Professional Darts Corporation Triple Crown

Last updated

The Triple Crown refers to winning the three most prestigious tournaments in the Professional Darts Corporation: the World Championship, the World Matchplay and the Premier League. [1] [2] Players who win all three tournaments over the course of their career are said to have won the PDC Triple Crown.

Contents

Three professional players have won a career PDC Triple Crown: Phil Taylor, Michael van Gerwen, and Gary Anderson. [3] Taylor has won the most Triple Crown titles, with 36, [4] while van Gerwen has won 13 [5] and Anderson 5. [6] Only Taylor has won all three Triple Crown events in a single season, accomplishing this feat twice (in 2006 and 2010).

History

In 1994, the World Championship was held for the first time, with Dennis Priestley winning the first PDC Triple Crown event, [7] the only such win of his career. Larry Butler became the first winner of the World Matchplay that same year, [8] and this was also the only Triple Crown event he won. In 2005, the first Premier League was held, with 7 players taking part. The event was won by Phil Taylor, who became the first player to win a career PDC Triple Crown in the process. [9]

Career Triple Crown winners

Three players have completed a career Triple Crown: Phil Taylor, Michael van Gerwen, and Gary Anderson. Only Taylor has won all three Triple Crown events in the same year, a feat he achieved twice, in 2006 and 2010. After winning the World Championship in 2017, van Gerwen held all 3 Triple Crown titles simultaneously (having won both the Premier League and the Matchplay in 2016).

Legend
†The names of active players are marked in bold
Flag icon key: List of National Flags
PlayerTotalWorld ChampionshipPremier LeagueWorld MatchplayWinning span
Flag of England.svg Phil Taylor 36146161995–2017
Flag of the Netherlands.svg Michael van Gerwen 133732013–2023
Flag of Scotland.svg Gary Anderson 52212011–2018

Other tournament winners

One win away from Triple Crown

James Wade has won the Premier League and World Matchplay once each, meaning he needs to win the World Championship to complete the Triple Crown. [10] Peter Wright is yet to win the Premier League, but does have two World Championship titles and a World Matchplay title to his name. With three Triple Crown competition wins, he has the highest number of Triple Crown titles of any player who has not completed the set. [11] Rob Cross also needs to win the Premier League to complete the Triple Crown having won the World Championship in 2018 and World Matchplay in 2019, [12] as does Luke Humphries, who won the World Championships and World Matchplay in 2024. [13] Raymond van Barneveld has won the Premier League and World Championship once each, and needs to win a Matchplay to complete the set. [14]

Wright, van Barneveld, Cross and Humphries have all reached the final of their respective missing Triple Crown tournaments, whereas James Wade is a four-time World Championship semi-finalist.

Won at least 1 Triple Crown Title

As of 21 July 2024, six players have won the World Championship and neither of the other two Triple Crown events: Adrian Lewis (2011 and 2012), John Part (2003 and 2008), Dennis Priestley (1994), Gerwyn Price (2021) and Michael Smith (2023). [15] Rod Harrington has won two Triple Crown titles, both at the World Matchplay (1998 and 1999). [16] Larry Butler (1994), Peter Evison (1996), Colin Lloyd (2005), Dimitri Van den Bergh (2020) and Nathan Aspinall (2023) have each won one Triple Crown title, the World Matchplay. [16] Glen Durrant (2020), Johnny Clayton (2021) and Luke Littler (2024) won their only Triple Crown title, to date, in the Premier League. [17]

Complete table, with players who have won a career Triple Crown in bold:

