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Grand Slam of Darts: 20 Most Unforgettable Moments

Grand Slam of Darts: 20 Most Unforgettable Moments

Alex Moss |

The 20 Most Memorable Moments In Grand Slam of Darts History

The 2024 Grand Slam of Darts is almost upon us, which means it’s time to take a trip down memory lane and look back at the tournament’s most unforgettable moments. From shock results and first-time major winners to memorable debuts and iconic matches, Darts Corner has delved through the archive to put together a list of our 20 most memorable moments in Grand Slam history.

Paul Nicholson silences the crowd on debut (2008)

Now a regular voice in the commentary box, Paul Nicholson’s own career as a darts player saw him make a memorable TV debut at the 2008 Grand Slam of Darts. The Geordie-born Australian qualified as the top-ranked player on the DPA circuit Down Under, and walked out to a chorus of boos from the Wolverhampton crowd at the Civic Hall.

Nicholson threw a 180 with his first three darts in his group opener against Gary Anderson, before turning back to the crowd and putting his finger to his mouth to silence the boos. He would repeat the gesture again after hitting double 10 with his last dart in the deciding leg, as he beat Anderson 5-4 to mark his big-stage debut with a victory.

James Wade hits his first TV 9 darter (2008)

Before settling on ‘The Machine’ as a nickname, James Wade would go under various darting nicknames including ‘The Gladiator’, ‘Double O Nine’ and ‘The Wingman’. The ‘Double O Nine’ moniker was a take on James Bond’s ‘Double O Seven’ nickname and a nod to Wade throwing three nine-dart legs on the PDC tour during the 2006 season.

In the 2008 Grand Slam of Darts, Wade joined the list of players to strike perfection in front of the TV cameras. The left hander hit the first nine-dart leg in Grand Slam history in his second-round clash against Gary Anderson, but it would come in a losing effort as Wade went on to lose the match to Anderson 10-8.

Anastasia Dobromyslova beats Vincent van der Voort (2009)

The Grand Slam of Darts is one of the few major events on the darts calendar that sees male and female players competing against each other. In 2009, Russia’s Anastasia Dobromyslova wrote her name in the history books as the first woman to beat a man in the Grand Slam, beating former major finalist Vincent van der Voort 5-4 in the group stages of the tournament.

It was only the second time ever that a woman had beaten a man at darts on TV, with Dobromyslova following in the footsteps of Deta Hedman, who won through two rounds at the UK Open in 2005. Between 2011 and 2018, there would be no female representation at the Grand Slam, before the ladies returned in 2019 with the then reigning women’s world champion Mikuru Suzuki.

Steve Beaton ends Phil Taylor’s reign (2010)

The first three stagings of the Grand Slam of Darts were all won by Phil Taylor, a player many regard as the greatest of all time. However, his run as Grand Slam champion would come to an end in 2010 when Steve Beaton turned off ‘The Power’ in a gripping quarter-final clash at the Civic Hall.

Trailing 13-9 and 14-11 in a race to 16 legs, ‘The Bronzed Adonis’ rolled back the years as he won seven of the last eight legs to defeat Taylor 16-14. It was Beaton’s first win against Taylor in front of the TV cameras and ensured there would be a new name added to the Grand Slam roll of honour that year.

Scott Waites becomes the first BDO player to win the title (2010)

The Grand Slam of Darts was launched in 2007 with the brand new tournament bringing together players from the two rival codes, the PDC and the BDO, against each other. In 2009, Scott Waites became the first BDO player to reach the final of the Grand Slam, but it would be a humbling experience for ‘Scotty 2 Hotty’ as he was thrashed 16-2 by Phil Taylor.

Waites would reach the Grand Slam final again just 12 months later, and another heavy defeat looked to be on the cards when his opponent James Wade raced into an 8-0 lead. However, the BDO star would have other ideas as he produced an unlikely comeback to win 16-12 and join Taylor as only the second player to lift the Grand Slam trophy.

Michael van Gerwen shuts off ‘The Power’ (2012)

Michael van Gerwen’s career in the PDC took off in 2012 when he won the World Grand Prix, opening the floodgates for a flurry of major title success over the next decade. A month on from that landmark win in Dublin, ‘Mighty Mike’ would lock horns with Phil Taylor in a first meeting in front of the TV cameras since van Gerwen became a PDC major winner.

It was a match that drew plenty of hype and it lived up to the billing, with van Gerwen averaging 108 to Taylor’s 104 in a high-quality encounter on the Civic Hall stage. Van Gerwen’s hot streak would continue as the Dutchman prevailed 10-5, ending a five-year winless run against Taylor in a match he would describe as ‘one of the best games of my life.’

Tearful Barney gets back in the winners’ circle (2012)

The 2012 Grand Slam of Darts final is remembered as one of the best finals in the tournament’s history, as two Dutch rivals in Raymond van Barneveld and Michael van Gerwen faced off for the title in Wolverhampton. Van Gerwen was fresh off winning his maiden PDC major at the World Grand Prix a month earlier, whilst van Barneveld had gone five years without a major singles title.

