{"id":6017,"date":"2022-12-02T12:03:57","date_gmt":"2022-12-02T12:03:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/2022\/12\/column-hr384-the-three-dot-lounge-is-open\/"},"modified":"2024-02-14T22:18:06","modified_gmt":"2024-02-14T22:18:06","slug":"column-hr384-the-three-dot-lounge-is-open","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/2022\/12\/column-hr384-the-three-dot-lounge-is-open\/","title":{"rendered":"Column #HR384 The Three Dot Lounge is Open\u2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Friday, December 2, 2022
\n<\/strong>Column HR384<\/strong>
\nThe Three Dot Lounge is Open…<\/strong><\/p>\n

Back in the day, the Old Dart Coach always looked forward to Friday and the arrival of the\u00a0San Francisco Chronicle<\/em>\u00a0sports page…<\/p>\n

Inside the \u201cGreen Sheet\u201d (the sport section was printed on green paper) sports writer Bruce Jenkins would start his column with \u201cWelcome to the Three Dot Lounge\u201d.<\/p>\n

Jenkins was the son of the famous musical arranger Gordon who worked and caroused for\u00a0years with Frank Sinatra.\u00a0 Three dots (…) in a newspaper lingo\u00a0mean \u201cmore to come”.<\/p>\n

Jeff Smith, in the words of a Larry The Cable Guy, “got er done” as he qualified for the PDC World Championship being played December 15 to January 3 at the Alexandra Palace in London.<\/p>\n

Smith swept through the field like the Maple Leaf’s Auston Matthews does on the ice when scoring a goal.\u00a0 Smith had one close call against Jack Main in the round of 48.\u00a0 Main broke out from 2-3 down\u00a0to go up 5-3 using 16, 11 and 12 darts, denying Smith a shot a double.\u00a0 But Smith held and claimed one back.\u00a0 He\u00a0then got another in \u201cugly\u201d (19 darts) fashion,\u00a0followed by a 15-darter for a 6-5 win.\u00a0\u00a0He would then stroll in his final match to a 7-1 win over England’s Nick Fullwell – and into the Ally Pally lineup\u2026<\/p>\n

Smith will join fellow Notre Americanos Leonard Gates, Danny Baggish and Canadians Matt Campbell and David Cameron at the Big Dance.<\/p>\n

Three of the five have reasonable draws with chances of moving on to the next round better than 50-50…<\/p>\n

For Matt Campbell and Danny Baggish only one will move on as they face each other at the jump.\u00a0 The winner will face Mervyn King where the odds of a win are less than good as King is a tough old customer.\u00a0\u00a0First round losers collect \u00a37,500 – the Baggish vs. Campbell will win at least \u00a315,000.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

The ladies will be in the spotlight during the early rounds of the World Championships…<\/p>\n

For the first time there are three.\u00a0 Those players outside the seeded 32 are dependent on the draw to “escape” to the first round…<\/p>\n

Lisa Ashton would appear to be in the cat bird seat with a draw of Ryan Meikle.\u00a0 Meikle lost to MvG 6-3 last weekend averaging 97+.\u00a0\u00a0A win and Ashton would get the #32 seed.\u00a0 Not good, as that seed will face the red-hot\u00a0Raymond van Barneveld.<\/p>\n

Fallon Sherrock drew Ricky Evans (who lost 6-3 averaging a beatable 92+) –\u00a0the winner will face Joe Cullen.<\/p>\n

Wunderkind sensation Beau Greaves gets the toughest assignment.\u00a0 She\u2019ll face\u00a0William O’Connor who was level at 4 with Krzysztof Ratajski\u00a0last week only to lose 6-4\u2026<\/p>\n

Bounding rumors are an everyday occurrence at the Thee Dot Lounge…<\/p>\n

Early in the year it was that Michael van Gerwen was on the way down from the mountain top.\u00a0 Last weekend at the Cazoo Players Championship Finals van Gerwen took home \u00a3100,000 when he tossed a spanner in Rob Cross\u2019s hope for a TV title.\u00a0 In winning his 5th<\/sup>\u00a0TV title of the year, MvG did it in spectacular 11-6 fashion…<\/p>\n

With the match level at 1, van Gerwen tossed T77, T80 with a T44-check on d12.\u00a0\u00a0That be 9-darter.<\/p>\n

Cross got it close (down 6-7) when he missed 2 to level the match.\u00a0 van Gerwen then took out T70 which caused the Fat Lady to lick her lips getting ready to sing.<\/p>\n

Forced to withdraw from\u00a0last year\u2019s World Championships with Covid, van Gerwen is the betting choice early on.\u00a0 van Gerwen said, “If I play my game, they can\u2019t beat me.”\u2026<\/p>\n

Josh \u201cU\u201d Rock came into general prominence when he tossed a 9-darter against van Gerwen in the Grand Slam.\u00a0 That Rock was defeated 10-8 was lost as the announcers immediately announced he was the next great player.\u00a0 Within hours, his future prospects were\u00a0elevated to a level not unlike a pint with no head or being born at night in a manger with a star overhead.<\/p>\n

