Who is the best player you have defeated? Phil Taylor

What has been your greatest accomplishment so far in darts? 2 World Championships

What is your next goal? Another World Championships

Who brings the best out of you when playing? Phil Taylor

Why do they call you Darth Maple? Black Maple Leaf Emblem

What type of darts are you presently using? 23 gram Unicorn golden series John Part

Do you have any sponsors? Unicorn

Interview!!!

1. Do you plan on staying as a player for much longer in light of your TV work?

I am not sure I understand the question. I only spend a week a so a year commentating, and if there is a conflict, I always choose playing.

2. There has been much speculation on your change in darts.
How do you feel with the new arrows?

Same darts essentially, just 90% tungsten instead of 80%, so a little narrower. They have been great. My first TV tournament with them was the UK Open last year, and I lost the final, after beating Phil Taylor on the way up. Working with the Unicorn team has been a pleasure.

3. Do you feel you have another world title in you

Most definitely. I believe I am the most dangerously unpredictable player in darts. While I have always prided my self in playing consistently, I have not always got the results I have wanted consistently. I have what it takes to surprise at any time.

4. How does being a commentator for the BBC on the BDO events lie with being a player in the PDC? Would you have lost money had you made it right through at the PDC Tourney? Obviously you wouldn't have been able to take your commentary post up on time. Or would you have simply done both?

This came up when I won the PDC Championship in 2003. I missed two days of work, and the respective pay. I may have made up for this in prize money. LOL!!!!

5. How do you think the two organizations compare and what would you do if you had a carte blanche to change things.

The BDO seems unable to evolve, and as a result faces extinction at the pro tournament level. It will always be the core of darts play in the UK for all non-pros. The PDC has shown consistent growth in the number of tournaments, prize money, and competitors. The PDC is the best hope for darts taking a more significant share in the world of televised sport. If I could change something, it would be to improve transparency in both of the organizations, as I believe players feel better when they are more in the loop.

6. I heard last night the BDO is signed to the BBC until 2008, has your contract with them been extended accordingly.

I have had a very good relationship with the BBC, and TWI who currently produces the darts for them. I would fully expect to be commentating as long as I am available.

7. Does the BBC plan to show more darts in the future.

I do not know the BBC's plans.

8. I found the interactive options excellent in the BDO tournament. Does the BBC in the future intend to dedicate a channel to the darts in the same way SKY does?

I will assume that in the first part of your question, you meant the PDC. Digital viewers in the UK have the option of watching all the darts live from the BDO on some sort of BBC digital channel.

9. Do you think it is disappointing that the top BDO players haven't been invited into the new Premier League scheme. Also, what are your feelings in general about the Premier League?

The Premier League is a great thing for televised darts. We have a chance to establish a viewing base on an almost weekly basis, which will really give us a chance to firmly establish darts in the minds of UK sport viewers. The BDO players do not deserve a chance in, as they have not made a commitment towards helping the PDC grow, as they choose to stay in the past.

10. You would have seemed to have had two peaks in your career, with gradual improvements and wins before taking the two major prizes, and then seem to tail off in form, only to start the cycle again. Any explanation (if you even agree!)

A major championship will always appear as a peak on a results chart. My form has always been improving. I think a crucial factor is fitness and energy levels. Burning out is a factor to an extent. I see 2005 as a year of renewal, and I see myself as a major threat for the 2006 Ladbrokes title.

11.  Who got you into darts and how did it happen?

My interest seems to have been internally generated. After watching on TV a few times in the eighties, and gaining a true appreciation of the game, my parents got me a proper board and darts for Christmas one year. The rest is...

12. If you were playing in a Men's Doubles 501 Tourney , and you are in the final match , set , leg .... and you left your partner on a finish to win the Match .
Who Would you Pick as your Partner to shoot for the Double .

Well, I have had many fine partners, but who wouldn't pick Phil Taylor? I can always rely on Mick Manning, if we manage to get that far. Our best pairs performance was at the Holland Open in 2003.