The scene was set for an epic encounter and that is exactly what would transpire. The Dutch duo played out a 30-leg thriller for the Grand Slam crown, with van Barneveld coming out on top 16-14 and breaking down in tears after sealing his first big title win since the 2007 Las Vegas Desert Classic.

The Huybrechts brothers play against each other (2013)

In 2013, history was made at the Grand Slam of Darts when Ronny and Kim Huybrechts faced each other in the last 16. It was the first time ever that two brothers had faced off in a televised darts match, with Ronny qualifying as the Group C winner and Kim finishing second in Group D to set up the battle of the Huybrechts brothers.

It was the younger of the two brothers, Kim, who would claim the bragging rights as he beat his older brother 10-5 to advance to the quarter-finals. ‘The Hurricane’ averaged 97, fired in eight 180s and was impressive on the finishing, hitting 10/17 on the doubles to win the battle of the Huybrechts brothers.

The best game ever? (2013)

Phil Taylor and Adrian Lewis lit up the Civic Hall stage in their semi-final clash at the 2013 Grand Slam of Darts, firing in an incredible 32 scores of 180 between them in just 25 legs. Taylor averaged 109.76 in victory, with Lewis posting an astonishing average of 110.99 in defeat.

Taylor checked out 167 to lead 6-5, before ‘Jackpot’ won three of the next four legs to move 8-7 up at the third interval. ‘The Power’ would then pull away with a relentless spell of his own, winning eight legs on the spin to lead 15-8. And despite Lewis throwing his 18th maximum of the contest, Taylor would secure his place in the final as a 16-9 winner.

Nine-dart Kim Huybrechts stuns Michael van Gerwen (2014)

Kim Huybrechts produced the performance of his career to knock out the top seed Michael van Gerwen in the 2014 Grand Slam of Darts. The Belgian was in inspired form when he faced van Gerwen in the quarter-finals and threw a nine-dart leg on his way to a 16-10 victory.

‘The Hurricane’ had earlier stormed into 12-3 and 13-7 leads against van Gerwen and at one point was averaging over 110, before holding off a fightback from his opponent to advance to the semi-finals. Huybrechts threw a nine darter in the 21st leg to open up a 14-7 lead and finished with an average just under 105, whilst van Gerwen in defeat averaged a shade under 104.

Martin Adams makes his debut (2015)

Martin Adams sent darts fans into a frenzy in 2015 when he announced on social media that he would be playing in the Grand Slam for the first time. ‘Wolfie’ had turned down invites to play in the cross-code event in each of the first three years, from 2007 to 2009, before the PDC decided to no longer send out invitations to the three-time BDO world champion.

Adams had a change of heart in 2015 and as the Lakeside runner-up that year made the U-turn to make his return to the PDC stage following a 14-year absence. The debut could not have gone any better for the three-time World Master, averaging 104 in a 5-2 win against Ian White and going on to top his group with three wins out of three.

A maximum start for the Viking (2015)

The same year that Martin Adams made his long-awaited Grand Slam debut, another BDO legend also made his first appearance on the Civic Hall stage. The late Andy Fordham was one of the surprise winners in the BDO qualifiers to earn a spot in the field, having battled with numerous health issues that had kept him away from the board for several periods.

The 2004 Lakeside champion was drawn to face the two-time PDC world champion Adrian Lewis in his opening group game. The battle of the world champions ended with Lewis prevailing 5-2, but will always be remembered for Fordham’s first three darts in the match. ‘The Viking’ kicked off with a 180 and finished with an average just under 100, as the fans’ favourite delighted the crowd on his big-stage return.

Nine-dart shootout goes to the wire (2017)

The dreaded ‘nine-dart shootout’ has been used several times as a final tie-breaker to determine the final standings in the Grand Slam group stages. Under the current format, a nine-dart shootout is highly unlikely, but before the rule change it would come into play much sooner when two players were level on points and legs difference.

A nine-dart shootout sees players each throw nine darts (three darts per turn) and the player with the highest total score would advance to the knockouts and the loser would be out. In 2017, Mark and Darren Webster faced off in a nine-dart shootout that went right down to the wire. Mark Webster threw 100 with his last three darts to finish on 298, but Darren Webster, trailing by 54 points with one dart left found a treble 19 to squeak through on 301 points.

Berry van Peer battles with his darting demons (2017)

It is a word that strikes fear in any dart player: dartitis. Similar to the ‘yips’ in golf, dartitis is a condition that prevents a player from releasing their darts at the right moment, and infamously plagued the late Eric Bristow soon after he won his fifth world title in the 1980s. At the 2017 Grand Slam, Berry van Peer was visibly suffering with dartitis when he made his debut in the competition.

An emotional van Peer would make his way through the group stages, beating Cameron Menzies 5-4 in a last-leg decider in his final group game. Both players missed multiple match darts in the winner-takes-all clash, before van Peer hit double 10 to progress to the last 16.

