June 26, 2025 • 25 mins
This Friday inside Madison Square Garden thousands of rowdy spectators and 16 world-class professional athletes will kick off an event often called "Sports' Biggest Party." The bet365 U.S. Darts Masters is one of several wild events held by the PDC across the world. These are known for their almost unheard of levels of raucous excitement and a carnival-like atmosphere, as well as being an incredibly popular betting event globally. Joining the show today is guest Benjamin Leander, a Danish darts betting expert, who helps Action Network host Chad Millman understand the unique world of darts. #Volume
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:08):
Welcome to the Favorites, the podcast part of the Volume
Podcast Network. I'm Chad Millman of the Action Network. Simon
is still enjoying time with his family in Jollie, Old England,
but we miss him so much. We have to talk
about one of the biggest events that comes out of
(00:30):
England and has been imported to New York. It has
taking place Friday and Saturday. Many people know it as
sports biggest party. What is that party, you ask, It's
the best three sixty five US darts masters at the
theater in Madison Square Garden. The world's eight greatest darts
(00:52):
players squaring off against eight of North America's best. It's
an incredible party. It's incredible popular betting event internationally and
becoming more popular here in the US. Joining us to
discuss all things professional darts all the way from his
(01:13):
kitchen in Denmark, our better collective colleague and darts betting
expert Ben Jamine Leander Brother.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
Hi Jet, Thank you so much for having me listen.
Speaker 1 (01:27):
Darts has a really sort of special place in the
lore of Action Network because when we first launched, darts
started to be televised here in the United States on
diz own I think, and a lot of people went
and it was a huge betting event that got us
all catalyzed, and we're having just an incredible time together.
(01:50):
So we've been following like the joy of betting on
darts and the incredible enthusiasm and the spirit comes from
the events and the attitude and the charisma of the
the players. Like for those who were totally unfamiliar, why
is it called sports biggest party?
Speaker 2 (02:11):
I would say for people not knowing that darts have
evolved from the traditional pop sport to the greatest party
in the world, I would say that we have festival
meets carnival meets sports match. Very rare that you can
combine all three things. I mean, we have all been
to a soccer match, an American football match, an icecckeer match,
(02:34):
whatever match where you have the sport in the center
of everything. With darts you have the atmosphere as the
center of everything. And I remember actually watching the first
edition of the US Darts Masters that was played at
the Tropic can Casino in Las Vegas. People should go
(02:56):
watch it. It's on YouTube.
Speaker 3 (02:58):
Hello again from Professional Dotsampionship, where once again we've had
an evening of high drama as this tournament proceeds towards
its climax one hundred.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
And then compared to last year's edition, it is two
different worlds.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Wow, the championship final, Michael fuckerwin, my daughter one man
missus does the other man get I've never seen.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
The like Come on spiper, Yes, Stubble twelve the most amazing.
Speaker 3 (03:38):
Saying I can't steer my step, my crowd going perssuch,
but that's simply the best looking of dance.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
So darts is being the the biggest party of sports
due to the huge atmosphere.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
What do you think happened? What changed? By twenty eighteen
when we were starting to cover it at action, people
were already going nuts. Like the attitude, the atmosphere. It
was really starting to blow up. What do you think
facilitated the change in sort of culture and enthusiasm.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
Professional Darts Cooperation is called the PDC, like the FIFA
of soccer or the NHL of hockey, has played a
huge role in professionalizing the sports, along with broadcasters like
Sky Sports and ITV making a very very good broadcasting
product of the sports. Because it is universal that when
(04:44):
you watch the dart scheme, you want the best angles.
I mean, nobody can watch the dogboards from places of
the crowd, but with the huge monitors and on TV
many many different camera angles showing exactly where the players
are throwing the darts. That has been a huge key
(05:06):
in the darts rise during the last yeah, like you said,
the last seven or eight years. The PDC has of
course also provided a huge price fund, which is also
this year historical in New York. We have one hundred
thousand pounds in the price pool against sixty even last year.
(05:29):
So bigger prize pool and the PDC making a very
very nice product. Tickets are still what I would say,
not cheap, but at least affordable, where we see in
other sports, both your sports in the US and also
the European sports that that ticket prices are simply exploding
through the roof. So in general, more people are getting
(05:52):
their eyes open for darts being very very accessible. You
need to be a huge fan. You need to know
who Michael fan Girlin or Matt Campbell or whoever is.
So darts is extremely accessible for both young and old.
