Jonny Clayton (born 4 October 1974) is a Welsh professional darts player who plays in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is currently ranked No. 6 in the world. Nicknamed The Ferret, he was half of the Welsh team that won the 2020 PDC World Cup of Darts and the 2023 PDC World Cup of Darts before winning his first televised singles title, the 2021 Masters, which would lead him to qualifying for the 2021 Premier League Darts, which he would go on to win as well. He subsequently won his first ranked televised title at the 2021 World Grand Prix.
| Jonny Clayton | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
_by_Sandro_Halank%E2%80%93038.jpg) Clayton in 2022 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname | "The Ferret" | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 4 October 1974 Llanelli, Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Home town | Pontyberem, Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Darts information | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing darts since | 1995 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Darts | 22g Red Dragon Signature | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Laterality | Right-handed | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Walk-on music | "Johnny B. Goode" by Chuck Berry | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Organisation (see split in darts) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| BDO | 2008–2015 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| PDC | 2015– (Tour Card: 2015–) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Current world ranking | 5  1 (31 October 2024)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| WDF major events – best performances | |||||||||||||||||||||
| World Masters | Last 272: 2012 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| PDC premier events – best performances | |||||||||||||||||||||
| World Ch'ship | Quarter Final: 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| World Matchplay | Runner Up: 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| World Grand Prix | Winner (1): 2021 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| UK Open | Semi Final: 2020 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Grand Slam | Quarter Final: 2018, 2021 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| European Ch'ship | Semi Final: 2020 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Premier League | Winner (1): 2021 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| PC Finals | Runner Up: 2017 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Masters | Winner (1): 2021 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| World Series Finals | Winner (1): 2021 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Other tournament wins | |||||||||||||||||||||
Players Championships
European Tour Events
World Series of Darts
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Career
edit2015
editClayton joined the PDC Pro Tour in 2015 after winning a Tour Card on the final day of Qualifying School.[2] His first quarter-final came at the sixth Players Championship event and he lost 6–1 to Benito van de Pas.[3] Clayton qualified for the Grand Slam of Darts later that year, but despite winning his opening match against Terry Jenkins, he went on to finish bottom of his group.[4]
2016
editClayton's first appearance at the UK Open came in the 2016 edition, but he was defeated 6–3 by James Wilson in the second round.[5] Clayton recorded a quarter-final showing at the eighth Players Championship and reached his first semi-final at the 12th event, but was whitewashed 6–0 by Gary Anderson.[6] A 2–0 victory over Tony Darlow saw Clayton claim the non-ranking Worthingtons Darts Champion of Champions title.[7] He lost 6–3 to Darren Webster in round one of the Players Championship Finals.[8]
2017
editClayton made his PDC World Championship debut in the 2017 event, and came from a set down to beat fellow Welshman Gerwyn Price 3–1 in the first round.[9] He lost 4–1 to Ian White in the second round.[10]
Clayton won his first PDC ranking title with Players Championship 22 after beating James Wilson 6–1 in the final.[11]
Clayton got to his first PDC major final at the 2017 Players Championship Finals. He beat Jeffrey de Graaf, Price, Stephen Bunting, Steve Beaton and number 1 seed Rob Cross, before losing out to Michael van Gerwen.[12]
2018
editHis run to the final saw him break into the top 32 of the PDC Order of Merit, meaning that he was a seed at the 2018 PDC World Darts Championship, where he was eliminated by fellow countryman Jamie Lewis.[13]
He went on to win the 2018 Austrian Darts Open by defeating Gerwyn Price 8–5 in the final. This meant that he was the first welsh winner on the PDC European tour.
2019
editClayton won Players Championship 10 by defeating Gabriel Clemens 8–4 in the final. This was Jonny's 3rd ranking title.
