Former BDO world champion Mark Webster made his debut in the PDC at the weekend with back-to-back appearances at two tournaments in Gladbeck, Germany. The draw was unkind to the Welshman, serving up early defeats to Ronnie Baxter in the German Darts Classic, and Terry Jenkins in the Players Championship. His first round victory on the Sunday, however, ensured that at least his air-fare was covered.
This weekend Gary Anderson will make his first attempt to climb up the PDC money-list at the two events in his native Scotland. The ‘Dreamboy’ nickname has been banished, replaced by the predictable ‘Flying Scotsman’, and Anderson, notorious for his phlegmatic attitude to the game, has even committed to practicing.
The two high profile converts from BDO to PDC are the latest in the long list of dart players to make the leap of faith, further confirming that, for any player who wants darts to be their long-term profession, there is only one organisation to join.
A couple more top BDO players may make the switch this year – Scott Waites and Simon Whitlock amongst the most likely – but the move by Webster and Anderson bring to a close months of endless speculation, and, for the time being, ends a trend started by Raymond Van Barneveld in 2006. With Andy Fordham also recently having made the switch, and Ted Hankey and Martin Adams seemingly content to ply their trade under the watchful eye of Olly Croft, the BDO has one crumb of comfort – at least it won’t be losing any more world champions for a while.
Barney announced his move to the PDC three years ago on 15 February. Since then, a steady trickle of players have crossed sides, and Webster and Anderson will be looking to replicate the success of their erstwhile and new colleagues. Impressively, by the beginning of 2009, six of the switchers had joined Barney in the top 32 of the PDC rankings. The Magnificent Seven.
For speed of success, the new recruits should look no further than following the example of Robert Thornton. He made his move on the eve of the 2008 UK Open, and within six months gained qualification for the World Championship. A first round victory against the reliable Wayne Jones was enough to start 2009 ranked 32, and his run to the final in the inaugural Players Championship shot the former BDO World Masters champion up the rankings once again. Victories over Mark Dudbridge, Alan Tabern, Dennis Priestley and James Wade were more than enough to illustrate why he will be a threat to the top 10 by the end of the year.
Vincent Van der Voort had a similarly quick rise to prominence following his switch in January 2007. By that summer, he had lost to fellow countryman Van Barneveld in the UK Open Final. One successful tournament was enough to qualify him for key majors, and a year later he made it through to the semi final at Bolton again. The manner of his defeat to James Wade in the last sixteen at Alexandra Palace at the end of 2008 was a little disappointing, but, ranked 18 at the end of that tournament, the speedy throw of Van der Voort remains a threat to any player.
Nearly as rapid at the oche is his stable-mate Jelle Klaasen, BDO world champion in 2006. The ‘Matador’ had a slow start in the PDC, and only qualified for the 2009 World Championships thanks to the fairly nebulous Continental Europe Order of Merit (in which his total earnings were £2,204). He certainly took his chance, however, following a first round victory over Colin Lloyd with a coming-of-age-in-the-PDC victory over Andy Hamilton in the last sixteen – a result which effectively lead to an invitation to play in the 2009 Premier League.
The last of the Dutch trio who switched to the PDC in January 2007 is Michael Van Gerwen. ‘Mighty Mike’ has been a little disappointing in the PDC, and has had limited success in television tournaments, the possible highlight a defeat of Andy Hamilton in the 2008 World Matchplay. The nineteen year old has been cursed by the draw, however, losing to Taylor narrowly in the 2008 World Championship, heavily in 2009, and respectably in the recent Players Championship. His time will come.
Of those making the switch, the least fanfare was sounded for Tony Eccles, ‘The Viper’. He quickly found his form in non-televised events after his switch in June 2007, qualifying for both the 2008 and 2009 World Championships, reaching the third and second rounds respectively. With a lower profile than his illustrious colleagues, and a current struggle for sponsorship, Eccles started the year ranked 26, and will be keen to reach a major quarter or semi-final in the next twelve months – both to retain his ranking and boost his profile.
The last of the Magnificent Seven to have found their way into the hierarchy of world darts has been a revelation since making a well-publicised and fractious switch in February 2007. Mervyn King has long courted controversy in the darts world. Whether for complaining about the air-conditioning, threatening to pull out of tournaments or causing other players to be disqualified, ‘The King’ has previously been a walking PR disaster. But since his switch, with earplugs in place, it is his form that has been doing the talking.
The signs were there in 2007, squeezed out in the last 16 of the UK Open by Colin Osborne, and losing in the World Matchplay quarter finals to eventual winner James Wade, having put out Andy Jenkins and Colin Lloyd. The last few months, however, have been fantastic for the Englishman – reaching the semi-final at the World Grand Prix, the Grand Slam of Darts, and the World Championship. He lost to Taylor twice, Van Barneveld once, and earned his place in the Premier League, where, to the surprise of virtually everybody apart from himself, he currently sits three points clear at the top of the league with four wins from four. King against Taylor this week is an intriguing clash – exactly the type of tussle that The Power usually wins at a canter. But The King is making a strong claim that darts’ true hierarchy now contains four players.
Webster and Anderson will be keen to have at least one good run in a tournament in the next couple of months to begin their own journeys to Ally Pally in December – and will no doubt be targeting the UK Open at the beginning of June as their first chance to make a real impact. Their progress up the rankings will keep all those in the 10-32 spots looking over their shoulders, as will the performances of other newcomers to the circuit, such as youngsters Aaron Monk and Stuart Bousfield, the Finnish pair of Marko Kantele and Jarkko Komula, Anastasia Dobromoslova, and a resurgent Co Stompe.
The rise of the Magnificent Seven is great news for world darts, but, as ever, there are losers. Challenging questions have been posed for some of the PDC old guard. Of the top 8 following the PDC 2006 World Championship, only Taylor and Wayne Mardle remain. Lloyd, Baxter, Peter Manley and Kevin Painter have all held on to top 16 berths, but it would be no great surprise if all four had joined Roland Scholten and Andy Jenkins outside the upper echelons by this time next year.
Of course, there is one other loser – the BDO. The argument about which code is of higher quality is finally over. In 2006 there were many who laughed off BDO suggestions that – Taylor apart – their standard of player was of at least equal quality to their rival organisation. In the ultimate irony, since so many of their former players have had such success at the PDC, the BDO can now make the irrelevant claim that they were probably right.