Stephen Bunting
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Stephen Bunting (born 9 April 1985) is an English professional
darts Darts or dart-throwing is a competitive sport in which two or more players bare-handedly throw small projectile point, sharp-pointed projectile, missiles known as dart (missile), darts at a round shooting target, target known as a #Dartboard, dar ...
player who competes in events of 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 World ...
(PDC). Nicknamed The Bullet, Bunting won the
2014 BDO World Darts Championship The 2014 Lakeside World Professional Darts Championship was the 37th World Championship organised by the British Darts Organisation, and the 29th staging at the Lakeside Country Club at Frimley Green. Scott Waites was the defending men's champi ...
and is a twice former
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 events in tenn ...
champion.


Darts career


Beginnings

Bunting won both the British Teenage Open and the World Youth Masters in 2001 and also captured the
WDF Europe Youth Cup The WDF Europe Youth Cup is an youth darts tournament held annually since 1990. __TOC__ Tournament structure The tournament consists of a team championship, a pairs championship and a singles championship. All events have a boys' competition, ...
in 2002. He made his
BDO World Darts Championship The WDF World Darts Championship is a world championship competition in darts, organised by the World Darts Federation. It would previously organised by the British Darts Organisation (BDO), who held it 43 times from 1978 to 2020. The champio ...
debut in 2004 aged 18, where he beat
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 ...
in the first round before losing in the second round to former World Champion
Ted Hankey Edward Hankey (born 20 February 1968) is an English former professional darts player and convicted sex offender. Nicknamed "The Count", he won the BDO World Darts Championship in 2000, was runner-up in 2001, and won the title for a second time ...
. He returned to Lakeside in 2005 but was beaten in the first round by John Henderson. In 2008 Bunting won the Lytham St Annes Open and was also recalled to the England squad. In July 2008 he reached the quarter-finals of the
BDO British Classic The British Classic is a darts tournament that has been held annually since 1997. List of winners Men's Women's Youth Girls Tournament records * Most wins 3: Mervyn King. * Most Finals 4: Mervyn King. * Most Semi Finals 5: Gary And ...
where he lost to Scotland's
Ross Montgomery Ross Montgomery (born 16 October 1962), nicknamed The Boss, is a Scottish professional darts player who played in World Darts Federation (WDF) tournaments and as of January 14th 2022 now plays on the Professional Darts Corporat ...
live on Setanta. In November 2008 Bunting captured his maiden BDO ranked open title when he won the Northern Ireland Open, beating fellow Cheshire player
Darryl Fitton Darryl Fitton (born 5 May 1962) is an English professional darts player. He is nicknamed The Dazzler and comes to the stage dancing to the Madness song "One Step Beyond" wearing sunglasses; one of the most popular walk-ons with the audience ...
two sets to nil in the Final. Bunting was successful in qualifying for the 2009 BDO World Darts Championship as the standby qualifier, but was beaten by Gary Robson in the first round. On 21 May 2009 Bunting finished joint fourth in the Dutch Pentathlon in
Oosterhout Oosterhout (; from ''ooster'', "eastern", and ''hout'', "woods") is a municipality and a city in the southern Netherlands. The municipality had a population of in . Population centers The municipality of Oosterhout includes the following pla ...
, Netherlands. The pentathlon had a field of 20 BDO and PDC players and was won by Gary Anderson with
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. ...
2nd and Gary Robson 3rd. It was played in Oosterhout Holland. Bunting competed in the Winmau British Classic on 25 July 2009. He played Dave Chisnall in the semi final and beat him 2–0 in sets. In the final Bunting played Scott Waites, where he came out the eventual winner 2 sets to 1 with a 170 finish in the fifth leg. Bunting qualified for the 2010 BDO World Championship, beating the debuting Ian White 3–0 in the first round before losing to top seed
Tony O'Shea Tony O'Shea (born 9 May 1961) is an English professional darts player. His squat figure has resulted in the nickname "Silverback". O'Shea has reached the finals of seven British Darts Organisation (BDO) major darts tournaments, but to date h ...
