifier. She became the second woman to play in the PDC World Championship, following Canadian Gayl King who took part in the 2001 PDC World Championship. Following this, Dobromyslova will join the PDC circuit full-time and therefore is not eligible to play in British Darts Organisation events, meaning she cannot defend her BDO Ladies' world title. South Africa qualifier
Charles Losper Charles Losper (born 18 March 1969) is a South African professional darts player who currently played in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Darts career Having started playing darts in 1991, Losper's first major tournament appea ...
will return to the Alexandra Palace for this year's World Championship, after victory for the second successive year in the South African Open. Losper appeared in the first round of the 2008 World Championship, where he lost 3–1 to eventual champion John Part. He will be entered in at the preliminary stage this year. SBS6 wildcard The Dutch TV station
SBS6 SBS6 is a Dutch free-to-air, free-to-cable commercial television channel, TV channel and is a part of Talpa TV, formerly known as SBS Broadcasting B.V. and now owned by Talpa Network. Other channels of the group in the Netherlands are Net5, Vero ...
, who will be broadcasting the World Championship in the Netherlands, originally gave their wildcard to
Co Stompé Jacobus Wilhelmus "Co" Stompé (born 10 September 1962) is a Dutch former professional darts player. He was nicknamed The Matchstick because of his almost bald head and very thin appearance, making him look like a matchstick. He was also one of ...
, who joined the PDC in 2008. However, this decision was in early November; mere weeks later Stompé won the German Darts Championship (his maiden PDC title), beating Phil Taylor 4–2 in the final – this earned him a spot in the World Championship by right, via the Continental Europe Order of Merit. As a result, on 30 November 2008,
Remco van Eijden Remco van Eijden (born 12 September 1977) is a Dutch former darts player. Career Van Eijden previously played in the British Darts Organisation and he played in the 2008 BDO World Darts Championship, beating fellow Dutchman Mario Robbe in the ...
was offered and accepted the wildcard, a decision which led to his expulsion from the 2008 Zuiderduin Masters to be replaced by fellow Dutchman and 2009 BDO World Championship qualifier
Willy van de Wiel Willy van de Wiel (born 15 April 1982) is a Dutch former professional darts player. BDO career Van de Wiel won the 2008 Norway Open, beating Dave Chisnall, Stephen Bunting and John Henderson, before beating Paul Hanvidge in the final. He als ...
. This was van Eijden's debut in the PDC version of the World Championship, and he was entered in at the preliminary round.


Tournament Review


Day One, Friday 19 December


Preliminary Round

:Warren French 5–3 Akihiro Nagakawa


First round

:Roland Scholten 2–3 Carlos Rodriguez (2–3, 3–1, 2–3, 3–0, 1–3) :Wayne Jones 1–3 Robert Thornton (3–2, 1–3, 2–3, 2–3) :John Part 0–3 Bill Davis (1–3, 2–3, 2–3) :Andy Jenkins 1–3 Co Stompé (1–3, 3–0, 1–3, 1–3) The opening match of the tournament was an international affair, seeing Spain's Carlos Rodriguez take on sixteenth seed
Roland Scholten Roland Scholten (born 11 January 1965) is a Dutch former professional darts player who played in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) and British Darts Organisation (BDO). Nicknamed The Tripod and The Flying Dutchman, Scholten tu ...
of the Netherlands. Scholten was struggling with a shoulder/neck injury and in his last televised match – the first round of the 2008 European Championship – he had averaged 52. Rodriguez on the other hand had defeated fifth seed
Terry Jenkins Terry Jenkins (born 26 September 1963) is an English former professional darts player who was nicknamed The Bull, having previously used the name "Tucker" for his matches. He reached number three in the world rankings and was a runner-up in ni ...
in the same tournament. True to form, the first set went to the Spaniard, including a 121 checkout. Scholten then hit back to take the second before Rodriguez included an 11 darter in taking the third set 3–2. The Dutchman included an 11 darter of his own as he took the next set without reply and looked to have the momentum going into the decider, but it was perhaps one set too far as the injury took its toll on Scholten's game and Rodriguez won the set – and the match – fairly comfortably. Scholten did not disgrace himself with an 80 average this time around, though Rodriguez' 88 showed the scoring power that gave him the match. A preliminary round game followed between Japan's
Akihiro Nagakawa is a Japanese former professional darts player. Career Nagakawa qualified for the 2008 PDC World Darts Championship, losing in the preliminary round to Anthony Forde. He qualified again for the 2009 PDC World Darts Championship, but lost agai ...
and New Zealand's
Warren French Warren French (born 26 March 1963) is a former New Zealand professional darts player. He lives in Ashburton and uses the nickname Frog for his matches. Career French reached the final of the 2006 New Zealand Open, losing to former world cham ...
, to be contested over nine legs. This was probably for the better as neither player hit top form, both averaging 54, which was a factor in
Sky Sports Sky Sports is a group of British subscription sports channels operated by the satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It ...
stopping footage of the game halfway through. French had double trouble in the opening legs, letting Nagakawa take a 2–0 lead, but he soon improved, reeling off four legs on the trot to take the match. Highly fancied Robert Thornton took on twenty-fifth seed Wayne Jones in the next match. Thornton, the lone Scotsman in the competition, joined the PDC in May 2008 and had already risen up to thirty-fifth in the PDC Order of Merit. Jones, a semi-finalist here in 2006, took the first set, but Thornton, averaging 94, took the next three without reply to win the match. The tournament lit up in the next match as American
Bill Davis William Grenville Davis, (July 30, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was a Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Ontario from 1971 to 1985. Davis was first elected as the member of provincial Parliament for Peel in the 1959 provincia ...
sensationally defeated the defending champion and fourth seed, Canadian
John Part John Part (born June 29, 1966) is a Canadian former professional darts player and current commentator. Nicknamed Darth Maple, he is a three-times World Champion, having won the 1994 BDO World Darts Championship on his world championship debut, a ...
, 3–0. A slow start from Part allowed Davis to take the first set with a 116 checkout, and the American took a two legs lead in the second set with a 120 checkout. This seemed to awaken the defending champion, who hit five 180s in the next three legs, but missed doubles for the set cost him as Davis took a 2–0 lead. The final set went to a deciding leg as well – Part almost completed a 125 checkout, missing the double 20 to save the match before Davis hit double 10 – the same double Part won his world championship on – to wrap up the win. The final match of the night was a high quality affair with both Dutchman
Co Stompé Jacobus Wilhelmus "Co" Stompé (born 10 September 1962) is a Dutch former professional darts player. He was nicknamed The Matchstick because of his almost bald head and very thin appearance, making him look like a matchstick. He was also one of ...
and twenty-fourth seed
Andy Jenkins Andrew Jenkins (born 11 March 1971) is an English professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He was nicknamed "Rocky" due to his rough personality. Jenkins has reached high rankings in the PDC, but ha ...
averaging 93 and 94 respectively. Both players had defeated Phil Taylor in recent events – Stompé in the final of the German Darts Championship and Jenkins in the group stages of the
2008 Grand Slam of Darts The 2008 PartyPoker.com Grand Slam of Darts was the second staging of the darts tournament, the Grand Slam of Darts organised by the Professional Darts Corporation. The event took place from 15 to 23 November 2008 at the Wolverhampton Civic Hall ...
– and Stompé took the first set. A 120 checkout from the Englishman levelled the match but Stompé, himself a newcomer to the PDC this year, hit a 164 checkout – the highest of the tournament – to help him take the third set. The debutant won the final set 3–1 to win the match by the same scoreline, sending the 2007 semi-finalist Jenkins out. This result also meant all four seeds in action had crashed out.
Summary of Day 1