As Bill Shakespeare might have said, \u201cMe thinks\u00a0they spoke too soon.\u201d<\/p>\n

One thing is true- he\u2019s head and shoulders ahead of other PDC youths.\u00a0 He picked up the youth championship title with an easy 6-1 won over Nathan Girvan – Rock averaged a sizzling 104.13.\u00a0 He would trail only once in the tournament (that at 0-2) against Sebastian Bialecki.\u00a0 Rock would win that one 6-3.\u00a0 Maybe they didn\u2019t speak too soon\u2026\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

While all the pros were toiling away in Minehead the Winmau Jr. Darts invaded the Gibraltar…<\/p>\n

America\u2019s\u00a0Kaden Anderson\u00a0got to the\u00a0JDC Open quarter finals but lost to\u00a0Henry Coates of England.\u00a0 Canadian Ethan Marshall defeated Yank Peter Stewart Jr. 4-3 where winning the bull decided the match in the quarter finals.\u00a0 Marshall would lose his semi match to England\u2019s Luke Littler\u00a05-2.<\/p>\n

Littler would hang a\u00a06-0 Snyder on fellow Brit\u00a0Evan Willoughby in the final. \u00a0That would be a darting double as Littler also won the JDC Open the day before against Pim Van Bijnen of Denmark.\u00a0\u00a0Van Bijnen broke out after being level at 2 to take the lead 4-2.\u00a0\u00a0Littler got to 3-4 when the Dane couldn\u2019t check with 6 from 32.\u00a0 They tied at 4 when Van Bijnen left 40 from 61 as Littler checked 25 after missing the bull from 129.\u00a0 Littler closed it out in 15 and 16 darts for the 6-4 win.\u00a0 Play continues at press time\u2026<\/p>\n

The Three Dot Lounge, like any pub in the world, has its cast of characters…<\/p>\n

There\u2019s an Old Curmudgeon who comes around daily.\u00a0 He sits on his stool, sips a Guinness with a roll your own in the corner of his mouth.\u00a0 He\u2019s been places seen things and probably got a t-shirt somewhere along the way that has long been lost and forgotten…<\/p>\n

He mumbles to himself while at times dispensing advice and wisdom\u00a0which no one seems to appreciate…<\/p>\n

Yes, he’s an old dart player who remembers paper boards, flights and brass darts.\u00a0 He’s uncertain about tungsten darts as he thinks maybe there a passing fad.\u00a0\u00a0Playing cricket is foreign to him as is keeping score without chalk.\u00a0\u00a0His wisdom though shouldn\u2019t be ignored.<\/p>\n

The Old\u00a0Curmudgeon\u00a0told the Old Dart Coach recently, \u201cYour friends can accomplish what enemies\u2019 can\u2019t\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Stay thirsty.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Back in the day, the Old Dart Coach always looked forward to Friday and the arrival of the\u00a0San Francisco Chronicle\u00a0sports page…\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":4126,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_eb_attr":"","_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[17],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"views":493,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/darts-image-feature-random-4.jpg","uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/darts-image-feature-random-4.jpg",520,472,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/darts-image-feature-random-4-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/darts-image-feature-random-4-300x272.jpg",300,272,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/darts-image-feature-random-4.jpg",520,472,false],"large":["https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/darts-image-feature-random-4.jpg",520,472,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/darts-image-feature-random-4.jpg",520,472,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/darts-image-feature-random-4.jpg",520,472,false],"rpwe-thumbnail":["https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/darts-image-feature-random-4.jpg",45,41,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Howie Reed","author_link":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/author\/howie-reed\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Back in the day, the Old Dart Coach always looked forward to Friday and the arrival of the\u00a0San Francisco Chronicle\u00a0sports page...\u00a0","authors":[{"term_id":17,"user_id":4,"is_guest":0,"slug":"howie-reed","display_name":"Howie Reed","avatar_url":{"url":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/111howie.jpg","url2x":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/111howie.jpg"},"first_name":"Howie","last_name":"Reed","user_url":"http:\/\/www.dartoidsworld.com","description":"Astute, often controversial, and always humorous, the Old Dart Coach, Howie Reed (a former rodeo cowboy and advertising executive), is heralded as the Dean of Darts Chroniclers - the most prolific and widely followed writer ever about our sport. He goes back decades with the legends and knows where the skeletons are buried (just ask any of the ADO and WDF old-timers!). Here are four well-known facts about the Old Dart Coach: 1) he is a Republican, 2) he loves the ladies, 3) he can drink most anybody under the table, and 4) he throws darts as bad as Dartoid."}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6017"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6017"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6017\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6144,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6017\/revisions\/6144"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4126"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6017"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6017"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6017"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dartoidsworld.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=6017"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}