the issue i have is when i was at blackpool all them years ago & wes newton hit his v pipe i got a buzz out of being there that moment in time, seen one live in person, ok not as good a view as on telly at home but the thrill of i was there, sometimes professional sports people in their little bubble of a world (managers advisors etc) quickly become detached from the average fan & there reasons for attending sports events if we have now reached that in darts where the player is that detached he can say im not arsed about a 9 darter ( the holy grail for any player) cos the cash aint there to make me hungry enough to go for it / achieve it, then we have a major issue in my view
I think in darts they will go for it every time as like duzza yesterday if they miss it they can lose the leg and go on to lose the match - in snooker, if you're an arse like ronnie you can have a laugh and turn it into a 146 if you are continuing a petty feud with uncle bazza and there is nothing he can do, after all in snooker 146s are twenty times rarer than 147s and both win the frame.
I used to think bazza was taking the piss with the 'increased prize money' excuse but the next tourney is the UK open and the prize fund this year is £1,000,009 with £15,000 for the highest break whereas last year is was £850,000 and £5,000 with an extra rolling pot for 147s so only 5k gtd - if you're not in the top 16 then another 15k is nice, even the smaller high break prizes are good for the lower ranks.
I think the worlds should have something extra for 9s though, it is the main event.
Wubbalubbadubdub wrote: ↑Sun Nov 24, 2019 3:29 pm
Don't forget Taylor's 1st 9 darter at the UK open, there wasn't a prize and then Budweiser chucked in 501 bottles (i think).
I thought that had been announced as a prize before he did it.
I do remember him promising in an interview to give the £100K from the 2002 Matchplay 9er to charity. And then keeping it.
Like only85 I was there when Newton hit his 9 darter. Couldn't care less how many you see on TV to see one live was brilliant.
The atmosphere was fantastic. expectancy kicks in after 6. Atmosphere is cranking up after darts 7 and 8 then exploding on 9!
saw mvg hit one the next day. Just as good.
I hope the players appreciate the game is not just about them but the paying punters as well.
devosteve wrote: ↑Sun Nov 24, 2019 5:57 pm
Like only85 I was there when Newton hit his 9 darter. Couldn't care less how many you see on TV to see one live was brilliant.
The atmosphere was fantastic. expectancy kicks in after 6. Atmosphere is cranking up after darts 7 and 8 then exploding on 9!
saw mvg hit one the next day. Just as good.
I hope the players appreciate the game is not just about them but the paying punters as well.
I know what you mean about being in the crowd for a 9 as it is a special moment.
I have also been lucky enough to mark a 9 and on a different note I was at Headingley in the summer when Stokes pulled off that remarkable innings to win the test.
The snooker crowd just thought they were in for their special moment as Ronnie was just on a max but after lots of "oohs" and "aahs" and "come on Ronnie" he left himself on the pink off the last red, big sigh, couple of pissed-off laughs but as there are no prizes for them anymore he has already said he won't go for them and he said to the crowd "it's only worth seven and a half grand, I'm not doing it for that" - he is in full-on knob mode as he seems to have taken offence to the ref now and isn't giving him a chance to put the balls up before taking his next shot and then walking off - wanker.
Luckily, darts may have it's arses but they aren't as arsey as Ronnie. Yet.
Would love to see some of the sensitive sausages like Lewis react when someone turns down the nine deliberately..
devosteve wrote: ↑Sun Nov 24, 2019 5:57 pm
Like only85 I was there when Newton hit his 9 darter. Couldn't care less how many you see on TV to see one live was brilliant.
The atmosphere was fantastic. expectancy kicks in after 6. Atmosphere is cranking up after darts 7 and 8 then exploding on 9!
saw mvg hit one the next day. Just as good.
I hope the players appreciate the game is not just about them but the paying punters as well.
I know what you mean about being in the crowd for a 9 as it is a special moment.
I have also been lucky enough to mark a 9 and on a different note I was at Headingley in the summer when Stokes pulled off that remarkable innings to win the test.
Haven't been privileged enough to watch a 9 darter live, nor be in the crowd when Ando wins a TV tournament.
Closest to the niner was at the Hydro for the PL in 2015 when Gary wired the D12 against Kim Huybrechts.
From memory the nearest I came to seeing Gary winning a TV tournament live, must have been when he lost to MVG in the 2017 WSOD Finals at Braehead, but probably best chance was when he lost 17-15 to Taylor at Blackpool in the 2014 Semi Final. Convinced that had he got through that match he would have won that year.