4–0 in the second round. The following year, Bunting once again qualified and won his first round match 3–0, this time against Brian Woods with the tournament highest average of 94.62. Bunting then defeated
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. ...
in the second round 4–2 averaging 89.79 to reach his first World Championship quarter-final, where he was beaten 5–1 by third seed
Dean Winstanley Dean Winstanley (born 10 February 1981) is an English professional darts player. He first took up darts as a two-year-old, stopped playing at the age of 12, and then started playing again when he was 22. He turned professional in 2008 and won ...
with both players averaging over the 90 mark. September 2011 saw Bunting reach the Quarterfinals of the
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 th ...
on
ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
. Bunting had been playing all morning to fight through to the live televised stages and in the deciding match Bunting defeated
Wayne Warren Wayne Warren (born 12 June 1962) is a Welsh professional darts player who plays in events of the World Darts Federation (WDF). He was the last ever 2020 BDO World Darts Championship, BDO World Darts Champion. He is the oldest player to become wo ...
. Bunting was into the last 32 and played Peter Johns from Wales. Bunting won 3–0 in sets and played
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 ...
in the last 16. Bunting won 3–1 with per dart average of 30.33. In the Quarter Finals Bunting lost 3 sets to nil against
Ross Montgomery Ross Montgomery (born 16 October 1962), nicknamed The Boss, is a Scottish professional darts player who played in World Darts Federation (WDF) tournaments and as of January 14th 2022 now plays on the Professional Darts Corporat ...
. On 30 September 2011 Bunting played in the
England Classic The England Classic tournament is a darts tournament that has been held since 2009. List of winners Men's Women's Tournament records * Most wins 3: Glen Durrant. * Most Finals 3: Glen Durrant. * Most Semi Finals 3: Glen Durrant, Paul Hog ...
at Bunn Leisure, in Selsey Sussex. Bunting was the defending champion having won the title in 2010. Bunting started the day with a 3–0 win over Steve Gurney, followed up by a 3–0 win over Mark Davis. In the last 64 defeated Trevor Chant 3–0. In the last 32 Bunting beat Clive Barden 3–2. The last 16 saw Bunting defeat Sam Rooney 3–0. Bunting defeated Dean Jones 4–0 in the quarterfinal. In the semi final Bunting defeated Tony Andrews 5–1 with a per dart average of 30.27. In the final Bunting defeated Jamie Robinson 6–3 with a per dart average of 29.10. Bunting won the £2,500 first prize for the second time. On 22 October 2011 Bunting won his first European event at the Tops of Ghent tournament in Belgium. In the last 256 Bunting defeated Billy Caluwaerts (Belgium) 4–2. Bunting then defeated Marcel Blik (Netherlands) 4–1 in the last 128 round. In the last 64 Bunting played his Lancashire county team mate Gary Hooper and won 4–2. In the last 32 Bunting played another Lancashire county team mate and newly crowned Romanian Open Champion
Joe Murnan Joe Murnan (born 28 September 1983) is an English darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation events. Career Murnan reached the last 40 of the 2010 Winmau World Masters, losing 3–0 to Filipino Ronald L. Briones. Murnan quali ...
. Bunting won 4–3. In the last 16 Bunting played
Martin Atkins Martin Clive Atkins (born 3 August 1959) is an English drummer and session musician, best known for his work in post-punk and industrial groups including Public Image Ltd, Ministry, Nine Inch Nails, Pigface, and Killing Joke. He also works as ...
'The Assassin' who is a regular in the BDO World Championships. Bunting had a 4–1 victory. In the Quarterfinals Bunting played Christian Kist. Bunting won the tie 5–1 to gain a place in the Semi Finals. In the semi final Bunting played Darryl Fitton. Bunting ran out a 2 sets to 0 victor. In the final Bunting played Steve West. Bunting took the title 3–0 (2–3; 2–3; 1–3) in sets. Bunting won €1600 in prize money. Bunting played in the PDC
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 ...
as an amateur entrant, and played two-time and defending champion
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 the ...
in the second round. Bunting led the best-of-seven legs match 3–2 and had four match darts in the deciding leg – one at bullseye and three at double-19 – but was eventually defeated 4–3.


