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PDC Awards Dinner

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75-686: The PDC Awards Dinner is an awards ceremony organised by the Professional Darts Corporation . It is held at the Dorchester Hotel in London . It has been held annually since 2007. Each January, the PDC has awarded players for outstanding performance in the previous season including player of the year awards, recognizing nine-dart finishes, and inducting members to the PDC Hall of Fame . PDC Player of

150-532: A living" and refused to guarantee more televised tournaments or permit the players to organise their own. As a result, 16 professional players, including every previous BDO world champion who was still active in the game, created their own darts organisation, the World Darts Council (WDC), in January 1992. The players were led by sports promoters Tommy Cox and Dick Allix, both of whom used their own money to fund

225-511: A number of new techniques to make the coverage more interesting for armchair fans. Unlike the BDO world championship, which was covered via the general entertainment BBC Two channel, Sky's dedicated sports channel allowed the PDC matches to be covered in their entirety. Over ten hours per day of live darts on Sky Sports is not uncommon. The British Darts Organisation's events were more limited to selected matches and highlights, although in recent years

300-527: A player in 2008 on Setanta Sports to compete in the BetFred League of Legends tournament, beating Bobby George 7–5 in the opening match. Bristow failed to maintain his form, however, and did not win another match in the tournament, failing to qualify for the semi-finals and finishing bottom of the League of Legends table. In 2004, Bristow played John Lowe, with Bristow showing glimpses of his old form in winning

375-547: A protégé of Bristow and originating from the Potteries . However, the tag never caught on and it was not until a later tournament that he came out to the tune The Power by Snap! that his nickname was accidentally born. Jamie Harvey from Scotland became "Bravedart" – a play on words from Mel Gibson's Braveheart film. Sky Sports even filmed vignettes where a kilt wearing Jamie had his face painted blue and ran through woods throwing his darts whilst looking menacing. As

450-484: A psychological condition known as dartitis , similar to the yips in golf . He was never quite the same player again, but did regain the number-one ranking briefly in late 1989 and early 1990 before losing his form again. He reached the semi-finals of the 1997 WDC World Darts Championship at the Circus Tavern , where he narrowly lost to Phil Taylor 4–5 in sets. In the 1980s, Bristow came across Phil Taylor , then

525-783: A raw young darts talent in Stoke-on-Trent , and he sponsored him with about £10,000 to fund his development in the game, on the understanding that the money would be repaid. Taylor went on to usurp his mentor as the greatest darts player ever. Bristow's form deteriorated in the early 1990s and he was dropped from the Merseyside team in 1992. Bristow had joined Merseyside, his third county, in 1988, after previously playing for London from 1976 to 1980 and for Staffordshire from 1980 to 1988. With Merseyside, Bristow played with his international teammate Kevin Kenny , and after being dropped by Merseyside, he

600-547: A record 11 nine-darters, notably including the first double-start perfect game by Brendan Dolan at the World Grand Prix , and two perfect games in one match by Phil Taylor in the 2010 Premier League . The Most Improved Player is a defunct award that was only awarded at the 2014 and 2017 Awards Dinners, where it took the place of Best Newcomer . UK Open semi-finalist Peter Wright was named 2013 Most Improved Player, and European Championship runner up Mensur Suljović

675-517: A son. They divorced in 2005 after 16 years of marriage, and he was later in a relationship with Rebecca Gadd until his death. Bristow was awarded the MBE in 1989 for his services to sport. In 2005, Bristow was accused of assaulting his wife. North Staffordshire magistrates ordered him to stay away from the family home in Milltown Way, Leek, Staffordshire and he was remanded on conditional bail. Bristow

750-655: Is a 16-time champion, van Barneveld 5, Part 3 and Priestley 2. Previous Winners (1994–2024) Held each year in June at the Reebok Stadium in Bolton (2003–2013), and from 2014 in March at Butlins, Minehead, the UK Open is played over three days with 168 players in a single elimination tournament. After each round a draw is held where there is no protection for seeded players. This has earned it

825-400: Is also needed to prevent dehydration: with the many lights and packed crowds, temperatures have been measured at over 38-degree Celsius (100-degree Fahrenheit) during some games. Inside the venues, action is relayed via giant video screens for the large crowds. The BDO now also has video screens, while maintaining their traditional "light boards" of lightbulbs, showing where each dart lands for