2020: World Cup Champion
editAt this point a three-time PDC ranking title winner, Clayton was selected as a 'challenger' for the 2020 Premier League night in Cardiff, but lost 7–1 to an inspired Michael Smith.[14]
Clayton kicked off his 2020 season by defeating world number one Michael van Gerwen 10–6 in the opening round of the 2020 Masters.[15]
He went on to win the 2020 PDC World Cup of Darts for Wales with Gerwyn Price as his teammate, defeating the English side of Rob Cross and Michael Smith 3–0.
2021: First individual title, Premier League and Grand Prix champion
edit_by_Sandro_Halank%E2%80%93044.jpg)
At the Masters Clayton beat José de Sousa, Michael van Gerwen, James Wade and Peter Wright en route to the final where he faced Mervyn King. Clayton won the match 11–8 to win his first major individual televised title. In his match against Wade, he was successful in checking out 10 times out of 11 for a success rate of 91%, which the PDC claimed to be a possible world record.[16]
He won two Players Championship events early in 2021.
Upon winning the Masters tournament, Clayton was invited to participate in the 2021 Premier League Darts, where on the third night of his debut season he hit a nine-dart finish on the way to beating José de Sousa.
After the fifth evening of league action Clayton was placed at the top of the league. He slipped to as low as 8th, before going into 4th position for night 16. He had to achieve at least a draw to secure his place in the playoffs. He managed to do so and won his game against Dimitri Van den Bergh winning 8–6.
In the playoffs he beat Michael van Gerwen 10–8 in their semi-final. He went on to defeat José de Sousa 11–5 in the final. In doing so he became the first Welsh winner of the Premier League and the first player to finish 4th in the league phase and win the title.
Clayton participated in the World Grand Prix in which he reached the final after beating Callan Rydz, José de Sousa, Krzysztof Ratajski and Danny Noppert along the way. In the final Clayton prevailed over World No. 1 Gerwyn Price with a 5–1 victory winning him his third major tournament of the year. Three weeks later, Clayton picked up his fourth TV title of the year with an 11–6 victory over Dimitri Van den Bergh in the final of the World Series of Darts Finals.
2022
editAt the 2022 World Championship, Clayton defeated Keane Barry and Gabriel Clemens before losing to eventual finalist Michael Smith 4–3.
2023
editAt the 2023 World Championship, Clayton whitewashed Danny van Trijp 3–0 in his second round tie, then defeated Brendan Dolan 4–1 in the third round before beating Josh Rock 4–3 to reach the quarter finals for the first time in his career. He lost his quarter-final to Dimitri Van den Bergh 5–3.
2024
editAt the 2024 World Championship, Clayton won his second-round match 3–1 against Steve Lennon, then defeated Krzysztof Ratajski 4–2 in the third round before being whitewashed 4–0 by Rob Cross in the fourth round.
World Championship performances
editPDC
edit- 2017: Second round (lost to Ian White 1–4)
- 2018: First round (lost to Jamie Lewis 0–3)
- 2019: Second round (lost to Dimitri Van den Bergh 1–3)
- 2020: Third round (lost to Stephen Bunting 0–4)
- 2021: Third round (lost to Joe Cullen 3–4)
- 2022: Fourth round (lost to Michael Smith 3–4)
- 2023: Quarter-finals (lost to Dimitri Van den Bergh 3–5)
- 2024: Fourth round (lost to Rob Cross 0–4)
Career finals
editPDC major finals: 6 (4 titles, 2 runner-ups)
