Paul Nicholson
Nicholson in 2011
Personal information
Full name	Paul Michael Nicholson
Nickname	"The Asset"
Born	(1979-05-10)10 May 1979 (age 46) Newcastle, England
Home town	Blyth,Northumberland, England
Darts information
Playing darts since	1990
Darts	20g Winmau Signature
Laterality	Right-handed
Walk-on music	"Bad Reputation" byJoan Jett
Organisation (seesplit in darts)
PDC	2007–2019
PDC premier events – best performances
World Championship	Quarter-final:2009
World Matchplay	Last 16:2011,2014
World Grand Prix	Quarter-final:2012
UK Open	Quarter-final:2011
Grand Slam	Quarter-final:2011
European Championship	Quarter Final:2011
Ch'ship League	Runner-up:2011
PC Finals	Winner (1):2010
Other tournament wins
Australia Singles Matchplay 2008 Australian Open Players Championship 2009 DPA Australian Matchplay 2009 DPA Australian Singles 2007 Gaels Club Open 2008 Mildura Workers Club Open 2008 (x2) Punchbowl Open 2009 Southern Illawarra Open 2008 Viva Las Vegas NZ 2008 Wagga Classic 2008 Young RSL Viva NZ 2008 Players Championships (x3) 2011 (x3)

Paul Michael Nicholson (born 10 May 1979) is an English former professionaldarts player who competed inProfessional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won his only major title at the2010 Players Championship Finals, where he defeatedMervyn King in the final. He was also the runner-up toPhil Taylor in the2011 Championship League Darts, and part of the Australia team which lost a sudden death shoot-out to England in the2012 PDC World Cup of Darts final.

Nicholson also acts as a sports commentator and TV and radio pundit. He was nicknamed "The Asset", and was known for coming on to the stage with sunglasses, and was also known for hisprofessional wrestling-style walk ons, using the song "Club Foot" as his walk on music for most of his career. Nicholson had a feud withPhil Taylor during the2011 UK Open, in which he supposedly "waved goodbye" to Taylor after beating him in a sudden death leg to reach the quarter-finals.

Raised inCramlington thenBlyth inNorthumberland where he played darts at a local level, Nicholson relocated toMelbourne in 2005 to live with his Australian girlfriend.^[1][2] Before joining thePDC Pro Tour, Nicholson emerged as one of the top players in the Australian Grand Prix circuit, gaining confidence from competing with nationally-renowned opponents and winning 15 titles in 2008. His performances led him to the top of the DPA rankings and earned him a spot in the2008 Grand Slam of Darts. He was drawn in Group H withKevin Painter,Darryl Fitton and WDF number oneGary Anderson. Nicholson caused a surprise as he beat Anderson 5–4 in his opening group game despite constant booing from the crowd, who began chanting "Who Are You?" during his walk-on; after his first three darts which produced a maximum 180, he put his finger to his mouth at the crowd which caused them to boo him almost every time he threw. Despite beating Anderson, losses to Fitton and Painter eliminated him at the group stage.

Nicholson earned qualification for the2009 PDC World Darts Championship through the DPA rankings. He defeatedAdrian Gray in the first round, winning all nine legs for a three sets to nil victory. He then beat world number 6Adrian Lewis in the second round 4–3 and then came from two sets down to beat world number 11Dennis Priestley 4–2 to advance to the quarter-finals. In the quarter-finals, he lost to world number 3 at the time,James Wade but his tournament performance lifted him into the top 50 on thePDC Order of Merit.

After his performance in the World Championship, Nicholson decided to leave the DPA and play in the PDC Pro Tour in an attempt to qualify for theUK Open. His last 16 place in the Southern Regional finals ensured his qualification for the tournament. He beat Gary Anderson 6 legs to 4 in the second round, before losing 9–7 to pub qualifier Ken Mather, whereafter his relationship with the spectators soured further, claiming Mather's supporters had repeatedly shouted out while he was throwing. After the match, as the crowd chanted "who are you" at Nicholson, he responded usingprofanity towards them which he was later fined for by the DRA.

Nicholson reached the semi-final of the PDPA Players Championship Barnsley 2, defeatingGary Mawson,Mark Dudbridge,John MaGowan,Justin Pipe andDenis Ovens before losing out toColin Osborne, the eventual winner. Nicholson did not enter the qualifiers for theLas Vegas Desert Classic and failed to qualify for theWorld Matchplay.

