Stuart Kellett (born 12 August 1981) is a former English

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.

BDO career

Kellett reached the last 16 of the 2007 Winmau World Masters, having beaten

Andy Fordham Andrew Fordham (2 February 1962 – 15 July 2021) was an English professional darts player, commonly known as The Viking. He won the 2004 BDO World Darts Championship and the 1999 Winmau World Masters. Darts career Fordham made his first ap ...

among others on the way to the televised stages. He lost 1-3 in sets to the then BDO world champion

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 Cambridges ...

. He also qualified for the 2008 Zuiderduin Masters, losing both of his group games to

Mareno Michels Mareno Michels (born 23 October 1984) is a Dutch darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Career BDO Michels made three quarter final appearances in the BDO Open events in 2005, doing so in the Welsh Open, Eng ...

and

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 audienc ...

. In 2010, Kellett won both the Scottish Open and the Antwerp Open. His good run of form helped him to qualify for the 2010 Winmau World Masters as the second seed. He knocked out Tony West in the last 16, before defeating

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 ...

and Martin Phillips (both in sudden-death legs) to reach the final. He lost 3-7 to Adams, who won his third consecutive

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 ...

title. Kellett also qualified for the

2011 BDO World Darts Championship The 2011 Lakeside World Professional Darts Championship was the 34th World Championship organised by the British Darts Organisation, and the 26th staging at the Lakeside Country Club at Frimley Green. Martin Adams was the defending men's champ ...

, again as the second seed. He defeated two-time semi-finalist and pub teammate

3-0 in the first round, losing just one leg along the way. Bookmakers slashed his odds of winning the championship from 16/1 to 9/2 after this performance, but he was unable to produce the same standard against

Jan Dekker Jan Dekker (born 25 June 1990) is a former Dutch professional darts player. He twice reached the semi-finals of the BDO World Darts Championship, in 2011 and 2014. Career Dekker qualified for the televised stages of the 2010 Winmau World Ma ...

in the second round and lost 4-1. During this tournament commentators and pundits began affectionately referring to Kellett as the 'cocky craftsman' (in a nod to

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 ...

), due to his confidence on-stage in comparison to his otherwise humble nature off it. Kellett's form took a dip after his loss to Dekker, as he dropped out of the world's top 16 and failed to qualify for the 2011 Masters or the 2012 World Championship.

PDC career

In January 2012, Kellett successfully earned a

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 ...

tour card on day two of the PDC's Pro Tour 'Q School' qualifying tournament. In June, he qualified for the European Tour Event 3 after defeating

Nigel Heydon Nigel Heydon (born 22 July 1970) is an English professional darts player who plays in British Darts Organisation (BDO) events. Career Heydon qualified for the 2007 UK Open as an amateur qualifier, losing in the first round to John Burton. He ...

and William O'Connor in the UK qualifier. Kellett played Mervyn King in the first round in

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...

and lost 3–6. He also reached the fourth European Tour Event and beat

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) – the ...

6–4 in the first round in

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...

. Kellett faced

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 second round and lost 5–6. Kellett won the PDC World Championship qualifier in November, beating John Bowles 5–1 in the final, seeing off a total of seven players during the event to reach 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 first time. He lost to van der Voort in the first round, missing a total of 21 darts at a double, and was ranked world number 66 after the event. Kellett reached his first PDC final in March at the first European Tour event of the year, the UK Masters. He overcame Peter Wright,

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 ...

, Robert Thornton and

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 ...

en route to the final, where he lost 6–4 to three-time world 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 ...

. The runner-up's cheque of £10,000 is the biggest of this career to date. Kellett saw off the likes of Hamilton and

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 ...

to progress to the semi-finals of the second Players Championship. There he beat Phil Taylor 6–4, before losing 6–1 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 ...

in the final. Kellett suffered a 9–3 defeat to

Jelle Klaasen Jelle Klaasen (born 17 October 1984), nicknamed The Cobra, is a Dutch professional darts player who plays in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) and World Darts Federation (WDF) events. In 2006, he became the youngest darts player to win the ...

in the fourth 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 ...

