Devon Petersen (born 4 June 1986) is a South African professional

darts Darts or dart-throwing is a competitive sport in which two or more players bare-handedly throw small sharp-pointed missiles known as darts at a round target known as a dartboard. Points can be scored by hitting specific marked areas of the bo ...

player and a pundit for

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. He has qualified for the PDC World Championship on seven occasions with his best result coming in 2014, 2019 and 2021 when he reached the last 16. Petersen has become popular for dancing on to the stage to

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's "

Waka Waka (This Time for Africa) "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)", also known as "Waka Waka (Esto es África)" in Spanish, is a song by Colombian singer Shakira, featuring the South African band Freshlyground. Written, composed, and produced by Shakira and John Hill, it was ...

" before his matches.

Career

He qualified for the 2011 PDC World Darts Championship as the South African champion. He beat Guyana's Norman Madhoo 4–3 in the preliminary round with big checkouts including a 136 and a 146. In beating Madhoo, he earned a place in the first round proper, where he would play

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 ...

. Despite winning the first set, Petersen lost by 3 sets to 1. He qualified for the 2011

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 ...

as one of four semi-finalists from the second day of the Pro Tour's Q School. Since turning professional, Petersen has left South Africa to live in Brighouse,

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, and signed a sponsorship deal with leading darts manufacturer Unicorn. Petersen retained the South African Open in 2011 to qualify for the

2012 PDC World Darts Championship The 2012 Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship was the 19th World Championship organised by the Professional Darts Corporation since it separated from the British Darts Organisation. The event took place at the Alexandra Palace between 15 Dece ...

, where he edged out

José Oliveira de Sousa José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacul ...

4–3 (legs) in the preliminary round to reach the last 64 for the second successive year. Petersen played Steve Brown in the first round and recovered from 2–1 down in sets to win 3–2, also recovering from 2–0 down in legs in the deciding set and surviving one match dart. Petersen said after the win that it was a "dream come true" and that he was sure he had more in him. He played Gary Anderson in the second round and played the best he has in front of the television cameras. However, the class of his opponent came through and he lost 4–2, with Anderson stating after the match that "Devon became very tough for me". Petersen himself said that he would "work hard and come back a better player". He represented South Africa with Shawn Hogan in the 2012 PDC World Cup of Darts and together they defeated Spain 5–2 in the first round before causing a shock by knocking out number 4 seeds Scotland in the second round in a sudden death leg. They played Wales in the quarter finals and were beaten in the deciding doubles match. Petersen prematurely celebrated as he thought he had taken his country to the semi-finals by hitting double 16. However, he had miscounted and they were out of the tournament moments later when Richie Burnett secured the winning double. Petersen reached the last 64 of the

2012 UK Open The 2012 Speedy Hire UK Open was a Darts tournament staged in the UK by the Professional Darts Corporation. It was the tenth year of the tournament where, following numerous regional qualifying heats throughout Britain, players competed in a si ...

by defeating Andrew Gilding 4–0, but then lost to

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 ...

9–6. In June, he qualified for the European Tour Event 3 after defeating

Darren Webster Darren Michael Webster (born 10 June 1968) is an English darts player nicknamed Demolition Man. Career Webster won the 2005 Open Oust Nederland, beating Co Stompé in the final. Originally nicknamed The Sniper, Webster reached the quarter-fina ...

and Gareth Cousins in the UK qualifier. Petersen again lost to Baxter this time 6–2 in the first round in

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. Petersen took a year away from darts in 2013 to recuperate from an arm injury. In September he won the South African Masters by defeating Graham Filby 9–3 in the final and in doing so earned a place in his third World Championship for the

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

edition, where he saw off Mohd Latif Sapup 4–1 in the preliminary round. Petersen danced onto the stage for his first round match against

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 ...

which immediately got the crowd on his side as he defeated the 1996 BDO world champion 3–1 in sets. Petersen was 2–1 ahead against

Justin Pipe Justin Pipe (born 9 November 1971) is an English former professional darts player who has played in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He was a former top 10 player. Playing career Pipe was a boxer in his youth, and, as a staunc ...

