| Damon Heta | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Heta at the2025 World Masters | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Full name | Damon Leigh Heta[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname | "The Heat" | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1987-08-10)10 August 1987 (age 38)[2] Perth, Western Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Home town | Leicester, England | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Darts information | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing darts since | 2007 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Darts | 23g Harrows Signature | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Laterality | Right-handed | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Walk-on music | "Dancing in the Dark" byBruce Springsteen (Major televised events) Various | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Organisation (seesplit in darts) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| PDC | 2014– (Tour Card: 2020–) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| WDF | 2007–2019 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Current world ranking | (PDC) 16 3 (23 November 2025)[3] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| PDC premier events – best performances | |||||||||||||||||||||
| World Championship | Last 16:2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| World Matchplay | Quarter-final:2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| World Grand Prix | Last 32:2021,2022,2023,2024,2025 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| UK Open | Semi-final:2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Grand Slam | Quarter-final:2020,2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| European Championship | Last 16:2021 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| PC Finals | Quarter-final:2020,2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Masters | Quarter-final:2024,2025 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| World Series Finals | Last 16:2018,2019,2020,2022,2024,2025 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Other tournament wins | |||||||||||||||||||||
European Tour Events
Players Championships (×9)
World Series of Darts
DPA Pro Tours (×10)
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Damon Leigh Heta (born 10 August 1987) is an Australian professionaldarts player who competes inProfessional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is rankedworld number sixteen; he reached a peak ranking of world number six in 2024. APDC Tour Card holder since 2020, Heta won his firstEuropean Tour title at the2022 Gibraltar Darts Trophy. He reached his first major semi-final at the2024 UK Open. Heta has won a total of 12 PDC titles in his professional career.
Prior to turning professional in 2020, Heta won his first overall PDC title at the2019 Brisbane Darts Masters as a regional qualifier. He has since representedAustralia in thePDC World Cup of Darts, winning the2022 edition of the tournament alongside teammateSimon Whitlock.
Before turning professional in 2020, Heta mainly played on the Dartplayers Australia (DPA) Tour. His first big televised exposure inPDC darts was making hisWorld Series debut at the2014 Sydney Darts Masters as a DPA qualifier, where he waswhitewashed 6–0 in the first round byDave Chisnall.[4] Heta qualified for the2016 Auckland Darts Masters where he lost in the first round toMichael van Gerwen 6–3.[5]
He qualified for the2018 Melbourne Darts Masters, where he defeated his childhood friendKyle Anderson 6–5 in the first round. He lost 10–7 toGary Anderson in the quarter-finals.[6] Anderson then defeated Heta 6–5 in the first round of the2018 Brisbane Darts Masters a week later.[7]
Amongst his titles won in Australia are the 2011 Pacific Masters, the 2014 DPA Australian Singles, the 2015 West Coast Classic, and the 2016 DPA Australian Open.[2]
On 3 August 2019, Heta won the inauguralAustralian Darts Open, beating topBritish Darts Organisation players such asJim Williams 8–1 in the semi-finals and2015 BDO World ChampionScott Mitchell 10–9 in the final to take the $15,000 winner's prize.[8]
A week later, at the2019 Brisbane Darts Masters, Heta reached his first PDC final by beating former major winnersJames Wade,Gary Anderson andSimon Whitlock, becoming the first Australian player to reach a final on home soil. He won his maiden PDC title by defeating former world championRob Cross 8–7 in the final. Heta's win was considered a shock upset as he entered the tournament as a 250/1 betting outsider, having only won two televised matches before claiming his first title.[9][10] After the victory, Heta discussed a potential move to the United Kingdom to play on thePDC Pro Tour, saying, "Hopefully I'll be able to come over to the UK soon and when I do people better watch out."[11]