Day Two, Saturday 20 December


Preliminary Round

:Hannes Schnier 4–6 Shi Yongsheng :David Fatum 6–4 Shane O'Connor


First round

:Terry Jenkins 1–3 Dennis Smith (1–3, 1–3, 3–0, 0–3) :Kevin Painter 3–2 Matt Clark (2–3, 3–1, 3–0, 1–3, 6–5) :Dennis Priestley 3–0 Warren French (3–1, 3–1, 3–1) :Barrie Bates 3–0 Felix McBrearty (3–2, 3–1, 3–0) :Alan Tabern 3–0 Steve Beaton (3–0, 3–1, 3–2) :Michael van Gerwen 3–1 Darin Young (2–3, 3–2, 3–1, 3–0) :Phil Taylor 3–0 Steve Grubb (3–0, 3–0, 3–0) :Alex Roy 1–3 Kevin McDine (2–3, 1–3, 3–0, 1–3) The afternoon session of the second day of the World Championship opened with fifth seed
Terry Jenkins Terry Jenkins (born 26 September 1963) is an English former professional darts player who was nicknamed The Bull, having previously used the name "Tucker" for his matches. He reached number three in the world rankings and was a runner-up in ni ...
taking on Dennis Smith who was returning to the event after a two-year absence. Jenkins had lost in the first round the previous year to 500–1 outsider
Kirk Shepherd Kirk Shepherd (born 5 October 1986) is an English former professional darts player who competed in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) tournaments. He was the youngest player ever to reach the final of the World Professional Darts Championshi ...
, who would then go on to reach the final. His woes at the
Alexandra Palace Alexandra Palace is a Grade II listed entertainment and sports venue in London, situated between Wood Green and Muswell Hill in the London Borough of Haringey. It is built on the site of Tottenham Wood and the later Tottenham Wood Farm. Origi ...
continued as Smith took a comfortable 3–1 victory. Smith took the first two sets before Jenkins looked to stage a comeback with 118 and 107 checkouts helping him take third set 3–0. However, 'Smiffy' put a stop to the resurgence with an 84 checkout on the bull to win the match, meaning all five seeds who had played so far had fallen at the first hurdle. This was followed by a preliminary round match of considerably better quality than the previous night's. Austrian
Hannes Schnier Johann "Hannes" Schnier (born March 23, 1977 in Vienna) is an Austrian darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation events. Career In June 2006, Schnier won the Austrian National Championship, beating Dietmar Burger in the final. Sin ...
, making his debut in the event, and China's
Shi Yongsheng Shi Yongsheng (born September 2, 1970 in Xinyang) is a former Chinese professional darts player who competes in the Professional Darts Corporation tournaments. Career In 2004, he lost to Phil Taylor of England 0–3 whitewashed on the 2004 PD ...
, making a third consecutive appearance, faced off with Yongsheng taking an early lead. Two 180s helped Schnier to take a 4–3 lead before Yongsheng reeled off three legs in succession to take the match 6–4. Arguably the match of the tournament so far followed as seventeenth seed and semi-finalist last year,
Kevin Painter Kevin Painter (born 12 July 1967) is an English retired darts player, known as "The Artist". He is arguably most famous for finishing as the runner-up to Phil Taylor in the 2004 PDC World Championship final, now widely credited as one of the ...
, took on
Matt Clark Matthew Clark is a United Kingdom-based drinks distributor. Matthew or Matt Clark may also refer to: *Mat Clark (born 1990), Canadian ice hockey defenceman *Matt Clark (actor) (born 1936), American actor and director *Matt Clark (baseball) (born 19 ...
. Clark took the first set 3–2 before Painter hit back taking the second 3–1. 'The Artist' then seemed to gain momentum as he took the next set without reply, including a 100 checkout with two double tops and a 126 checkout on the bull, however 'Superman' Clark comfortably won the next set 3–1 to send the match into a decider. The final set had to be won by two clear legs but no player could open up such a margin as they each held their throw for ten straight legs to send the match into a sudden death leg, something that Painter had famously been on the wrong end of in the 2004 final. Clark won the bull, meaning he threw first, but heavy scoring from Painter meant he was first to a double – he missed one dart at double 16 for the match with Clark left on a 104 checkout. Clark got the required treble 20 but himself missed a dart at double 12 to win the contest. Painter then hit double 8 with his third dart to finally take victory and become the first seed to advance into the second round. Dennis Priestley, the eleventh seed, had a considerably more comfortable victory against Warren French of New Zealand. French played far better than in his preliminary round game, averaging 76 rather than 54, however Priestley's average of 87 told all as he took all three sets 3–1 for a 3–0 overall victory. Welshman and twenty-ninth seed
Barrie Bates Barrie Bates (born 17 October 1969) is a former Welsh darts player who played on the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) circuit. His original nickname was Batesy, but since 2007, he was known as Champagne. Career Bates made his PDC televised ...
had a similarly easy victory over Northern Ireland's
Felix McBrearty Felix McBrearty is a former Northern Irish professional darts player who has played in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Career McBrearty began playing in PDC ranked event in 2004, playing mainly in irish tournaments . McBreart ...
, dropping three legs before a 101 checkout gave him a 3–0 win to end the afternoon session. The evening session opened with ninth seed
Alan Tabern "The Saint" Alan Tabern (born 29 September 1966) is an English darts player who plays in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Darts career A left-hander, Tabern made his PDC World Championship debut in 2006 with a surprising ...
producing a comfortable 3–0 victory over 1996 BDO World Champion
Steve Beaton Steve Beaton (born 5 April 1964) is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won the BDO World Darts Championship in 1996 and is a former World No. 1. Background Beaton was born in Co ...
. Tabern's average of 91 to Beaton's 82 was the decisive factor in the match as Beaton only won three legs in his defeat to the 2007 quarter-finalist. This was followed by a third preliminary game, easily the highest quality of the round so far as both the USA's
David Fatum David "Dave" Fatum (born August 4, 1968, in Prince Rupert, British Columbia) is a Canadian- American professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation events. His nickname is The Scorpion. He is not a full-time professional an ...
, a semi-finalist in the 2008 US Open, and Ireland's Shane O'Connor produced averages of above 75. Fatum led 4–2 before missing seven match darts to let O'Connor peg the match back to 4–4, however Fatum made no mistake in taking the next two legs and the match. Another player from the USA and the highest ranked on the North American Order of Merit,
Darin Young Darin may refer to Places *Darin, Anbarabad, a village in Kerman Province, Iran *Darin, Jebalbarez-e Jonubi, a village in Kerman Province, Iran *Darin, Sistan and Baluchestan, a village in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran *Darin, Yazd, a villa ...
, took on Dutch youngster and thirty-second seed
Michael van Gerwen Michael van Gerwen (; born 25 April 1989) is a Dutch professional darts player. He is currently ranked number 3 in the world, having been number 1 from 2014 to 2021. He is also a three-time PDC World Champion, having won the title in 2014, 2 ...
in the next match. Young opened with heavy scoring and took the first set before van Gerwen took the next including a 104 checkout that gave the Netherlands player a burst of momentum – he only dropped one leg in taking the next two sets to win the match. Thirteen-time World Champion and top seed Phil Taylor opened his campaign with a dominant victory over debutant
Steve Grubb Steve Grubb (born 19 September 1968 from London) is an English professional darts player who plays in World Darts Federation events, he was nicknamed Grubby. Career Grubb fell two games short of qualifying for the 2006 World Matchplay, losin ...
. Taylor, with a 96 average – the highest of the tournament so far – was never pushed and didn't drop a leg in a whitewash of the qualifier that acted as a warning shot to the rest of the competition. The final match of the day saw twenty-eighth seed
Alex Roy Alexander Roy (born November 23, 1971) is an American writer, podcaster, TV host and rally race driver who has set various endurance driving records, including the US " Cannonball Run" transcontinental driving record, which he and Dave Maher bro ...
meet fast-rising youngster
Kevin McDine Kevin McDine (born 23 May 1985 in Wallsend) is an English professional darts player currently residing in Wallsend. Career In November 2004 he reached the last 16 of the JR & Vauxhall Holiday Park 128 Plus Classic. He improved on that perfor ...
. McDine took the first set 3–2 and the second 3–1 – a 100 checkout and seven perfect darts in two separate legs helping the Geordie take the latter. Roy seemed to come alive as he took the third set without reply along with a 116 checkout, but McDine included a 108 finish in taking the fourth and final set 3–1 to secure the match, and finish off day two's action.
Summary of Day 2


