Krzysztof Ratajski (
Polish pronunciation: ; born 1 January 1977) is a Polish 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 boa ...
player who plays in
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 World ...
(PDC) events. His biggest achievement to date was winning the 2017
World Masters
The World Masters, known for sponsorship reasons as the Mita/Sky World Masters, was a snooker tournament held between 13 and 26 January 1991. Conceived by promoter Barry Hearn, the tournament had a similar format to the Grand Slam (tennis), Gran ...
. Ratajski also plays on the Professional Darts Corporation's ProTour and has represented Poland at the
PDC World Cup of Darts on numerous occasions. He is the most successful darts player to come from Poland.
Career
Ratajski's first major run came in the 2007 Czech Open where he reached the semi finals. He gained notable wins over
Joey ten Berge
Joey ten Berge (born 18 October 1985) is a Dutch former darts player.
Career BDO
Ten Berge won the 2001 WDF Europe Youth Cup beating Sweden's Markus Korhonen in the final. Six years later, he captured his first professional title by capturing ...
and local player Marek Polak, eventually losing to Patrick Loos who won the tournament. He then went on to win the 2008 Denmark Open, a tournament previously won by the likes of
John Lowe,
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 w ...
,
Phil Taylor and
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 ...
. He defeated Hungary's
Nándor Bezzeg, Finland's
Marko Kantele and
Belgian Geert De Vos en route to the final where he beat
Fabian Roosenbrand.
On 4 December 2008 Ratajski qualified for the
2009 BDO World Darts Championship
The 2009 Lakeside World Professional Darts Championship was the 32nd World Championship organised by the British Darts Organisation. Mark Webster was the defending men's champion having won the title for the first time in the 2008 final agains ...
, earning one of five spots available. He earned notable wins over former qualifier Ian Jones and
Mike Veitch
Michael Veitch (born 15 August 1960) is a Scottish former professional darts player.
Career
He made his televised debut at the 1990 Embassy World Championship losing in the first round to Brian Cairns, but it would be another 12 years before ...
before beating
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 Match ...
to qualify, becoming the first Polish player to qualify for either world championship. The next day, Ratajski took part in the 2008
Winmau World Masters
The World Masters is one of the longest-running and most prestigious of the BDO/WDF tournaments, which began in 1974. The tournament is sponsored by darts board manufacturer, Winmau. The World Masters was unusual in darts in that its sets are t ...
, but lost in the very first round to Denmark's Stig Jorgensen. Ratajski then lost in the first round of the 2009 World Championship to
Edwin Max
Edwin Max (born 23 August 1969 in The Hague) is a former Dutch darts player. He used the nickname Mad Max for his matches.
Career
Max made his first World Championship debut in 2008 as a member of the British Darts Organisation, losing in the f ...
.
Ratajski represented Poland in the inaugural PDC World Cup of darts in partnership with
Krzysztof Kciuk. They lost 2–6 in the first round to New Zealand, who were represented by Phillip Hazel and Warren Parry. He did not feature in the tournament again until
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...
, once more with Kciuk, and they progressed to the last 16 by finishing second in Group E thanks to beating Gibraltar 5–2. They played the host nation Germany, who were represented by
Jyhan Artut and
Andree Welge
Andree Welge (born 6 May 1972) is a German professional darts player who competed in events of the World Darts Federation (WDF).
Career
Welge made his World Championship debut in the 2002 BDO World Darts Championship where he lost in the first ...
, and were defeated 5–2.
He lost in the semi-finals of the 2015 Polish Open 5–2 to
Scott Waites
Scott Waites (born 17 February 1977) is an English professional darts player who plays in tournaments of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He is a two-time BDO World Darts Champion having won the 2013 tournament and 2016 tournament ...
. Ratajski made his European Tour debut at the
2015 European Darts Trophy and was edged out 6–5 by
Adam Hunt in the first round. He was knocked out 3–2 by
Martin Adams
Martin Adams (born 4 June 1956) is an English professional darts player who plays in World Darts Federation (WDF) events. Nicknamed "Wolfie", he is a three-time BDO World Champion and three-time World Masters champion. He represents Cambridge ...
in the last 16 of the
World Masters
The World Masters, known for sponsorship reasons as the Mita/Sky World Masters, was a snooker tournament held between 13 and 26 January 1991. Conceived by promoter Barry Hearn, the tournament had a similar format to the Grand Slam (tennis), Gran ...
.
Ratajski played in the
BDO World Trophy
The BDO World Trophy was a major darts tournament run by the British Darts Organisation, hosted originally in February 2014 at Blackpool Tower, before it was held in May from 2016–18 in various locations. In 2019, it was held in King George's ...
for the first time in 2016 and lost 6–4 to
Scott Waites
Scott Waites (born 17 February 1977) is an English professional darts player who plays in tournaments of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He is a two-time BDO World Darts Champion having won the 2013 tournament and 2016 tournament ...
. He teamed up with Mariusz Paul at the
2016 PDC World Cup of Darts and they were defeated 5–1 by Belgium in the opening round. He qualified for the
International Darts Open and was eliminated 6–1 by
Chris Dobey
Chris Dobey (born 31 May 1990) is an English professional darts player currently playing in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events.
Career
His first major TV appearance came in the 2015 UK Open where he lost 5–1 in the first round to N ...
in the first round.
Ratajski qualified for the
2017 BDO World Darts Championship. He earned his first two wins at the event, including a 3–0 victory over
Wesley Harms
Wesley Harms (born 11 June 1984) is a Dutch former professional darts player.
Career
Harms won the BDO International Open in 2011, defeating Stephen Bunting in the final.
Harms qualified for the 2012 BDO World Darts Championship as the 13th ...
