Andy Hamilton (darts player): Difference between revisions
| Line 78: | Line 78: | ||
===Rest of 2012=== |
===Rest of 2012=== |
||
His performance at the World Championship helped him gain a wildcard place into the [[2012 Premier League Darts]], where he will make his first appearance.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.pdc.tv/page/NewsdeskDetail/0,,10180~2565358,00.html | title=Hamilton & Painter's Premier Delight | publisher=[[Professional Darts Corporation|PDC]] | date=3 January 2012 | accessdate=3 January 2012}}</ref> |
His performance at the World Championship helped him gain a wildcard place into the [[2012 Premier League Darts]], where he will make his first appearance.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.pdc.tv/page/NewsdeskDetail/0,,10180~2565358,00.html | title=Hamilton & Painter's Premier Delight | publisher=[[Professional Darts Corporation|PDC]] | date=3 January 2012 | accessdate=3 January 2012}}</ref> |
||
On the first night of the [[2012 Premier League Darts]] he beat [[James Wade]] 8-5<ref>http://www.pdc.tv/page/PremierLeagueDetail/0,,10180~2605523,00.html</ref>. |
|||
==Darts business== |
==Darts business== |
||
Revision as of 18:43, 10 February 2012
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2010) |
| Andy Hamilton | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Personal information | |
| Nickname | The Hammer |
| Born | 16 March 1967 Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England |
| Home town | Derby |
| Darts information | |
| Playing darts since | 1983 |
| Darts | 23g 97% Tungsten Maestro |
| Laterality | Right-handed |
| Walk-on music | U Can't Touch This by MC Hammer |
| Organisation (see split in darts) | |
| PDC | 2004 - present |
| Current world ranking | 7 |
| WDF major events – best performances | |
| World Trophy | Semi Finalist 2007 |
| Int. Darts League | First Round Group Stage 2007 |
| PDC premier events – best performances | |
| World Ch'ship | Runner-up 2012 |
| World Matchplay | Semi Finalist 2006, 2011 |
| World Grand Prix | Semi Finalist 2009 |
| UK Open | Quarter Finalist 2010 |
| Grand Slam | Runner Up 2007 |
| European Ch'ship | Round 2 2009 |
| Ch'ship League | Winners group, 7th, 2008 |
| Desert Classic | Quarter Finalist (2) 2006, 2008 |
| US Open/WSoD | Semi-finals 2007 |
| PC Finals | Round 2 (2) 2009, 2010 |
| Other tournament wins | |
| Tournament | Years |
| Players Ch'ship (Gibraltar) UK Open Midlands Regional Antwerp Open Cotgrave Open | 2007 2007 2008 2008 2010 |
Andy Hamilton (born 16 March 1967 in Stoke-on-Trent) is a full time professional English darts player. He is nicknamed The Hammer. He had a good run in 2012 PDC World Darts Championship and played in the final against Adrian Lewis.[1]
Hamilton started playing darts at the age of 16 with his father Jim and brother Darren. By the age of 18, Hamilton was playing county level darts for Cheshire. However, he did not feel confident enough to pursue a career at the higher level and stopped playing competitive darts for 20 years.
PDC career
Hamilton made his television debut at the 2004 UK Open championship but was eliminated in the first round 2-5 by Eddie Lovely.
Hamilton qualified for the 2005 PDC World Championship and eventually reached the quarter-final stage. Hamilton defeated Mark Thomson and Mick Manning 3-0 in the early rounds and beat former BDO World Champion Steve Beaton 4-2 to reach the last 16. After beating Josephus Schenk 4-1 in the fourth round, Hamilton eventually lost 1-5 to Bob Anderson in the quarter-finals.
The 2006 PDC World Championship saw Hamilton gain revenge for his 2005 defeat by Anderson with a 3-2 first round win. He also knocked out Terry Jenkins 4-1 in round two. However, Hamilton fell to eventual winner Phil Taylor in the third round losing 4-0. Hamilton did manage to gain a share of the prize for highest three-dart checkout by hitting a 170 finish, a feat matched by Taylor.
Hamilton reached the quarter-finals of the 2006 Las Vegas Desert Classic however where he reached the quarter-final stage before being eliminated by eventual runner-up Raymond van Barneveld 3-1. Hamilton had defeated Kevin Painter 6-4 in the first round and enjoyed a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Matt Clark in round two.
'The Hammer' made his Winter Gardens debut at the 2006 World Matchplay Darts tournament. Hamilton sprang something of a surprise in round one by hammering number 4 seed Peter Manley 10-2. Hamilton then overcame Adrian Lewis in the second round, the duo produced a thrilling match that eventually saw Hamilton triumph 15-13. Hamilton's fine run continued as he defeated crowd favourite Wayne Mardle 16-9 to reach his first major semi-final. However Taylor, a seven time World Matchplay Champion, eliminated Hamilton 17-11 in the semi-final.
Hamilton reached the semi-finals of the 2007 PDC World Championship before bowing out 6-0 to eventual runner-up Taylor. Hamilton's campaign began with a 4-3 victory over Mark Dudbridge before defeating Dennis Priestley 4-1 and Jenkins 5-4 in the quarter-final. Hamilton hit 46 180s during the tournament, second only to the overall winner Raymond van Barneveld.