Speaker 1 (06:06):
So explaining you just mentioned a couple of guys, who
are the people that the players that people need to
know as they think about betting for the weekend, and
we're quite frankly in the US there's not a ton
of stuff to bet on as we're heading into, you know,
out of the basketball season. Who are the people? Why
are they so charismatic? What makes them so popular?
Speaker 2 (06:28):
I think it's impossible not to mention teenage sensation and
upcoming defending world champion and upcoming many many, many, many
many times world champion. He is the picture on the
face of darts right now, sixteen years old when he
participated at his first World dous Championship and World champion
(06:50):
at the age of seventeen, one of.
Speaker 3 (06:57):
The greatest sets of darts potentially we have ever seen.
Of the World Championship. He's gone through the gills and
this is for the match, say for the loop, a
new play climb. You cannot contain this Land's talent and
(07:18):
fatty and brute strength as adults line.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
He's participating of course in New York. Did it as
well last year, but lost to Growing Price also a
big name to to keep an eye on, due to
both due to his skills on the stage, but also
because Price is the face of what darts can also be.
A former rugby professional in his home country Wales, decided
(07:44):
to give dots ago ten years ago and got crowned
world champion, so completely shifted sports, like another Michael Jordan
from from basketball to baseball, maybe even more successful. We
have tons of faces. Luke Humphrey, the world number one,
also a very very good guy, a guy everyone likes
(08:05):
on the tour where Little and Price are dividing opinions,
maybe a little more then I would say for the Americans,
we have a very special case with Jules van Dungen,
born in the Netherlands but is representing the US. He
is at the moment suffering from dar titis. Please don't laugh.
(08:30):
It's a real thing where you are struggling with the
dart in your hand to release it at a proper time.
And Jules has suffered from this for over a year now.
Was a really really is still a really really good player,
but has suffered so much from this dark titis thing
that he actually spent hours and hours and weeks and
(08:54):
months changing his throat from right to left handed. Imagine
doing that in any sports. Imagine Tom Brady suddenly saying
I can release the ball when throwing for my wide
receiver so now I'll use my left hand. Jules van
(09:15):
Dagen actually did that. He is in the middle of
a process and he's still playing at a much lower
level than before, but he will participate in New York.
And I think everyone in the Doors universe is cheering
for Jewels to finally have a good experience on the
stage because he has really suffered for the last year
or even one and a half. So he is definitely
(09:36):
the guy that everyone in the American art world will
cheer four of this this week.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
So basically, Jewles got the yips, like he just couldn't
do it anymore.
Speaker 2 (09:47):
I mean it's you wouldn't see it in any other sports.
I mean, looking at any NBA player not being able
to release the ball or any soccer player, you wouldn't
see MESSI say, I can shoot, I can't shoot. But yeah,
he's suffering from from the yeah the dartisis, which is
(10:09):
of course a physical condition, but also this mental condition
where you're just you can't make it right.
Speaker 1 (10:16):
I mean that's heartbreaking, dude. I feel terrible for this guy.
How did it even, like, how did it start to
become known? And then like what was his process for
trying to change it, like I've tried to throw darts
left handed. You know, darts becomes one of those things
where everyone feels like they know how to do it
(10:37):
because it's accessible at every bar and pub throughout the world.
It's really hard to be that coordinated to be able
to change hands.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
It is an exceptional case. I mean he he suffered
from from some kind of wrist condition in the start
and then he it somehow got worse. So it is
the mixed between an injury where you keep throwing in
the wrong way and suddenly you have brist and your
underarm becomes a great issue, combined with your head saying
(11:12):
I can't throw like this. I need to kind of
do something that I'm not used to. So that's simply
suffering from from dartisis and many darts players have been
through it. Even Nathan Aspinall, who will also participate this
or was supposed to participate this year but is being
replaced by Australian Damon Hatz, has suffered from it on
(11:35):
stage during this year's Premier League, but has come back
from it. Actually that there were many many good matches,
but in Jule's case, it's it's been going on for
over a year now and he is luckily recovering from it.
But it's a very long process.
Speaker 1 (11:52):
You know this. Uh, this year's competition is European versus
North America. Are Europeans known as being better players historically
than the Americans?