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900-473: Is the PDC chairman. The PDC developed and holds several championship competitions, including the annual PDC World Darts Championship , the World Matchplay , World Grand Prix , UK Open , Premier League , and Grand Slam . It also runs its own world rankings based on players' performances. Darts had experienced a boom in the 1980s. A number of tournaments were televised on BBC and ITV , which allowed

975-687: Is the biggest of the PDC tournaments and has the largest prize fund of any darts competition. Held at the Circus Tavern , Purfleet between 1994 and 2007, the championship moved to a bigger venue at Alexandra Palace from 2008. Phil Taylor has dominated this tournament, reaching the final for the first 14 years between 1994 and 2007 and winning fourteen titles, including eight successive titles between 1995 and 2002. The PDC World Champions have also shared eight BDO World Championships between them, with Van Barneveld winning four, Taylor two, and Part and Priestley one each. These are usually added to each player's haul when describing their achievements – hence Taylor

1050-565: The British Darts Organisation (BDO) to form their own organisation, which became the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He retired from competitive darts in 2007 and subsequently worked as a commentator and pundit on Sky Sports darts coverage. In 1957, Bristow was born in the London Borough of Hackney , but brought up at 97 Milton Grove, Stoke Newington, when Stoke Newington was a borough in its own right, where his father

1125-585: The COVID-19 pandemic , the tournament has been back in England since 2020. Eric Bristow Eric John Bristow MBE (25 April 1957 – 5 April 2018), nicknamed " The Crafty Cockney ", was an English professional darts player and one of the most recognisable and successful players of the 1980s. He was ranked World No. 1 by the World Darts Federation a record five times, in 1980, 1981 and 1983–1985. He

1200-778: The News of the World Darts Championship in 1983 beating Ralph Flatt and 1984 beating Ian Robertson (becoming only the second man in 57 years to successfully defend that title) together with countless other major tournaments including the British Open and Swedish Open three times each and the North American Open on four occasions. During the Swedish Open in November 1986, Bristow found himself unable to let go of his darts properly –

1275-741: The United Kingdom . PDC events are also televised in Australia , Belgium , Germany , Hungary , India , Japan , the Netherlands , Norway , Singapore , South Africa and the United States ( One World Sports ). The PDC signed a three-year deal with ITV in 2007 with the inaugural Grand Slam of Darts from 2007 and the inaugural Players Championship from 2009. The matches are shown live on ITV4 with highlights on ITV1. ITV being an advertisement channel like Sky Sports, commercial breaks are taken after 5 legs;

1350-436: The United Kingdom football sexual abuse scandal centred around the football coach and convicted child sex offender, Barry Bennell. Bristow suggested the victims should have "sorted out" the perpetrators when they were older. According to him, "Dart players tough guys footballers wimps". Bristow was condemned by some social media users, including alleged victims of Bennell, for his comments. Bristow apologised for his comments

1425-405: The oche . A "big-time" atmosphere was also created by using smoke machines and pyrotechnics during these sometimes elaborate entrances, similar to those used in boxing or wrestling . At the oche, players only drink iced water during matches. Though this was intended to further the game's image, which had been tarnished by players' reputation for consuming large quantities of alcohol. The water

1500-425: The 1994 BDO World Championship. He brought his own unique brand of commentary to the game, and was a cult figure amongst darts fans and sport fans alike. He continued to commentate until his death in 2012. The current commentators on Sky include John McDonald (commentator) , Rod Studd, Stuart Pyke and Adam Smith, retired player Wayne Mardle and former World Champions John Part and Mark Webster . Jeff Stelling

