The Greatest Game On Earth.

One of my favourite sports is darts. It is a very simple game. As a sport it requires great levels of trained skill and, occasionally, a little bit of luck. However, when played well, it can be the most exciting sport to watch because it has such excitement and drama, intertwined with a gladiatorial aspect of one man, or women versus another opponent.

Currently, with BBC coverage available, the BDO (British Darts Organisation) world championship is taking place with the final tonight. I started watching many years ago and I've sadly watched the BDO after the great schism, decline in quality as some of the best players split with the BDO to form the PDC in the early nineties. Up until this point the BDO was the monopoly organisation, from where you could start in your local pub team. If you had talent you could then become a county player and take part in the inter county leagues (I discovered only yesterday that both, Derbyshire & Nottinghamshire county games are played at, Pinxton & Rolls Royce (hucknall), respectively. Both within 5 miles of my house; maybe there is still. Chance for me!).

As the PDC took darts down a professional, and highly commercial road, massively increasing prize money & incomes; the following happened. Players who won the world championship with the BDO gravitated across to the rich, pastureland of the PDC, to graze on their fertile fields. People like, Phil Taylor (the greatest darts player of all time) who had won a couple of BDO WC's and then went onto dominate the PDC in the mid-90's to around 2010/11 when he suddenly appeared beatable. The BDO would grow another dominant champion, like Raymond Van Barneveld. He too won multiple BDO titles and then moved across to play people like, Taylor. This gradual drip, drip of talent has really shrink the talent pool in the BDO. Although there remains good players, there are no great players at the moment, that could go to the PDC and dominate like in previous years. Note, for example that at the current lakeside a mans average may be 90 or so at the very best over a game. The PDO strays into 110-120's. You now see the difference, when after 3 darts you are already 30/40 ahead. After three throws you'll be 100 or so ahead, essentially guaranteeing yourself a free throw at a double. That's the difference in quality. That's why the money goes to the PDC. They pay the best, they get the best.

But, and this is crucial, they don't have the history of the Lakeside. The PDC and the riches of Croesus can't buy the heritage that the BDO has. It may be a fading, but the ghosts of; Bristow, Lowe, Wilson, George, Adams, et al...ensure that the lakeside event will always be that little bit special.


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