Speaker 2 (12:10):
Yes, definitely. Darts has been evolving very slowly on every
other continent than Europe. We've seen still South America. I
mean in almost every other sport like soccer, basketball, Okay,
maybe not hockey, but but almost every other sport you
would have South America, Africa, Asia even having at least
(12:35):
one dominant player. It's been a very very slow involvement
in these in these continents because the professional darts corporation
have not succeeded bringing the game to other continents than Europe,
where everything has been focused on European tour, the World
As Championships being played in London every year, and now
(12:59):
discussions have come to do we need to put the
World Championships another place then London? Could it be played
outside Europe? Even because the sport is on the rise
and so many in so many different continents. Asia has
had a huge success of players coming in. We've seen
it at the World Cup of Darts that was held
a couple of weeks ago, where you play in teams
(13:20):
as in pairs of two. Jules van Dunnan competed for
the USA along with Daniel Loubi who will also be
playing this week in Canada, had Jim Long and Matt
Campbell who will also participate in New York this week.
But traditionally the Americans have had a tough time when
playing the US Darts Masters. In twenty twenty three, Canadian
(13:43):
Jeff Smith actually went all the way to the final.
He beat Lucumphries, the current number one. He had other
very good matches against Peter Wright with the mohawk, very
very good player as well, and then he beat Michael
Smith also but lost eventually in the final eight nil
to Michael van Gowen, a legend of the sports. But
(14:06):
he is the only player that have processed after round two.
We have the eight American players joining in in the
first round, and then you have the quarter finals, round two,
the semifinals, round three, and then the final. And Jeff
Smith is the only North American who has processed from
round two.
Speaker 1 (14:27):
All right, so you sort of got into the format
a little bit. This is a betting show. Darts came
on the scene largely because I think a lot of
people started betting on it. Like with a lot of sports,
sort of the popularity trails behind the betting influence, and
darts certainly falls into that category. So how do you
(14:50):
bet on darts? What's like? What's a comparison that people
who haven't done it before could hold on to so
they can understand it litle bit better.
Speaker 2 (15:01):
I don't think that tennis is a bad comparition, because
in tennis you have two players who are shifting between serving.
You're also serving in darts, where one player of course
has to throw before the matches. The players gather in
front of the board and then you throw closest to
the bullseye, and the player closest to bullseye is starting
(15:22):
the match, which is of course a big advantage. Since
we are playing first to six legs. Both players starts
on five and one points and will then play down
eventually to zero points, and if the game is tied
at five to five, you play the ultimate round of
the match. Of course, then the player who won the
ballsye before the match will throw in the deciding leg,
(15:45):
which is a huge advantage, and just like an in tennis, Yeah,
you're serving in darts, one can say. I mean a
tennis you have your serve where one player can be
bad at the at playing or or hitting, but having
a good serve it's a little bit different, difficult in darts,
(16:05):
but you have the ability of scoring of course, pounding
the triple twenty area where you get the most points.
But in the darts you're only winning if you can
finish on a double the outer circle of the board.
And some players having a reallytort time. I've seen top
professional players just a month ago having to use forty
(16:28):
one darts to finish one round. Chris Toby and an
opponent needed forty one darts to finish one route. You
and me could do around in forty one throws, chat,
I definitely wouldn't doubt.
Speaker 1 (16:44):
Well, that's the thing is like, sometimes I feel like
you can get a double on the outer ring by accident.
And these are the best dart throwers in the world
who aren't able to end it. Is it because everything
gets into their head, like what happens when it's time
to close that they can't get to that final throw.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
It's in their head. And then I mentioned the twenty
seventeen edition in trobik Kaanna, where the crowd was completely silent.
That's not the case in these days. The crowd is
getting loud and some crowds are even't getting hostile. In
the World Cup of Darts two weeks ago we had
Germany on home soil. They beat England with Luke Litter
and Louke Comfrey's two of the three best players in
(17:29):
the world. They beat them easily due to the crowd
whistling and booing every time the Englishman was throwing. And
I mean, we can discuss is that good sporting ethics
or what it is. But I mean, even if the
Madison Square Garden crowd will not get hostile, it can
still get into the heads of players when you can't
(17:50):
just get that double done and then you miss and
you miss more, and that's when it both starts and
betting becomes tough. The European players are playing later this
season then normally. Normally the US Dots Master has been
in the first week of June, the latest of editions.
Now it's in the end of June, so it is
(18:12):
colliding with some players holidays. All of these players have family,
so that might influence on European players going to America
dealing with jedlag. We've seen it many times. There's always
one or two of the European players who are really struggling,
and you don't know until you see them on stage
and imagine something is wrong here. His starts are flying low,
(18:37):
his starts are flying high. He's not mentally strong in
this game, and we won't know until we see the
players on stage. But one of the cases I'm quite
sure about is that we have Michael van Gerwin, the
Dutch giant who has won many world championships. He's been
going through a divorce, go splitting from his partner in
(18:58):
many many years and having even one month, so his
condition is very questionable. Has he trained, has he hasn't played?