Day Three, Sunday 21 December


Preliminary Round

:Charles Losper 6–4 Sudesh Fitzgerald :Remco van Eijden 5–3 Anastasia Dobromyslova


First round

:Mark Walsh 3–2 Jamie Caven (3–2, 2–3, 3–2, 2–3, 4–2) :Mark Dudbridge 3–2 Nick Fullwell (2–3, 3–1, 3–0, 1–3, 4–2) :Wes Newton 3–1 Per Laursen (2–3, 3–2, 3–1, 3–2) :Denis Ovens 3–0 Steve Maish (3–1, 3–2, 3–0) :Andy Hamilton 3–0 Michael Barnard (3–1, 3–1, 3–2) :Wayne Mardle 3–0 David Fatum (3–0, 3–1, 3–0) :Raymond van Barneveld 3–0 Mark Stephenson (3–0, 3–0, 3–2) :Peter Manley 2–3 Mensur Suljović (3–1, 2–3, 1–3, 3–0, 1–3) The first match of the third day was a tight affair between twenty-first seed Mark Walsh and
Jamie Caven Jamie Robert Caven (born 10 March 1976) is an English former professional darts player who plays in British Darts Organisation (BDO) events. He has won seven events on the PDC Pro Tour, including two in the same weekend in May 2013. Caven was ...
. Both were second round losers last year and both averaged 91 in a match where the first break of throw was not until the third set. At 1–1 in sets, Walsh had eight perfect darts towards a
nine dart finish A nine-dart finish, also known as a nine-darter, is a perfect leg or single game in the sport of darts. The object of the game is to score a set number of points, most commonly 501; in order to win, a player must reach the target total exactly an ...
but his dart at double 12 fell well short. The following leg he broke Caven's throw and despite a break back from Caven, a 120 checkout saw him take the third set. Caven took the fourth set 3–2 but Walsh, who two years ago went out in the first round with a 71 average due to suffering from
dartitis Dartitis () is a condition which can affect darts players, and severely damage their performance. It can be compared to 'the yips', an expression used to describe apparent loss of fine motor skills without any explanation. The term is used in refer ...
, took the final set 4–2 to go into the second round. The match eventually ended up with a total thirteen 180s between the players; eight were from Walsh which would set a joint-record for the first round along with
Adrian Lewis Adrian Lewis (born 21 January 1985) is an English professional darts player currently playing in the PDC. He is a two-time PDC World Darts Champion, winning in 2011 and 2012. He is nicknamed Jackpot, as he won a jackpot gambling in Las Vegas ...
. The next match saw the second best performance from a preliminary round entrant in South Africa's
Charles Losper Charles Losper (born 18 March 1969) is a South African professional darts player who currently played in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Darts career Having started playing darts in 1991, Losper's first major tournament appea ...
, who faced Guyana's
Sudesh Fitzgerald Sudesh P. Fitzgerald (born 8 August 1986, in Georgetown) is a Guyanese professional darts player. His nickname is His Majesty. Playing career Fitzgerald reached the semi-final of the 2008 WDF Americas Cup Singles, losing to Canada's Jerry Hul ...
. Losper, who twelve months ago lost 3–1 in the first round to eventual champion
John Part John Part (born June 29, 1966) is a Canadian former professional darts player and current commentator. Nicknamed Darth Maple, he is a three-times World Champion, having won the 1994 BDO World Darts Championship on his world championship debut, a ...
, averaged 87 in a tidy 6–4 victory over Fitzgerald, making his debut at the World Championship. Fitzgerald started poorly and let Losper take a 3–1 lead, before a 64 finish helped him level the match. Losper then checked out 95 to retake the lead, but despite Fitzgerald hitting back the next leg, a 180 in the ninth leg and a 14 dart finish in the tenth gave Losper victory. The
2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; " Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discover ...
runner-up and twentieth seed
Mark Dudbridge Mark "Flash" Dudbridge (born 11 January 1973) is an English professional darts player. He appeared in the 2005 Premier League Darts after reaching the final of the 2005 PDC World Darts Championship. He also is a former World Master and has rea ...
was next in action against debutant
Nick Fullwell Nick Fullwell (born 6 June 1969 in Wolverhampton) is an English professional darts player who plays for the Professional Darts Corporation events. Career Fullwell joined the PDC circuit in 2005 and narrowly missed out qualifying for the ...
in a match that also went to a fifth set. Dudbridge led in the first, but missed doubles let Fullwell steal it before 'Flash' Dudbridge took the next set 3–1 including a 100 checkout. Dudbridge took control of the match by taking the third set without reply, but 'Hero' Fullwell hit a 98 finish in the fourth to send the match into a decider. Dudbridge finally prevailed by taking the fourth set 4–2. Thirty-first seed Englishman Wes Newton faced off against Danish
Per Laursen Per Laursen (born 16 April 1966) is a Danish professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) and British Darts Organisation (BDO) tournaments. BDO career Laursen reached the final of the WDF World Cup in both singl ...
in the next match. Both suffered first round exits last year and Laursen was condemned to the same fate in a fairly unremarkable match in which both players averaged in the 80s. Laursen took the first set 3–2 but Newton won the next by the same scoreline, before taking the lead with a 3–1 score in the third set (the only set that didn't go to a deciding leg) and finishing the match off with double 4 in the fourth set's decider. A fairly one-sided match followed as eighteenth seed
Denis Ovens Denis Ovens (born 1 July 1957 in Enfield) is an English retired professional darts player. He is nicknamed ''The Heat'' and is now based in Stevenage. Ovens is widely regarded as one of the most consistent players in the circuit, though he h ...
took a comfortable victory over
Steve Maish Stephen Maish (born 22 November 1963 in Southend, Essex) is a retired English professional darts player who competed in Professional Darts Corporation events. He used the nickname Mr Magic for his matches. Career Maish made his televised deb ...