2007 season
Hamilton enjoyed a superb start to 2007 and picked up his first PDC Pro Tour title with a 3-1 win over Colin Lloyd in the StanJames.com Players Championship in Gibraltar on 21 January. He had already overcome Andy Smith, Roland Scholten, Jenkins and Alan Warriner-Little on his way to the final.[2]
His maintained his form by reaching the semi-finals of the South-West Regional Final of the UK Open and quarter-final performances in the PDPA Players Championship in Germany and North-East Regional UK Open.
He collected his second PDC Pro Tour title on 1 April beating James Wade in the Midlands Regional Final of the UK Open.[3]
Hamilton also made a big impact in the inaugural PDC US Open, powering his way to the semi-final, where he was beaten by van Barneveld. On his way to the semi-finals he overcame one of Taylor's oldest rivals, Priestley and the hugely talented Dudbridge.
In November, Hamilton enjoyed an excellent run in the inaugural Grand Slam of Darts, ending up as runner-up of the tournament and collecting £35,000 for his efforts. He was defeated by Taylor in the final by 18 legs to 11.[4]
In December, Hamilton was knocked out of the second round of the PDC world championship by Alex Roy.
2008 to 2011
Hamilton reached the later stages of several tournamets, namely quarter-finals in the 2008 Las Vegas Classic and World Grand Prix. One year later he reached the semi-final of the World Grand Prix. In 2010 he continued the good results at the World Grand Prix reaching the quarter-finals. At the 2011 World Matchplay he reached the semi-final by beating Gary Anderson, John Henderson, and after being 15-8 down against Simon Whitlock, he pulled back and won the game 17-15, winning 9 legs in a row in a remarkable comeback.[5] However he eventually lost to Phil Taylor 17-9 in the Semi finals.
2012 Season
World Championship
At the 2012 World Championship he beat Antonio Alcinas 3-2 in the first round, while missing a dart at double 18 in the third set for a nine-dart finish.[6] He then beat Vincent van der Voort 4-3, Dave Chisnall 4-0, and Kim Huybrechts 5-2, to reach the semi-finals for the second time in his career.[7] He played Simon Whitlock and found himself 3-5 down and on the brink of elimination before he produced a super fightback, which included four ton-plus finishes, to prevail 6-5.[8] Hamilton was consistently outscored by the Australian, but his finishing proved to be crucial as he hit 58% of his doubles to secure his first World final and second major TV final.[9] The 200-1 outsider at the start of the tournament could not complete a remarkable victory and clinch the title, however, as he valiantly fought hard throughout but could never get ahead of his opponent, Adrian Lewis, who won the match 7-3. The £100,000 Hamilton picked up for his runner-up spot is the biggest of his career to date and he vowed to go one better in the 2013 tournament.[10] He rose to world number 7 after the event.[11]
Rest of 2012
His performance at the World Championship helped him gain a wildcard place into the 2012 Premier League Darts, where he will make his first appearance.[12] On the first night of the 2012 Premier League Darts he beat James Wade 8-5[13].
Darts business
Hamilton is sponsored by Unicorn.[14] Hamilton previously practiced with Phil Taylor, a fellow resident of Stoke-on-Trent but he now practices with Colin Osborne. Although he temporarily relocated to Derby to be closer to Osborne, Hamilton has since returned to Stoke-On-Trent.
Personal life
Away from the oche he is married to wife Kate and has three stepchildren Adam, Sarah and Vicky. He and his wife ran the Skylark pub in Stoke-on-Trent, but Hamilton soon sold the pub to pursue a full-time darts career.
References
- ^ "Hammer knocks out Wizard". skysports.com. 2 January 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
- ^ "Andy Hamilton takes first PDC Pro Tour Title in Gibraltar". theoche.com. 21 January 2007. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
- ^ "Hamilton Wins Midlands Regional Final". PDC. 1 Apr 2007. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
- ^ "Phil Taylor Powers Over Andy Hamilton to Win GSOD". theoche.com. 25 November 2007. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
- ^ "Andy Hamilton stunned by comeback at World Matchplay". BBC. 22 July 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
- ^ "World Championship - Night Five". PDC. December 19, 2011. Retrieved December 19, 2011.
- ^ "2012 PDC World Championship Results". Darts Database. Retrieved January 02, 2012.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help) - ^ "Hammer knocks out Wizard". Sky Sports. Retrieved January 02, 2012.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help) - ^ "Lewis fightback blows Wade away". ESPN. Retrieved January 02, 2012.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help) - ^ "Lewis lands Jackpot again". Sky Sports. Retrieved January 02, 2012.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help) - ^ "Lewis Closes In On Taylor As New Rankings Released". Live-Darts. Retrieved January 04, 2012.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help) - ^ "Hamilton & Painter's Premier Delight". PDC. 3 January 2012. Retrieved 3 January 2012.
- ^ http://www.pdc.tv/page/PremierLeagueDetail/0,,10180~2605523,00.html
- ^ "Unicorn team". unicorn-darts.com. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
External links
Top 20 PDC darts players in Order of Merit | |
|---|---|
Rankings as of 21 July 2024 with movement in rank since 3 July 2024 indicated. |
