| John Henderson | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Henderson in 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname | Highlander | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1973-05-04)4 May 1973 (age 52) Aberdeen, Scotland | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Home town | Huntly, Aberdeenshire, Scotland | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Darts information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing darts since | 1993 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Darts | 24g Red Dragon | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Laterality | Right-handed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Walk-on music | "Rockin' All Over the World" byStatus Quo | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Organisation (seesplit in darts) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BDO | 2004–2010 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| PDC | 2002–2003, 2011–2024 (Tour Card: 2011–2022) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current world ranking | (PDC)NR (23 November 2025)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| WDF major events – best performances | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Championship | Last 16:2005,2010 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Masters | Last 32:2005 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Finder Masters | Last 24 Group:2010 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| PDC premier events – best performances | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Championship | Last 16:2018 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Matchplay | Last 16:2011 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Grand Prix | Semi-final:2017 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UK Open | Last 16:2013,2015 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Grand Slam | Group Stage:2010,2021 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| European Championship | Quarter-final:2015 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Premier League | Challenger:2019,2020 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| PC Finals | Last 16:2019 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Series Finals | Last 24:2021 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| WSDT major events – best performances | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Championship | Winner (1):2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Matchplay | Winner (1):2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Masters | Winner (1): 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Champions | Quarter-final: 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other tournament wins | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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John Henderson (born 4 May 1973) is a Scottishdarts player who competes inProfessional Darts Corporation (PDC) events.
He is the reigningWorld Seniors Matchplay and World Seniors Masters champion, as well as the2024 World Seniors Darts Championship winner. Henderson also won the2021 PDC World Cup of Darts partneringPeter Wright forScotland. He reached the semi-finals at the2017 World Grand Prix and the quarter-finals at the2015 European Championship.
Henderson started out in the PDC circuit and played one tournament in Scotland as well as the2003 UK Open where he lost in the first round, having won his preliminary match. He then qualified for the2005 BDO World Darts Championship, where he beatStephen Bunting in the first round before losing in round two toMartin Adams – hitting a record thirteen 180s (for a five-set match) in the 3–2 defeat. Henderson then reached the quarter-finals of the 2005 British Open and the last 32 of the 2005Winmau World Masters.
Henderson reached the final of the 2007 British Open. He beatTony O'Shea in the quarter-finals andTed Hankey in the semis before losing toGary Anderson in the final. This was followed however with failure to qualify for the2008 BDO World Championship and an early exit from the 2007 World Masters.
2008 was a good year for Henderson, reaching the semi-finals of the Norway Open and the quarter-finals of the WDF Europe Cup. On 20 September 2008 Henderson captured his very first title, winning the 2008 British Open. He scored notable wins over Edwin Max andDave Chisnall to earn a spot into the televised stages which were shown live onSetanta Sports. He then defeatedGary Robson in the quarter-finals andMareno Michels in the semis before avenging his defeat over Anderson twelve months previously by beating him in the final to win the £3,000 top prize. The win also helped Henderson finish fourth in the BDO International Grand Prix, earning him another £2,750 for his efforts. He also shot up the world rankings as a result of the win, moving him into the WDF's top 20. He then captured the German Open in 2009, beatingStephen Bunting in the final which elevated Henderson to seven in the WDF rankings.
Henderson then qualified for the2010 BDO World Championship, winning one of four places available from the Inter-Playoff Qualifiers inBridlington. He was defeated in the second round byScott Waites. Henderson failed to qualify for the 2011 tournament, but did qualify for the2010 Grand Slam of Darts where he finished third in his group. After being defeated by Mervyn King he was accused of standing in front of the oche, however after watching the match again, King admitted that he had over-reacted and apologised to Henderson in a pre-match interview.
On 15 January 2011, Henderson came through qualifying at the PDC Q-School event and has therefore left the British Darts Organisation. On joining the PDC he said "It means everything to me the first two days were hard and I felt a lot of pressure today but to qualify, so I'm delighted I did it."