. Kellett qualified for the World Matchplay for the first time, but was thrashed 10–1 by Phil Taylor in the first round, averaging just 75.82 in the process. He also made his debut at the World Grand Prix and missed one dart for the first set in the opening round against

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 ...

and was beaten 2–0. Kellett won a qualifying place for 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 ...

by beating Steve Brown 5–3 and was whitewashed 5–0 by Taylor in his opening

Group A Group A is a set of motorsport regulations administered by the FIA covering production derived vehicles intended for competition, usually in touring car racing and rallying. In contrast to the short-lived Group B and Group C, Group A vehicles w ...

game. However, he then came back from 4–2 down against

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 ...

to win 5–4, Kellett's first televised success since joining the PDC. He went into his final match knowing a win over Paul Nicholson would see him advance to the last 16, but he was beaten 5–2 to finish third in the group. Kellett earned over £30,000 in ProTour events during 2013 to finish 18th on the ProTour Order of Merit and qualify for 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 ...

for the first time. He played in a last leg decider against Gary Anderson, having led 4–1, and missed a dart at tops to complete a 120 finish for the match to lose 6–5. He took the first of sixteen spots available to non-qualified players through the 2013 ProTour Order of Merit for the 2014 World Championship and faced Paul Nicholson in the first round, losing 3–0. He entered the top 32 in the world rankings after the event. Kellett was beaten 9–4 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 ...

in the third round of the

and failed to qualify for another PDC major during the rest of the year. His only quarter-final appearance came at the 12th Players Championship where he lost 6–1 to

. Kellett suffered a 3–1 defeat in the first round of the 2015 World Championship to qualifier

Sascha Stein Sascha Stein (born 19 October 1984) is a German professional darts player who currently playing in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Career In November 2014, Stein lost in the final of the Bulls Superleague qualifier for the 2015 PDC ...

with an average of just 73.08. He whitewashed

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 ...

5–0 at the

, before being eliminated 5–1 by

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 ...

in the second round. Kellett's only run to the last 16 of a Pro Tour event this year came at the 12th Players Championship, where he lost 6–5 to

Dirk van Duijvenbode Dirk van Duijvenbode (born 30 June 1992) is a Dutch professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He is known for his energetic walk-on, combined with hardstyle music. More recently, he has become known for ...

. He did come within a match of qualifying for at least the preliminary round of the 2016 World Championship, but was defeated 5–1 by

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 ...

. At the

2016 UK Open The 2016 Coral UK Open was a darts tournament staged by the Professional Darts Corporation. It was the fourteenth year of the tournament where, following numerous regional qualifying heats throughout Britain, players competing in a single eliminat ...

Kellett defeated

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. ...

6–5,

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 ...

9–7 and Michael Smith 9–5 to reach the fifth round of the event for the first time, but lost 9–5 to amateur Barry Lynn. He failed to carry this last 16 showing into the rest of the year though, as he was knocked out in the first round of two European Tour events and reached the last 32 of three Players Championship tournaments, but lost each time. Kellett was ranked world number 72 after the 2017 World Championship and therefore entered Q School in an attempt to win his tour place back. He was within two matches of doing so on the fourth day, but lost 5–4 to

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 Championship ...

. Kellett had his best finish for almost three years when he reached the quarter-finals of the eighth Players Championship in April 2017. He had wins over

, Warrick Scheffer,

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 ...

and

, before losing 6–4 to

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 ...

Personal life

Kellett worked as a web designer before becoming a full-time darts player.

World Championship results

BDO

* 2011: Second round (lost to

1–4)

PDC

* 2013: First round (lost to

0–3) * 2014: First round (lost to Paul Nicholson 0–3) * 2015: First round (lost to

1–3)

Career finals

PDC European tour finals: (1 runner-up)

References

External links

Official Stuart 'KO' Kellett website
*
Profile for Stuart Kellett
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kellett, Stuart 1981 births Living people English darts players Professional Darts Corporation former tour card holders People from Denton, Greater Manchester