Gerwyn Price wins controversial final (2018)

The 2018 Grand Slam final is remembered as one of the most controversial matches in PDC history. Gerwyn Price defeated Gary Anderson 16-13 to become the first Welsh winner of a PDC major, but the ill-tempered clash saw Price fined £12,000 for ‘bringing the sport into disrepute and gamesmanship’ in the final. Anderson, who pushed Price at one point during the final, was also given a formal warming.

‘The Iceman’ had trailed 11-8 in the final before winning eight of the next 10 legs to lift the Eric Bristow Trophy. The two finalists did not shake hands at the end of the match and Price was met with loud boos from the crowd during the trophy presentation. “Five-six years ago I was a rugby player, and now I'm pinching money from the professionals' pockets,” Price quipped afterwards.

Jose De Sousa is the special one (2020)

From loud boos from a partisan crowd in the 2018 final to artificial fake crowd noises two years later, the 2020 Grand Slam was played in the midst of the pandemic with no fans in attendance. It was the only edition of the Grand Slam to be played outside of Wolverhampton, with the Ricoh Arena, in Coventry, playing host to the behind closed doors tournament in 2020.

Portugal’s Jose De Sousa was the unlikely winner, beating James Wade 16-12 in his first major final and wrapping up the title in style. ‘The Special One’ hit a 158 finish with two treble 20s and a double 19 to make history as the first Portuguese player to win a darts major title.

Fallon Sherrock hits the big fish (2021)

Fallon Sherrock wrote her name into the darts history books once again during the 2021 Grand Slam of Darts. ‘The Queen of the Palace’ trailed Gabriel Clemens 3-1 in her final group game and needed to win by a two-leg margin or more to advance to the knockout rounds. There was no margin for error and Sherrock would produce a four-leg burst to pull off a remarkable comeback.

A 12-dart leg and a 141 finish levelled the match up at 3-3, before Sherrock hit tops to go 4-3 up and one leg away from victory and the result she needed to qualify for the next round. The all-or-nothing eighth leg saw Clemens left on 68 and Sherrock needing 170. The history maker would hit treble 20, treble 20 and bullseye to check out the 170 and win the match, becoming the first female player to advance through the group stage of the Grand Slam.

Josh Rock makes a big impression on debut (2022)

Few players have made as big an impact in their first year on the PDC tour as Josh Rock did in 2022. The Northern Irishman was a relative unknown when he won his tour card at Q-School at the start of that year, but quickly made a name for himself with a string of impressive performances, winning a Players Championship as well as five Development Tour titles, which earned him a debut at the Grand Slam.

After qualifying for the knockout rounds, ‘Rocky’ would face off with Michael van Gerwen in the last 16. A blockbuster clash saw the newcomer throw a nine darter in just the second leg of the match, before going on to lose 10-8, despite finishing with an average close to 104.

Michael Smith ends his long wait for a first major title (2022)

Michael Smith ended his elusive search for a first major title at the Grand Slam of Darts in 2022. ‘Bully Boy’ had previously been in eight major finals in the PDC but had lost all of them, including in two World Championship finals and in three heart-breaking last-leg deciders.

However, Smith would not be denied at the ninth time of asking, as he breezed past Nathan Aspinall 16-5 in a ruthless display in the 2022 Grand Slam final. “I’m used to giving the runner-up speech,” joked Smith afterwards as he finally got his hands on the winners’ trophy. Just two months later he would follow up that success by winning the World Championship and moving to the top of the rankings.

Stowe Buntz shines on Grand Slam debut (2023)

Stowe Buntz made an instant impact on his Grand Slam debut last year, thrashing Peter Wright 5-1 with a 102 average in his opening group game. The American had qualified for his first major event after winning the CDC Continental Cup, and enjoyed a debut to remember with 137 and 116 finishes helping him ease past the two-time PDC world champion.

His final average of 102.28 was the highest average by a North American player in Grand Slam history, and the tournament would get even better for Buntz as he topped his group and went on to reach the quarter-finals in Wolverhampton. ‘The Neon Nightmare’ was the first American to make the last eight of the Grand Slam as he quickly announced himself on the big stage.

Get ready for the Grand Slam of Darts

Do you agree with our list of Grand Slam moments or is yours different? Let us know your favourite moments from the tournament’s history. Tweet us your list on Twitter (X) or leave a comment on our Facebook page.

The next instalment of the Grand Slam is almost here and to get you ready for this year’s edition we’ve put together a Grand Slam of Darts Guide.

You can also shop our Grand Slam of Darts collection for the signature darts and accessories of some of the top stars who will be playing in this year’s tournament including Michael Smith, Gary Anderson, Beau Greaves, Josh Rock and many more!

Pictures: PDC

Alex Moss is a content creator for Darts Corner and the co-host of the Weekly Dartscast podcast. Alex co-founded the Weekly Dartscast in 2017 and has helped produce 350+ episodes of the podcast, with their list of previous guests on the show a who’s who in the world of darts.

Alex also writes content for the Darts Corner blog, including the weekly darts news round-ups and how-to guides.

 

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