In the 2011 Derby championships, Henderson hit anine-darter in his second leg of the second round beating Andy Hamilton 6–5 and earning £800.[2]
Henderson qualified for the2011 World Matchplay where he beatColin Lloyd 10–7 in the first round, before losing toAndy Hamilton 13–11 in the second round.[3] He defeated on formJustin Pipe 2–0 at theWorld Grand Prix 2011, he went on to reach the quarter finals losing to eventual runner upBrendan Dolan 4–1.
Henderson reached his firstPDC World Championship in2012, but was beaten by three-time World Champion,John Part, 0–3. He only managed to win 2 legs during the match, with Part stating afterwards that "John struggled and wasn't himself".[4] His best result on the2012 Pro Tour was in reaching the quarter-finals of the 16th Players Championship event, where he lost to Nick Fullwell 2–6.[5] Henderson was beaten in the last 16 of theQualifier for the2013 World Championship.[6] He was ranked world number 39 after the World Championship.[7]
Henderson qualified for the2013 UK Open by finishing 50th on the Order of Merit to enter the event in the second round.[8] He enjoyed his best ever run in the tournament by beating Dave Place,Scott Rand andKevin McDine to advance to the last 16.[9] He playedJames Wade and lost 9–4.[10] Henderson reached the quarter-finals of aPlayers Championship played inKillarney for the second consecutive year as he beatMark Webster,Ian White andJustin Pipe before being whitewashed 6–0 byDarren Webster.[11] He qualified for the2014 World Championship through theProTour Order of Merit having claimed the ninth of sixteen places that were available to non-qualified players.[12] Henderson started his first round match brightly as he took a 2–0 lead against seventh seedDave Chisnall which included a 132 finish of bull, bull, double 16. He threw for the match in the third set but lost the leg and the set as Chisnall fought back to level the game. Henderson survived four match darts from Chisnall in the final set as he pulled off a big shock win in a performance he rated as the best of his career.[13] Another tight match followed againstMark Webster with Henderson missing three darts at tops to seal a 4–2 win, and then went on to lose the deciding set to bow out of the tournament 4–3.[14]
At the2014 UK Open, Henderson was beaten 5–1 byJelle Klaasen in the second round.[15] He beatSteve Hine 6–4,Peter Wright 6–5 andSimon Whitlock 6–2 (with an average of 106.12) to reach the quarter-finals of theGerman Darts Masters, where he lost 6–2 againstAdrian Lewis.[16] In the rest of the year he lost in the last 16 of twoPlayers Championships and qualified for three European Tour events, losing in the second round in two and the opening round of the other.[17]
The opening four sets in Henderson's first round2015 World Championship match againstVincent van der Voort went with throw to send it into a deciding set. Van der Voort hit a crucial 157 finish with Henderson waiting on 80 for the match and from there the Dutchman won back-to-back 14 dart legs to knock him out.[18] A pair of last 16 finishes helped Henderson enter theUK Open at the third round stage and he eliminated Steve Douglas 9–7 and then retained his composure whenDaryl Gurney won five legs in a row to lead 8–7 by beating him 9–8.[19] This matched Henderson's best ever run the event, but it came to a sudden end when he lost 9–2 againstPeter Wright.[20] At theGerman Darts Masters, Henderson defeatedMichael Smith 6–4 and then averaged 102.48 in a 6–0 whitewash overAndrew Gilding.