And how is he dealing going to the USA without,
of course his family and with all these thoughts going
through his head. So that is what you have to
take into account when betting on the darts.
Speaker 1 (19:20):
Dude, we got divorce, we got dartitis, we got heckling,
we got jet lag, we got rivalries, we got teenage
up in comers, we got people who want to knock
that kid down to side like darts has more drama
than the Gilded Age. It is just a fantastic.
Speaker 2 (19:40):
You're not entertained.
Speaker 1 (19:45):
You mentioned all these guys like darts isn't something, and
you mentioned the prize pool one hundred thousand pounds? What
do these guys do for a living? Like these aren't
professional athletes? What do they do? How are they practicing?
Speaker 2 (20:00):
Money? And darts have gone so big that all of
the players competing on this World Series Tour that the
US Darts Masters is are completely professional, winning millions of
dollars and also having sponsorships that will easily top a
(20:21):
lot of professional players, not from the highest of clubs
or athletes, but at least clothes. I mean, winning the
World Championships is guaranteeing you five hundred thousand pounds. Equally,
I would say, what's seven hundred thousand dollars? And I
(20:44):
would say that probably top fifty and top or top
sixty on the Professional Dots Corporation tour can make a
living of darts. Of course, big difference from Luke Littler
at the top earning many, many, many thousands a year
and then number sixty four, who could maybe do with
(21:05):
a small part time job. But the hard thing for
darts players is that the top guys are guaranteed a
place in the most tournaments, where the qualifiers are not
getting any part of the prize pool on this they
win a match, making it very very hard. I mean,
(21:25):
in tennis, you would see even the loser of the
first round in US Open receiving I guess rather big
payment just for showing up, maybe even losing three times
six zero. In darts, there's been criticism of recent tournament
structure changes where it favors the biggest players, but we
(21:48):
have fewer occasions where we see upcoming talents, sensational qualifiers
winning four matches in one day and participating in their
first Levis tournament. Ever, that's making life hard also for
potential American players. Where we are having this tournament, we're
(22:09):
having four North American players participating due to the fact
that they have won a tour card. Just like when
you are competing for tour carding golf, you have it
on the darts tour as well, giving you the permission
to attend these tournaments, but you have to win it
and that is very very tough to do. So in
(22:30):
this tournament, we have, like I said before, we have
Daniel Louby, we have duels, we have Jim Long, we
have Mett Campbell who are playing professionally on the PDC tour,
and then we have four qualifiers land Gates that we bunts,
and then Adam Savada and Jason Brandon who will be
playing as part timers. So there is a huge gap
(22:51):
between the big guys making the big money and then
some of the quolar fame players we will see during
Friday and Saturday.
Speaker 1 (23:00):
So we've run through the lineup, We've run through the format,
We've run through the drama. Give us your best bets
for the tournament.
Speaker 2 (23:09):
We have yet to see the draw, which will obviously
have great importance in terms of which players will be
placed in, what braggets, what opponents, and stuff like that.
But like I mentioned before, I would very much like
to bet against Michael van Gowen if he gets any
other opponents, then an inexperienced Jason Brandon, if he gets
(23:34):
drawn against a young guy like Adam Savada, who is
getting very very big amounts of praise in the dark community,
can maybe be the next big thing in US arts.
I would definitely like to take Adam, maybe not to
win the match, but then to cover it by a
handicap the player first of first to three legs, and
(23:55):
if I can get something like Adam with three or
two legs front, I think that will be be a
great bet. And then of course Luke Litler, the teenage sensation.
He has this hunger of winning tournaments that he haven't
won yet, and he got defeated in his debut last
year in New York by Going Price, so I think
(24:15):
he will be very, very motivated. Also thinking about this
huge disaster that it was that him and partner Luke
Humphries was defeated in the first match at the World Cup.
So I think we'll see motivated Luke litter, motivated Luke Humphries,
and then Michael van Gowen with a big question mark
out of his form.
Speaker 1 (24:35):
I feel fully breathed Benjamin Leander from his kitchen in
Denmark with the greatest darts breakdown we've had in the
history of The Favorite podcast. Thanks for coming on the show, brother.