1575-1513: The 2022 season. No ceremony took place, with all the awards being announced on the PDC's social media channels. The 2022 PDC Awards were announced on 27 January 2022 to commemorate PDC players for their performance in the 2021 season. No ceremony took place, with all the awards being announced on the PDC's social media channels. Gold Pins (televised) : Jonny Clayton , José de Sousa , Sebastian Białecki , Jitse Van der Wal , William Borland , Darius Labanauskas , Gerwyn Price Silver Pins (non-televised) : José Marquês , Shane McGuirk , Martin Schindler , Michael Smith , Adrian Lewis , Mensur Suljović , Luke Woodhouse , Ritchie Edhouse , Wayne Jones , Mickey Mansell (x2), Nathan Aspinall (x2), Stephen Bunting , José de Sousa , Krzysztof Ratajski , Niels Zonneveld , Jim McEwan , Geert Nentjes , Ian White , Christian Kist , Danny Noppert , Martin Atkins , Dimitri Van den Bergh , Kim Huybrechts , Gabriel Clemens (x2), Ron Meulenkamp (x2), Ryan Harrington , Callan Rydz , Madars Razma (x2), Scott Waites , Steve West The 2021 PDC Awards Ceremony

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1650-656: The Awards Dinner, the PDPA Players' Player of the Year is voted on by fellow PDPA members (PDC tour card holders) each year. Michael van Gerwen has won the award a record three times. The PDC Village Fans' Player of the Year has been awarded each year of the Awards Dinner to the player receiving the most votes via online poll. Phil Taylor has won the award a record five times, with consecutive seasons 2007–2011. The PDC Moneybarn Best Newcomer has been awarded in most editions of

1725-660: The Awards Dinner, with the award going to a player with an outstanding debut year in the PDC. It was not awarded in 2014 or 2017, where it was replaced by the Most Improved Player award. A variation of Best ProTour Player has been awarded to a player with outstanding performance on the PDC Pro Tour each year since the inception of the PDC Awards Dinner in 2007. The award was presented as "Best Floor Player" in 2007 and 2008, and has been awarded as "Pro Tour Player of

1800-584: The BBC increased its interactive TV coverage allowing viewers to see many more events live. Sky television is an advertisement and subscription based channel, and generally after each set a commercial break is taken. Planet Funk 's 2000 single " Chase the Sun " is played in the auditorium and it has become a cult track amongst darts fans, who tend to dance along to the tune during the breaks. Currently Sky Sports broadcasts six tournaments live each year in both Ireland and

1875-459: The BDO semi finals) entering the PDC qualifying school, including Dean Winstanley , Tony West , Steve West , and Stuart Kellett . Following the breakaway groups first televised event in 1992 (the Lada UK Masters on Anglia Television ), satellite broadcaster Sky Sports signed a deal to exclusively cover three PDC tournaments each year. To capitalise on its investment, the channel introduced

1950-470: The BDO the governing body for darts in the UK. The stated purpose of the agreement was to promote the freedom of individual darts players to participate freely in open competition. Another condition of this Tomlin order is that the top 16 players, and any Home Country players ranked between 17 and 32 in each year's BDO Championship, and the top 16 players in each year's PDC Championship, shall not be permitted to enter

2025-461: The Embassy tournament. The BDO took the step of banning the rebel players from playing in county darts and even threatened to ban any player who participated in exhibition events with WDC players. The WDC players took the matter to court in a dispute which accrued large and perhaps unaffordable costs during a protracted legal process. The two bodies reached an out-of-court settlement on 30 June 1997 in

2100-511: The PDC Awards Dinner. The inductees comprise players, officials, administrators, commentators, and presenters that have contributed to the sport of darts and the success of the PDC. The 2024 PDC Awards were announced on 31 January 2024 to commemorate PDC players for their performance in the 2023 season. No ceremony took place, with all the awards being announced on the PDC's social media channels. The 2023 PDC Awards were announced on 31 January 2023 to commemorate PDC players for their performance in

2175-699: The PDC for the first time with a new tournament being formed using the top 8 players on the PDC Order of Merit after the World Matchplay, known as the Champions League of Darts . As a result, the BBC dropped coverage of the BDO World Darts Championship, which they covered from 1978 to 2016 (this was the original World Championship prior to the formation of the PDC). DJ Ötzi 's " Hey! Baby " is played during

2250-454: The PDC nine-darters were televised, with an additional 39 that have been thrown on streamed boards of the Pro Tour that are not included in the televised lists. Michael van Gerwen holds the record for PDC nine-darters, with 24 perfect games in PDC tournaments. A record 47 nine-darters were during the 2019 season, though only one of them was televised. James Wade has been on the receiving end of