. Ovens took the first set 3–1 and a tight second set which Ovens won 3–2 with a 15 darter seemed to break Maish's resolve, as finishes of 80 and 120 helped Ovens take the third set without reply to end the afternoon's action. The evening opened with some heavy scoring from number seven seed
Andy Hamilton Andrew Neil Hamilton (born 28 May 1954) is a British comedian, game show panellist, television director, comedy screenwriter, radio dramatist, novelist and actor. Early life and education Hamilton was born in Fulham, southwest London. He ...
, who set the best average of round one (101.59) in a straight sets victory over Michael Barnard. Barnard did not disgrace himself, averaging 93 and performing 114 checkout, but Hamilton's power play including five 180s ensured he went through while throwing down the gauntlet for the rest of the field. What followed was one of the most hotly anticipated matches ever in the PDC World Championship. Massive hype had gathered over the appearance of Russian
Anastasia Dobromyslova Anastasia Petrovna Dobromyslova-Martin (russian: Анастаси́я Петро́вна Добромы́слова; born 26 September 1984) is a professional darts player. She is a three-time Women's World Professional Darts Champion of the B ...
, the Ladies World Champion, facing off against Dutchman
Remco van Eijden Remco van Eijden (born 12 September 1977) is a Dutch former darts player. Career Van Eijden previously played in the British Darts Organisation and he played in the 2008 BDO World Darts Championship, beating fellow Dutchman Mario Robbe in the ...
in a preliminary round game. Both were making their debut in the PDC World Championship and both had been awarded a wild card into the competition. However, Dobromyslova was the clear crowd favourite and the pressure showed on van Eijden as he lost the first leg. This seemed to awaken the Dutchman as he reeled off the next three legs before a thirteen darter helped the Russian to level the match. van Eijden then took the next two legs to win the match and end the dream for Dobromyslova, though both players averaged over 80 in arguably the highest quality preliminary round match so far. Crowd favourite and eighth seed
Wayne Mardle Wayne Elliot Mardle (born 10 May 1973) is an English former professional darts player who played in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) and British Darts Organisation (BDO). He was runner-up in three PDC majors, losing to Phil ...
then began his World Championship campaign against debutant American
David Fatum David "Dave" Fatum (born August 4, 1968, in Prince Rupert, British Columbia) is a Canadian- American professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation events. His nickname is The Scorpion. He is not a full-time professional an ...
. The four-time (including last year) semi-finalist did not play his best game, averaging 86 to Fatum's 81, but it was enough to put him through in straight sets, dropping only one leg in the process. While his scoring was nothing to write home about, Mardle's finishing was eye-catching, including a 116 and 106 checkout in a clinical performance on the doubles – it was this part of his game that put 'Hawaii 501' through comfortably as 'The Scorpion' Fatum struggled in finishing off legs. The
2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple Inc., Apple's first iPhone (1st generation), iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakis ...
champion and second seed
Raymond van Barneveld Raymond van Barneveld (born 20 April 1967) is a Dutch professional darts player. Nicknamed Barney, although originally known as The Man, he is one of the most successful darts players in history. Van Barneveld is a five-time World Darts Cham ...
began his challenge for the championship against English qualifier Mark Stephenson. 'Barney', a third round loser last year, was hoping to outdo both Hamilton's average and Taylor's record of not dropping a leg, and, in taking the first two sets 3–0 he looked to be doing just that. van Barneveld included a 13 darter and two 14 dart finishes in rapidly taking the first set, and a 102 finish was crucial in taking the second. However, his third set was less comfortable, as Stephenson gained his first leg with a 126 checkout and then sent the set into a deciding leg. Stephenson, averaging a respectable 88, missed a dart to take the set before 'The Man' wrapped up the game, averaging a strong 100.80 in the process. The final match of the day saw another upset as thirteenth seed
Peter Manley Peter David Manley (born 7 March 1962) is an English former professional darts player who played in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events from July 1996 until 2017. He won one major title, the Las Vegas Desert Classic, in 2003, and twic ...
fell in a deciding set to Serbian-born Austrian
Mensur Suljović Mensur Suljović (Serbian Cyrillic: Менсур Суљовић; born 5 March 1972) is an Austrian professional darts player. He plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, having previously played in the British Darts Organisation (B ...
. Manley, a three-time runner-up at the PDC World Championship, took the first set with ease including a 124 checkout. He then led 2–0 in the second set before Suljović began to hit back, with two 180s helping him take three legs on the spin to level the match 1–1. Suljović, a second round loser to eventual champion John Part last year, led for the first time in the third set, before 'One Dart' hit a clinical 118 checkout to put him back in the game. However, his scoring was not up to par as Suljović continued to outperform him in that area, and a 101 checkout helped him take third set 3–1. Manley, sensing a defeat, quickly took the next set 3–0 to send the match into a decider. However, it was Suljović (averaging an impressive 91 to Manley's 88) whose nerve held when it mattered most as he broke his opponent's throw early and double ten sent Manley crashing out.
Summary of Day 3