edit| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score[N 1] | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner-up | 1. | 2017 | Players Championship Finals |  Michael van Gerwen
|
2–11 (l) | [17] |
| Winner | 1. | 2021 | The Masters |  Mervyn King
|
11–8 (l) | [18] |
| Winner | 2. | 2021 | Premier League |  José de Sousa
|
11–5 (l) | [19] |
| Winner | 3. | 2021 | World Grand Prix |  Gerwyn Price
|
5–1 (s) | [20] |
| Winner | 4. | 2021 | World Series of Darts Finals |  Dimitri Van den Bergh
|
11–6 (l) | [21] |
| Runner-up | 2. | 2023 | World Matchplay | Nathan Aspinall
|
6–18 (l) |
PDC team finals: 3 (2 titles, 1 runner-up)
edit| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Country | Teammate | Opponents in the final | Score[N 1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 1. | 2020 | World Cup of Darts | Wales
|
Gerwyn Price | England – Michael Smith and Rob Cross
|
3–0 (m) |
| Runner-up | 1. | 2022 | World Cup of Darts | Wales
|
Gerwyn Price |  Australia – Damon Heta and Simon Whitlock
|
1–3 (m) |
| Winner | 2. | 2023 | World Cup of Darts | Wales
|
Gerwyn Price |  Scotland – Peter Wright and Gary Anderson
|
10–2 (l) |
PDC World Series finals: 1 (1 title, 1 runner-up)
edit| Legend |
|---|
| World Series of Darts (1–1) |
| Outcome | No. | Year | Championship | Opponent in the final | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | 1. | 2022 | New South Wales Darts Masters | James Wade
|
8–1 (l) |
| Runner-up | 1. | 2022 | New Zealand Darts Masters | Gerwyn Price
|
4–8 (l) |
Career statistics
edit| 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 | ||
Performance timeline
edit| Tournament | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ranked televised events | ||||||||||||||||||||
| PDC World Championship | DNQ | 2R | 1R | 2R | 3R | 3R | 4R | QF | 4R | |||||||||||
| UK Open | 1R | 2R | 3R | 4R | 5R | SF | 6R | 6R | 6R | 6R | ||||||||||
| World Matchplay | DNQ | 1R | 1R | 1R | 2R | 1R | F | 2R | ||||||||||||
| World Grand Prix | DNQ | 1R | 1R | 2R | W | 2R | 1R | QF | ||||||||||||
| European Championship | DNQ | 2R | 1R | 2R | SF | DNQ | 2R | 1R | 2R | |||||||||||
| Grand Slam of Darts | RR | DNQ | QF | DNQ | 2R | QF | 2R | RR | DNQ | |||||||||||
| Players Championship Finals | DNQ | 1R | F | QF | 1R | 2R | SF | SF | 2R | |||||||||||
| Non-ranked televised events | ||||||||||||||||||||
| The Masters | DNQ | 1R | QF | W | SF | QF | 1R | |||||||||||||
| Premier League Darts | DNP | C | W | SF | SF | DNP | ||||||||||||||
| World Cup of Darts | DNP | QF | 1R | W | SF | F | W | 2R | ||||||||||||
| World Series of Darts Finals | DNQ | 1R | DNQ | QF | DNQ | W | SF | 2R | 1R | |||||||||||
| Career statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Year-end ranking | 74 | 60 | 31 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 8 | 7 | 9 | |||||||||||
PDC European Tour
| Season | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | GDC DNP |
GDT DNP |
GDM DNQ |
DDM 1R |
IDO 2R |
EDO DNQ |
EDT DNQ |
EDM DNQ |
EDG 2R | ||||
| 2016 | DDM DNQ |
GDM DNQ |
GDT DNQ |
EDM 2R |
ADO 2R |
EDO 2R |
IDO DNQ |
EDT DNQ |
EDG 3R |
GDC DNQ | |||
| 2017 | GDC DNQ |
GDM 2R |
GDO DNQ |
EDG 2R |
GDT 2R |
EDM DNQ |
ADO 2R |
EDO DNQ |
DDM DNQ |
GDG DNQ |
IDO DNQ |
EDT 3R | |
| 2018 | EDO 1R |
GDG 2R |
GDO DNQ |
ADO W |
EDG DNQ |
DDM 1R |
GDT QF |
DDO 2R |
EDM 2R |
GDC 2R |
DDC 2R |
IDO 3R |
EDT 3R |
| 2019 | EDO 3R |
GDC 3R |
GDG 2R |
GDO 2R |
ADO 2R |
