Dave Chisnall facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Dave Chisnall
Chisnall in 2019
Personal information
Full name	David Chisnall
Nickname	"Chizzy"
Born	(1980-09-12) 12 September 1980 (age 44) St Helens, England
Home town	Morecambe, England
Darts information
Playing darts since	1997
Darts	22g Harrows Signature
Laterality	Right-handed
Walk-on music	"Dizzy" by Vic Reeves and The Wonder Stuff (TV events) "Hier kommt Alex" by Die Toten Hosen (European Tour events)
Organisation (see split in darts)
BDO	2007–2011
PDC	2011– (Tour Card: 2011–)
Current world ranking	9 (8 July 2021)
BDO majors – best performances
World Ch'ship	Runner Up: 2010
World Masters	Last 40: 2010
PDC premier events – best performances
World Ch'ship	Semi Final: 2021
World Matchplay	Quarter Final: 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018
World Grand Prix	Runner Up: 2013, 2019
Grand Slam	Runner Up: 2014
Premier League	Semi Final: 2015
European Ch'ship	Quarter Final: 2014, 2015, 2019, 2022
UK Open	Semi Final: 2012
Players Ch'ship Finals	Runner Up: 2016
Masters	Runner Up: 2016, 2022
Champions League	Group Stage: 2017, 2018
World Series Finals	Semi Final: 2016, 2019
Other tournament wins
BDO Champions Cup 2010 BDO Gold Cup 2007 BDO International Grand Prix 2009 BDO British Open 2009 England National Championships 2008 Isle of Man Open 2008 Wales Masters 2009 European Tour Events Baltic Sea Darts Open 2023 Belgian Darts Open 2022 Danish Darts Open 2019 Dutch Darts Championship 2023 European Darts Open 2024 Flanders Darts Trophy 2024 German Darts Championship 2013 Hungarian Darts Trophy 2023 Players Championships Players Championship (BAR) 2012, 2013 (x2), 2015 2016, 2017, 2022, 2023 (x2) Players Championship (CRA) 2011, 2012 (x3) Players Championship (HIL) 2024 Players Championship (LEI) 2024 Players Championship (REA) 2012 Players Championship (WIG) 2019 (x2)
Other achievements
2012 Best PDC Newcomer 2013, 2023 PDC Pro Tour Player of the Year

David Chisnall (born 12 September 1980) is an English professional darts player. He is known by his nickname "Chizzy." He plays in events organized by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He is currently one of the top darts players in the world.

Dave started his darts journey in the British Darts Organisation (BDO). In 2010, he was the runner-up in the BDO World Championship. A year later, he joined the PDC. Since then, he has reached six major TV finals and won 26 ranking titles. He has also been a top player in the PDC rankings. He has played in the Premier League five times. He has also represented England at the PDC World Cup three times.

Chizzy's Darts Journey

Starting Out in Darts

Dave Chisnall grew up in St Helens, England. He used to play football until he was 17. After breaking his foot, he tried darts. He threw a perfect 180 score on his very first try!

His first big BDO event was the 2004 Welsh Open. In 2007, he won the BDO Gold Cup. He beat Matthew Quinlan in the final. In 2008, he won the Isle of Man Open. He defeated Robert Hughes in the final. After one match, another darts champion, Ted Hankey, told Dave he should become a professional player. Dave also won the England National Championship that year.

Dave played in the 2009 BDO World Championship. He had a tough match against Martin Adams, losing closely.

Big Success in the BDO

In September 2009, Dave won two titles in a row. He won the Welsh Masters and the British Open. These wins helped him finish at the top of the BDO International Grand Prix Series.

He reached the final of the 2010 BDO World Championship. He had an amazing journey, beating top players like Darryl Fitton and Tony West. He made a great comeback from being 4-1 down against Ted Hankey to win 5-4. In the semi-final, he beat Tony O'Shea 6-3. In the final, he lost to Martin Adams 7-5.

Dave also played in the 2010 Grand Slam of Darts. In the 2011 BDO World Darts Championship, he lost in the second round.

Joining the PDC: A New Chapter

In January 2011, Dave joined the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). He quickly earned a "tour card," which allowed him to play in PDC events. In his first PDC event in Germany, he threw a nine-dart finish! This is when a player finishes a game in the fewest possible throws (nine).

He reached his first PDC final at the UK Open Qualifier. He lost to Michael Smith 6-5. He hit another nine-darter later that year. Dave reached the semi-finals of the Eddie Cox Memorial Players Championship. He also made it to the final of the Bobby Bourn Memorial Players Championship. These results helped him qualify for the UK Open.

At the 2011 UK Open, he reached the quarter-finals. He lost to Wes Newton. Dave won his first PDC title at a Players Championship event in Crawley. He beat Justin Pipe 6-4 in the final.

Key Moments in the PDC

2012: A Rising Star

Dave started his first PDC World Championship in 2012 well. He beat Mark Dudbridge 3-0. Then, he played against the legendary 15-time World Champion Phil Taylor. Dave played incredibly well and won 4-1! This was a huge win. However, he then lost to Andy Hamilton 4-0.

Because of his great performance in 2011 and at the World Championship, Dave was named "PDC Best Newcomer." He continued his strong form, winning three Players Championship titles in a row. He beat Phil Taylor again, 6-5, to win his second PDC title. He also reached the semi-finals of the UK Open. Dave broke into the top 16 in the PDC rankings. He won five tournaments in 2012.

2013: First Major Final

In 2013, Dave reached the quarter-finals of the World Matchplay for the first time. He won his first title of the year at the German Darts Championship. He beat Peter Wright 6-2 in the final. He called this the highlight of his career so far.