[21] He improved upon that in the quarter-finals by averaging 107.72 during a 6–1 victory againstBrendan Dolan and knocked outAdrian Lewis 6–4 to reach his first PDC final. Henderson played world number oneMichael van Gerwen and he sent the match into a final leg decider, after being 3–0 down, which he lost without getting a dart for the title.[22] He suffered first round exits at theWorld Matchplay (10–2 toPhil Taylor) and theWorld Grand Prix (2–0 in sets toGary Anderson), but then defeatedRobert Thornton 6–4 at theEuropean Championship.[23][24] Henderson then took advantage of a poor performance fromRowby-John Rodriguez in the second round to thrash him 10–2 and reach his first major quarter-final in over four years, where he lost 10–4 toPeter Wright.[25]
After taking the opening set in his first round match at the2016 World Championship, Henderson went on to lose 3–1 againstDarren Webster.[26] One semi-final and a quarter-final appearance in thequalifiers helped him finish 17th on the Order of Merit for theUK Open.[27] Henderson saw offMagnus Caris 9–4, before losing 9–6 toAdrian Lewis in the fourth round.[28] His second semi-final of the year was at the 14thPlayers Championship event and he was knocked out 6–4 byMichael van Gerwen.[29] He was ousted 6–3 byGary Anderson in the first round of thePlayers Championship Finals.[30]
He won the opening two sets againstAndrew Gilding in the first round of the2017 World Championship, before it was levelled at 2–2. Henderson missed one match dart in the deciding set and it would eventually go to a sudden-death leg. Gilding won the bull to throw first and took the leg to eliminate Henderson.[31]
FollowingGary Anderson's withdrawal from the2019 Premier League, Henderson was selected as one of nine 'contenders' to replace him. A great boost for his Red Army following of his fellow Aberdeen FC fans. He played a one-off match against No. 1 PDC-rankedMichael van Gerwen on night five inAberdeen. The match resulted in a draw.[32]
Henderson returned to the Premier League in 2020 under the new tag of 'Challenger', once again inAberdeen. However, he was beaten byNathan Aspinall.[33]
Henderson, alongsidePeter Wright, won the 2021PDC World Cup of Darts playing on behalf of Scotland. It was his first PDC Major Tournament win.[34]
Henderson failed to qualify for2022 PDC World Darts Championship, missing this event for the first time since 2013. He continued to struggle on Pro Tour, but was again nominated for2022 PDC World Cup of Darts, where he was defending the title alongside Peter Wright. Together they made it to the Quarterfinals, where they lost against England. At the end of the season he dropped out of top 64 of PDC Order of Merit, failing to qualify for the World Championship second time in the row and lost his Tour Card after the season 2022.
He was not able to retain his Tour card in UK Q-School and played on PDC Challenge Tour. He secured two titles during the year and was battling for the second place in PDC Challenge Tour Order of Merit. After losing in an early round of the last PDC Challenge Tour event, Henderson had to hope thatAndy Boulton,Cam Crabtree andOwen Bates would not make the final. Boulton and Crabtree dropped out at the last sixteen. Despite facing multiple match darts againstMichael Warburton, Bates made it to the final and clinched the second place, therefore Henderson did not get his Tour card via PDC Challenge Tour for just £175, placing 3rd overall in the rankings.[35]
Unable to win his Tour card back in UK Q-School, Henderson continued playing PDC Challenge Tour in 2024. He also accepted the invitation for 2024 World Seniors Darts Championship. He has become the World Seniors Darts champion at the first time of asking, competing in the event for the first time, defeatedColin McGarry 5-0 in the final.[36]
