I know it's just a "pub" game but the blokes just incredible. 14 time world champion and even better he's from my home town Stoke!!! Just won his quarter final 5-0 then signed the back of the board, stuck his darts in it and handed the lot to a fan in the crowd. What true gent and brilliant player.

i was wondering if any other pro in any sport/game has been so dominant for so long.

jennie longo…….female tdf lady.
loads longer.

He certainly put Lewis in his place 😆

quality….

What's the chance of him ever getting a mention in the New Years honours list?

I reckon darts is a proper sport(possibly wrong choice of word) & not just a pub game, there are quite a few so called sports which have less credibility than darts, but he is a legend in his field.

That's why I put pub in comma's, the guy is a commited professional as are most on the darts circuit. A legend in his field is more than an understatement, he really is the best there's ever been and I'm sure ever will be.

I reckon darts is a proper sport(possibly wrong choice of word) & not just a pub game, there are quite a few so called sports which have less credibility than darts, but he is a legend in his field.

😆

Natural athletes!

He doesn't have to change his shoes to train/play, therefore it is not a proper sport.

captjon, i never change to ride my bike.. the beauty of flats and baggies 🙂

You're pretty good on the 'shore Jedi, but you're not comparing yourself to a world champ are you?

CaptJon I didn't have to change my shoes when shooting, even during International & World Championship events – shooting is a sport so sorry – shot down on that one.

I think Jedi was refering to his definition of a sport, not his personal classification 🙂

A sport must have both athletic endeavour and scoring of some sort – shooting fails as it does not contain the athletic endeavour and of course it is the same for darts.

of course its a sport.

Played by millions, enjoyed by millions.

I will have to be biased on that TJ as I started shooting back in 82 and I've competed in International events, trained with World and Olympic shooters and I would definitely say shooting is a sport. The dedication involved and required to reach the top merits it's inclusion as a sport and has been recognized by many, who would doubt the late great Malcolm Cooper MBE for his achievements in the sport?
Athletic endeavour is a very vague statement as no top shooter would ever get anywhere without being very fit and that's a fact.

Definition of a sport (IMO of course): It requires a higher than average level of fitness to be able to do the activity. Therefore, I do not think darts is a sport. However, I do admire the top darts players and Phil Taylor is an absolute legend.

I am sure shooting is a challenge that requires great skills – but how can it be a sport without getting out of breath? No athletic endeavour required? Same as fishing, darts and so on.

Taken from a dictionary –

1.
a. Physical activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively.
b. A particular form of this activity.
2. An activity involving physical exertion and skill that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often undertaken competitively

To hold an 11lb rifle whilst standing, over a course of 2 to 3 hours with 60 shots taken takes a fair amount of physical activity, be the range 10 Metres to 300 Metres. To me, biased as I am, it will always be a sport.

Darts is a game of skill not a sport (I will add that I play darts in a local league and really enjoy the game) much like snooker, shooting, archery and chess. You don't need to be fit to compete (maybe it helps), but to be any good you have to be as dedicated in your training or practice as a marathon runner.
The reason Taylor is so good is that he has a natural talent as do most of the pro players, but he works so hard at it and practices non stop. It's that focus is the reason that he stopped mentoring Adrian lewis as Taylor thought he wasn't focused enough to be a champion.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Its all down to semantics in the end. Myself I favour a much tighter definition of "sport" – for example most MTBing is not a sport as there is no competitive element. Anything with a judges mark such as gymnastics, diving, etc is not a sport. Anything where you don't get out of breath is not a sport.

To me unless you get out of breath / physically tired and there is an objective score it is not a sport

Absolute legend of darts, whether it's sport or not. And who really cares how it's defined?
I went to see Phil TP Taylor play at the opening of the darts at Ally Pally before Christmas, the guy got a reception like a boxer coming into the ring. Best ever.

Anyone who still has the hunger to be the best after so many wins gets my respect- even though he is a Port Vale fan!

Hemmingway said something along the lines of:

"There are only three actual sports – Motor Racing, Mountain Climbing and Bull Fighting. All the others are just games."

Won his first world title in 1990 beating Bristow 6 legs to 1 with odds of 125 to 1! Been at the top ever since with 130 professional wins, 52 majors and 14 world championships – and he still wants more!! Utter legend – and yes even though he's a Vale fan pmsl.

pmsl@captjon

Threw a few arrows that Phil TPT won a tournament with yesterday and gave away afterwards to a local player (and PV fan!).

I was crap with them as well….

I'd rather watch a good game of darts than any amount of MTB

With the split between PDC and BDO isn't Phil Taylor the big fish in a little pond now?

Darts is a sport.

TJ you can't be serious when you write:

Anything with a judges mark such as gymnastics, diving, etc is not a sport

. In addition to technical difficulty, aesthetics is a MAJOR part of these sports. Same with surfing, skateboarding, vert, freestyle skiing/snowboarding.

Anything where you don't get out of breath is not a sport.

so if Taylor has asthma, emphysema or played at altitude it would be a sport? What a bizarre criteria for sport you have.

To me unless you get out of breath / physically tired and there is an objective score it is not a sport

So boxing isn't a sport if it goes down to points? Or football isn't if any of the officials intervene? Ha

FWIW Taylor is one of the fittest sportsmen ever.

Awesome the man Taylor……go on and do it for the 15th time!!

Sport is sport and darts have made the Power a few million quid…..I wonder if he does the 15th title then has he scored more than Tiger Woods did in 2009? On consideration maybe not for the 15th title, but, if you add up his cumulative match point scores in getting to title 15 maybe he gets close to Tiger's total!!!!

I personally cant see how he has never been sports personality of the year….. unless its not a sport.

The guys a legend

With the split between PDC and BDO isn't Phil Taylor the big fish in a little pond now?

Not at all. The PDC event is now the premier event as the PDC offers the most prize money and with the start of the preimer league darts it has meant the top 8 players can earn a fortune. The BDO event is like the football league championship the best players will then get then normally defect to the PDC.

FWIW Taylor is one of the fittest sportsmen ever.

whilst I agreed with most of what you've said this I do not. Taylor is one of the most devoted, talented and mentally tough players of any game/sport but he is not the fittest.
For me fitness is about being able to sustain a level physical excertion when working at an aerobic level. You do not do this when playing darts. You have to be able to throw your darts which is where the practice and the natural talent make you accurate, you have to be able to stay focused and calm when under extreme pressure which is something Taylor does better than anyone.

Today's final should be a cracker. Whitlock and Taylor have played the best darts in this tournament and I was really surprised at how whitlock came back at barney after going behind.

FWIW Taylor is one of the fittest sportsmen ever.

maybe he has an extra heart and lungs in his chins?

whilst I agreed with most of what you've said this I do not. Taylor is one of the most devoted, talented and mentally tough players of any game/sport but he is not the fittest.

Be careful not to confuse fitness with just physical fitness. Fitness involves not only physical, but intellectual, emotional, social, and spritual dimensions of an individual. Fitness is task specific. If the task is to win the TDF 7 times then Lance is the fittest guy for the task, if however the task is to win the darts WC then Phil is your man. As he has successfully completed this task a staggering amount of times, he must be a contender for one of the fittest sportsmen ever.

Fitness involves not only physical

therefore ruling out a fat shite with other-worldly focus and hand eye co-ordination