World Masters and World Champion

In October 2012, Bunting took his largest career title by winning the
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 th ...
as the number one seed, defeating
Tony O'Shea Tony O'Shea (born 9 May 1961) is an English professional darts player. His squat figure has resulted in the nickname "Silverback". O'Shea has reached the finals of seven British Darts Organisation (BDO) major darts tournaments, but to date h ...
7–4 in the final. In December, Bunting won the
Zuiderduin Masters The Finder Darts Masters was a darts tournament held in Egmond aan Zee, Netherlands, sanctioned by the British Darts Organisation and the World Darts Federation, running intermittently under several different names from 1995 to 2018. The tourn ...
, by defeating Alan Norris in the final. Bunting finished 2012 at BDO and WDF World number one. At the 2013 BDO World Championship, Bunting recorded the highest average of the first round in beating James Wilson 3–2, but in the second round he was unexpectedly defeated by
Darryl Fitton Darryl Fitton (born 5 May 1962) is an English professional darts player. He is nicknamed The Dazzler and comes to the stage dancing to the Madness song "One Step Beyond" wearing sunglasses; one of the most popular walk-ons with the audience ...
4–2 despite once again recording the highest average of the round. Bunting led 2–1 and had five darts at double top to take a 3–1 lead, but was unable to take the chance and Fitton went on to win six of the next eight legs to clinch victory. At the 2013 Isle of Man tournament final Bunting defeated
Darryl Fitton Darryl Fitton (born 5 May 1962) is an English professional darts player. He is nicknamed The Dazzler and comes to the stage dancing to the Madness song "One Step Beyond" wearing sunglasses; one of the most popular walk-ons with the audience ...
4–2 to win the title. He then won the Mariflex Open, the Welsh Open and the England Open. In July, Bunting won the England Masters title at the Pontins Southport beating Paul Jennings in the final 6–5. In the semi-final Bunting defeated
Tony O'Shea Tony O'Shea (born 9 May 1961) is an English professional darts player. His squat figure has resulted in the nickname "Silverback". O'Shea has reached the finals of seven British Darts Organisation (BDO) major darts tournaments, but to date h ...
5–3. Bunting successfully retained the World Masters title in 2013, becoming only the fourth man to do so after
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 ...
, Bob Anderson, and
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 Cambridgesh ...
. He also became the first man in history to win the title without dropping a single set. His tournament included a 6-0 semi-final win over world #4
Darryl Fitton Darryl Fitton (born 5 May 1962) is an English professional darts player. He is nicknamed The Dazzler and comes to the stage dancing to the Madness song "One Step Beyond" wearing sunglasses; one of the most popular walk-ons with the audience ...
, and a 7-0 final win over world #2
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 Quebe ...
. At the Zuiderduin Masters, Bunting reached the final for the second straight year but this time was comprehensively beaten by Wilson, 5-1 in sets. Bunting entered the 2014 BDO World Championship as the number one seed for the second year in a row. He defeated
Jim Widmayer Jim Widmayer (born August 23, 1969) is an American professional darts player who plays in British Darts Organisation (BDO) events. Career Widmayer played in the inaugural World Matchplay in 1994, losing 6–8 in the first round to Keith Dell ...
3-1 in the first round,
Dave Prins David Michael Prins (born 16 November 1968) is an English professional darts player. Career Prins reached the last 16 of the 2009 Winmau World Masters, where he lost to Tony O'Shea in three straight sets. Prins qualified for his first BDO Wo ...
4-0 in the second round with the tournament's highest three-dart average (100.65), and
Rick Hofstra Rick Hofstra (born 21 April 1977) is a former Dutch professional darts player. Career Hofstra reached the quarter finals of the 2001 Belgium Open and the 2002 Swiss Open before making his major debut in the 2003 International Darts League, whe ...
5-2 in the quarter finals after Hofstra led 2-0 and had chances to win the fourth and sixth sets. In the semi-final, Bunting beat fourth seed
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 ...
6-1 to set up a final with Alan Norris, which Bunting won 7-4 after the match had been level at 3-3.