We will return with our next episode of The Favorite
Tuesday and the Action Network YouTube page. Downloads from Spotify,
(24:57):
Apple Pods wherever you get your pods. Great review, subscribe,
leave us five stars, say whatever you want. To feed
backs again until next time. Love You Action Network reminds
you please gamble responsibly. If you or someone you care
about has a gambling problem, help is available twenty four
(25:19):
to seven at one eight hundred gambler
Welcome to the Favorites, the podcast part of the Volume
Podcast Network. I'm Chad Millman of the Action Network. Simon
is still enjoying time with his family in Jollie, Old England,
but we miss him so much. We have to talk
about one of the biggest events that comes out of
(00:30):
England and has been imported to New York. It has
taking place Friday and Saturday. Many people know it as
sports biggest party. What is that party, you ask, It's
the best three sixty five US darts masters at the
theater in Madison Square Garden. The world's eight greatest darts
(00:52):
players squaring off against eight of North America's best. It's
an incredible party. It's incredible popular betting event internationally and
becoming more popular here in the US. Joining us to
discuss all things professional darts all the way from his
(01:13):
kitchen in Denmark, our better collective colleague and darts betting
expert Ben Jamine Leander Brother.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
Hi Jet, Thank you so much for having me listen.
Speaker 1 (01:27):
Darts has a really sort of special place in the
lore of Action Network because when we first launched, darts
started to be televised here in the United States on
diz own I think, and a lot of people went
and it was a huge betting event that got us
all catalyzed, and we're having just an incredible time together.
(01:50):
So we've been following like the joy of betting on
darts and the incredible enthusiasm and the spirit comes from
the events and the attitude and the charisma of the
the players. Like for those who were totally unfamiliar, why
is it called sports biggest party?
Speaker 2 (02:11):
I would say for people not knowing that darts have
evolved from the traditional pop sport to the greatest party
in the world, I would say that we have festival
meets carnival meets sports match. Very rare that you can
combine all three things. I mean, we have all been
to a soccer match, an American football match, an icecckeer match,
(02:34):
whatever match where you have the sport in the center
of everything. With darts you have the atmosphere as the
center of everything. And I remember actually watching the first
edition of the US Darts Masters that was played at
the Tropic can Casino in Las Vegas. People should go
(02:56):
watch it. It's on YouTube.
Speaker 3 (02:58):
Hello again from Professional Dotsampionship, where once again we've had
an evening of high drama as this tournament proceeds towards
its climax one hundred.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
And then compared to last year's edition, it is two
different worlds.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Wow, the championship final, Michael fuckerwin, my daughter one man
missus does the other man get I've never seen.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
The like Come on spiper, Yes, Stubble twelve the most amazing.
Speaker 3 (03:38):
Saying I can't steer my step, my crowd going perssuch,
but that's simply the best looking of dance.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
So darts is being the the biggest party of sports
due to the huge atmosphere.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
What do you think happened? What changed? By twenty eighteen
when we were starting to cover it at action, people
were already going nuts. Like the attitude, the atmosphere. It
was really starting to blow up. What do you think
facilitated the change in sort of culture and enthusiasm.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
Professional Darts Cooperation is called the PDC, like the FIFA
of soccer or the NHL of hockey, has played a
huge role in professionalizing the sports, along with broadcasters like
Sky Sports and ITV making a very very good broadcasting
product of the sports. Because it is universal that when
(04:44):
you watch the dart scheme, you want the best angles.
I mean, nobody can watch the dogboards from places of
the crowd, but with the huge monitors and on TV
many many different camera angles showing exactly where the players
are throwing the darts. That has been a huge key
(05:06):
in the darts rise during the last yeah, like you said,
the last seven or eight years. The PDC has of
course also provided a huge price fund, which is also
this year historical in New York. We have one hundred
thousand pounds in the price pool against sixty even last year.
(05:29):
So bigger prize pool and the PDC making a very
very nice product. Tickets are still what I would say,
not cheap, but at least affordable, where we see in
other sports, both your sports in the US and also
the European sports that that ticket prices are simply exploding
through the roof. So in general, more people are getting
(05:52):
their eyes open for darts being very very accessible. You
need to be a huge fan. You need to know
who Michael fan Girlin or Matt Campbell or whoever is.
So darts is extremely accessible for both young and old.
Speaker 1 (06:06):
So explaining you just mentioned a couple of guys, who
are the people that the players that people need to
know as they think about betting for the weekend, and
we're quite frankly in the US there's not a ton
of stuff to bet on as we're heading into, you know,
out of the basketball season. Who are the people? Why
are they so charismatic? What makes them so popular?