Henderson is married to Veronica Hughes and has no children.[37]
| Legend |
|---|
| Other (0–1) |
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 1. | 2015 | German Darts Masters | 5–6 (l) |
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Team | Teammate | Opponents in the final | Score[N 1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 1. | 2021 | World Cup of Darts | Peter Wright | 3–1 (m) |
BDO
| Tournament | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BDO Ranked televised events | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BDO World Championship | DNQ | 2R | DNQ | 2R | ||||||||||||||||||||
| World Masters | 1R | 3R | DNQ | 3R | 2R | 2R | 4R | |||||||||||||||||
| Finder Darts Masters | Did not participate | RR | RR | |||||||||||||||||||||
PDC
| Tournament | 2003 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PDC Ranked televised events | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| PDC World Championship | DNQ | 1R | DNQ | 2R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 3R | 3R | 3R | 2R | DNQ | ||||||||||||
| UK Open | 1R | DNQ | 3R | 2R | 5R | 2R | 5R | 4R | 3R | 3R | 4R | 4R | 4R | 3R | DNQ | 3R | 1R | |||||||
| World Matchplay | DNQ | 2R | DNQ | 1R | DNQ | 1R | 1R | 1R | DNQ | |||||||||||||||
| World Grand Prix | DNQ | QF | DNQ | 1R | DNQ | SF | 1R | 1R | DNQ | |||||||||||||||
| European Championship | NH | DNQ | QF | DNQ | 1R | DNQ | DNP | |||||||||||||||||
| Grand Slam of Darts[N 1] | NH | RR | Did not qualify | RR | DNQ | |||||||||||||||||||
| Players Championship Finals | NH | DNQ | 1R | DNQ | 1R | 1R | 2R | 1R | 3R | 1R | DNQ | |||||||||||||
| PDC Non-ranked televised events | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Premier League Darts | NH | Did not participate | C | C | DNP | |||||||||||||||||||
| PDC World Cup of Darts | NH | DNQ | NH | Did not qualify | 2R | W | QF | DNQ | ||||||||||||||||
| World Series of Darts Finals | NH | Did not qualify | 1R | DNQ | DNP | |||||||||||||||||||
| WSDT Televised events | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| World Seniors Darts Championship | Not yet founded | DNP | W | QF | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Year-end ranking | Not ranked | 44 | 39 | 48 | 43 | 32 | 31 | 29 | 23 | 30 | 41 | 63 | 83 | 165 | 134 | |||||||||
PDC European Tour
| Season | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | UKM 1R | EDT 1R | EDO DNQ | ADO 2R | GDT 3R | GDC 1R | GDM DNQ | DDM DNQ | |||||
| 2014 | GDC DNQ | DDM DNQ | GDM QF | ADO 2R | GDT 2R | EDO DNQ | EDG 1R | EDT DNQ | |||||
| 2015 | GDC DNQ | GDT DNQ | GDM F | DDM 2R | IDO 1R | EDO 2R | EDT DNQ | EDM DNQ | EDG DNQ | ||||
| 2016 | DDM 2R | GDM DNQ | GDT 2R | EDM 3R | ADO DNQ | EDO 1R | IDO DNQ | EDT DNQ | EDG DNQ | GDC DNQ | |||
| 2017 | GDC DNQ | GDM DNQ | GDO 1R | EDG 2R | GDT 2R | EDM 2R | ADO 2R | EDO QF | DDM QF | GDG DNQ | IDO DNQ | EDT DNQ | |
| 2018 | EDO 3R | GDG DNQ | GDO DNQ | ADO 1R | EDG 2R | DDM 2R | GDT DNQ | DDO 2R | EDM DNQ | GDC DNQ | DDC DNQ | IDO 2R | EDT 3R |
| 2019 | EDO DNQ | GDC DNQ | GDG DNQ | GDO 3R | ADO 2R | EDG DNQ | DDM DNQ | DDO DNQ | CDO 2R | ADC DNQ | EDM 2R | IDO 2R | GDT DNQ |
| 2020 | BDC DNQ | GDC DNQ | EDG 1R | IDO DNQ | |||||||||
| 2021 | HDT DNQ | GDT 1R | |||||||||||
| 2022 | IDO DNQ | GDC DNQ | GDG DNQ | ADO DNQ | EDO DNP | CDO 1R | EDG DNQ | DDC DNQ | EDM DNQ | HDT DNQ | GDO 1R | BDO DNQ | GDT 1R |
| 2023 | BSD DNQ | EDO 1R | IDO DNQ | GDG DNQ | ADO 2R | DDC DNP | BDO DNP | CDO DNP | EDG DNP | EDM DNP | GDO DNP | HDT DNP | GDC DNP |
PDC Players Championships
| 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 | ||