EDG 3R |
DDM 2R |
DDO SF |
CDO 2R |
ADC 2R |
EDM QF |
IDO 3R |
GDT 2R |
| 2020 | BDC 1R |
GDC F |
EDG DNQ |
IDO DNQ | |||||||||
| 2021 | HDT 2R |
GDT 2R | |||||||||||
| 2022 | IDO SF |
GDC QF |
GDG QF |
ADO 3R |
EDO 3R |
CDO 2R |
EDG 3R |
DDC DNP |
EDM 2R |
HDT 2R |
GDO 3R |
BDO SF |
GDT 3R |
| 2023 | BSD SF |
EDO 2R |
IDO QF |
GDG 2R |
ADO W |
DDC 2R |
BDO QF |
CDO QF |
EDG 2R |
EDM 2R |
GDO DNP |
HDT 3R |
GDC 2R |
| 2024 | BDO QF |
GDG 2R |
IDO 2R |
EDG 3R |
ADO 3R |
BSD 2R |
DDC F |
EDO WD |
GDC 2R |
FDT 1R |
HDT 2R |
SDT 1R |
CDO QF |
Nine-dart finishes
edit| Date | Opponent | Tournament | Method |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 March 2020 | Chris Dobey
|
UK Open | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 |
| 7 April 2021 | José de Sousa
|
Premier League | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 |
References
edit- ^ "PDC Order of Merit". PDPA. 31 October 2024. Retrieved 31 October 2024.
- ^ "PDC Qualifying School Day Four". PDC.tv. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
- ^ "Mighty Mike Defies Wade For Title". PDC. Retrieved 30 December 2016.
- ^ "SINGHA Beer Grand Slam - Monday". PDC.tv. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
- ^ "2016 Coral UK Open Day One". PDC. Retrieved 30 December 2016.
- ^ "Anderson Takes Title In Barnsley". PDC. Retrieved 30 December 2016.
- ^ "2016 Worthingtons Darts Champion of Champions Results". Darts Database. Retrieved 30 December 2016.
- ^ "2016 Players Championship Finals Results". Darts Database. Retrieved 30 December 2016.
- ^ "William Hill World Championship Day Two". PDC. Archived from the original on 16 December 2016. Retrieved 30 December 2016.
- ^ "2017 PDC World Championship Fixtures". Darts Database. Archived from the original on 7 August 2017. Retrieved 30 December 2016.
- ^ "Clinical Clayton's Maiden Title". Professional Darts Corporation. 11 October 2017. Retrieved 28 October 2017.
- ^ Allen, Dave (26 October 2017). "Minehead Treble For Unbeatable Van Gerwen". PDC. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
- ^ Allen, Dave (27 November 2017). "William Hill World Darts Championship Draw". PDC. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
- ^ "Challengers confirmed for 2020 Unibet Premier League". PDC. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
- ^ "Jonny Clayton: Welshman ends Michael van Gerwen's Masters reign". BBC Sport. 1 February 2020. Retrieved 1 February 2020.
- ^ BEST EVER FINISHING?!| Jonny Clayton with 91% checkout success rate at the 2021 Ladbrokes Masters!. Professional Darts Corporation – via YouTube.
- ^ Allen, Dave (26 November 2017). "Minehead Treble For Unbeatable Van Gerwen". PDC. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
- ^ Phillips, Josh (31 January 2021). "Clayton wins Ladbrokes Masters and final Premier League place". PDC. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
- ^ Banks, Jamie (28 May 2021). "Clayton caps amazing debut season with Unibet Premier League glory". PDC. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
- ^ Allen, Dave (9 October 2021). "Clinical Clayton claims BoyleSports World Grand Prix glory". PDC. Retrieved 9 October 2021.
- ^ Phillips, Josh. "Clayton lands fourth TV title of 2021 at Jack's World Series Finals". Professional Darts Corporation. Retrieved 1 November 2021.
External links
edit
Media related to Jonny Clayton at Wikimedia Commons- Jonny Clayton player profile at Darts Orakel
