PDC News – Jul/Aug 2008
PDC NEWS
The PDC North American Order of Merit
THE 2008 PDC North American Tour now has 7 events totaling a whopping £305,000 or nearly $710,000 in US dollars in prize money. These events include the $50,000 North American Darts Championship and the $250,000 US Open in May, the $40,000 Las Vegas PDPA Player’s Championship and the $250,000 Las Vegas Desert Classic VII in June and July, the $40,000 Kitchener PDPA Player’s Championship and the $40,000 Atlanta PDPA Player’s Championship in August, and the $40,000 Chicago PDPA Player’s Championship in September.
These seven PDC Pro Tour tournaments in North America will comprise the foundation for the North American Order of Merit ranking. The top North American player on the North American Order of Merit ranking, not already invited by right, will be invited to participate in the PartyBets.com World Grand Slam of Darts. Additionally, the top three players on the North American Order of Merit, not already invited by right, will receive invitations to compete in the Ladbrokes.com World Championship.
“We have been committed to developing professional darts in North America and this continues that trend,” said PDC Chairman Barry Hearn. “There are now more opportunities than ever for North American players to compete at a professional level and we believe that is resulting in standards continuing to rise. John Part is a great example for the ambitious players of North America to follow; a great champion with a superb attitude, and he fully deserved his Ladbrokes.com PDC World Darts Championship success. I’m sure it won't be too much longer before we see another American or Canadian joining him on the World Champion’s roll of honor.”
Registration forms, deadlines dates, schedules and payouts for the PDC North American Pro Tour events are located elsewhere in this issue and on-line at bullseyenews.com.
2009 LVDC VIII Wild Cards
The four (4) Wild Cards for the 2009 Las Vegas Desert Classic VIII will be based on the North American Order of Merit for all the PDC events held in North America from June 2008 through May of 2009 ending with the 2009 US Open and except the 2008 Las Vegas Desert Classic VII due to the advantage of the 2008 Wild Cards. No other tournaments will be included. Only North American residents (Canadian and US), not already participating by right, are eligible to earn a Wild Card spot in the 2009 Las Vegas Desert Classic VIII.
2008 Whyte & Mackay Premier League Darts Playoffs
(Photos by Lawrence Lustig/PDC)
Brilliant Taylor Claims Premier League Quartet
FINAL REPORT (Best of 31 legs)
Phil Taylor claimed a fourth successive Whyte & Mackay Premier League Darts title with a 16-8 win over James Wade in Cardiff International Arena.
Taylor produced a Premier League record average of 112.68 in routing Adrian Lewis 11-1 in the semi-finals, before seeing off world number three James Wade in the decider to claim the £100,000 winner’s cheque.
Photo Caption: Phil Taylor is “Over the moon” with his victory over James Wade in the Whyte & Mackey Premier League Darts final.
Wade had come from 6-3 down to defeat world number one Raymond van Barneveld 11-8 in his semi-final, but had no answer to Taylor’s brilliance.
“I’m absolutely over the moon,” said Taylor whose chances had been written off after losing three of his opening four games. “It’s a massive tournament and you have to be at the top of your game for three or four months, so it means a great deal. I thought I was too far in front when I went 9-2 up but James came back and I had to concentrate, go back to doing what I do every day and hold on.”
Photo Caption: Phil Taylor holds aloft his 4th consecutive Whyte & Mackey Premier League Darts championship Trophy.
Wade, who claimed £50,000 as runner-up in his debut Premier League campaign, admitted, “Phil showed how good he really is tonight. In the last ten to fifteen legs, I threw some very good darts but it wasn’t enough and he showed his quality. I’ll keep trying to improve, and hopefully, I can go one better next year and win this event. I can play better than this and I’ll be working hard to do that.”
Semi-Finals:
James Wade 11-8 Raymond van Barneveld
Phil Taylor 11-1 Adrian Lewis
Final: Phil Taylor 16-8 James Wade
SEMI-FINAL REPORTS (Best of 21 legs)
Raymond van Barneveld suffered semi-final heartbreak in the Whyte & Mackay Premier League Darts for a third successive year with an 11-8 loss to James Wade. The Dutchman led 4-1 and 6-3 against Wade, only to see the world number three take eight of the last ten legs and move into the final in Cardiff. Van Barneveld had also lost in the last four in his two previous Premier League campaigns since joining the PDC in 2006.
Van Barneveld admitted, “I missed too many doubles. I was 6-3 in front, but it should have been 8-1 and I missed my big chances.”
Phil Taylor produced a record Whyte & Mackay Premier League Darts average of 112.68 in storming to an 11-1 win over Adrian Lewis.
Photo Caption: Phil Taylor sets a new record of 112.68 points per dart average in his crushing defeat of Adrian Lewis in the Semi-Final match of the whyte & Mackey Premier League Darts.
Lewis admitted, “I didn’t get off to the start I wanted to and it went downhill from there. I didn’t put him under enough pressure, and I was 5-0 down before I knew it. If it had been 3-2 at that first break, it maybe could have been different, but every time I left a double he seemed to go out on the last dart after hitting a big score to leave a finish. He finished brilliantly, scored brilliantly and I thought he was a lot better player than me on the night.”
The £40,000 was Lewis’ biggest pay-day, but he added, “The money doesn’t mean anything. The title was more important to me. But with Phil on that form, there’s not a lot more any player could have done.”
