2008 World Grand Prix Darts
Encyclopedia
The 2008 Sky Poker World Grand Prix was the eleventh instance of the darts
tournament held by the Professional Darts Corporation
, the World Grand Prix. It was held from October 6 to October 12. As usual it was staged at the Citywest Hotel in Saggart
, Dublin. The event featured a tournament record prize fund of £250,000 with £50,000 going to the winner.
Phil Taylor won his eighth Grand Prix title with a 6-2 victory over Raymond van Barneveld
in the final, an impressive 355,000 viewers tuned in to watch it. James Wade
was the defending champion, however he suffered a 2-1 defeat to Tony Eccles
in the first round.
Champion - £50,000
Runner-up - £25,000
Semi-finalists - £14,500
Quarter-finalists - £10,000
Second round losers - £6,750
First round losers - £3,250
Nine-dart jackpot - £15,000
, Wales
. The top 8 from these rankings were also the seeded players. The remaining 16 places went to the top 12 non-qualified players from the 2008 Players Championship Order of Merit, and then to the top 4 non-qualified residents of the Republic of Ireland
and Northern Ireland
from the 2008 Players Championship Order of Merit who have competed in at least six Players Championship events.
Scores after player's names are three-dart averages (total points scored divided by darts thrown and multiplied by 3)
NB: Due to the double-in format of the tournament, the averages were lower than would normally be expected meaning player performance can not be as accurately inferred.
.
The sponsorship for the tournament also stayed with Sky Bet who sponsored the event since 2004, however one of its brands, Sky Poker, was the new title sponsor.
Darts
Darts is a form of throwing game where darts are thrown at a circular target fixed to a wall. Though various boards and games have been used in the past, the term "darts" usually now refers to a standardised game involving a specific board design and set of rules...
tournament held by the Professional Darts Corporation
Professional Darts Corporation
The Professional Darts Corporation is a professional darts organization, established in the United Kingdom during 1992, when a group of leading professional players split from the British Darts Organisation to form what was initially called the World Darts Council...
, the World Grand Prix. It was held from October 6 to October 12. As usual it was staged at the Citywest Hotel in Saggart
Saggart
Saggart is a suburban village in South Dublin County, Ireland, south west of Dublin city. It lies between the N7 , Rathcoole, and Tallaght.-Name:A monk called Mosacra founded a settlement on the site of the village in the 7th century...
, Dublin. The event featured a tournament record prize fund of £250,000 with £50,000 going to the winner.
Phil Taylor won his eighth Grand Prix title with a 6-2 victory over Raymond van Barneveld
Raymond van Barneveld
Raymond van Barneveld , nickname Barney is a professional darts player. He is a five time World Darts Champion, and two time UK Open Champion. From January to June 2008, he was the PDC world number one ranked player...
in the final, an impressive 355,000 viewers tuned in to watch it. James Wade
James Wade
James Wade is an English professional darts player, currently playing in the Professional Darts Corporation . He became the youngest player ever to win a major PDC title at the World Matchplay in July 2007...
was the defending champion, however he suffered a 2-1 defeat to Tony Eccles
Tony Eccles
Tony Eccles is a Winmau sponsored darts player currently residing in Hartlepool. He uses the nickname The Viper.-BDO career:...
in the first round.
Format
The tournament's usual format was in play with the usual 501 legs double-in double-out format (the World Grand Prix remains the only televised darts tournament to use the double-in format). The first round's games were best of 3 sets - the quickfire nature of this round means shocks are frequent in this round, not least involving eight-time champion Phil Taylor who, three times, has gone out the in first round here. Second round games were best of 5 sets, the quarter finals best of 7 sets, the semi finals best of 9 sets, and the final was best of 11 sets. All sets were best of 5 legs/first to three legs.Prize money
A tournament record prize fund of £250,000 was available to the participants, divided based on the following performances:Champion - £50,000
Runner-up - £25,000
Semi-finalists - £14,500
Quarter-finalists - £10,000
Second round losers - £6,750
First round losers - £3,250
Nine-dart jackpot - £15,000
Qualification
The field of 32 players was mostly made up from the top 16 players in the PDC Order of Merit on September 21, following the two Players Championship events at the Newport Center in NewportNewport
Newport is a city and unitary authority area in Wales. Standing on the banks of the River Usk, it is located about east of Cardiff and is the largest urban area within the historic county boundaries of Monmouthshire and the preserved county of Gwent...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. The top 8 from these rankings were also the seeded players. The remaining 16 places went to the top 12 non-qualified players from the 2008 Players Championship Order of Merit, and then to the top 4 non-qualified residents of the Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
and Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
from the 2008 Players Championship Order of Merit who have competed in at least six Players Championship events.
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Draw
Draw and schedule of play was as follows:Scores after player's names are three-dart averages (total points scored divided by darts thrown and multiplied by 3)
NB: Due to the double-in format of the tournament, the averages were lower than would normally be expected meaning player performance can not be as accurately inferred.
Television coverage and sponsorship
As usual and since its inception the tournament was screened by Sky SportsSky Sports
Sky Sports is the brand name for a group of sports-oriented television channels operated by the UK and Ireland's main satellite pay-TV company, British Sky Broadcasting. Sky Sports is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland...
.
The sponsorship for the tournament also stayed with Sky Bet who sponsored the event since 2004, however one of its brands, Sky Poker, was the new title sponsor.