PlayerTotalWorld ChampionshipPremier LeagueWorld MatchplayWinning span
Flag of England.svg Phil Taylor 36146161995–2017
Flag of the Netherlands.svg Michael van Gerwen 133732013–2023
Flag of Scotland.svg Gary Anderson 52212011–2018
Flag of Scotland.svg Peter Wright 32012020-2022
Flag of England.svg Luke Humphries 21012024
Flag of England.svg Rob Cross 21012018-2019
Flag of the Netherlands.svg Raymond van Barneveld 21102007-2014
Flag of England.svg James Wade 20112007-2009
Flag of England.svg Adrian Lewis 22002011–2012
Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg John Part 22002003-2008
Flag of England.svg Rod Harrington 20021998-1999
Flag of England.svg Dennis Priestley 11001994
Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg Gerwyn Price 11002021
Flag of England.svg Michael Smith 11002023
Flag of the United States.svg Larry Butler 10011994
Flag of England.svg Peter Evison 10011996
Flag of England.svg Colin Lloyd 10012005
Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Dimitri Van den Bergh 10012020
Flag of England.svg Nathan Aspinall 10012023
Flag of England.svg Glen Durrant 10102020
Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg Jonny Clayton 10102021
Flag of England.svg Luke Littler 10102024

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phil Taylor (darts player)</span> English darts player (born 1960)

Philip Douglas Taylor is an English former professional darts player. Nicknamed "The Power", he dominated darts for over three decades and is widely considered the greatest darts player of all time, having won 214 professional tournaments, including a record 85 major titles and a record 16 World Championships. In 2015, the BBC rated Taylor among the ten greatest British sportsmen of the last 35 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raymond van Barneveld</span> Dutch darts player

Raymond van Barneveld is a Dutch professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Nicknamed "Barney", although originally known as "The Man", he is widely regarded as one of the greatest darts players of all time. Van Barneveld is a five-time World Darts Champion, a two-time UK Open Champion and a former winner of the Las Vegas Desert Classic, the Grand Slam of Darts and the Premier League. He is also a twice-winner of the World Masters and the World Darts Trophy, and a three-time winner of the International Darts League, the Dutch Open and the WDF World Cup Singles event.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Professional Darts Corporation</span> Professional darts organisation

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 Darts Council (WDC). Sports promoter Eddie Hearn is the PDC chairman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jelle Klaasen</span> Dutch darts player

Jelle Klaasen, nicknamed The Cobra, is a Dutch professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). In 2006, he became the youngest darts player to win the World Darts Championship, aged 21 at the time. He also is a Dutch Open champion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adrian Lewis</span> English darts player

Adrian Lewis is an English professional darts player who plays in the PDC. He is a two-time PDC World Darts Champion, winning in 2011 and 2012, also winning the 2013 European Championship and the 2014 UK Open.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Wade</span> English darts player

James Martin Wade 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 age of 24. This record has since been broken by Michael van Gerwen. Wade has won eleven PDC majors, third in the all-time list behind Phil Taylor and Michael van Gerwen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Premier League Darts</span> Darts tournament

Premier League Darts, known for sponsorship purposes in 2024 as BetMGM Premier League Darts, is a darts tournament which launched on 20 January 2005 on Sky Sports. Now played weekly from February to May, the event originally started as a fortnightly fixture in small venues around the United Kingdom. The tournament originally featured seven players, gradually expanded to ten by 2013, before reduced again from 2022 to eight players from the Professional Darts Corporation circuit competing in a knockout style format, with nights also hosted in Europe at different venues. The top four players in the PDC Order of Merit are joined by four wildcard selections to make up the eight-person field. Alongside the World Championship and the World Matchplay, it is considered part of the sport's Triple Crown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PDC World Darts Championship</span> Annual darts tournament

The PDC World Darts Championship, known for sponsorship purposes as the Paddy Power World Darts Championship, organised by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC), is a World Professional Darts Championship held annually in the sport of darts. The PDC world championship begins in December and ends in January and is held at Alexandra Palace in London and has been held there since 2008. It is the most prestigious of the PDC's tournaments, with the winner receiving the Sid Waddell Trophy, named in honour of the darts commentator Sid Waddell, who died in 2012. Along with the Premier League Darts and World Matchplay, it is considered part of the Triple Crown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael van Gerwen</span> Dutch darts player

Michael van Gerwen is a Dutch professional darts player. He is currently ranked No. 3 in the world, having been No. 1 from 2014 to 2021. He is also a three-time PDC World Champion, having won the title in 2014, 2017 and 2019. Van Gerwen is regarded as one of the greatest players of all time.