2325-419: The PDC, seemingly against the contracted condition that semi-finalists and finalists were bound to appear the next year. In January 2012, the PDC invited the four semi-finalists of the BDO world championships, after obtaining a written agreement to release any player without penalty. Ted Hankey was the first player to move, as well as several players (who were not guaranteed a pro tour card due to not reaching

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2400-507: The PDC. As a BDO World Champion, he signed a three-year deal in 2006 to return to the Lakeside event. The BDO threatened to take legal action for breach of contract, but with previous damage and costs incurred by other legal cases it has become less likely that any action will be taken in future with regards to player contracts and the Tomlin Order. 2007 semi-finalist Mervyn King also moved to

2475-511: The World Championships in 2000, ending his 23-year run of playing in a world championship, after which, he stopped playing professionally after the event. From late December 1993, until November 2016, when he was dismissed, he worked mainly as a spotter, a pundit and an occasional commentator for Sky Sports during televised PDC tournaments, while continuing to travel and play on the exhibition circuit. Bristow returned to TV screens as

2550-501: The Year is the most prestigious award presented at the annual Awards Dinner. Only six different players have received the award, with Phil Taylor and Michael van Gerwen both getting the honour a record six times. The PDC Winmau Young Player of the Year award is bestowed upon a young player who has shown success on the circuit that year. Although there is no strict age cutoff for the award, honorees have historically been 25 years of age or under. The second most prestigious award of

2625-457: The Year" or "Best Pro Tour Player" since 2009. Michael van Gerwen has been presented the award a record five times, coinciding with his winning of a record 75 Pro Tour titles. Televised Performance of the Year is awarded to a player who has won a televised match (or entire tournament in the 2016 case) that makes for a great performance. Only James Wade and Adrian Lewis have received the award twice. Notably, Michael van Gerwen has never won

2700-625: The award, but has been on the losing end of six different matches that did. Scores for the World Championship and World Grand Prix are in sets (best of 5 legs), all other scores are straight legs. Total tournament average and leg record is given for Phil Taylor's performance in the 2016 Champions League. The PDC awards gold pins to players that threw televised nine-darters over the year, and silver pins to those that threw non-televised nine-darters. There have been 343 total nine-darters thrown by 167 different players in PDC events. 53 of

2775-641: The benefit of the crowd. Eric Bristow , the most successful player in the first few years of the World Championship, had his nickname "The Crafty Cockney" emblazoned on the back of his shirt. Very few dart players had their own nicknames until the Professional Darts Corporation circuit made it almost customary for every player to acquire a nickname. This helps to create a new generation of characters with which its audience could identify. Sky TV commentator Sid Waddell attempted to christen Phil Taylor "The Crafty Potter" – referring to him being both

2850-428: The board. Sky Sports have also used a player cam ; a tiny camera was fitted to Dennis Priestley's shirt to capture his view of the action while playing. Elsewhere, floating video cameras capture the action of the watching crowds. Spectators become far more animated and vocal than their BDO counterparts, often acting similar to a football crowd, while holding up humorous placards – often featuring corny puns – regarding

2925-429: The breaks on the BBC. Sky Sports introduced more cameras to cover the sport, and many of these innovations have been copied by other broadcasters. Unique flight cams show the trajectory of the dart through the air in slow motion to sometimes surprising results. A tiny camera has also been inserted into the dartboard itself beside the number 16 – one of the most common doubles – that shows the darts being thrown towards

3000-549: The channel closed in 2011. The PDC sought to attract a younger audience of all genders for darts and market the game as a night out rather than just as a sporting event. Through the years, it was not uncommon to see politicians, musicians, football players, boxers and other sporting personalities attending their events. The British Darts Organisation have subsequently sought to emulate most of these innovations. Players enter matches with their own signature theme music whilst flanked by security men and, until 2017, female valets down to

3075-701: The coverage in 2008. Former darts commentators for ITV include Jim Proudfoot, Peter Drury and Steve Beaton. Ned Boulting presents features and interviews and deputises if the presenter is unavailable. BBC Sport showed the inaugural PDC Champions League of Darts on BBC One and BBC Two, with 16 hours of coverage over two days presented by BBC Final Score presenter Jason Mohammad alongside PDC professionals Mark Webster , Paul Nicholson and Warriner-Little, commentary by long time BBC darts commentator Vassos Alexander and PDC online reporter and commentator Dan Dawson with reports by Caroline Barker. Bravo employed James Richardson and Dave Gorman to front its coverage until

