Darts or dart-throwing is a competitive sport in which two or more players bare-handedly throw small sharp-pointed projectiles known as darts at a round target known as a dartboard.
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.
A nine-dart finish, also known as a nine-darter, is a perfect leg or single game in the sport of darts. The object of the game is to score a set number of points, most commonly 501; in order to win, a player must reach the target total exactly and hit a double scoring area with their last dart. When the target is 501, the minimum number of darts needed to reach it is nine. For example, one way to achieve a nine-dart finish is to score 60 on each of the first seven throws, then a 57 on the eighth, and lastly a 24 on the ninth. It is regarded as an extremely difficult feat to achieve even for the sport's top players, and is considered the highest single-game achievement in the sport, similar to a maximum 147 break in snooker or a 300-point game in bowling.
John Thomas "Jocky" Wilson was a Scottish professional darts player. After turning pro in 1979, he quickly rose to the top of the game, winning the World Professional Darts Championship in 1982, then again in 1989. Wilson competed in all major darts tournaments of the era and won the British Professional Championship a record four times between 1981 and 1988.
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.
This is a glossary of terminology used in the game of darts. Where words in a sentence are also defined elsewhere in this article, they appear in italics.
Steve Beaton is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won the BDO World Darts Championship in 1996 and is a former World No. 1.
Dennis Priestley is an English former professional darts player. He won two world championships, and was the first player to win both the BDO and WDC world championships, in 1991 and 1994 respectively. He was nicknamed "The Menace", after the Beano character Dennis the Menace, and reflected this by wearing red and black and using red and black flights.
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.
The 2002 PDC World Darts Championship was a professional darts tournament held from 28 December 2001 to 5 January 2002 at the Circus Tavern in Purfleet, Essex. It was the ninth staging of the competition beginning with the 1994 edition and the ninth time it was held at the Circus Tavern. The competition was the first of 30 Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) tournaments in the 2002 season.
The 2001 PDC World Darts Championship was a professional darts tournament held from 28 December 2000 and 3 January 2001 at the Circus Tavern in Purfleet, Essex, England. It was the eighth staging of the competition since the 1994 competition. The competition was the first of 34 Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) tournaments in the 2001 season. The tournament was broadcast on Sky Sports and was sponsored by Skol.
The 1996 Vernons World Darts Championship was the third year that the Professional Darts Corporation held their own World Championships following an acrimonious split from the British Darts Organisation during 1992/93. The tournament had its third sponsor in as many years, with Vernons taking over from Proton Cars. The tournament was held at the Circus Tavern in Purfleet between 26 December 1995 and 1 January 1996.
The 2002 Stan James World Matchplay was a professional darts tournament held from 28 July to 3 August 2002 at the Empress Ballroom in the Winter Gardens of Blackpool. It was the ninth staging of the competition since the 1994 edition and the 18th of 35 Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) tournaments in the 2002 season. The tournament was broadcast on Sky Sports and was sponsored by the betting company Stan James.
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.
Chris Mason is an English former professional darts player. He used the nickname Mace the Ace.
Larry Thomas Butler, nicknamed The Bald Eagle, is an American professional darts player who was the winner of the 1994 PDC World Matchplay Darts Championship. This success made him the first and so far only player from the United States of America to have won a PDC Major darts tournament in Europe.
The split in darts refers to the acrimonious 1993 dispute between professional darts players and the game's governing body, the British Darts Organisation (BDO), resulting in the creation of a rival darts circuit under the banner of the World Darts Council, which eventually became the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC).
Ronnie Baxter 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 action. He currently resides in his hometown Blackpool. Baxter is widely regarded as one of the best players never to have won a major TV title. He is still active on the exhibition circuit.
Joseph Cullen is an English professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won three Youth Tour tournaments in his early career and has qualified for the PDC World Championship twelve times, winning only thrice in the first round. Cullen reached his first major quarter-final at the 2016 UK Open and won his first PDC Pro Tour title in 2017. He won his first televised title at the 2022 Masters.
The Triple Crown refers to winning the three most prestigious tournaments in the Professional Darts Corporation: the World Championship, Premier League Darts, and the World Matchplay. Players who win all three tournaments over the course of their career are said to have won the PDC Triple Crown.
Phil Taylor 