Day Four, Monday 22 December


Preliminary Round

:Marko Kantele 5–2 Lourence Ilagan


First round

:Chris Mason 0–3 John MaGowan (1–3, 1–3, 1–3) :Adrian Lewis 3–1 Russell Stewart (3–1, 2–3, 3–1, 3–1) :Colin Lloyd 0–3 Jelle Klaasen (1–3, 0–3, 0–3) :Mervyn King 3–0 Shi Yongsheng (3–0, 3–0, 3–0) The fourth day only featured play in the evening, and began with a major upset as twenty-second seed Chris Mason fell in straight sets to 67-year-old Irishman
John MaGowan Johnny "John" Magowan (born 10 June 1941 in Newtownards, County Down) is a Northern Irish former professional darts player who competed in the Professional Darts Corporation and British Darts Organisation events. BDO career MaGowan reached th ...
. Mason never got going in the match, averaging 83 to MaGowan's 92. All sets went 3–1 in 'Mr Magoo's favour, with the highlight of the match being a 156 checkout from MaGowan in the final set to end Mason's hopes of a recovery – double 4 finally completed a major surprise in the opening game of the night. In the preliminary round game that followed, Finland's
Marko Kantele Marko Kantele (born 24 August 1968 in Mäntyharju) is a Finnish darts player. Career Kantele made his major debut in the 1997 Winmau World Masters, beating defending champion Colin Monk in the first round but lost in the second round to Mark D ...
produced the best performance of the preliminary stage with an average of 89 to win 5–2 against Lourence Ilagan of the Philippines. Both were debutants though it was the Finn who settled in earlier, completing a 120 checkout before a 12 darter put him 2–0 up. Ilagan won two more legs but Kantele was always in control and a 60 checkout completed the final preliminary round match. Sixth seed young gun
Adrian Lewis Adrian Lewis (born 21 January 1985) is an English professional darts player currently playing in the PDC. He is a two-time PDC World Darts Champion, winning in 2011 and 2012. He is nicknamed Jackpot, as he won a jackpot gambling in Las Vegas ...
, twice a quarter-finalist at the World Championship, entered the tournament facing off against veteran Australian
Russell Stewart Russell "Rusty" Stewart (born 9 October 1960 in Melbourne) is an Australian former professional darts player. He used the nickname Rusty for his matches. Playing career Stewart was one of the most successful Australian darts players of the 1 ...
who was making his debut at the PDC version of the event despite making eleven appearances in the BDO World Championship. Lewis stormed through the first set, including three 180s and a 121 finish to complete a 12 darter to take the set. A 111 finish helped him open up the first set 2–0 as the youngster looked to have the match under control, but a sudden loss in form from Lewis and steady scoring from Stewart helped 'Rusty' take three legs on the trot to level the match. Stewart took the first leg of the next set to take the lead from the first time, but 'Jackpot' started to find form again as he punished missed darts at doubles from the Australian to take the third set 3–1. A 105 checkout sealed the match for Lewis in the fourth set – though he only averaged 86 to Stewart's 84, Lewis did hit eight 180s in the match, the most of the round and equalling Mark Walsh's record. The next match was hyped before the tournament as the match of the first round, however it proved to be anything but as 2006 BDO World Champion Jelle Klaasen dropped only one leg in a clinical demolition of tenth seed
Colin Lloyd Colin Edward Lloyd (born 7 August 1973), nicknamed Jaws, is an English retired professional darts player. He is a former world number one ranked player and has won two major television titles in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) – th ...
. Both were first round losers last year, and both had had darts to win their matches (Klaasen had missed ten match darts to put away
Vincent van der Voort Vincent van der Voort (born 18 December 1975) is a Dutch professional darts player on the PDC circuit. As of the 2012 PDC World Darts Championship, his nickname is the "Dutch Destroyer", although he used to go by "Grease Lightning". He is bes ...
), but Klaasen made no mistake in that area this time as he won the last two sets 3–0 against a disappointing Lloyd – 'Jaws' averaged 86 to 'The Matador's impressive 95. The last match of the night was another one-sided affair as twelfth seed Mervyn King didn't drop a leg against China's
Shi Yongsheng Shi Yongsheng (born September 2, 1970 in Xinyang) is a former Chinese professional darts player who competes in the Professional Darts Corporation tournaments. Career In 2004, he lost to Phil Taylor of England 0–3 whitewashed on the 2004 PD ...
. The averages – King with 92 to Yongsheng's 75 – told all as a 105 checkout was the only real highlight in a match dominated by 'The King'.
Summary of Day 4