Switch to the PDC

On 22 January 2014, it was announced that Bunting had received and accepted a tour card to join 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 World ...
. Bunting's first tournaments were the UK Open Qualifiers and he won the second and £10,000 by beating eight players, concluding with a 6–5 victory over
Andrew Gilding Andrew Gilding (born 7 December 1970) is an English professional darts player who plays in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He made his television debut in 2011. Gilding's best result at a PDC major event was reaching the sem ...
. The result saw him enter the
2014 UK Open The 2014 Coral UK Open was a darts tournament staged by the Professional Darts Corporation. It was the twelfth year of the tournament where, following numerous regional qualifying heats throughout Britain, players competed in a single elimination t ...
at the third round stage where he made his PDC televised debut against Kevin Dowling. Dowling threw for the match in the penultimate leg and missed match darts before Bunting stepped in to take out a 151 finish and sealed a 9–8 victory in the next leg to set up a meeting with
Dean Winstanley Dean Winstanley (born 10 February 1981) is an English professional darts player. He first took up darts as a two-year-old, stopped playing at the age of 12, and then started playing again when he was 22. He turned professional in 2008 and won ...
. Bunting missed a dart at double 12 to start the match with 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 went on to lose 9–6. He made his European Tour debut at the German Darts Masters and won through to the semi-finals where he lost 6–3 to Phil Taylor. Bunting's second PDC final came at the 10th Players Championship, in a run which included a victory over 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 ...
, before being defeated 6–3 by
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 nin ...
. He made his debut in the World Matchplay against Peter Wright and he beat the world number five 10–6. In the subsequent round he started badly against Gary Anderson to trail 5–0 and could never recover the deficit as he was defeated 13–8. In August he made his first World Series of Darts appearance as he was given a wildcard pick for the Sydney Darts Masters. Bunting beat John Weber, Wright and
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 the ...
to reach the final where Taylor defeated him 11–3. In October, Bunting reached the semi-finals of the World Grand Prix by beating
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 ...
, Wright and
Richie Burnett Richard Mark "Richie" Burnett (born 7 February 1967), nicknamed Prince of Wales, is a Welsh professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He is a former World No. 1 who won the 1995 Embassy World Darts Cha ...
. He was defeated 4–0 by
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 ...
, with the Dutchman winning three of the four sets in deciding legs. Bunting produced a superb performance in the second round of the European Championship as he averaged 102.21 in beating Taylor 10–9 having never been behind during the match and missed a double 12 for a nine-dart finish. He was unable to replicate the performance in the quarter-finals against
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 nin ...
as he was eliminated 10–7. Bunting reached the quarter-finals for the third major event in a row by beating Wade 10–8 at the
Grand Slam of Darts The Grand Slam of Darts is a darts tournament organised by the Professional Darts Corporation and is known as the Cazoo Grand Slam of Darts for sponsorship purposes. The PDC also invited the best performing players from its rival, the British Dart ...
, but lost 16–9 against Mervyn King. In 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 ...
he was defeated 10–5 by Anderson in the second round.


