Post
by skweezit » Thu Jun 09, 2011 10:55 pm
some excerpts from the ODC, in the US
...Toeing the Oche wrote, “Pencil in John Part and maybe use the other end for Adrian Lewis” in pre-tournament comments about the UK Open. John Part played very well in taking out Roland Shelton 9-2 with most TV guys jumping on the Part bandwagon. That wagon hit a bump in the road when Part lost to Robert Thornton 9-8 when missing 5 darts for the game to move on. World Champion Adrian Lewis went out early to Terry Jenkins. “The Bull” had early leads of 4-1 and 7-4 with Lewis squandering 3 darts in the 12th leg to narrow the gap to 7-5. At 8-4 Jenkins could afford to lose the next 3, which he did, but won 9-7. ...
...There were some memorable collapses. Holland’s Co Stompe is one of the more interesting guys on the PDC tour. He plays in a long sleeved shirt and for the UK Open was wearing a cross between granny and grandpa glasses. The very tall Dutchman, after a 9-7 win over Simon Whitlock, stood on one leg like a giant stork in a long sleeved shirt and glasses. He would need that sense of himself and humor after he blew leads of 6-0 and 8-4 losing to Andy Boulton 9-8. During the meltdown Stompe missed double digit darts for the match win. Then there were those games where the arm was working but the mind when into “sleep mode.”...
...Phil Taylor didn’t make it to the finals. In fact Phil Taylor didn’t make it to the semi-finals. This of course brought out the “Taylor is finished” crowd. It’s been 10 months since his last major win and tongues will wag as tongues will wag. Yes, a Taylor loss brings out tongues like the bell did for Pavlov’s dog. Taylor actually started the competition is good fashion with a convincing 9-3 win over Mark Frost. The ODC is critical of some of the nicknames on the PDC Tour. Frost though has the best ever – he’s called “Frosty the Throw Man.” Now that’s good stuff. Throughout the UK Open players mentioned time and time again about the amount of heat in the venue. There were six boards all rigged with intensely hot TV lights which at best are stifling. When Paul Nicholson and Phil Taylor met on Board #1 on Saturday it was a fact that there was enough chill on the stage to hang meat. There were no “man hugs” (thank God) or chuckles and grins or any of the “Buddy, Pal, Amigo” moments we so cherish.
Nicholson had warmed up for Taylor with a comeback from 5-1 and 7-4 down to defeat Gary Anderson 9-8. Up 7-4 Anderson had doubles to go up 8-4 but misfired. Given life Nicholson turned things around with outs of 124, a big 88 on the bull and an 83 with double 9 to close the deal. Taylor looked vintage when he disposed of Dennis Priestly 9-3 with a 105 average. Nicholson has never been timid. “It doesn't matter to me that I've drawn Phil and I'll relish the challenge. I’m not scared of anybody and I never have been."....
...Lost in all the “hoopla” was one Denis “The Heat” Ovens, a pal of the ODC’s. Very quietly and with little fanfare Ovens found himself on the semi final stage for the second year in a row. He made a splash in an early round, not necessarily for playing great but for donning what was called a “Don Johnson shirt” while defeating Mark Hylton. To be honest it was the kind of shirt that the ODC would wear when dressing down but for the understated and very serious Ovens it was splashy. TV commentators, being catty, made fun of the fact that Ovens supposedly rarely smiles. “Not so!” yelled the ODC to the computer. “I saw him smile in 2009 when I bought him a beer in Las Vegas.” For his semi-final engagement against Wes Newton, Ovens chose not to wear the “Don Johnson” shirt. He forgot another Cardinal rule, “Dance with the one that brung ya.”....