Heta beat James Wade once again in the first round of the2019 Melbourne Darts Masters,[12] but lost 8–3 to Rob Cross in the quarter-finals.[13] He lost 6–1 toPeter Wright in the first round of the2019 New Zealand Darts Masters.[14]
Heta secured hisPDC World Championship debut at the2020 edition through finishing top of the2019 DPA Pro Tour Order of Merit.[15] He won his first-round match againstJosé de Sousa 3–0 in sets.[16] This set up a tie with reigningBDO World ChampionGlen Durrant in the second round, to whom Heta lost 3–0.[17] Following the tournament, he attended2020 PDC Q-School to pursue a career on the professional tour. He won aPDC Tour Card by finishing fourth on the UK Q-School Order of Merit.[18][19]
Heta initially moved to England upon earning his Tour Card and competed in PDC events until he was advised to travel back home to Australia amidst theCOVID-19 pandemic. He participated in the newly-establishedPDC Home Tour from his home inPerth.[20] Despite the time difference involved, with Heta needing to wake up at 3 a.m. to play his opening group match, Heta won his group in the first edition of the Home Tour.[21] He returned to Europe and won his first PDC ranking title in September; winning day two of the PDC Autumn Series inNiedernhausen, beatingJoe Cullen 8–4 in the final.[22] He also wonHome Tour 3 by defeatingChris Dobey 4–2 in the final.[23] PartneringSimon Whitlock, Heta made hisPDC World Cup of Darts debut forAustralia as a replacement forKyle Anderson, with the pair reaching the quarter-finals.[24]
Heta was awarded a place at theGrand Slam of Darts as the highest-ranked player on the PDC Autumn Series Order of Merit who had not already qualified.[25] He finished second in Group F behindJames Wade after wins overJermaine Wattimena and Glen Durrant which saw him advance to the knockout rounds.[26] He reached the quarter-finals before being eliminated in a 16–13 defeat to Wade.[27] He also had a significant run at thePlayers Championship Finals by reaching a second major quarter-final, where he ledMervyn King 7–2 before eventually losing 10–8.[28]
Heta made his second world championship appearance at the2021 PDC World Championship, entering the first round as the highest-ranked non-seed on thePro Tour Order of Merit.[29] However, he suffered a surprise 3–2 defeat to American qualifierDanny Baggish, missing sixmatch darts in the process.[30] At the2022 World Championship, Heta was the 31st seed and received abye to the second round.[31] He reached the third round of the competition for the first time after a 3–1 win overLuke Woodhouse.[32] He took a 2–0 lead against2020 championPeter Wright, but was eliminated from the tournament after losing the next four sets in a 4–2 defeat.[33]
Heta was a quarter-finalist at the2022 UK Open, losing 10–5 to eventual championDanny Noppert.[34] He won2022 Players Championship 5 by defeatingDimitri Van den Bergh 7–4 in the semi-finals andGary Anderson 8–6 in the final.[35]
In June that year, Heta, in conjunction withSimon Whitlock, reached the final of the2022 PDC World Cup of Darts after wins over Lithuania, Sweden, Belgium and England.[36] They defeated Wales (Gerwyn Price andJonny Clayton) 3–1 in the final to claim the title for Australia for the first time and become the fifth nation to win the event, ten years after the Australian team of Whitlock andPaul Nicholson lost the2012 final to England.[37][38] The duo dedicated their victory to compatriot and former professional playerKyle Anderson who died in August 2021, with Heta proclaiming, "This was for Kyle, and for Australia in general."[36]
In October, Heta won the2022 Gibraltar Darts Trophy on thePDC European Tour, securing his maiden European Tour title. He defeatedMichael van Gerwen in the semi-finals and Peter Wright in the final, with both matches going to a deciding leg where Heta won 7–6 and 8–7.[39] He won his second Players Championship title of the year at the26th event, beatingDirk van Duijvenbode 8–4 in the final to claim his second PDC title in the space of six days.[40]
Heta entered the second round of the2023 World Championship as 20th seed and won his opening match, whitewashing two-time world championAdrian Lewis 3–0.[41][42] However, he faced a whitewash fromJoe Cullen in the third round, losing 4–0 and exiting the tournament.[43]