2015

In his debut at the
2015 PDC World Darts Championship The 2015 William Hill World Darts Championship was the 22nd World Championship organised by the Professional Darts Corporation since it separated from the British Darts Organisation. The event was held at the Alexandra Palace, London between 18 D ...
, Bunting saw off
Robert Marijanović Robert Marijanovic (born 6 May 1980) is a German darts player of Croatian heritage. Career Marijanović qualified for the 2013 PDC World Darts Championship after coming through the Eastern European qualifier. He was beaten 3–4 by Northern Ire ...
3–1 in his first match, before defeating an out of sorts
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 the ...
4–1. He played fellow St. Helens player Michael Smith in the third round and eliminated him 4–2, after surviving a comeback when Smith rallied from 3–0 down. Both players averaged 102 and hit eight 180s each during a high quality match. In an extremely close quarter-final clash with
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 Champ ...
there was never more than a set between the players as they both averaged 98.30. Bunting could not win a leg in the deciding set to be defeated 5–4 and end his chances of becoming the first player to hold both versions of the World Championship at the same time. After Van Barneveld stated that his opponent's performance had shown he was a world class player, Bunting was left in tears on stage in the post-match interview. Following the World Championship final, Bunting was named as a Sky Sports Wildcard to compete in the 2015 Premier League Darts. He drew 6–6 with Wade on the opening night. In the following weeks, Bunting would fall into the relegation zone, losing his next three games before winning his first game against
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 ...
7–3 in the fifth week. He survived relegation by a point, but could only win one of his last seven matches to finish eighth in the league. In March, Bunting would make it to the semi-finals of 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 ...
, beating Adam Huckvale, Michael Smith,
Dave Chisnall Dave Chisnall (born 12 September 1980) is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He began his career in the British Darts Organisation (BDO) and was the runner-up in their World Champions ...
, William O'Connor and Mervyn King before being defeated 10–0 by Peter Wright with an average of just 82.39 over 20 points lower than Wright. He lost 10–6 to Ian White in the first round of the World Matchplay and took out just 19% of his finishes in the opening round of the World Grand Prix to be eliminated 2–1 in sets by Mark Webster. He lost in the first round of 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 ...
and second round of the European Championship. Bunting did reach the quarter-finals of the inaugural
World Series of Darts Finals The World Series of Darts Finals is a non-ranking darts tournament held by the Professional Darts Corporation. It is classed as a PDC premier event. The tournament was held annually in November, but in 2020, it moved to September, and moved to O ...
, but was heavily beaten 10–3 by Phil Taylor.


2016

Bunting met
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 Champ ...
at the
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, ...
for the second successive year, this time in the second round. Once again there was never a set between the players, with Van Barneveld taking the final set by six legs to four. Bunting did not receive a wildcard for a second appearance at the
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
this year. He reached the fifth round of 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 ...
, but was beaten by Joe Cullen 9–7. En route to the final of the second Players Championship event, Bunting overturned a 5–0 deficit against
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 ...
to win 6–5. He then earned his second PDC title by overcoming
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 ...
6–4. Despite averaging 102.48, he was only ahead of
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 (BD ...
in the first leg of their opening round World Matchplay match as he lost 10–8. A week later Bunting reached the semi-finals of the European Darts Open and was defeated 6–4 by Peter Wright. He was knocked out in the second round of both the World Grand Prix and European Championship, 3–0 in sets by
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 13 ...
and 10–4 by Jelle Klaasen respectively.


2017

Bunting missed seven darts for the match in his first round tie with
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 ...
at the 2017 World Championship and bowed out 3–2 in sets.


2018

At the 2018 World Championship, he lost 3–1 in the first round 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 Gar ...
.


2019

At the 2019 World Championship, he lost 3–1 in the second round to
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 ...
. Bunting returned to form in 2019, making two ranking finals and reaching the quarter-finals of both the 2019 World Matchplay and the
2019 Players Championship Finals The 2019 Ladbrokes Players Championship Finals was the twelfth edition of the PDC darts tournament, which sees the top 64 players from the 30 Players Championship events of 2019 taking part. The tournament took place from 22–24 November 2019 ...
.


2020

After three years without a win at the World Championship, he made it to the last 16 at the 2020 edition, beating Jose Justicia and
Jonny Clayton Jonny Clayton (born 4 October 1974) is a Welsh professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Nicknamed The Ferret, he was half of the Welsh team that won the 2020 PDC World Cup of Darts before winning his ...
, before being whitewashed 4–0 by world no. 1
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 ...
. As a result of his 2019 runs to the quarter-finals in the majors, he was selected for a return to the
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
, appearing as a 'challenger' for the night in
Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
. In October, Bunting tested positive for
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
and was forced to withdraw from the 2020 World Grand Prix.


2021

Bunting began 2021 on a high by reaching the semi-finals of the 2021 World Championship beating
Andy Boulton Andy Boulton (born 22 February 1973) is a Scottish professional darts player who plays in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He is nicknamed X-Factor. Career Boulton made his televised debut in the PDC UK Open in 2005 startin ...
,
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 the ...
,
Ryan Searle Ryan Searle (born 22 June 1989, Brisbane, Australia) is an Australian professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He is a regular on the Australia national baseball team, the "Southern Thunder". He has been both a starter and a relief p ...
and
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 ...
on the way, before being eliminated by the eventual champion,
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 ...
. Bunting later reached the semi-finals of the 2021 World Grand Prix, following victories over
Daryl Gurney Daryl Gurney (born 22 March 1986) is a Northern Irish professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Gurney is a winner of two majors, having won the World Grand Prix in 2017 in his native Ireland, and the P ...
, Wade and Searle. Once again, Bunting was beaten by Price in the semi-finals.