In 2010, Nicholson claimed his first PDC title, TheTotesportPlayer's Championship. He had to play the quarter-final, the semi-final and the final in the same day. In the quarter-final he defeatedAdrian Lewis 9–7. He then overcame reigning championPhil Taylor 10–9 in the semi-finals, and followed this up with a 13–11 victory overMervyn King in the final. During the latter stages of the tournament, the crowd started to support Nicholson due to his efforts against higher ranked and more experienced opponents (in particular Taylor), and as a result he relaxed his behaviour leading many pundits such asAlan Warriner-Little to suggest that he might give up the 'bad boy' image and just be himself.^[3] In March 2010, he moved into the top 16 of the PDC Order of merit for the first time. In the UK Open 2010, he beatKirk Shepherd 9–6 in the third round, and 7–9 to Gary Anderson in the fourth round. On his World Matchplay debut, he lost 3–10 toSteve Beaton in the first round.

In the 2011 World Championship, Nicholson continued reached the second round. He won his first title since January 2010 by winning the Crawley Players Championship (1) by defeating Adrian Lewis 6–4. He also came through a semi final clash with Gary Anderson defeating him 6–5.^[4]

At the2011 UK Open, Nicholson won final-leg deciders against Gary Anderson in round four, and Phil Taylor in round five, to reach the quarter-finals. He lost 7–10 to eventual champion James Wade.

At the2011 World Matchplay, Nicholson defeatedColin Osborne in the first round to secure a second-round match withRaymond van Barneveld.

At the2011 Championship League Darts, Nicholson lost 6–1 to Phil Taylor in the final.

Nicholson made it to the last 16 of the2012 World Championship by recording 3–1 and 4–0 victories overMensur Suljović andAlan Tabern respectively.^[5] He next played BelgianKim Huybrechts and won the first set, before losing 12 of the next 14 legs to exit the tournament 1–4. He hit 21% of his doubles in the match.

After losing in the final of the Spanish Players Championship, Nicholson partneredSimon Whitlock again for the2012 PDC World Cup of Darts. Together they had victories over Ireland, Belgium and the Netherlands to reach their first World Cup final, where they played the English pair ofPhil Taylor andAdrian Lewis. Australia found themselves 0–3 down in the final, meaning that Nicholson had to beat Lewis in the last singles match and then win the doubles to force the tie to a sudden-death leg for the World Cup crown. Australia won both of the matches 7–4 and in the sudden-death leg Whitlock and Nicholson both missed two darts each to secure the title, with Lewis hitting the winning double for England. After the match Nicholson vowed that Australia would win the title in the future.^[6]

In June, Nicholson missed ten darts to reach the quarter-finals of theUK Open as he lost 8–9 toDenis Ovens in the last 16.^[7] In theWorld Matchplay he was beaten 6–10 byAndy Smith.^[8] After his 0–6 first round defeat toAndy Hamilton in theEuropean Championship he did some commentating for ESPN who were broadcasting the tournament in the UK. At theWorld Grand Prix he beatMichael Mansell andColin Osborne to reach his first quarter-final in the event.^[9] He facedWes Newton and led 2–0 in sets, but was unable to take out 106 for a straight sets win and instead went on to lose 2–3.^[10] In October, he reached his first final since the World Cup in February at the fifth European Tour Event of the year, theDutch Darts Masters. His run included a win overMichael van Gerwen, who had won four tournaments in the previous two months and a semi-final victory overWayne Jones who beat Phil Taylor in the previous round. He faced compatriot Whitlock in a first all Australian final on the PDC ProTour and lost 1–6, admitting afterwards that he had run out of steam by the conclusion of the tournament.^[11] At theGrand Slam of Darts, Nicholson lost two out of his three Group F games to finish third in the table and fail to qualify for the last 16.^[12] After all 33 ProTour events of 2012 had been played, Nicholson was 18th on the Order of Merit, inside the top 32 who qualified for thePlayers Championship Finals.^[13] He missed one dart in the deciding leg againstRonnie Baxter in the first round, losing 5–6.^[14]

