Who is Welsh darts star Jonny Clayton?

JONNY CLAYTON is a Welsh darts professional and former plasterer who has won four television titles in 2021 alone.

In two years, he’s almost completed the game, but he’ll be glad he persevered as he competes on the biggest stage of all, at PDC World Darts Championship.

2

Who is Jonny Clayton?

Jonny Clayton was born on October 4, 1974 in Pontyberem, Wales.

He is ranked No. 7 on the PDC Order of Merit as of December 19, 2024.

• Follow all the action from the World Darts Championship with SunSport’s LIVE blog

Before his professional darts career took off, he worked as a plasterer, job he continued to hold even after becoming a successful pitcher.

In 2022, he declared to the Star of the day he was “too scared” to stop, explaining: “I’d be a liar if I said I didn’t think about it.

“But in some ways I’m afraid to give up my job, because things are working for me at the moment.

“I haven’t changed anything and I’m fine.

“I don’t know what would happen if I finished my work and focused on my darts.

“If things went wrong, I don’t know how I would take it.

“At the moment I would be lying if I said I haven’t thought about quitting my job, but I’m not going to do that at the moment because I just feel like things are working for me.

“I’ve always played darts while working, so I won’t change that at the moment and I don’t intend to any time soon.”

Hang up your plaster trowel

Jonny finally hung up his plaster trowel in 2022 after speaking to his employers – Carmarthenshire County Council.

At the time he said: “I’ve already taken five months off this year, and as the Premier League season comes to an end, my time as a plasterer is probably coming to an end too.

“My bosses at Carmarthenshire County Council have been incredibly fair to me, allowing me to fit my day job around playing darts. But now it’s time for me to return to their kindness.

“I can’t keep asking them for time off, and they can’t keep bending over backwards to accommodate an employee.

“The plan is that I will continue until December, but from the end of the year I will try to become a full-time professional darts player.

“After that, the tools will stay in the truck. It will be difficult to say goodbye to a profession that has supported me all my professional life.

“But I reached the stage where it became too difficult to maintain a balance between darts and a nine-to-five job.”

Darts career

Jonny’s journey into professional darts started relatively late compared to some of his peers.

He played in the BDO starting in 2008, meaning he was around 33 years old when he turned professional.

Jonny joined the PDC Pro Tour in 2015 at the age of 40 after winning a Tour Card on the final day of qualifying school.

His first significant breakthrough came in 2017 when he won his first PDC ranking title at Players Championship 22.

In 2020, the Welshman’s career took a spectacular boost when he won the PDC World Cup of Darts in partnership with Gerwyn Prize – a feat the couple later repeated in 2023.

In 2021, he had a phenomenal year, winning four television titles: The Masters, Premier League, World Grand Prix and World Series of Darts Finals.

As of 2024, Jonny has accumulated an impressive 15 career titles, including seven televised titles.

He also produced two televised nine-dart finishes, demonstrating his exceptional skill and precision.

2

I almost quit darts

Jonny has opened up about a difficult 12 months after losing his father in 2023.

It was such a trying year that he almost completely gave up darts.

Speaking in October 2024, he said: “For the past year I haven’t been bothered at all, but there’s still a bit of fire in the belly, I’m hungry.

“I’m a darts player, so I want to be the best in my sport.

“But you know, I have to be honest, last year it could have been a period of preparation.

“But look, I’m enjoying it again, I have a smile on my face and I don’t like losing. So it’s a good thing for ‘The Ferret’.”

The ferret

Although many darts players are given animal-related nicknames, Jonny chose his own.

He wanted a name that reflected his character, so instead of choosing something more fierce like “The Tiger”, he opted for “The Ferret”.

This would highlight his agility, determination and modest approach to the game.