The Bullit World Darts Trophy was a professional darts tournament run by the British Darts Organisation and the World Darts Federation. Held each September from 2002 to 2007, it took place at the De Vechtsebanen in Utrecht, Netherlands. The tournament had a playing format comparable with the two World Championships (BDO and PDC). Until 2007, it formed the third leg of the BDO Grand Slam, along with the BDO World Championship, the World Masters and the International Darts League.
| Founded | 2002 |
|---|---|
| First season | 2002 |
| Ceased | 2007 |
| Organising body | BDO, WDF |
| Country | Netherlands |
| Venue(s) | De Vechtsebanen, Utrecht |
| Last champion(s) |  Gary Anderson (men) Karin Krappen (women) Ron Meulenkamp (junior) (2007) |
| Tournament format | Sets (men) Sets (women) Legs (Junior) |
Tournament history edit
First held in 2002, the tournament was played under the auspices of the World Darts Federation, British Darts Organisation and the Dutch Darts Association (NDB, the Dutch governing body of darts) and featured players from those organisations up to and including 2005.
PDC Participation edit
However, in 2006, following Raymond van Barneveld's move to the PDC in February of that year, host broadcasters SBS 6, were able to grant invitations to five non-WDF affiliated players, meaning that players from the PDC would be able to compete in the event for the first time. Van Barneveld, along with Phil Taylor, Colin Lloyd, Ronnie Baxter and Peter Manley were given the five invitations that were offered to the PDC.[1][2]
In 2007, the WDT included the top 12 players in the PDC Order of Merit and four PDC Qualifiers, giving a total of 16 PDC players who would line up alongside 12 from the WDF rankings and 4 wildcards, which were given to Jelle Klaasen, Michael van Gerwen, Vincent van der Voort and Mervyn King, all of whom had left the BDO to join the PDC earlier that year.[3][4]
End of event edit
Towards the end of 2007, the chairman of the PDC, Barry Hearn, announced that its players would not be competing in the 2008 International Darts League and World Darts Trophy events. As a result, SBS6 announced they would no longer be broadcasting the event, with their coverage relying heavily on big names such as van Barneveld, which then cast doubts over whether either tournament would go ahead.
The tournament promoters filed a lawsuit against the PDC and SBS6 claiming a contract had been agreed for the PDC players to be involved. The case ended in failure on 21 February 2008, and the International Darts League was indefinitely postponed. The future of the World Darts Trophy was also thrown into doubt as a result of the decision,[5] and both events were confirmed defunct by the failure of an appeal on 29 April 2008.[6]
Sponsors edit
- 2004–2006 Bavaria (Premium Dutch beer)
- 2007 Bullit (Energy drink)
Prize Fund edit
- Winner €45,000
- Runner Up €22,500
- Joint 3rd 2 x €11,250
- Joint 5th 4 x €6,000
- Joint 9th 8 x €3,000
- Joint 17th 16 x €2,000
- Joint 33rd and 41st 24 x €1,000
- Totals €194,000
Final results and statistics edit
Men's Finals edit
| Year[7][8][9] | Champion | Av | Score (sets) | Runner-up | Av |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 |  Tony David
|
(97.80) | 6–0 |  Tony O'Shea
|
(90.48) |
| 2003 | Raymond van Barneveld
|
(104.91) | 6–2 | Mervyn King
|
(98.07) |
| 2004 | Raymond van Barneveld
|
(94.71) | 6–4 | Martin Adams
|
(91.50) |
| 2005 | Gary Robson
|
(91.50) | 6–4 | Mervyn King
|
(88.80) |
| 2006 | Phil Taylor
|
(102.21) | 7–2 | Martin Adams
|
(94.77) |
| 2007 | Gary Anderson
|
(103.32) | 7–3 | Phil Taylor
|
(102.30) |
Women's finals edit
| Year[10][11][9] | Champion | Av | Score (sets) | Runner-up | Av |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Mieke de Boer
|
(68.52) | 3–1 | Crissy Manley
|
(64.83) |
| 2003 | Trina Gulliver
|
(83.01) | 3–1 | Francis Hoenselaar
|
(80.07) |
| 2004 | Francis Hoenselaar
|
(85.20) | 3–1 |  Anastasia Dobromyslova
|
(76.77) |
| 2005 | Karin Krappen
|
(75.69) | 3–1 | Francis Hoenselaar
|
(71.94) |
Junior WDT finals edit
| Year[9] | Champion | Score (Legs) | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Ron Meulenkamp
|
6–1 | Sven van Dun
|
References edit
- ^ "Quarter Given World Darts Trophy Places". PDC. 5 June 2006. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
- ^ "Manley handed World Darts Trophy Spot". PDC. 5 June 2006. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
- ^ "World Darts Trophy PDPA Qualifier". PDC. 20 June 2007. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
- ^ "World Darts Trophy PDPA Qualifier Draw". PDC. 13 July 2007. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
- ^ IDL & WDT go to court Superstars of darts forum
- ^ IDL & WDT end Google translation from official web site
- ^ "Men's World Darts Trophy Winners". Darts Database. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
- ^ "World Darts Trophy – Men". Master Caller. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
- ^ a b c "World Darts Trophy". Darts 1. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
- ^ "Women's World Darts Trophy Winners". Darts Database. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
- ^ "World Darts Trophy – Women". Master Caller. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
External links edit
- World Darts Trophy Darts Mad.