In their defence of theWorld Cup of Darts, Heta and Australia teammate Simon Whitlock reached the quarter-finals but were beaten by Belgium (Dimitri Van den Bergh andKim Huybrechts) in a deciding leg.[44] At theWorld Matchplay, Heta earned his first win at the event in his 10–5 victory overJosh Rock in the first round.[45] He followed that with a dominant 11–1 win againstBrendan Dolan to advance to the quarter-finals,[46] where he was defeated 16–13 byLuke Humphries.[47] Heta qualified for theGrand Slam of Darts through the Tour Card Holder Qualifier.[48] He progressed to the knockout rounds by finishing second in Group H with 5–4 wins overRicardo Pietreczko andBeau Greaves respectively and a 5–2 loss toNathan Aspinall.[49] In the second round, he produced a surprise 10–7 victory overMichael van Gerwen.[50] He was eliminated byRob Cross 16–6 in the quarter-finals.[51] He reached another major quarter-final at thePlayers Championship Finals, where he lost 10–6 toRyan Joyce.[52]
Heta was a three-time ranking finalist in 2023. In the lead-up to the World Cup of Darts, he wonPlayers Championship 14 by defeatingLuke Woodhouse 8–2 in the final.[53] The next month, in the lead-up to the World Matchplay, he claimed his second title of the year by beating Ryan Joyce 8–4 in the final ofPlayers Championship 16.[54] He reached a third final in October but missed out on thePlayers Championship 28 title in an 8–6 loss toRoss Smith.[55] He was also runner-up at theNew South Wales Darts Masters, but failed to capture a second World Series title as he lost 8–1 to Rob Cross.[56]
At the2024 World Championship, Heta ensured his first appearance in the last 16 of the event following a 4–3 win overBerry van Peer in the third round.[57] He was defeated 4–1 byScott Williams.[58]
Heta reached the semi-finals of a major event for the first time at theUK Open.[59] He achieved wins overSimon Whitlock 10–8,Nathan Aspinall 10–9 andGian van Veen 10–8 en route to the quarter-finals.[60] He was drawn against 2024 World Championship runner-upLuke Littler. Their quarter-final match – noted for its high standard of play – saw Heta almost squander 8–4 and 9–6 leads as Littler fought back but Heta hit double 16 to win 10–8.[61][62] He was drawn to playDimitri Van den Bergh in the semi-finals, to whom he lost 11–6.[59]
Heta won another two ranking titles during the year. He claimed his first title in February atPlayers Championship 4 with an 8–4 win overChris Dobey in the final.[63] He then won his second title in August by defeatingRyan Searle 8–3 in the final ofPlayers Championship 18.[64] Heta was also runner-up at theNew Zealand Darts Masters, losing 8–2 toLuke Humphries in the final.[65]
At the2025 World Championship, Heta lost the opening set of his second-round match against practice partnerConnor Scutt but won the next three for a 3–1 victory, including an errant dart at double 12 which saw him miss out on anine-dart finish.[66] He then achieved the nine-darter in his third-round match withLuke Woodhouse, a contest Heta ultimately lost 4–3.[67] Despite the defeat, Heta received a £60,000 bonus from tournament sponsorPaddy Power for hitting the nine-darter; he bought aRolex watch upon the money entering his bank account.[68]
Despite being ranked world number eight at the culmination of the 2025 World Championship, Heta was not selected for the2025 Premier League. He admitted that he did not expect to be in the lineup but expressed his gratitude to those who had faith in him.[69] In February, he reached the quarter-finals of theWorld Masters by dramatically beatingGerwyn Price 4–3 in sets, missing six match darts and surviving one match dart from Price before eventually securing the victory.[70] He was eliminated after a 4–1 loss toLuke Humphries.[71]
Heta won his first title of 2025 atPlayers Championship 13 where he defeatedNathan Aspinall 8–6 in the final.[72] At theEuropean Darts Open, he made it to his first European Tour final since winning the2022 Gibraltar Darts Trophy. He was unable to claim a second title, this time on the receiving end of an 8–6 loss to Aspinall.[73] Heta won his second title of the year by beatingStephen Bunting 8–7 in the final of Players Championship 20.[74]
Heta was born inPerth,Western Australia. Through his father, he is ofMāori descent.[75][76] Heta worked as a roofer in Perth before moving to England with his wife Meaghan.[20] They shared a house with fellow professional playerDimitri Van den Bergh inLeicester.[77][78] Heta is a supporter ofPremier League teamNottingham Forest.[79]
In 2023, Heta grew a moustache in support ofMovember.[80]