Day Five, Tuesday 23 December

* The eight remaining first round matches. :Andy Smith 2–3 Tony Ayres (2–3, 3–2, 2–3, 3–2, 1–3) :Adrian Gray 0–3 Paul Nicholson (0–3, 0–3, 0–3) :Kirk Shepherd 2–3 Jan van der Rassel (2–3, 3–1, 2–3, 3–0, 2–4) :Tony Eccles 3–2 Remco van Eijden (3–0, 3–2, 2–3, 2–3, 3–1) :Ronnie Baxter 3–1 Marko Kantele (2–3, 3–2, 3–0, 3–1) :Colin Osborne 3–0 Charles Losper (3–0, 3–1, 3–2) :James Wade 3–0 Brendan Dolan (3–2, 3–0, 3–1) :Vincent van der Voort 3–0 Nándor Bezzeg (3–2, 3–1, 3–0) The last day of play before the Christmas break featured eight round one games to finish up the first round. First up was twenty-sixth seed Andy Smith, a first round loser last year, taking on debutant Tony Ayres. Ayres took the first set before 'The Pieman' Smith changed gears, hitting two 180s and a thirteen darter to take the second set. An even contest saw Ayres take the third with finishes of 116 and 101 but Smith took the fourth including a 155 checkout. In the deciding set, Ayres quickly took a 2–0 lead before Smith hit a 100 checkout with two double tops to save the game; it was only delaying the inevitable however as Ayres, who hit three 180s to Smith's six, and averaged 86 to Smith's 87, was on target when it mattered – he hit double four cleanly in the next leg to win the match. The next match was an unexpected demolition of twenty-seventh seed
Adrian Gray Adrian Gray (born 28 February 1981) is an English darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Career Gray made his televised debut at the 2003 UK Open. He only began playing darts at the age of 18, and within thr ...
, who did not win a leg in a whitewash defeat by top Australian player Paul Nicholson. Gray only got one dart at a double in the entire match as his average of 84 was blown away by Nicholson's 96 (Nicholson averaged exactly the same as Phil Taylor, who did not drop a leg in his first round match either). Though Nicholson did not hit any 180s, he did hit showpiece checkouts of 142 and 100 to set up a match with
Adrian Lewis Adrian Lewis (born 21 January 1985) is an English professional darts player currently playing in the PDC. He is a two-time PDC World Darts Champion, winning in 2011 and 2012. He is nicknamed Jackpot, as he won a jackpot gambling in Las Vegas ...
in the second round, who had beaten his fellow Australian
Russell Stewart Russell "Rusty" Stewart (born 9 October 1960 in Melbourne) is an Australian former professional darts player. He used the nickname Rusty for his matches. Playing career Stewart was one of the most successful Australian darts players of the 1 ...
the previous day. Twenty-third seed
Kirk Shepherd Kirk Shepherd (born 5 October 1986) is an English former professional darts player who competed in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) tournaments. He was the youngest player ever to reach the final of the World Professional Darts Championshi ...
was not to have a repeat of his fairytale run to the final in last year's 2008 event as he was defeated in a deciding set by Dutchman
Jan van der Rassel Jan van der Rassel (born 5 January 1964) is a former Dutch professional darts player. He used the nicknames The Project and Rassel Dazzle for his matches. Career He began his darts career competing on the BDO circuit in 2002, and reached the ...
. A 106 checkout helped Shepherd lead in the first set, but clean checkouts of 98 and 97 in two consecutive legs ensured that van der Rassel took the first set. Shepherd took the second set 3–1 before the third set went to a deciding leg – 'Rassel Dazzle' held throw to go 2–1 up. The 'Martial Dartist' Shepherd stormed through the fourth set, finishing it with a 126 checkout on the bull, but he could not keep up the momentum as van der Rassel took the final set by two clear legs with a clean 106 checkout. Shepherd's defeat also meant that both finalists from the previous year's tournament had gone out in the first round, the first time this has ever happened. The final game of the afternoon also went to a deciding set though it did not look to be at first as thirtieth seed
Tony Eccles Tony Eccles (born 8 January 1970) is an English former professional darts player. Nicknamed The Viper, he played in both the British Darts Organisation (BDO) and the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He reached the quarter-finals of the BD ...
shot to a 2–0 in sets lead against
Remco van Eijden Remco van Eijden (born 12 September 1977) is a Dutch former darts player. Career Van Eijden previously played in the British Darts Organisation and he played in the 2008 BDO World Darts Championship, beating fellow Dutchman Mario Robbe in the ...
, the conqueror of Ladies World Champion
Anastasia Dobromyslova Anastasia Petrovna Dobromyslova-Martin (russian: Анастаси́я Петро́вна Добромы́слова; born 26 September 1984) is a professional darts player. She is a three-time Women's World Professional Darts Champion of the B ...
in the preliminary round. Eccles included a 164 checkout in the first set, which he won 3–0, and though the second set was closer in going to a deciding leg, Eccles came out on top to give himself a strong lead. However, the match was far from over as van Eijden took the third set in a deciding leg with a gutsy 116 checkout, and in the deciding leg of the fourth Eccles missed five darts for the match before van Eijden levelled the match. 'The Viper' Eccles lost the first leg in the deciding set as van Eijden took the lead for the first time, but this provoked him into heavy scoring as he won the next three legs without reply to finally win the match. The evening's play saw fifteenth seed
Ronnie Baxter Ronnie Baxter (born 5 February 1961) is an English former professional darts player who competed in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He used the nickname "The Rocket" for his matches. Baxter was known for his fast robotic throwing a ...
take on the best performer of the preliminary round – Finn
Marko Kantele Marko Kantele (born 24 August 1968 in Mäntyharju) is a Finnish darts player. Career Kantele made his major debut in the 1997 Winmau World Masters, beating defending champion Colin Monk in the first round but lost in the second round to Mark D ...
. Kantele took the first set with some eye-catching finishing, hitting checkouts of 124 and 164 both on the bull to carve himself a lead despite superior scoring from Baxter. Though Kantele again finished on the bull with a 122 checkout in the second set, Baxter held his throw under pressure to level the match. From then Baxter only lost one leg in the next two sets as he started to hit good form and Kantele's started to slip away – 'The Rocket' stormed through the third set without dropping a leg and he took the fourth, and the match, with some eye-catching finishing of his own, hitting two double tops to complete a 100 checkout. Baxter's end average of 92 to Kantele's 83 showed that it was his scoring that gave him the edge in the match despite some amazing finishing from the Finn. The fourteenth seed
Colin Osborne Colin Osborne (born 19 June 1975) is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. In 2009, he won the Championship League and reached the final of the UK Open. Darts career Osborne has won tw ...
, a quarter-finalist in 2007 but a first round loser last year, opened his campaign with a clinical straight-sets victory over South African
Charles Losper Charles Losper (born 18 March 1969) is a South African professional darts player who currently played in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Darts career Having started playing darts in 1991, Losper's first major tournament appea ...
. Osborne rivalled Kantele's finishing as a 121 checkout helped him take the first set without reply, and a 167 checkout – the highest of the first round – was instrumental in opening a lead in the second set, which he later won with a 110 finish. Losper, now with his back to the wall, appeared to gain steam as a 14 darter gave him a two leg advantage in the third set, but Osborne regrouped and a 96 checkout gave him victory in the deciding leg of the set. 'The Wizard' Osborne's average of 95 to complement his finishing also showed that he was very much a threat following the disappointment of last year.
Brendan Dolan Brendan Gabriel Dolan (born 2 August 1973) is a Northern Irish professional darts player from County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He is best known for becoming the first player to hit a ...
gave third seed
James Wade James Martin Wade (born 6 April 1983) is an English professional darts player, currently playing in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He became the youngest player to win a major PDC title, when he won the 2007 World Matchplay at th ...
a great scare in the first set of their match – he missed six darts for the set before an under-par Wade, who averaged 88, hit an important 106 checkout to take it and break Dolan's spirit. From then on Wade took six of the next seven legs in winning the following two sets and won the match with a thirteen dart finish to set up a match with Tony Eccles, who had famously knocked Wade out in the first round of the 2008 World Grand Prix as 'The Machine' was the defending champion at the time. The next match was another straight-sets victory for a seed – nineteenth seed
Vincent van der Voort Vincent van der Voort (born 18 December 1975) is a Dutch professional darts player on the PDC circuit. As of the 2012 PDC World Darts Championship, his nickname is the "Dutch Destroyer", although he used to go by "Grease Lightning". He is bes ...
won the final first round match 3–0 against Hungarian Nándor Bezzeg. The first set went to a deciding leg but van der Voort took it under pressure, and like Wade he dropped only one leg in taking the next two sets – a 106 checkout, five 180s, and a 90 average from 'Greased Lightning' proved enough to dispatch the Eastern European qualifier and end the first round.
Summary of Day 5