, before narrowly losing to
Darius Labanauskas
Darius Labanauskas (born 26 July 1976) is a Lithuanian professional darts player who plays in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. In 2015, he was the WDF world number 1.
Career
BDO
Labanauskas is a three-time Lithuania National Ch ...
in the last 16. At the
2017 World Cup, Ratajski and
Tytus Kanik lost 5–3 in the first round to the Irish team of
Mick McGowan
Michael McGowan (born 1 February 1973) is an Irish professional darts player who last played in events for the British Darts Organisation (BDO).
Career
McGowan last played on the PDC pro tour in the Killarney Pro Tour 1 in October 2013 and his ...
and
William O'Connor.
At the 2017 World Masters, Ratajski was unseeded and had to start from the first round. He defeated two-time reigning champion
Glen Durrant
Glen Durrant (born 24 November 1970), nicknamed "Duzza", is an English former professional darts player who played in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He previously won the BDO World Darts Championship three times consecutively f ...
in the quarter-finals, Scotland's
Cameron Menzies in the semi-final, and world number one
Mark McGeeney
Mark McGeeney (born 28 June 1972) is an English professional darts player from Coventry, Warwickshire. He currently plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events.
Career
BDO
In August 2010, McGeeney won the Weoley Castle Open, beat ...
6–1 in the final for his first televised major title. In doing so, Ratajski also guaranteed qualification for the
2018 BDO World Darts Championship, but declined his invitation in favour of an attempt to qualify for the rival
2018 PDC World Darts Championship. He qualified for the latter as the top ranked Eastern European on the PDC Pro Tour.
Ratajski competed in his first
PDC premier event as a singles player at the
2017 European Championship. He lost 3–6 to Peter Wright in the first round. In the 2018 World Championship Ratajski lost 1–3 to
James Wilson James Wilson may refer to:
Politicians and government officials
Canada
* James Wilson (Upper Canada politician) (1770–1847), English-born farmer and political figure in Upper Canada
* James Crocket Wilson (1841–1899), Canadian MP from Queb ...
despite winning the first set.
In February 2018 Ratajski became the first Polish player to win a PDC event when he beat Daryl Gurney 6–4 in the final of the
sixth UK Open qualifier.
Due to his failure at Q-School in January, he had to play on the Challenge Tour, which he won one event in and made another final. Due to these successes, he was able to play some Players Championships towards the end of 2018.
Ratajski won his second PDC title on 20 October 2018, defeating
Chris Dobey
Chris Dobey (born 31 May 1990) is an English professional darts player currently playing in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events.
Career
His first major TV appearance came in the 2015 UK Open where he lost 5–1 in the first round to N ...
6–2 in the final of Players Championship 21, despite not having a tour card. Ratajski also won Players Championship 22 the following day, joining an elite club of only 8 PDC players to win two Players Championship titles in a single weekend by beating
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 ...
6–4. His weekend “double header” win secured his place at the
2019 PDC World Darts Championship, where he lost to
Seigo Asada, the
2018 Players Championship Finals
The 2018 Ladbrokes Players Championship Finals was the eleventh edition of the PDC darts tournament, which saw the top 64 players from the 22 Players Championship events of 2018 taking part. The tournament took place from 23 to 25 November 2018 ...
, where he beat
Gerwyn Price
Gerwyn Stephen Price (born 7 March 1985) is a Welsh professional darts player and former professional rugby union and rugby league player. Nicknamed "The Iceman", he competes in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC), where he is cu ...
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 ...
before losing to
Danny Noppert, and the
2018 Grand Slam of Darts
The 2018 bwin Grand Slam of Darts was the twelfth staging of the tournament, organised by the Professional Darts Corporation. The event took place from 10–18 November 2018 in Wolverhampton, England, but for the first time in the event's histor ...
, where he beat
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 ...
and
Adam Smith-Neale and losing to
Michael Smith, playing in Group B, (that meant that he went through to the Last 16 stage) and lost to
Jonny Clayton, as well as his tour card for 2019.
World Championship results
BDO
* 2009: First round (lost to
Edwin Max
Edwin Max (born 23 August 1969 in The Hague) is a former Dutch darts player. He used the nickname Mad Max for his matches.
Career
Max made his first World Championship debut in 2008 as a member of the British Darts Organisation, losing in the f ...
2–3)
* 2017: Second round (lost to
Darius Labanauskas
Darius Labanauskas (born 26 July 1976) is a Lithuanian professional darts player who plays in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. In 2015, he was the WDF world number 1.
Career
BDO
Labanauskas is a three-time Lithuania National Ch ...
3–4)
PDC
* 2018: First round (lost to
James Wilson James Wilson may refer to:
Politicians and government officials
Canada
* James Wilson (Upper Canada politician) (1770–1847), English-born farmer and political figure in Upper Canada
* James Crocket Wilson (1841–1899), Canadian MP from Queb ...
1–3)
* 2019: First round (lost to
Seigo Asada 2–3)
* 2020: Third round (lost 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.
...
3–4)
* 2021: Quarter-finals (lost to
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 W ...
3–5)
* 2022: Second round (lost to
Steve Lennon 1–3)
* 2023: Third round (lost to
Dimitri Van den Bergh
Dimitri Van den Bergh (born 8 July 1994) is a Belgian professional darts player who currently competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He is a two-time World Youth Champion and the 2020 World Matchplay champion, after beating Ga ...
1–4)
Performance timeline
PDC
''PDC European Tour''
Career finals
BDO major finals: 1 (1 title)
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ratajski, Krzystof
1977 births
Living people
Polish darts players
British Darts Organisation players
People from Skarżysko County
Sportspeople from Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship
Professional Darts Corporation current tour card holders
PDC ranking title winners
PDC World Cup of Darts Polish team