Nicholson lost in the second round of the2013 World Championship toRobert Thornton. He survived a total of five match darts from Thornton to take the match into a sudden death leg, which he lost. Nicholson never had a dart to win himself but did throw for the match during the final set.^[15] In his thirdWorld Cup of Darts withSimon Whitlock the pair were beaten in the last 16 when the Belgian brothers ofRonny andKim Huybrechts defeated them 1–5.^[16]On 16 & 17 March 2013, Nicholson had wins overDave Chisnall,Ross Smith, Darren Whittingham, Louis Blundell,Kim Huybrechts,Brendan Dolan,Co Stompé,Richie Burnett andRonnie Baxter to secure back-to-back quarter final spots in the Speedy Services UK Open Qualifier 3 & Qualifier 4 events inWigan. He was then whitewashed byMichael van Gerwen 6–0 in the quarter-final of Qualifier 3 and lost to 6–5Gary Anderson the following day in the quarter-final of Qualifier 4.^[17][18]Nicholson competed a few weeks later at theEuropean Darts Trophy inSindelfingen, Germany. He saw offRonny Huybrechts 6–5 in the first round before coming back from 5–1 down to defeatColin Lloyd in the last 32. He then claimed wins overDean Winstanley andMark Webster to secure a semi-final clash with world number threeMichael van Gerwen.^[19] He saw off van Gerwen 6–2 to faceWes Newton in the final. Nicholson missed nine darts to lead 5–3 and in the deciding leg had three darts to win the tournament on 24, but hit a single 12 with his first and burst his score by hitting a single 13 with his second and lost the match 5–6.^[20] He reached another final in May at the thirdPlayers Championship but was defeated 4–6 byJamie Caven.^[21]

Nicholson lost 9–5 toJohn Bowles in the third round of theUK Open.^[22] In the opening round of theWorld Matchplay he saw 4–1 and 8–7 leads overDave Chisnall turn into a 10–8 defeat and was in tears on the stage during the final leg. Nicholson said later that the feeling of not having enough during the match was too much to handle, but hoped the experience would be a starting point for a new phase in his career.^[23]He reached the last 16 of theGrand Slam of Darts losing heavily toJames Wade 10–1.^[24]

Nicholson beatStuart Kellett 3–0 in the opening round of the2014 World Championship, butKevin Painter beat Nicholson 4–0 in the subsequent round.^[25][26] He co-commentated on the final, for BBC Radio 5 Live. Nicholson lost 9–5 toTerry Jenkins in theUK Open fourth round.^[27] Nicholson andWhitlock won through to the semi-finals of theWorld Cup of Darts where they faced England'sPhil Taylor andAdrian Lewis in a repeat of 2012's final. Whitlock was beaten 4–1 by Taylor, before Nicholson overcame Lewis 4–2 to mean a doubles match was required to settle the tie which Australia lost 4–0.^[28] Nicholson overcameRobert Thornton 10–8 in the first round of theWorld Matchplay, explaining later that his form had suffered over the previous months due to pains in his neck and shoulders which he has worked with an acupuncturist to help relieve.^[29] In the second round,Wes Newton fought back from 5–0 and 8–3 deficits and went on to survive five match darts from Nicholson to knock him out 15–13.^[30] This was the last major Nicholson played in during the year as he failed to qualify for theWorld Grand Prix,European Championship,Grand Slam andPlayers Championship Finals.^[31]

Nicholson walked onto the stage without sunglasses for the first time in his career at the2015 World Championship in a further attempt to move away from his bad boy of darts image. His first round match againstBenito van de Pas went to a deciding set in which Nicholson lost all three legs to exit the tournament.^[32] He left his darts on the stage afterwards and said that he was unsure what he would do in the future.^[33] He returned to play the full schedule of events and qualified for the third round of the2015 UK Open in which he drewMichael van Gerwen and lost 9–3.^[34] In the quarter-finals of theWorld Cup Nicholson knew a win over Belgium'sKim Huybrechts would see Australia reach the semis. He was 3–0 up but then missed a total of six match darts which led to him losing 4–3. Australia then lost the deciding doubles match 4–2.^[35][36] Nicholson failed to qualify for another PDC major event and could not get past the last 16 of any Pro Tour tournament. He fell outside the top 32 on the Order of Merit during the year and after losing in the first round of the qualifier it meant that missed out on playing in theWorld Championship for the first time since the 2008 event.^[37]

Nicholson failed to qualify for the2016 UK Open for the first time since the 2008 event.^[38] He reached the last 16 of one event all year, the 13thPlayers Championship, by beatingNathan Aspinall,Kyle Anderson (the player who has replaced him in Australia's World Cup team) andSimon Whitlock, but he then lost 6–1 toBenito van de Pas.^[39] He began commentating for the PDC during European Tour events and also for the BBC in the inauguralChampions League of Darts.^[40]

Nicholson was a studio analyst and commentator onChannel 4's coverage of the2017 BDO World Darts Championship.^[41] He was ranked 84th after the2017 PDC World Championship and played in Q School to try and win his place on the tour back.^[42][43] He lost in the final round of the third day toRichie Burnett, before going all the way on the last day to earn a two-year Tour Card.^[44]

The rest of Nicholson's year was good enough to give him enough ranking money to qualify for the2017 Players Championship Finals, although being the 59th seed meant he had to playMichael van Gerwen and lost 6–3.