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3150-501: The dartboard on the left. If the first two darts hit the triple 20, the camera will zoom in to the spot before the third dart is thrown. John Gwynne covered 20 PDC World Championships and 20 PDC World Matchplays, from the inaugural 1994 WDC World Darts Championship until his retirement in 2013. Dave Lanning covered all events up until December 2010, when he retired. Contrary to popular belief, long-time BBC darts commentator Sid Waddell did not switch allegiances to Sky until after

3225-723: The dominant player in this event, winning 16 titles and being undefeated in his first 15 finals. Previous Winners (1994–2024) The World Grand Prix replaced the World Pairs event in 1998. Its original venue was the Casino Rooms in Rochester, Kent until 1999, with one staging in Rosslare in 2000 before moving in 2001 to its current home at the CityWest Hotel in Dublin , Ireland. However, owing to

3300-430: The fledgling organisation. They wanted to appoint a PR consultant to improve the image of the game. The 1993 Embassy World Championship was the last time there was one unified world championship. The WDC players wore their new insignia on their sleeves during the tournament but were told to remove them by the BDO. The WDC players decided that if they were not going to be recognised by the BDO they would no longer play in

3375-503: The following day. In a statement, he compared himself to a "bull in a China shop" and "appreciated my wording was wrong and offended many people". Bristow died on 5 April 2018 after a heart attack while attending a Premier League Darts event at the Echo Arena in Liverpool . Bristow had finished playing some VIPs at a promotional event and was walking back to his car when he collapsed and

3450-449: The form of a Tomlin order . The BDO recognised the WDC and agreed that all players shall have the freedom of choice as to which open events they wish to play in. The WDC dropped its claim to be a world governing body and renamed itself the Professional Darts Corporation. The PDC accepted and recognized the World Darts Federation (WDF) as the governing body for the sport of darts worldwide, and

3525-474: The limestone hills of Wiltshire where Bob used to live, and the fact that he enjoys Country and Western music. This was once taken even further, with Anderson once walking to the stage accompanied by a horse. The Professional Darts Corporation has continued to increase its annual UK televised tournaments in recent years: The World Championship, The Premier League, World Cup of Darts, World Grand Prix and World Matchplay are all covered live by Sky Sports. The US Open

3600-406: The match 6 legs to 1. Bristow was educated at Newington Green JM School before leaving for Hackney Downs Grammar School from 1968 to 1971, having passed his eleven-plus exam. He left grammar school at the age of 14. From 1978 to 1987, Bristow was in a relationship with former darts player Maureen Flowers . In 1989, he married Jane Higginbotham (born 1962). They had two children, a daughter and

3675-521: The nickname The FA Cup of darts. Phil Taylor is the most successful player in the tournament's history, with five victories. Previous Winners (2003–24) Crowds exceeding 2,000 in number assemble at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool , the longest serving venue in the PDC. Matches are contested over legs rather than sets, presenting the prospect of some surprising results and upsets. Phil Taylor has been

3750-526: The only player to wear a shirt, tie and waistcoat whilst playing, Rod Harrington 's "Prince of Style" tag appeared apt. Though originally from the BDO circuit, Wayne Mardle is known as "Hawaii Five-O-One" due to his colourful Hawaiian shirts (a play on words on Hawaii Five-O and the starting score in a leg of darts). Bob Anderson, now living in Clevedon in Somerset , is known as The Limestone Cowboy, after

3825-476: The other competition in the immediate following year. Despite this condition, Raymond van Barneveld switched to the PDC within weeks of reaching the 2006 BDO final, later playing in (and winning) the 2007 PDC World Championship – the Tomlin order should have made him ineligible to play. There was further controversy following the 2007 BDO World Championship, when Jelle Klaasen announced that he would be switching to

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3900-452: The players, and chanting or singing various songs related to the players or to the event in general. Some supporters even wear face paint or crazy costumes or they dress up as their favourite player via their trademark attire or customary nickname. The players' wives have also been a focus for the cameras, as they cheered on their husbands. In January 2005, Sky One commissioned a programme entitled Darts Players' Wives , primarily focusing on