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score[N 1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 1. | 2019 | Brisbane Darts Masters |  Rob Cross | 8–7 (l) |
| Runner-up | 1. | 2023 | New South Wales Darts Masters | Rob Cross | 1–8 (l) |
| Runner-up | 2. | 2024 | New Zealand Darts Masters | Luke Humphries | 2–8 (l) |
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Country | Teammate | Opponents in the final | Score[N 1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 1. | 2022 | World Cup of Darts |  Australia | Simon Whitlock |  Wales –Gerwyn Price andJonny Clayton | 3–1 (m) |
| Tournament | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PDC Ranked televised events | ||||||||
| World Championship | DNQ | 2R | 1R | 3R | 3R | 4R | 3R | |
| World Masters[N 1] | DNP | DNQ | 1R | QF | QF | |||
| UK Open | DNP | 1R | 3R | QF | 4R | SF | 6R | |
| World Matchplay | DNP | DNQ | 1R | 1R | QF | 1R | 1R | |
| World Grand Prix | DNP | DNQ | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | |
| European Championship | DNP | DNQ | 2R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | |
| Grand Slam | DNP | QF | DNQ | RR | QF | DNQ | RR | |
| Players Championship Finals | DNP | QF | 3R | 1R | QF | 3R | 1R | |
| PDC Non-ranked televised events | ||||||||
| World Cup | DNP | QF | QF | W | QF | 2R | QF | |
| World Series Finals | 2R | 2R | 2R | DNQ | 2R | 1R | 2R | 2R |
| Career statistics | ||||||||
| Season-end ranking | – | – | 52 | 29 | 16 | 11 | 8 | |
PDC European Tour
| Season | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | BDC 2R | GDC DNQ | EDG 1R | IDO DNQ | ||||||||||
| 2021 | HDT 3R | GDT 3R | ||||||||||||
| 2022 | IDO 3R | GDC 2R | GDG SF | ADO 2R | EDO 2R | CDO 2R | EDG SF | DDC 3R | EDM QF | HDT 2R | GDO 3R | BDO 2R | GDT W | |
| 2023 | BSD 3R | EDO QF | IDO QF | GDG SF | ADO 3R | DDC SF | BDO 3R | CDO SF | EDG SF | EDM 2R | GDO 2R | HDT QF | GDC QF | |
| 2024 | BDO 3R | GDG 2R | IDO 3R | EDG QF | ADO 2R | BSD 3R | DDC 2R | EDO SF | GDC QF | FDT 2R | HDT 2R | SDT 2R | CDO 3R | |
| 2025 | BDO 3R | EDT 2R | IDO 3R | GDG 2R | ADO QF | EDG 2R | DDC 3R | EDO F | BSD 2R | FDT QF | CDO 2R | HDT 2R | SDT 2R | GDC 2R |
PDC Players Championships
| Season | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | BAR 2R | BAR 1R | WIG 1R | WIG 1R | WIG 3R | WIG 1R | BAR 1R | BAR 2R | MIL Did not participate | NIE 1R | NIE W | NIE QF | NIE 3R | NIE 1R | COV QF | COV 3R | COV F | COV QF | COV 1R | |||||||||||||||
| 2021 | BOL 4R | BOL 2R | BOL 2R | BOL F | MIL 4R | MIL 2R | MIL 3R | MIL 4R | NIE 3R | NIE 1R | NIE QF | NIE 3R | MIL 1R | MIL 3R | MIL 4R | MIL 1R | COV 4R | COV 3R | COV 1R | COV 1R | BAR F | BAR 4R | BAR 1R | BAR 1R | BAR 1R | BAR 2R | BAR QF | BAR 1R | BAR SF | BAR 4R | ||||
| 2022 | BAR 2R | BAR SF | WIG F | WIG 1R | BAR W | BAR 3R | NIE 4R | NIE 4R | BAR 2R | BAR SF | BAR 1R | BAR SF | BAR 3R | WIG SF | WIG QF | NIE 4R | NIE 4R | BAR 3R | BAR 3R | BAR 4R | BAR SF | BAR DNP | BAR SF | BAR W | BAR 1R | BAR SF | BAR 4R | BAR 3R | ||||||
| 2023 | BAR 3R | BAR 1R | BAR 1R | BAR 3R | BAR 2R | BAR 1R | HIL 3R | HIL 3R | WIG 2R | WIG QF | LEI 3R | LEI SF | HIL SF | HIL W | LEI 4R | LEI W | HIL 2R | HIL 2R | BAR 2R | BAR 3R | BAR 1R | BAR SF | BAR 3R | BAR QF | BAR 1R | BAR 2R | BAR 3R | BAR F | BAR SF | BAR SF | ||||
| 2024 | WIG 1R | WIG 2R | LEI 4R | LEI W | HIL 3R | HIL 4R | LEI 4R | LEI 2R | HIL 3R | HIL 1R | HIL 4R | HIL 2R | MIL 1R | MIL QF | MIL SF | MIL 3R | MIL 2R | MIL W | MIL 2R | WIG 4R | WIG QF | MIL 3R | MIL QF | WIG 2R | WIG 4R | WIG 4R | WIG QF | WIG 1R | LEI QF | LEI QF | ||||
| 2025 | WIG 4R | WIG 4R | ROS 3R | ROS 2R | LEI QF | LEI QF | HIL 3R | HIL 3R | LEI 4R | LEI 3R | LEI QF | LEI 1R | ROS W | ROS 3R | HIL 1R | HIL 1R | LEI SF | LEI 4R | LEI QF | LEI W | LEI 4R | HIL DNP | MIL 2R | MIL 1R | HIL 4R | HIL 1R | LEI 1R | LEI 3R | LEI F | WIG 4R | WIG 4R | WIG 4R | WIG 1R | |
| Performance Table Legend | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | Won the tournament | F | Finalist | SF | Semifinalist | QF | Quarterfinalist | #R RR Prel. | Lost in # round Round-robin Preliminary round | DQ | Disqualified |
| DNQ | Did not qualify | DNP | Did not participate | WD | Withdrew | NH | Tournament not held | NYF | Not yet founded | ||
| Date | Opponent | Tournament | Method | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 December 2024 | Luke Woodhouse | PDC World Championship | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | £60,000 |
The first qualifier went to Australia's number one Damon Heta, who flew over from WA but is of Kiwi heritage...
Top 20PDC darts players inOrder of Merit | |
|---|---|
Rankings as of 23 November 2025 with movement in rank since 16 November 2025 indicated. |