Speaker 2 (06:28):
I think it's impossible not to mention teenage sensation and
upcoming defending world champion and upcoming many many, many, many
many times world champion. He is the picture on the
face of darts right now, sixteen years old when he
participated at his first World dous Championship and World champion
(06:50):
at the age of seventeen, one of.
Speaker 3 (06:57):
The greatest sets of darts potentially we have ever seen.
Of the World Championship. He's gone through the gills and
this is for the match, say for the loop, a
new play climb. You cannot contain this Land's talent and
(07:18):
fatty and brute strength as adults line.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
He's participating of course in New York. Did it as
well last year, but lost to Growing Price also a
big name to to keep an eye on, due to
both due to his skills on the stage, but also
because Price is the face of what darts can also be.
A former rugby professional in his home country Wales, decided
(07:44):
to give dots ago ten years ago and got crowned
world champion, so completely shifted sports, like another Michael Jordan
from from basketball to baseball, maybe even more successful. We
have tons of faces. Luke Humphrey, the world number one,
also a very very good guy, a guy everyone likes
(08:05):
on the tour where Little and Price are dividing opinions,
maybe a little more then I would say for the Americans,
we have a very special case with Jules van Dungen,
born in the Netherlands but is representing the US. He
is at the moment suffering from dar titis. Please don't laugh.
(08:30):
It's a real thing where you are struggling with the
dart in your hand to release it at a proper time.
And Jules has suffered from this for over a year now.
Was a really really is still a really really good player,
but has suffered so much from this dark titis thing
that he actually spent hours and hours and weeks and
(08:54):
months changing his throat from right to left handed. Imagine
doing that in any sports. Imagine Tom Brady suddenly saying
I can release the ball when throwing for my wide
receiver so now I'll use my left hand. Jules van
(09:15):
Dagen actually did that. He is in the middle of
a process and he's still playing at a much lower
level than before, but he will participate in New York.
And I think everyone in the Doors universe is cheering
for Jewels to finally have a good experience on the
stage because he has really suffered for the last year
or even one and a half. So he is definitely
(09:36):
the guy that everyone in the American art world will
cheer four of this this week.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
So basically, Jewles got the yips, like he just couldn't
do it anymore.
Speaker 2 (09:47):
I mean it's you wouldn't see it in any other sports.
I mean, looking at any NBA player not being able
to release the ball or any soccer player, you wouldn't
see MESSI say, I can shoot, I can't shoot. But yeah,
he's suffering from from the yeah the dartisis, which is
(10:09):
of course a physical condition, but also this mental condition
where you're just you can't make it right.
Speaker 1 (10:16):
I mean that's heartbreaking, dude. I feel terrible for this guy.
How did it even, like, how did it start to
become known? And then like what was his process for
trying to change it, like I've tried to throw darts
left handed. You know, darts becomes one of those things
where everyone feels like they know how to do it
(10:37):
because it's accessible at every bar and pub throughout the world.
It's really hard to be that coordinated to be able
to change hands.
Speaker 2 (10:48):
It is an exceptional case. I mean he he suffered
from from some kind of wrist condition in the start
and then he it somehow got worse. So it is
the mixed between an injury where you keep throwing in
the wrong way and suddenly you have brist and your
underarm becomes a great issue, combined with your head saying
(11:12):
I can't throw like this. I need to kind of
do something that I'm not used to. So that's simply
suffering from from dartisis and many darts players have been
through it. Even Nathan Aspinall, who will also participate this
or was supposed to participate this year but is being
replaced by Australian Damon Hatz, has suffered from it on
(11:35):
stage during this year's Premier League, but has come back
from it. Actually that there were many many good matches,
but in Jule's case, it's it's been going on for
over a year now and he is luckily recovering from it.
But it's a very long process.
Speaker 1 (11:52):
You know this. Uh, this year's competition is European versus
North America. Are Europeans known as being better players historically
than the Americans?
Speaker 2 (12:10):
Yes, definitely. Darts has been evolving very slowly on every
other continent than Europe. We've seen still South America. I
mean in almost every other sport like soccer, basketball, Okay,
maybe not hockey, but but almost every other sport you
would have South America, Africa, Asia even having at least
(12:35):
one dominant player. It's been a very very slow involvement
in these in these continents because the professional darts corporation
have not succeeded bringing the game to other continents than Europe,
where everything has been focused on European tour, the World
As Championships being played in London every year, and now
(12:59):
discussions have come to do we need to put the
World Championships another place then London? Could it be played
outside Europe? Even because the sport is on the rise
and so many in so many different continents. Asia has
had a huge success of players coming in. We've seen
it at the World Cup of Darts that was held
a couple of weeks ago, where you play in teams
(13:20):
as in pairs of two. Jules van Dunnan competed for
the USA along with Daniel Loubi who will also be
playing this week in Canada, had Jim Long and Matt
Campbell who will also participate in New York this week.
