The Ups and Downs of The Grand Slam

Posted: 21.11.11 in Tournament Analysis Blog category

We reflect on a great week of darts and suggest what was hot and what was not!

The Ups and Downs of a Darts Tournament

Overall the Grand Slam was a fantastic week of darts. Here are our highs and lows.

The Count- Ted went from Zero to Hero in the space of 12 months. His Hate/Hate relationship with the Wolverhampton crowd and the fans watching at home blossomed into a bond of mutual respect. Could what seemed impossible a few weeks ago actually happen?  Could Hankey  be playing in the Premier League next year?

Double/ Double Finish – When Martin Phillips the 51 year old BDO stalwart and Welsh captain popped a double top/double top finish in against Webster you knew then that this route was now an accepted part of the game.

Team BDO – The players who came across from “the other side” were a fantastic addition to the party. Martin Phillips, Dean Winstanley, Scott Waites, “The Coat”, “The Silverback” and of course Ted demonstrated that there is darting life outside the PDC.

Those Boards – How many bounce-outs ? The bookies were on to it and I am sure this is the first time I have ever seen the market where you can have a bet on which player will get the first bounce-out! That cheered me up but “Jackpot`s” 9 darter that wasn’t wiped the smile off my face. This was due to a bounce out on the bull which credit to Lewis he promptly hit with his 10th dart. Dart board boffins need to get to work before the World Championships.

Who Put the Hype in Hyperbole?

The Sky commentators that’s who!  On the whole the Sky team do a fantastic job but I am sure they all reflect post tournament on what they could do better. The hype of James Hubbard was cringe-worthy for example and did not accurately reflect his impact on the tournament! A star for the future, maybe, but please try to keep it all in perspective!

Dutch Dismay

Raymondo! – Touted as a “good outside bet” by some only helped to heap embarrassment on those predicting great things for Barneveld as he tumbled out at the first hurdle. Is this the end of the road for the popular Dutchman? All darts fans hope it’s not, but the evidence is mounting!