March 28, 2006
Column 239
Tim Grossman
What will I do if I win the million dollars? I’ll just be happy recalling the day when my father first handed me a set of darts. I was ten years old. He passed away in April 2002 and he’ll never be forgotten, especially for pushing me to pick up those darts. This said, I’m sure my girlfriend Shanan will be able to think of a “million” things we need!
— Tim Grossman
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Nickname: T-Train
Date of Birth: February 21, 1966
Place of Birth: Hudson, New York
Hometown: Hudson, New York
Hobbies: I played football and baseball when I was younger but now it’s just darts!
Movie: Steven Segal movies
Television Show: CSI and “24”
Book: Is Bull’s Eye News Magazine a book?
Favorite Night on the Town: You’ve got to be kidding! I have a TWO year old!
Meal: Anything on the table!
Sports Team: New York Giants and New York Mets
Weapon of Choice: 23-gram fixed point Halex – with two red colored flights and one blue flight. I always throw them in a red-blue-red sequence. I have no idea now where or why that started but I think the habit of organizing them in my hand helps me to pause and stay focused between turns.
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Whatever happens in May – and I’ll be ready – what matters most to me is being thought of as a gentleman of the game, a good friend, good father, and someone who respects others.
I am the Seafood Buyer for Ginsberg’s Foods. I have three daughters, one girlfriend and a cat. My daughters are Alexandra who is thirteen, Kairee-Anne who is twelve and Sydnee who is two. My girlfriend (who puts up with my long hours of practice) and I have been together for eight years. Her name is Shanan Cooley. My cat’s name is Porkchop.
I shifted my focus from darts to family life when Sydnee was born in 2004. In the two years since she was born and until winning the Connecticut World Series of Darts (WSOD) qualifier, I threw in only four tournaments – twice in the Las Vegas Open and twice in my local Tri-City Open.
As I mentioned, it was my father Jack Grossman and brother-in-law Gary Cotsonas who got me started shooting darts when I was ten years old. That was American darts with woodies.
I started playing English darts in 1991, began entering tournaments in 1993 and over the years have played in a lot of them including the Witch City Open, New England Challenge, Syracuse Open and the White Mountain Shoot. While the highlight of my career, has to be qualifying for the WSOD, I played in the World Masters in 1999, was National Cricket Champion is 200, qualified for the World Cup team in 2001 (which we didn’t attend because of the September 11 terrorist attacks) and the America’s Cup in the Cayman Islands in 2002.
Through all of this, my good friend and doubles partner and dart mentor Burt Van Wie has always been there to help guide me through to that winning dart. I can’t thank him enough. But it’s my girlfriend Shanan who I credit most with my progress in the sport. Nobody knows better than her – and she’s just so supportive of it – the kind of hours I spend in front of the board practicing at home.
I am very excited about being able to play in the WSOD and hope this is the push that darts needs to go to the next level in the United States. I’ve always hoped to have a chance to compete in an event of this caliber. My dad would be so proud. My mom Bonnie and my older brother John and my three sisters – Mary, Joanne and Sue – have always stood by me and kept me strong with their unwavering support.
Darts to most people is something you play in a bar. Nobody seems to understand the challenges that we darters endure to try to become the best in a sport that is hardly ever recognized. I wish more people would see that we train and compete to be the best just like any other athlete does. So my greatest hope is that all of this will lead to the day the Olympics welcomes us darters.
That’s it I guess, except for the remote island question you have been asking everybody. The “correct” answer is that I’d most want to be stranded with Shanan. But if Alyssa Milano showed up I wouldn’t be all that upset.
And if I win the million dollars hopefully Shanan will forgive me for that last answer.
See you in Connecticut!