But traditionally the Americans have had a tough time when
playing the US Darts Masters. In twenty twenty three, Canadian
(13:43):
Jeff Smith actually went all the way to the final.
He beat Lucumphries, the current number one. He had other
very good matches against Peter Wright with the mohawk, very
very good player as well, and then he beat Michael
Smith also but lost eventually in the final eight nil
to Michael van Gowen, a legend of the sports. But
(14:06):
he is the only player that have processed after round two.
We have the eight American players joining in in the
first round, and then you have the quarter finals, round two,
the semifinals, round three, and then the final. And Jeff
Smith is the only North American who has processed from
round two.
Speaker 1 (14:27):
All right, so you sort of got into the format
a little bit. This is a betting show. Darts came
on the scene largely because I think a lot of
people started betting on it. Like with a lot of sports,
sort of the popularity trails behind the betting influence, and
darts certainly falls into that category. So how do you
(14:50):
bet on darts? What's like? What's a comparison that people
who haven't done it before could hold on to so
they can understand it litle bit better.
Speaker 2 (15:01):
I don't think that tennis is a bad comparition, because
in tennis you have two players who are shifting between serving.
You're also serving in darts, where one player of course
has to throw before the matches. The players gather in
front of the board and then you throw closest to
the bullseye, and the player closest to bullseye is starting
(15:22):
the match, which is of course a big advantage. Since
we are playing first to six legs. Both players starts
on five and one points and will then play down
eventually to zero points, and if the game is tied
at five to five, you play the ultimate round of
the match. Of course, then the player who won the
ballsye before the match will throw in the deciding leg,
(15:45):
which is a huge advantage, and just like an in tennis, Yeah,
you're serving in darts, one can say. I mean a
tennis you have your serve where one player can be
bad at the at playing or or hitting, but having
a good serve it's a little bit different, difficult in darts,
(16:05):
but you have the ability of scoring of course, pounding
the triple twenty area where you get the most points.
But in the darts you're only winning if you can
finish on a double the outer circle of the board.
And some players having a reallytort time. I've seen top
professional players just a month ago having to use forty
(16:28):
one darts to finish one round. Chris Toby and an
opponent needed forty one darts to finish one route. You
and me could do around in forty one throws, chat,
I definitely wouldn't doubt.
Speaker 1 (16:44):
Well, that's the thing is like, sometimes I feel like
you can get a double on the outer ring by accident.
And these are the best dart throwers in the world
who aren't able to end it. Is it because everything
gets into their head, like what happens when it's time
to close that they can't get to that final throw.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
It's in their head. And then I mentioned the twenty
seventeen edition in trobik Kaanna, where the crowd was completely silent.
That's not the case in these days. The crowd is
getting loud and some crowds are even't getting hostile. In
the World Cup of Darts two weeks ago we had
Germany on home soil. They beat England with Luke Litter
and Louke Comfrey's two of the three best players in
(17:29):
the world. They beat them easily due to the crowd
whistling and booing every time the Englishman was throwing. And
I mean, we can discuss is that good sporting ethics
or what it is. But I mean, even if the
Madison Square Garden crowd will not get hostile, it can
still get into the heads of players when you can't
(17:50):
just get that double done and then you miss and
you miss more, and that's when it both starts and
betting becomes tough. The European players are playing later this
season then normally. Normally the US Dots Master has been
in the first week of June, the latest of editions.
Now it's in the end of June, so it is
(18:12):
colliding with some players holidays. All of these players have family,
so that might influence on European players going to America
dealing with jedlag. We've seen it many times. There's always
one or two of the European players who are really struggling,
and you don't know until you see them on stage
and imagine something is wrong here. His starts are flying low,
(18:37):
his starts are flying high. He's not mentally strong in
this game, and we won't know until we see the
players on stage. But one of the cases I'm quite
sure about is that we have Michael van Gerwin, the
Dutch giant who has won many world championships. He's been
going through a divorce, go splitting from his partner in
(18:58):
many many years and having even one month, so his
condition is very questionable. Has he trained, has he hasn't played?