3975-527: The prestigious Winmau World Masters crown five times (1977 beating Paul Reynolds, 1979 beating Canadian Allan Hogg, 1981 beating defending champion John Lowe , 1983 beating Mike Gregory and 1984 beating Keith Deller). He also reached the final in 1989, losing to Peter Evison. Bristow was a winner of the World Cup Singles on four occasions (1983 beating Jocky Wilson, 1985 beating Tony Payne, 1987 beating Bob Sinnaeve and 1989 beating Jack McKenna) and won

4050-411: The previous year's first round. As well as his five world titles, Bristow also finished as runner-up on five occasions, the last in 1991. The nickname Crafty Cockney was given to Bristow when he visited an English pub of that name in 1976 during a visit to Santa Monica, California . Bristow wore a shirt (which he received from the same pub) depicting a uniformed British policeman , a Union Flag and

4125-441: The title Crafty Cockney whenever he took part in a tournament. Bristow emerged as the most successful and consistent darts player of the 1980s, reigning as number one in the world rankings during most of the period from 1980 until 1987. Television began showing increased interest in the sport in the late 1970s, with the first world championship occurring in 1978. As well as his world championship exploits, Bristow also lifted

4200-483: The top players to make a full-time living from the sport and turn professional. However, darts steadily dropped from television schedules and by 1989 the only remaining televised event was the annual Embassy World Championship. Some of the players felt that not enough was being done by the governing body, the British Darts Organisation , to encourage new sponsors into the sport and arrange more television coverage. BDO chairman Olly Croft stated "I don't owe any dart players

4275-589: The tournaments that ITV cover do not play in sets. The Fratellis 2006 single "Chelsea Dagger" is played during the breaks on ITV. In 2010, Bravo signed a contract to show the European Championships. In 2007, Sky Sports decided to extend their coverage of the Premier League Darts to 2010 following the high number of viewers to previous tournaments. In February 2016, it was announced the BBC would cover

4350-629: The wives and their relationships. In December 2008, Sky started to broadcast darts in High Definition (with the exception of the final Las Vegas Desert Classic in 2009), and in July 2010 (at the World Matchplay), broadcast the Semi Finals and Final in 3D to around 1,000 licensed premises in the UK and Republic of Ireland. Another frequent cam is a split-screen camera, with the players on the right, and

4425-435: Was a plasterer and his mother worked as a telephone operator. He left school at age 14. Bristow won his first world championship in 1980, defeating fellow Londoner Bobby George . Bristow retained his title in 1981 and won it again in 1984, 1985 and 1986. He also suffered a shock defeat in a final during the 1980s, when the relatively unknown Keith Deller beat him in the 1983 final; he had also lost to Steve Brennan in

4500-433: Was a five-time World Champion , a five-time World Masters Champion a four-time World Cup singles champion and twice winner of the News of the World Darts Championship . He won 22 WDF and BDO Major titles, 65 individual career titles and 15 titles in team events, a total of 80 overall. In The First Two Episodes Of Bullseye, Eric Bristow Hosted The Show. In 1993, Bristow was one of sixteen top players who broke away from

4575-429: Was alleged to have punched her in the face during a drunken row in their bedroom on 29 April 2005. He was subsequently cleared of the charges. In 2012, Bristow participated in the reality show I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! He was voted out on 29 November 2012, finishing fourth out of 12 celebrities. On 29 November 2016, Bristow was sacked by Sky Sports following a series of tweets in which he responded to

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4650-477: Was dropped from the England national side later the same year. The split within darts saw Bristow become a founding member of the Professional Darts Corporation. At the World Matchplay event in Blackpool, Bristow made six appearances without winning a match. His swansong came in a classic semi-final at the 1997 PDC World Championship , which he lost to his protégé, Phil Taylor. Bristow's last appearance came at

4725-508: Was held on 2 January 2013 to commemorate PDC players for their performance in the 2012 season. Professional Darts Corporation 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