in the next round and in the deciding leg of the fourth set he took out a crucial 130 finish with Pipe on 36, before wrapping up a 4–1 win. In the third round his run came to an end when he lost 4–0 to James Wade. Petersen partnered Filby in the

World Cup of Darts The PDC World Cup of Darts is a team darts tournament organised by the Professional Darts Corporation, and was one of the three new tournaments introduced into the PDC calendar in 2010. It is broadcast live by Sky Sports.Paul Lim 4–0 in his singles match in the second round. Filby lost his to Harith Lim, meaning a doubles match was needed to settle the tie which South Africa edged 4–3. In the quarter-finals they faced the number one seeds of Phil Taylor and

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 ...

, with Petersen and Filby both losing their singles matches to exit the tournament. Petersen was defeated in the final of the South African Qualifier for the 2015 World Championship 9–5 by Nolan Arendse. In January 2015, Petersen played in Q School and earned a two-year tour card on the second day by defeating Chris Hartrey 5–1 in the final round. Petersen did not base himself in Britain for 2015 and estimated he would make 20 trips back and forth from South Africa during the year. He entered the

UK Open The Cazoo UK Open is a ranking major darts tournament held annually at the Butlins Minehead Resort by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) in England. Often referred to as the "FA Cup of darts", the UK Open replicates the abolition of seedin ...

in the second round stage and beat Mark Cox 5–4,

Mark Barilli Mark Barilli (born 14 November 1973) is a Scottish darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He is well known for his throwing style where he changes the speed of his throw from fast to slow alternatively, and also ...

9–8,

9–6 and Eddie Dootson 9–3 to reach the quarter-finals of a major PDC event for the first time. Petersen led world number one

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 ...

3–2 at the first break but had had darts to win every leg and went on to lose 10–5. He became the first South African to throw a nine-dart finish on the PDC tour at the sixth Players Championship and went on to reach the quarter-finals where Van Gerwen whitewashed him 6–0. At the

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

, Petersen and Filby survived a match dart from Finland to win 5–4 before losing both of their singles matches against Van Gerwen and Raymond van Barneveld of the Netherlands in the second round. Petersen was invited to participate in the first World Series of Darts Finals, where he was eliminated 6–3 by Robert Thornton in the first round. Petersen saw off Ricky Evans 6–5 and

Kim Huybrechts Kim Huybrechts (born 16 November 1985) is a Belgian professional darts player currently playing in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He made the final of a major TV event, the 2012 Players Championship Finals, losing to Phil Taylor 1 ...

6–2 at the

2016 Dutch Darts Masters The 2016 Dutch Darts Masters was the first of ten PDC European Tour events on the 2016 PDC Pro Tour. The tournament took place at the Evenementenhal, Venray, Netherlands, between 12–14 February 2016. It featured a field of 48 players and £115,00 ...

and then lost 6–2 to Mervyn King in the third round. He qualified for six other European Tour events and, even though he didn't reach the third round again, he had done enough to make his debut in the European Championship, but was defeated 6–4 by King in the opening round. Petersen and Graham Filby missed 14 darts at doubles as they were beaten 5–1 by Singapore in the first round of the

. Petersen lost in the first round of the European Championship (6–4 to Mervyn King) and the

Players Championship Finals The Players Championship Finals is a darts tournament organised by the Professional Darts Corporation. The tournament originally featured the top 32 players from the Players Championship Order of Merit, a separate ranking system that only takes int ...

(6–3 to

Robbie Green Robbie Green (born 19 July 1974) is a former English professional darts player. His nickname was Kong. PDC career Green made his televised debut at the 2004 UK Open, reaching the last 64 stage. The same year he qualified for the World Matchp ...

). Petersen struggled in the first round of the 2017 World Championship as he could only average 79.29 in a 3–1 defeat to

. Petersen returned to form in the 2019 World Championship reaching the Last 16 his best run since 2014 beating Wayne Jones, Ian White, and Steve West before narrowly losing to

Nathan Aspinall Nathan Aspinall (born 15 July 1991) is an English professional darts player currently playing in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won the 2019 UK Open with a 170 checkout in the final leg against former World Champion Rob Cross. ...