Wednesday 24 December to Friday 26 December

* The tournament goes into
hiatus Hiatus may refer to: * Hiatus (anatomy), a natural fissure in a structure * Hiatus (stratigraphy), a discontinuity in the age of strata in stratigraphy *''Hiatus'', a genus of picture-winged flies with sole member species '' Hiatus fulvipes'' * G ...
for the annual Christmas break.


Day Six, Saturday 27 December

* The first six-second round matches. :Dennis Smith 4–3 Kevin McDine (2–3, 2–3, 1–3, 3–1, 3–0, 3–2, 3–1) :Alan Tabern 1–4 Co Stompé (2–3, 3–1, 2–3, 0–3, 1–3) :Carlos Rodriguez 1–4 Kevin Painter (0–3, 1–3, 3–1, 0–3, 0–3) :Mensur Suljović 0–4 Mark Dudbridge (2–3, 2–3, 2–3, 2–3) :Phil Taylor 4–0 Michael van Gerwen (3–1, 3–0, 3–1, 3–1) :Wayne Mardle 4–3 Robert Thornton (1–3, 3–1, 3–1, 3–2, 1–3, 2–3, 3–1) The tournament resumed and the second round began on day six, which opened with a remarkable match between old PDC stalwart Dennis Smith and young
Kevin McDine Kevin McDine (born 23 May 1985 in Wallsend) is an English professional darts player currently residing in Wallsend. Career In November 2004 he reached the last 16 of the JR & Vauxhall Holiday Park 128 Plus Classic. He improved on that perfor ...
. In the deciding leg of the first set, Smith missed darts to take the opener so McDine stepped in to take it. The second set also went to a decider, and McDine performed an 11 dart finish to open up a 2–0 lead. Checkouts of 110 and 128 on the bull put McDine 3–0 up and on course for a comfortable victory, but Smith rallied in the fourth and began to hit top form as he broke McDine's throw for the first time in the match to win the set. Two fourteen darters and a fifteen dart finish ensured that Smith continued his resurgence in the fifth set, and he levelled the match in the deciding leg of the sixth set. Smith then led for the first time in the match as he took the opening leg of the deciding set, and he repeated McDine's feat of a 128 checkout on the bull to go 2–0 up. From here there was only going to be one winner as Smith landed double eight to complete a famous comeback. Remarkably, Smith hit thirty-one 140s (the most from one player in a single match) but no 180s, compared to McDine's statistic of fifteen 140s and eight 180s. Both players averaged above 90 in a match that would go down as a classic.
Summary of Day 6


Day Seven, Sunday 28 December

* Six more second round matches. :Bill Davis 2–4 Barrie Bates (3–2, 2–3, 3–2, 2–3, 0–3, 2–3) :Ronnie Baxter 4–1 Denis Ovens (1–3, 3–0, 3–1, 3–2, 3–0) :Andy Hamilton 4–2 Tony Ayres (2–3, 3–0, 2–3, 3–1, 3–1, 3–1) :Jelle Klaasen 4–0 Jan van der Rassel (3–2, 3–2, 3–0, 3–0) :Raymond van Barneveld 4–1 Wes Newton (3–1, 3–0, 1–3, 3–0, 3–1) :Mervyn King 4–2 Mark Walsh (1–3, 3–1, 2–3, 3–1, 3–1, 3–1)


