Mark "Flash" Dudbridge (born 11 January 1973) is an English professional darts player. He appeared in the 2005 Premier League Darts after reaching the final of the 2005 PDC World Darts Championship. He also is a former World Master and has reached the final of the World Matchplay.
Career Dudbridge started playing in his very early teens, citing Dennis Priestley as one of his heroes. Dudbridge made a name for himself in the British Darts Organisation by winning the Winmau World Masters in 2002, defeating Tony West in the final – in his first televised tournament. He never competed in the BDO version of the World Championship and switched instead to compete in the Professional Darts Corporation.
In 2003, he won a regional final of the UK Open and also the Ireland Open Classic and knocked out John Part, who was defending champion at the time, in his first appearance at the World Championship in 2004. His success continued in Blackpool at the World Matchplay in 2004 going on to reach the final before losing to Phil Taylor. His 2005 PDC World Championship campaign started off by beating two former World Champions back-to-back – Richie Burnett and then John Part. He then beat Denis Ovens and Wayne Mardle before meeting Taylor again in the final – possibly Dudbridge's best achievement to date. This achievement saw him qualify for the inaugural Premier League and he also decided to become a full-time professional player.
Since 2005, Dudbridge's ranking has slipped. He started 2007 ranked 20 in the world rankings and his best result of that year was reaching the Quarter-finals of the new US Open in May. In the 2007 World Grand Prix, during his second-round clash with Andy Jenkins, the match entered a deciding leg. He missed his first nine darts at the double-in, and his opponent took a 285 point lead - Dudbridge managed to produce some heavy scoring in his next visits and won the leg and match.
Dudbridge qualified for the 2013 UK Open, his first televised appearance since the 2012 PDC World Championship. He also qualified for the 2014 World Championship. In 2017, he won two Challenge Tour events. He earned a Pro Tour Card for 2018 by finishing second in the Challenge Tour Order of Merit.
Outside darts Dudbridge is one of the few players chosen to appear in the PDC World Championship Darts computer game.
Dudbridge owns Cafe501 and Solar Darts. He currently lives in Bradley Stoke and is married with three children. He is a supporter of Bristol City and several players including Scott Murray and Louis Carey have been spotted watching his matches live.
World Championship results PDC 2004: Quarter-finals (lost to Kevin Painter 1–5) 2005: Runner-up (lost to Phil Taylor 4–7) 2006: Third round (lost to Kevin Painter 1–4) 2007: Second round (lost to Andy Hamilton 3–4) 2008: Third round (lost to James Wade 2–4) 2009: Third round (lost to Barrie Bates 0–4) 2010: Third round (lost to Co Stompé 2–4) 2011: Second round (lost to Adrian Lewis 1–4) 2012: First round (lost to Dave Chisnall 0–3) 2014: First round (lost to Gary Anderson 0–3)
WSDT 2023: Quarter-finals (lost to Kevin Painter 1–3) 2024: Quarter-finals (lost to Colin McGarry 1–3) 2025: First round (lost to Chris Mason 1–3)
Career finals
BDO major finals: 1 (1 title) Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final Score Ref.Winner 1. 2002 Winmau World Masters Tony West 7–4 (s)
PDC premier event finals: 2 (2 runners-up) Legend World Matchplay (0–1) World Championship (0–1) Outcome No. Year Championship Opponent in the final ScoreRunner-up 1. 2004 World Matchplay 8–18 (l)Runner-up 2. 2005 World Darts Championship 4–7 (s)
Performance timeline Tournament 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 PDC World ChampionshipDNQQFF3R2R3R3R3R2R1RDNQ1RDNQ Premier League DartsNot held5thDNP Las Vegas Desert ClassicDNQ1R1R1R2RDNQNot held UK OpenNH3R3R4R3R6R5R4R3R4RDNQ1RDNQ1R2RDNQ World MatchplayDNQ2RF2R1R1R1R1R1RDNQ World Grand PrixDNQ1R1RQF1RQF1R2R1RDNQ European ChampionshipNot heldDNQ1RDNQ Championship League DartsNot heldRRRRRRRRDNQNot held Not held1R1R1RDNQ Winmau World MastersWNo longer a BDO Member International Darts LeagueNHDNPRRNot held
References
External links