. Again he qualified via the PDC World Africa Qualifying Event for the 2020 World Championship. He played

Luke Humphries Luke Humphries (born 11 February 1995) is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won the 2019 PDC World Youth Championship. Career Humphries won five PDC Development Tour titles in 20 ...

in the first round and lost 1–3. Petersen remained in the top 64 of the PDC Order of Merit and kept his tour card for 2020. On 22 February 2020, Petersen reached his first ever PDC semi-final, at Players Championship 5, beating high quality players such as

Stephen Bunting Stephen Bunting (born 9 April 1985) is an English professional darts player who competes in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Nicknamed The Bullet, Bunting won the 2014 BDO World Darts Championship and is a twice former Wor ...

and Rob Cross (the World Number Four at the time) along the way, before losing to eventual winner Peter Wright 7–5. On 27 September 2020, Petersen won his first ranking title beating Johnny Clayton 8–3 at the German Darts Championship. He followed this by a Second Round loss to Gerwyn Price in the 2020 European Darts Grand Prix, hence finished 4th with £27,000 on the European Tour order of merit, which cemented his place as a top seed in the 2020 PDc European Championship. In this tournament, Petersen eliminated Andy Hamilton, Martin Kleermaker and Ian White to reach his first major televised Semi Final, but lost narrowly 10–11 to James Wade. This run equaled a cheque of £32,000. Further televised exposure followed in the 2020 PDC World Cup of Darts, where he was partnered by Carl Gabriel in a 5-1 First Round humiliation to Poland with

Krzysztof Ratajski Krzysztof Ratajski (Polish pronunciation: ; born 1 January 1977) is a Polish professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. His biggest achievement to date was winning the 2017 World Masters. Ratajski also pl ...

Krzysztof Kciuk Krzysztof Kciuk (born 11 June 1980) is a Polish technology specialist and professional darts player who currently plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He is a Polish Champion and first player from Poland who played at PDC Worl ...

. Despite some inconsistency in form at the 2020 PDC Winter Series, Petersen showed rejuvenation in the 2020 PDC Grand Slam of Darts, where he reached the Last 16 on his debut. In the course of doing so, he won all three of his group stage games against Ian White, Dirk van Duijvenbode and Peter Wright, topping the group and receiving the group winner's bonus of £3,500. Australian rising star Damon Heta proved too big of an obstacle and denied Petersen a place in his third major televised Quarter Final in a 10–7 victory over the South African. Petersen entered the Top 32 in the world before the commencement of the 2020 PDC Players Championship Finals, but lost 3–6 to Luke Humphries, averaging 101.46 against Humphries' 99.65. Petersen returned to the Alexandra Palace in London for the

2021 PDC World Darts Championship The 2021 PDC World Darts Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the 2021 William Hill World Darts Championship) was the 28th PDC World Darts Championship, World Championship organised by the Professional Darts Corporation since it split i ...

and started as a seeded player in Round 2 (Last 64) for the first time in his career. He overcame Steve Lennon and Jason Lowe to reach the fourth round, where he lost 4–0 to Gary Anderson

Darts used

Petersen previously used darts given to him by Phil Taylor at the 2009

South African Masters The South African Masters was one of the most prestigious golf tournaments on the Sunshine Tour. It was last played in 2011. Before its discontinuation, it had a prize fund of 1.2 million rand and was held at the Wild Coast Sun Country Club on ...

.Unicorn Darts - Devon Petersen
Unicorn Darts

World Championship results

PDC

* 2011: First round (lost to

1–3) * 2012: Second round (lost to Gary Anderson 2–4) * 2014: Third round (lost to James Wade 0–4) * 2017: First round (lost to

1–3) * 2018: First round (lost to

2–3) * 2019: Fourth round (lost to

3–4) * 2020: First round (lost to

1–3) * 2021: Fourth round (lost to Gary Anderson 0–4) * 2022: Second round (lost to Raymond Smith 0–3)

Performance timeline

BDO PDC PDC European Tour

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Petersen, Devon 1986 births Living people South African darts players Sportspeople from Cape Town Cape Coloureds Professional Darts Corporation current tour card holders PDC ranking title winners PDC World Cup of Darts South African team