4800-728: Was held on 20 January 2014 to commemorate PDC players for their performance in the 2013 season. Gold Pins (televised) : Wes Newton , Phil Taylor , Mervyn King , Michael van Gerwen , Kim Huybrechts , Terry Jenkins , Kyle Anderson Silver Pins (non-televised) : Charl Pietersen , Andy Parsons, Kevin McDine , Robert Thornton , Kevin Thomas , Gary Anderson , Andy Hamilton , Kurt Parry, Michael Smith , Prakash Jiwa , Adam Hunt , Joey Palfreyman, Steve Brown , Ross Smith , Gaz Cousins, Wes Newton , Jamie Robinson ( Sky Sports commentator and darts journalist) The 2013 PDC Awards Dinner

4875-638: Was held on 21 January 2016 to commemorate PDC players for their performance in the 2015 season. Gold Pins (televised) : Phil Taylor , Dave Chisnall , Gary Anderson Silver Pins (non-televised) : Alan Norris (x2), Dyson Parody , Andrew Gilding , Simon Whitlock , Ian White (x2), Kyle Anderson , Nathan Derry , Jeffrey de Zwaan , Cristo Reyes (x2), Darren Johnson, Benito van de Pas , Matt Dicken, Dirk van Duijvenbode , Devon Petersen , James Wade , Peter Wright , Max Hopp , Magnus Caris , Simon Preston, Kim Huybrechts , Jamie Lewis , Michael van Gerwen , Phil Taylor The 2015 PDC Awards Dinner

4950-731: Was held on 21 January 2019 to commemorate PDC players for their performance in the 2018 season. Gold Pins (televised) : Gary Anderson , Dimitri Van den Bergh Silver Pins (non-televised) : Robbie Green , Ian White , Michael van Gerwen (x3), Peter Jacques , John Goldie, Cameron Menzies , Jamie Lewis , Noel Malicdem , Steve Hine , Stephen Bunting , Nathan Aspinall , Dawson Murschell , Dennis Nilsson , Lee Turle, Simon Preston , Adrian Lewis , Vincent van der Voort , James Wade , Krzysztof Ratajski , Rowby-John Rodriguez , George Killington , Peter Hudson , Andrew Gilding , Jimmy Hendriks , Eddie Lovely (PDC Director and two-time World Matchplay champion) The 2018 PDC Awards Dinner

5025-931: Was held on 22 January 2015 to commemorate PDC players for their performance in the 2014 season. Newly crowned World Champion Gary Anderson became just the second player (after Phil Taylor ) to sweep the four senior categories PDC, PDPA, Fans’, and Pro Tour Players of the year. James Wade secured the Televised Performance of the Year with his stunning comeback from 9–2 down to win the Masters final 11–10 over Mervyn King . Gold Pins (televised) : Phil Taylor , James Wade , Robert Thornton , Michael van Gerwen , Kim Huybrechts , Adrian Lewis Silver Pins (non-televised) : Terry Jenkins , Dave Ladley, Dave Chisnall , David Pallett , Phil Taylor (x2), Adrian Lewis , Michael van Gerwen , Johnny Haines, Matt Dicken, Darryl Fitton , Gary Stone The 2014 PDC Awards Dinner

5100-931: Was held on 22 January 2018 to commemorate PDC players for their performance in the 2017 season. Newly crowned World Champion Rob Cross received four awards to commemorate his outstanding debut season on the PDC tour, but was unable to edge out world number one Michael van Gerwen , who scooped seven premier titles over the season to win a third consecutive Player of the Year award. Gold Pins (televised) : Adrian Lewis , Kyle Anderson Silver Pins (non-televised) : Robert Allenstein, Kyle Anderson , Steve Beaton , Dave Chisnall , Joe Cullen , Mike De Decker , Mark Dudbridge , Ted Evetts , Rob Hewson , Kim Huybrechts , Ronny Huybrechts , Christian Kist , Adrian Lewis , Jamie Lewis , Mickey Mansell , Ryan Meikle , Kenny Neyens , Mensur Suljovic , Michael van Gerwen , Darren Webster , Ricky Williams , Peter Wright (television presenter for Sky Sports ) The 2017 PDC Awards Dinner