Nicholson, needing a good year to hold on to his tour card, made a good start by qualifying for the UK Open, where he eventually lost toPaul Hogan 10–6 in the third round.

He continued his form by winning through to a European tour semi-final, where he was beaten byAdrian Lewis; this run effectively sealed his spot in the European Championships, as the 32nd seed, and the World Championships, due to there being more spots open to Pro Tour qualifiers this year.

Nicholson made his return to theEuropean Championship, where he was up against the top seedMichael van Gerwen. He made a good account of himself by opening with back-to-back twelve-darters with a 127 checkout on the bullseye, but failed to hit darts to go 3–2 up, and failed to win another leg; he lost 6–2.

He announced on 11 January that he will not attend the 2019 PDC Q School in an attempt to renew his tour card. He insisted he needed to work on his darts, game and head in order to get himself ready for 2020.

Ahead ofQ-School, Nicholson announced that he will no longer be representing Australia in an interview with the BDO^[45]

In the2011 UK Open, Nicholson defeated Phil Taylor in the last 16 by 9 legs to 8 and supposedly waved goodbye to him. While being interviewed at that year'sWorld Matchplay, Nicholson spoke of Taylor's reaction and stated that when they met again, if Taylor did not bring his 'A' game he would "put him to bed". Nicholson defended the gesture saying: 'I was waving bye-bye to the demons which had dogged me in too many televised tournaments'.^[46] The comments garnered much media attention.^[47][48][49]Taylor reacted angrily to Nicholson's comments, tellingBBC Radio Stoke, "I think he's very, very silly."^[50] Taylor added that Nicholson "has a big mouth and won't keep it shut". He played Taylor in an eagerly anticipated match at the2011 European Darts Championships and was beaten 10–7, despite being 7–6 ahead.^[51] He was then defeated at the2011 World Grand Prix by Taylor 3–0.

During his walk-on in his second-round match againstRaymond van Barneveld in the 2011 World Matchplay, Nicholson mimickedWWE wrestlerCM Punk by having X's marked on his hands, and also lifted up aNexus scarf. However, he lost the match, 13–9. Then, when he met Phil Taylor, he once again mimickedCM Punk during his walk-on, using his signature pose on one knee, shouting "It's clobberin' time" and punching the air. During Taylor's walk-on, Nicholson sat cross-legged on the stage, another trait ofCM Punk, in an attempt to anger Taylor.^[52]

Outcome	No.	Year	Championship	Opponent in the final	Score[N 1]
Winner	1.	2010	Players Championship Finals	Mervyn King	13–11 (l)
Runner-up	1.	2011	Championship League	Phil Taylor	1–6 (l)

Outcome	No.	Year	Championship	Team	Teammate	Opponents in the final	Score[N 1]
Runner-up	1.	2012	World Cup of Darts	Australia	Simon Whitlock	England –Phil Taylor andAdrian Lewis	3–4 (m)

• 2009: Quarter-finals (lost toJames Wade 3–5)
• 2010: First round (lost toTerry Jenkins 2–3)
• 2011: Second round (lost toPeter Wright 2–4)
• 2012: Third round (lost toKim Huybrechts 1–4)
• 2013: Second round (lost toRobert Thornton 3–4)
• 2014: Second round (lost toKevin Painter 0–4)
• 2015: First round (lost toBenito van de Pas 2–3)
• 2019: First round (lost toKevin Burness 0–3)

• Official Website
• Paul Nicholson player profile at Darts Orakel
• Interview with Paul Nicholson
• Management website

• Living people
• 1979 births
• Professional Darts Corporation former tour card holders
• Australian darts players
• English darts players
• Players Championship Finals champions
• PDC World Cup of Darts Australian team
• Darts commentators
• Sportspeople from Northumberland
• English emigrants to Australia
• 21st-century English sportsmen
• 21st-century Australian sportsmen
• Sportspeople from Melbourne
• Naturalised citizens of Australia
• Naturalised sports competitors

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