13. What is your favorite venue and why?

I love the Blueberry Hill in St.Louis. It is just a great place because of Joe Edwards the owner. He has a great sense of fun.

14. Which of your world titles means the most, the first because it was the first or the second because of who it was against?

They are both very important to me, and they are both fairy tale sort of affairs. I am very lucky to have had to such great experiences. My 2003 title was much more satisfying, as I achieved something no one else has. Beating Phil at his peak in a world final, in the longest format possible. There was some nonsense talk from Sid Waddell during the commentary of that final that Phil wasn't at his best, but it was Phil's best performance in this century (excluding when he beat me in 2001, which was his best performance in a World Championship final ever. In his only other final loss in 1994 Phil only averaged 85.62. Phil has played in 14 finals. Here is how he has performed.
2005- 96.14
2004- 96.03
2003- 99.98 (Year I beat him)
2002- 98.47
2001- 107.46 (Year I lost to him)
2000- 94.42
1999- 97.11
1998- 103.98
1997- 100.92
1996- 98.52
1995- 94.11
1994- 85.62 (Year he lost to Dennis Priestley)
1992- 97.59
1990- 97.47
Statistics compiled from GFX, Planet Darts, and the BDO darts web sites

15. Would you ever consider moving back to the BDO?

Only if it involved a reintegration with the PDC, or an obscene amount of money.

16. As a fellow Canadian darter (with high aspirations), does it make sense to move across the pond to try and break in to the pro circuit, or keep hammering away in North America and try to make it from here? I noticed that you went to the embassies every year while you still lived in Canada and then moved over after a time.

I live in Canada now, and always have. Commuting is a bitch! A serious player should try to make a few trips a year to the UK, and should join the PDPA to be eligible to play in the televised tournament qualifiers.

17. Is Partzan really King of the Jungle!!!!

Much better to be the hunter than the hunted. Gazelles are really fast, until they get eaten.

18. Does the Empire Strike Back

Certainly, but this year is The Revenge of the Sith!

19. Will you be more selective as to the Tournaments you enter during the year as there are now so many different ranked events? And as a World Champion twice over, how strong still is the determination to make it 3x World Championships?

I am certainly being more selective this year, as I achieved Official PDC World number 1 status in August 2004, I can now forget about rankings, and concentrate on improving my conditioning for the major events. The determination for a third world title is very strong.

20. Why do you think Phil Taylor is so dominant in the PDC?

He is dominant because he is clearly the most skilled player of the last decade. Why he performs at such a high level I cannot answer.

21. Other than winning and losing, what are his best and worst moments in his darts career. Experiences while on the road, tiffs with other darters, cute show girls in Vegas, things like that

The worst moment was being told I wasn't in the Masters of Darts event in Holland which just concluded. I had been invited twice over the last year, and then they dropped me. I feel I merited it by far over everyone but Phil on the PDC side. I felt I would have beaten all the BDO players, and maybe Phil. Also, there was quite a bit of prize money I missed out on, as the worst player got 25,000 euros.

My best moment was when I had 77 left to beat Phil in 2003. The feeling of euphoria at just being in that position was actually more of a buzz than winning it.

22. How did you learn to count like you do?  Without a shadow of a doubt, you are the best counter in the game.

I have a natural affinity for numbers, and there has been a tremendous amount of repetition from playing as much as I have over the years.

23. This is hard to word, but I'll try. Playing on different leagues and tournaments, some nights seem to bring out a different intensity level. How do the top pro's maintain a high intensity level, regardless of who they play or where/when? What type of mental preparation do you use and what would you recommend for me?

The best idea is to concentrate on you personal performance levels, as well as winning. Never be satisfied with a poor effort that wins.

24. At your peak, how much practice time were you spending per day.

2 to 3 hours a day, plus some practice matches with live opponents, or league play.

Thank you Mike from DarterZ for the great interview.
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Accomplishments.
Too Many to list.... here is a couple links that have some of John's Stats
http://www.100megsfree.com/thedartdog/part.html
http://www.unicorndarts.co.uk/team/johnp.asp