Day-eight, Monday 29 December


Second round

:Adrian Lewis 3–4 Paul Nicholson (2–3, 3–1, 0–3, 3–2, 3–1, 0–3, 4–6) :Dennis Priestley 4–1 John MaGowan (3–0, 3–1, 3–2, 0–3, 3–1) :Colin Osborne 1–4 Vincent van der Voort (3–0, 1–3, 2–3, 1–3, 1–3) :James Wade 4–2 Tony Eccles (3–0, 1–3, 3–1, 3–1, 0–3, 3–2)


Third round

:Phil Taylor 4–1 Kevin Painter (1–3, 3–0, 3–0, 3–0, 3–1) :Barrie Bates 4–0 Mark Dudbridge (3–0, 3–1, 3–0, 3–2)


Day Nine, Tuesday 30 December

* The six remaining third round matches. :Paul Nicholson 4–2 Dennis Priestley (2–3, 1–3, 3–0, 3–2, 3–1, 3–1) :Dennis Smith 1–4 Mervyn King (2–3, 2–3, 1–3, 3–1, 1–3) :Wayne Mardle 0–4 Co Stompé (2–3, 1–3, 2–3, 2–3) :Andy Hamilton 1–4 Jelle Klaasen (2–3, 3–2, 1–3, 1–3, 2–3) :Raymond van Barneveld 4–3 Ronnie Baxter (3–2, 1–3, 3–1, 2–3, 1–3, 3–1, 6–5) :James Wade 4–0 Vincent van der Voort (3–1, 3–1, 3–2, 3–2)


Wednesday 31 December

* The tournament goes into a one-day hiatus for New Year.


Day Ten, Thursday 1 January

* The start of the quarter-finals. :Mervyn King 5–2 Barrie Bates (3–1, 3–0, 2–3, 2–3, 3–1, 3–1, 3–0) :Phil Taylor 5–0 Co Stompé (3–0, 3–2, 3–0, 3–0, 3–1)


Day Eleven, Friday 2 January

:Paul Nicholson 3–5 James Wade (2–3, 2–3, 3–1, 2–3, 3–0, 3–0, 0–3, 1–3) :Raymond van Barneveld 5–1 Jelle Klaasen (1–3, 3–0, 3–0, 3–2, 3–2, 3–2)


Nine dart finish

During the second leg of the sixth set of the match between van Barneveld and Klaasen, van Barneveld threw the first-ever
nine dart finish A nine-dart finish, also known as a nine-darter, is a perfect leg or single game in the sport of darts. The object of the game is to score a set number of points, most commonly 501; in order to win, a player must reach the target total exactly an ...
at a
PDC World Darts Championship The PDC World Darts Championship, known for sponsorship purposes as the Cazoo World Darts Championship, organised by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC), is a World Professional Darts Championship held annually in the sport of darts. The ...
since the split from the
British Darts Organisation The British Darts Organisation (BDO) was a darts organisation founded on 7 January 1973 by Olly Croft. Made up of 66 member counties, it oversaw professional, semi-professional and amateur darts competitions in Britain. The BDO was a founder ...
in mid-1993, and only the second World Championship nine-darter (first live) after
Paul Lim Paul Lim Leong Hwa (born 25 January 1954) is a Singaporean professional darts player. He was the first player to hit a perfect nine-dart finish during the Embassy World Darts Championship, which he achieved in 1990 during his second round ...
's similar outshot against
Jack McKenna Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name ...
in
1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
. It was van Barneveld's second nine-darter on live British television after his nine-darter against
Peter Manley Peter David Manley (born 7 March 1962) is an English former professional darts player who played in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events from July 1996 until 2017. He won one major title, the Las Vegas Desert Classic, in 2003, and twic ...
in week five of the 2006 Premier League, and like his first, he used back-to-back 180s, followed by T20, T19, D12 on 141 to complete the perfect leg.


Day Twelve, Saturday 3 January

* The semi-finals. :Raymond van Barneveld 6–4 James Wade (3–2, 0–3, 1–3, 3–2, 2–3, 3–1, 3–0, 0–3, 3–0, 3–0) :Phil Taylor 6–2 Mervyn King (3–1, 3–1, 3–0, 1–3, 2–3, 3–0, 3–0, 3–1)


Day Thirteen, Sunday 4 January

* The final. :Phil Taylor 7–1 Raymond van Barneveld (3–0, 3–0, 2–3, 3–2, 3–2, 3–2, 3–1, 3–2)


Television coverage

As they have done for every PDC World Darts Championship,
Sky Sports Sky Sports is a group of British subscription sports channels operated by the satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It ...
broadcast all 69 matches live in the UK, and for the first time in high-definition. Dave Clark presented the coverage with analysis from Rod Harrington and
Eric Bristow Eric John Bristow, (25 April 1957 – 5 April 2018), nicknamed "The Crafty Cockney", was an English professional darts player. He was ranked World No. 1 by the World Darts Federation a record five times, in 1980, 1981 and 1983–1985. He was ...
. They also commentated on matches along with
Sid Waddell Sid Waddell (10 August 1940 – 11 August 2012) was an English sports commentator and television personality. He was nicknamed the 'Voice of Darts' due to his fame as a darts commentator, and worked for Granada, Yorkshire, BBC and Sky Sports. D ...
, John Gwynne,
Dave Lanning Dave Lanning (24 March 1938 – 29 October 2016) was an English sports commentator and journalist, best known for his coverage of Professional Darts. He was brought up in Poole and educated at Poole Grammar School. Broadcasting career He was o ...
, Nigel Pearson and
Stuart Pyke Stuart Pyke (born 8 July 1961) is a British-born sports journalist and broadcaster. Stuart was born in St Helens, Lancashire, and is married to Christine. He has two children; Daniel and Rachael and two stepdaughters Emma and Victoria. He is no ...
. Interviews were handled by Clark, Bristow and Helen Chamberlain.


References


External links


The official site of the Ladbrokes.com PDC World Darts Championship


{{DEFAULTSORT:Pdc World Darts Championship 2009
2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...
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