Richard Mark Burnett, 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 Championship. Burnett is known for coming on to "Dakota" and dancing on stage. He is also known for his fiery personality, fighting with Adrian Lewis on stage during the 2012 Players Championship Finals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andy Hamilton (darts player)</span> English darts player

Andrew Hamilton, nicknamed The Hammer, is an English professional darts player.

This is a list of some of the major events and competitions in the sport of darts in 2007. Raymond van Barneveld proved to be the most successful player with ten professional tournament wins across the PDC and BDO, including four majors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Terry Jenkins</span> English darts player

Terry Jenkins 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 nine major PDC televised finals, those being the 2006 and 2007 World Grand Prix, 2007 Premier League, 2007 Las Vegas Desert Classic, 2007 and 2009 World Matchplay, 2008 Grand Slam of Darts, 2014 UK Open and 2014 European Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gary Anderson (darts player)</span> Scottish darts player

Gary James Grant Anderson is a Scottish professional darts player playing in events of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Nicknamed "The Flying Scotsman", after the famous steam train, he is a former BDO and WDF world number one, and a two-time PDC World Champion, having won the title in 2015 and 2016. He is regarded as one of the best darts players of all time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simon Whitlock</span> Australian darts player

Simon Whitlock is an Australian professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) tournaments, having also played in the British Darts Organisation (BDO) between 2004 and 2009. He uses the nickname The Wizard for his matches. His walk-on music is "Down Under" by Men at Work.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Thornton (darts player)</span> Scottish darts player

Robert Thornton is a Scottish professional darts player, who is a two-time World Seniors champion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dave Chisnall</span> English darts player

David Chisnall is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is currently ranked No. 5 in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Wright (darts player)</span> Scottish darts player

Peter Stuart Wright is a Scottish professional darts player who plays in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC), where he is currently ranked No. 11 in the world. Nicknamed "Snakebite", he is a two-time world champion, having won the PDC World Darts Championship in 2020 and 2022. He is also a World Matchplay champion and has been ranked as the World No. 1 in the PDC twice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Smith (darts player)</span> English darts player (born 1990)

Michael Smith is an English professional darts player. Nicknamed "Bully Boy", he plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is currently ranked No. 2 in the world. He is a former world champion, having won the 2023 World Championship.

The three-dart average in darts is the average of the total score achieved with each turn of three darts.

References

  1. ↑ "Anderson seals thrilling Matchplay win". BBC Sport. 29 July 2018.
  2. ↑ "World Matchplay: What if Gary Anderson wins the triple crown?". Sky Sports.
  3. ↑ "Anderson becomes third player to complete darting triple crown with World Matchplay win". Dartsnews.com. July 30, 2018.
  4. ↑ "Mastercaller". mastercaller.com.
  5. ↑ "Mastercaller". mastercaller.com.
  6. ↑ "Mastercaller". mastercaller.com.
  7. ↑ "The Story of How There Came to be Two World Darts Championships". 24 December 2021.
  8. ↑ "1994 World Matchplay Final | Larry Butler v Dennis Priestley" – via www.youtube.com.
  9. ↑ "2005 888.com Premier League Darts Results". PDC.
  10. ↑ "Mastercaller". mastercaller.com.
  11. ↑ "Mastercaller". mastercaller.com.
  12. ↑ "Mastercaller". mastercaller.com.
  13. ↑ "Mastercaller". mastercaller.com.
  14. ↑ "Mastercaller". mastercaller.com.
  15. ↑ "PDC World Championship Roll Of Honour". www.dartsdatabase.co.uk.
  16. 1 2 "World Matchplay Roll Of Honour". www.dartsdatabase.co.uk.
  17. ↑ "Premier League Darts Winners List, Clayton 2021 debut year champion - Sports history". www.sportshistori.com.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.