5175-940: Was held on 25 January 2021 to commemorate PDC players for their performance in the 2020 season. The ceremony was notably held online due to the COVID-19 pandemic . Gold Pins (televised) : Michael Smith , Jonny Clayton , Michael van Gerwen , Peter Wright , José de Sousa , James Wade Silver Pins (non-televised) : Andy Jenkins , Mickey Mansell , Mike van Duivenbode , Keegan Brown , Scott Baker , Nathan Aspinall , Steve West , Mensur Suljović , Danny Noppert , Steve Lennon , Michael van Gerwen , Luke Woodhouse , Rob Cross , Darren Webster , Carl Wilkinson , James Wade , Devon Petersen , Moreno Blom, Robbie Ellis, Daniel Larsson , Andy Hamilton , Rowby-John Rodriguez , Nick Kenny (PDC Chairman) The 2020 PDC Awards Dinner

5250-854: Was held on 30 January 2020 to commemorate PDC players for their performance in the 2019 season. Gold Pins (televised) : Michael van Gerwen Silver Pins (non-televised) : Dave Chisnall (x3), Geert Nentjes (x3), Michael van Gerwen (x3), Gerwyn Price (x2), Ritchie Edhouse (x2), Ted Evetts (x2), Peter Jacques , Chris Dobey , Ricky Evans , Scott Baker , Danny Noppert , Brian Raman , James Wade , Mark McGeeney , Harry Ward , Callan Rydz , Steve Beaton , Geert De Vos , Michael Rasztovits , Robert Thornton , Madars Razma , Lourence Ilagan , Dimitri Van den Bergh , Andy Jenkins , Kyle Anderson , Boris Koltsov , Simon Preston, John Henderson , Matt Clark , José de Sousa , Jeffrey de Zwaan , Rob Cross , Ian White , Cody Harris , Mensur Suljović , James Beeton, Keane Barry The 2019 PDC Awards Dinner

5325-764: Was held on 4 January 2017 to commemorate PDC players for their performance in the 2016 season. Michael van Gerwen reigned in four awards after capping off a 25 title season with his second World Championship victory. Gold Pins (televised) : Michael Van Gerwen , Adrian Lewis , Alan Norris Silver Pins (non-televised) : Ross Smith , Jamie Caven , Mark Dudbridge , Richie Corner, Michael van Gerwen Stuart Kellett , Adrian Lewis , Alan Norris , Dave Chisnall , Devon Petersen , James Richardson , Jeffrey de Zwaan , Steve Brown , Daniel Cole, Rob Cross , Richard Baillie, Jeffrey de Graaf , Yordi Meeuwisse , Simon Whitlock (three time World Champion, most successful North American darts player) The 2016 PDC Awards Dinner

5400-702: Was named the 2016 Most Improved Player. In 2005, the PDC introduced a Hall of Fame to recognise individuals with noteworthy contributions to darts. The first two inductees were Eric Bristow and John Lowe , great rivals throughout the eighties and early nineties – at least one of these two players managed to reach the World Championship Final each year for the first 14 incarnations of the World Professional Darts Championship , from 1978 to 1991, with three being played against each other. As of 2007, Hall of Fame inductees are now announced at

5475-570: Was rushed to hospital. Speaking to BBC Radio Two , Bobby George said: "In the afternoon, I was doing a show at a pub opposite the Premier League (darts) building, and he just came in, said 'hello' and had a pint, then said 'see ya'. I said 'see ya' because I was working... he went across the road, and two-and-a-half hours later, he was gone." Bristow's World Championship results are as follows: Bristow's PDC results are as follows: Bristow appeared in BDO and WDF major finals 31 times with

5550-635: Was shown on Challenge in 2007 and Nuts TV in 2008. Bravo broadcast the European Championships for the first time in 2010, after ITV4 televised the first running in 2008. ITV4 won back the coverage for the European Championship; they also show live coverage of the World Series of Darts, Players Championship, UK Open and the Masters. The World Championship is a single-elimination seeded tournament beginning in mid December and finishing in early January. It

5625-535: Was the original presenter of Sky Sports' darts coverage, before Dave Clark took over in 2002. Clark retired in 2020, since when Emma Paton has been the lead presenter. In addition, the 2005 Premier League was fronted by Gary Newbon . ITV events were fronted by Matt Smith from 2007 to 2014 but are now hosted by Jacqui Oatley from 2015 who became the first regular female darts host in the UK. Commentary for ITV has been provided by John Rawling , Alan Warriner-Little & Pyke since 2007 with Chris Mason joining

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