Dave reached his first PDC major final at the World Grand Prix. This tournament is special because you have to hit a double to start and finish each leg. He had an amazing match against Michael van Gerwen, winning the deciding set. In the final, he faced Phil Taylor again. Unfortunately, Dave lost 6-0. He said it was both the best and worst night of his career.

2014: Another Major Final

Dave played in his first Premier League in 2014. He finished seventh in the league. He reached the quarter-finals of the World Matchplay for the second year in a row.

At the Grand Slam, Dave reached his second major PDC final. He had a thrilling comeback against Keegan Brown, winning 16-14 after being far behind. In the final, he faced Phil Taylor again. Dave fought back to make the score 10-10, but Taylor won 16-13.

2015: Premier League Highs

In the Premier League in 2015, Dave played some of his best darts. He set his highest televised average of 114.17 in a 7-1 win over James Wade. He almost topped the league table but drew his last match. In the semi-finals, he lost a very close match to Gary Anderson, missing three darts to win.

Dave hit his first televised nine-dart finish at the Grand Slam. This was during a group stage match against Peter Wright.

2016: More Finals

Dave reached the quarter-finals of the 2016 World Championship for the first time. He had a very close match against Peter Wright, but lost 4-3.

He reached the final of the Masters, but lost to Michael van Gerwen. He was also runner-up in two European Tour events. Dave won his first title of the year at a Players Championship. He reached another major final at the Players Championship Finals, but lost to Michael van Gerwen again.

2017: World Championship Quarter-Finals

Dave reached the quarter-finals of the 2017 World Championship. He threw 21 maximum 180s in his match against Gary Anderson. This was one of the highest numbers of 180s ever in a PDC match. He lost the match 5-3.

He also played for England in the 2017 World Cup. The English team reached the semi-finals.

Recent Years (2019-2024)

In the 2019 World Championship, Dave reached the quarter-finals. He also made it to the final of the 2019 World Grand Prix, but lost to Michael van Gerwen.

In 2021, Dave reached the semi-finals of the World Championship. This was his best performance in that tournament. He was again defeated by Gary Anderson.

In 2022, Dave reached the final of the Masters, losing to Joe Cullen. He also won the 2022 Belgian Darts Open. He even threw another nine-dart finish during that tournament!

In the 2024 World Championship, Dave reached the quarter-finals. He lost to the eventual winner, Luke Humphries. He also won two Players Championship events in 2024.

Personal Life

Dave Chisnall is married to Michaela, who also plays darts. They met at a darts event in 2008 and married in 2017. They have two children, a daughter named Lexie Rose and a son named Parker Owen. Dave is from St Helens but now lives in Morecambe.

Career Finals

BDO Major Finals: 1 (1 Runner-up)

Outcome	No.	Year	Championship	Opponent in the final	Score
Runner-up	1.	2010	World Championship	Martin Adams	5–7 (s)

PDC Major Finals: 6 (6 Runners-up)

Outcome	No.	Year	Championship	Opponent in the final	Score
Runner-up	1.	2013	World Grand Prix	Phil Taylor	0–6 (s)
Runner-up	2.	2014	Grand Slam of Darts	Phil Taylor	13–16 (l)
Runner-up	3.	2016	The Masters	Michael van Gerwen	6–11 (l)
Runner-up	4.	2016	Players Championship Finals	Michael van Gerwen	3–11 (l)
Runner-up	5.	2019	World Grand Prix	Michael van Gerwen	2–5 (s)
Runner-up	6.	2022	The Masters	Joe Cullen	9–11 (l)

PDC World Series Finals: 2 (2 Runners-up)

Outcome	No.	Year	Championship	Opponent in the final	Score
Runner-up	1.	2016	Perth Darts Masters	Michael van Gerwen	4–11 (l)
Runner-up	2.	2017	Shanghai Darts Masters	Michael van Gerwen	0–8 (l)

World Championship Performances

BDO

• 2009: First round (lost to Martin Adams 2–3)
• 2010: Runner up (lost to Martin Adams 5–7)
• 2011: Second round (lost to Gary Robson 1–4)

PDC

• 2012: Third round (lost to Andy Hamilton 0–4)
• 2013: Third round (lost to Simon Whitlock 3–4)
• 2014: First round (lost to John Henderson 2–3)
• 2015: Second round (lost to Benito van de Pas 2–4)
• 2016: Third round (lost to Peter Wright 3–4)
• 2017: Quarter-finals (lost to Gary Anderson 3–5)
• 2018: First round (lost to Vincent van der Voort 0–3)
• 2019: Quarter-finals (lost to Gary Anderson 2–5)
• 2020: Third round (lost to Jeffrey de Zwaan 3–4)
• 2021: Semi-finals (lost to Gary Anderson 3–6)
• 2022: Third round (withdrew – COVID-19)
• 2023: Third round (lost to Stephen Bunting 2–4)
• 2024: Quarter-finals (lost to Luke Humphries 1–5)
• 2025: Second round (lost to Ricky Evans 2–3)

Nine-Dart Finishes

A nine-dart finish is when a player completes a game of 501 points in the fewest possible throws, which is nine. It's like a perfect game in darts!

Dave Chisnall Televised Nine-Dart Finishes

Date	Opponent	Tournament	Method	Prize
8 November 2015	Peter Wright	Grand Slam of Darts	3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12	£30,000

High Averages

A high average in darts means a player scored a lot of points per turn. It shows how consistently well they played.

Dave Chisnall Televised High Averages

Average	Date	Opponent	Tournament	Stage	Score
114.17	9 April 2015	James Wade	2015 Premier League	League	7–1 (l)
112.94	5 November 2016	Kim Huybrechts	2016 World Series of Darts Finals	Round 2	6–4 (l)