And how is he dealing going to the USA without,
of course his family and with all these thoughts going
through his head. So that is what you have to
take into account when betting on the darts.
Speaker 1 (19:20):
Dude, we got divorce, we got dartitis, we got heckling,
we got jet lag, we got rivalries, we got teenage
up in comers, we got people who want to knock
that kid down to side like darts has more drama
than the Gilded Age. It is just a fantastic.
Speaker 2 (19:40):
You're not entertained.
Speaker 1 (19:45):
You mentioned all these guys like darts isn't something, and
you mentioned the prize pool one hundred thousand pounds? What
do these guys do for a living? Like these aren't
professional athletes? What do they do? How are they practicing?
Speaker 2 (20:00):
Money? And darts have gone so big that all of
the players competing on this World Series Tour that the
US Darts Masters is are completely professional, winning millions of
dollars and also having sponsorships that will easily top a
(20:21):
lot of professional players, not from the highest of clubs
or athletes, but at least clothes. I mean, winning the
World Championships is guaranteeing you five hundred thousand pounds. Equally,
I would say, what's seven hundred thousand dollars? And I
(20:44):
would say that probably top fifty and top or top
sixty on the Professional Dots Corporation tour can make a
living of darts. Of course, big difference from Luke Littler
at the top earning many, many, many thousands a year
and then number sixty four, who could maybe do with
(21:05):
a small part time job. But the hard thing for
darts players is that the top guys are guaranteed a
place in the most tournaments, where the qualifiers are not
getting any part of the prize pool on this they
win a match, making it very very hard. I mean,
(21:25):
in tennis, you would see even the loser of the
first round in US Open receiving I guess rather big
payment just for showing up, maybe even losing three times
six zero. In darts, there's been criticism of recent tournament
structure changes where it favors the biggest players, but we
(21:48):
have fewer occasions where we see upcoming talents, sensational qualifiers
winning four matches in one day and participating in their
first Levis tournament. Ever, that's making life hard also for
potential American players. Where we are having this tournament, we're
(22:09):
having four North American players participating due to the fact
that they have won a tour card. Just like when
you are competing for tour carding golf, you have it
on the darts tour as well, giving you the permission
to attend these tournaments, but you have to win it
and that is very very tough to do. So in
(22:30):
this tournament, we have, like I said before, we have
Daniel Louby, we have duels, we have Jim Long, we
have Mett Campbell who are playing professionally on the PDC tour,
and then we have four qualifiers land Gates that we bunts,
and then Adam Savada and Jason Brandon who will be
playing as part timers. So there is a huge gap
(22:51):
between the big guys making the big money and then
some of the quolar fame players we will see during
Friday and Saturday.
Speaker 1 (23:00):
So we've run through the lineup, We've run through the format,
We've run through the drama. Give us your best bets
for the tournament.
Speaker 2 (23:09):
We have yet to see the draw, which will obviously
have great importance in terms of which players will be
placed in, what braggets, what opponents, and stuff like that.
But like I mentioned before, I would very much like
to bet against Michael van Gowen if he gets any
other opponents, then an inexperienced Jason Brandon, if he gets
(23:34):
drawn against a young guy like Adam Savada, who is
getting very very big amounts of praise in the dark community,
can maybe be the next big thing in US arts.
I would definitely like to take Adam, maybe not to
win the match, but then to cover it by a
handicap the player first of first to three legs, and
(23:55):
if I can get something like Adam with three or
two legs front, I think that will be be a
great bet. And then of course Luke Litler, the teenage sensation.
He has this hunger of winning tournaments that he haven't
won yet, and he got defeated in his debut last
year in New York by Going Price, so I think
(24:15):
he will be very, very motivated. Also thinking about this
huge disaster that it was that him and partner Luke
Humphries was defeated in the first match at the World Cup.
So I think we'll see motivated Luke litter, motivated Luke Humphries,
and then Michael van Gowen with a big question mark
out of his form.
Speaker 1 (24:35):
I feel fully breathed Benjamin Leander from his kitchen in
Denmark with the greatest darts breakdown we've had in the
history of The Favorite podcast. Thanks for coming on the show, brother.
We will return with our next episode of The Favorite
Tuesday and the Action Network YouTube page. Downloads from Spotify,
(24:57):
Apple Pods wherever you get your pods. Great review, subscribe,
leave us five stars, say whatever you want. To feed
backs again until next time. Love You Action Network reminds
you please gamble responsibly. If you or someone you care
about has a gambling problem, help is available twenty four
(25:19):
to seven at one eight hundred gambler
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