2022

At the 2022 World Championship, he lost 3–2 in the second round to Ross Smith.


2023

At the 2023 World Championship, he lost 5–3 in the quarter-finals to eventual champion Michael Smith.


Personal life

Bunting initially used "
Surfin' Bird "Surfin' Bird" is a song performed by American surf rock band The Trashmen, containing the repetitive lyric "the bird is the word". It has been covered many times. It is a combination of two R&B hits by The Rivingtons: " Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow" and "Th ...
" as his entrance music as a humorous nod to remarks that he resembles
Peter Griffin Peter Löwenbräu Griffin, born Justin Peter Griffin, is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the American animated sitcom ''Family Guy''. He is voiced by the series' creator, Seth MacFarlane, and first appeared on television, alon ...
from the animated show
Family Guy ''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom originally conceived and created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The show centers around the Griffin family, Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter Griff ...
, the song being long associated with the animated character. He supports
Liverpool FC Liverpool Football Club is a professional football club based in Liverpool, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Founded in 1892, the club joined the Football League the following year and has p ...
and
St Helens R.F.C. St Helens R.F.C. is a professional rugby league club in St Helens, Merseyside who compete in the Super League, the top tier for rugby league in Great Britain. They are the current Champions, having won the last 4 consecutive titles, and becom ...
He has a son called Toby (born 2012).


Career finals


BDO major finals: 5 (4 titles, 1 runner-up)


WDF major finals: 1 (1 runner-up)


PDC world series finals: 1 (1 runner-up)


World Championship results


BDO

* 2004: Second round (lost to
Ted Hankey Edward Hankey (born 20 February 1968) is an English former professional darts player and convicted sex offender. Nicknamed "The Count", he won the BDO World Darts Championship in 2000, was runner-up in 2001, and won the title for a second time ...
0–3) * 2005: First round (lost to John Henderson 0–3) * 2009: First round (lost to Gary Robson 1–3) * 2010: Second round (lost to
Tony O'Shea Tony O'Shea (born 9 May 1961) is an English professional darts player. His squat figure has resulted in the nickname "Silverback". O'Shea has reached the finals of seven British Darts Organisation (BDO) major darts tournaments, but to date h ...
0–4) * 2011: Quarter-finals (lost to
Dean Winstanley Dean Winstanley (born 10 February 1981) is an English professional darts player. He first took up darts as a two-year-old, stopped playing at the age of 12, and then started playing again when he was 22. He turned professional in 2008 and won ...
1–5) * 2013: Second round (lost to
Darryl Fitton Darryl Fitton (born 5 May 1962) is an English professional darts player. He is nicknamed The Dazzler and comes to the stage dancing to the Madness song "One Step Beyond" wearing sunglasses; one of the most popular walk-ons with the audience ...
2–4) * 2014: Winner (beat Alan Norris 7–4)


PDC

* 2015: Quarter-finals (lost to
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 Champ ...
4–5) * 2016: Second round (lost to
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 Champ ...
3–4) * 2017: First round (lost to
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 ...
2–3) * 2018: First 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 Gar ...
1–3) * 2019: Second round (lost to
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 ...
1–3) * 2020: Fourth round (lost to
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 ...
0–4) * 2021: Semi-finals (lost to
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 ...
4–6) * 2022: Second round (lost to Ross Smith 2–3) * 2023: Quarter-finals (lost to Michael Smith 3–5)


Performance timeline

BDO PDC ''PDC European Tour''


Notes


References


External links


Personal website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bunting, Stephen 1985 births English darts players Living people Sportspeople from Liverpool British Darts Organisation players Professional Darts Corporation current tour card holders BDO world darts champions PDC ranking title winners