The 1979 Embassy World Darts Championship was the second World Professional Championships. Having been held the previous year at the Heart of the Midlands Club

Rock City (club)

Rock City is a club in the city of Nottingham, England that focuses on live music.-Overview:Rock City, based in Nottingham City Centre, has a capacity of 2451, and is known for its intimate atmosphere. It has been described by NME as "sweaty, but truly indie". Rock City is divided into two rooms:...

 in Nottingham

Nottingham

Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...

, the event moved to Jollees Cabaret Club in Stoke-on-Trent

Stoke-on-Trent

Stoke-on-Trent , also called The Potteries is a city in Staffordshire, England, which forms a linear conurbation almost 12 miles long, with an area of . Together with the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme Stoke forms The Potteries Urban Area...

 where it was to remain until 1985.

The tournament was held between February 2 and February 9 and had been expanded from 16 players to 24. The eight seeded players each received a bye into the second round. The format also changed from a straight matchplay (legs) to sets. Each set was the best of 5 legs. - For matches in the opening rounds the matches were best of three sets, - best of five for the quarter-finals and semi-finals, with the final being best of 9 sets, split over an afternoon and evening session with the play-off for third held in between.

Defending champion, Leighton Rees

Leighton Rees

Leighton Thomas Rees was the first ever World Professional Darts Champion.-Early life:Rees was born in the village of Ynysybwl, where he was to spend most of his life...

 of Wales again progressed to the final where he met John Lowe

John Lowe

John Lowe is an English darts player who was one of the best-known men in darts during the 1970s and 1980s, particularly in the United Kingdom. Lowe is one of only five players to have won the World Championship 3 times.-Biography:Lowe won the World Championship title in three different decades -...

 in a repeat of the inaugural championship. This time, Lowe was the top seed and came out on top in the final by 5 sets to 0.

New players

With the expansion from 16 to 24 players in the finals, 11 players made their championship debuts, the most notable being John Wilson of Scotland, - no doubt to be soon known as Jocky. Wilson's performances over 1978 had enabled him to be seeded 8th for the tournament, and thus ensure a place in round 2 straight away.

Seeds

Wilson entering the seeds meant he would replace Rab Smith, the Scot having to play the first round before moving into the later stages. England's John Lowe had risen to be number 1 seed, with Eric Bristow dropping to 2nd seed after his first round defeat a year earlier. Leighton Rees remained seeded 3, with Tony Brown moving up to number 4. The Semi-Finalist from 1978 Nicky Virachkul was seeded 5th with the other Last 4 man, Stefan Lord seeded 6th. Alan Evans was the 7th seed along with Wilson as 8th.

First round - Friday 2 and Saturday 3 February

The second Embassy World Championship opened up with the first surprise, Doug McCarthy's 2-1 win over Charlie Ellix. - McCarthy would meet Lowe in the last 16 later on in the event. Jim McQuillian, following Patrick Clifford as only the second Irishman to pay in the World Championship, looked comfortable in his 2-0 win over Murray Smith, whose long trek to Stoke from New Zealand was over before it had begun.

Prize money

Total Prize fund was £15,000 (plus a £12,000 bonus for a nine-dart finish - not won)

• Champion £4,500
• Runner-up £2,000
• Third Place £1,500
• Fourth Place £1,000
• Quarter finalists £500
• 2nd round losers £300
• 1st round losers £200

The results

John Lowe

John Lowe

John Lowe is an English darts player who was one of the best-known men in darts during the 1970s and 1980s, particularly in the United Kingdom. Lowe is one of only five players to have won the World Championship 3 times.-Biography:Lowe won the World Championship title in three different decades -...

won the final 5-0 (3-1, 3-0, 3-0, 3-2, 3-0)and won the 1979 Embassy World Darts Championship

BDO World Darts Championship

The BDO World Darts Championship is a world championship competition in darts, organised by the British Darts Organisation . It began in 1978, and was the only world championship tournament until 1994...

. The third place match didn't take place due to illness of Alan Evans

Alan Evans (darts player)

David "Alan" Evans was a Welsh professional darts player who competed in the 1970s and 1980s.Evans was one of the early faces of television darts and had some tournament success in the 1970s...

 so Tony Brown

Tony Brown (darts player)

Tony Brown is a former English professional darts player. He reached the World Professional Darts Championships semi-finals four times, losing twice to Eric Bristow and twice to John Lowe....

took the third spot.