The 2009 Championship League Darts is the second edition of a darts competition—the Championship League Darts. The competition is organized and held by the Professional Darts Corporation and has a maximum prize fund of £189,000.

The format of the tournament is similar to the Premier League Darts tournament, also organized by the PDC, except it is contested by a larger pool of players who are split up into a number of groups.

Every match was watched on one of the ten bookmaker websites who broadcast the competition. The tournament was also available globally through the internet, except in the United States of America where it wasn't shown for legal reasons.

Format

The first group consisted of the top eight players from the PDC Order of Merit who were available for the competition. These eight players played each other over the course of a day and receive points for their performance. A win earned a player two points, unlike 2008 there was no draws. All matches were contested over 11 legs with a player winning the match when the reach 6 legs. When all players have played each other, the four players with the most points progressed to the semi-finals with the winners of those matches progressing into the final.

The winner of the final progressed to the winners group which took place at the end of the competition. The runner-up, losing semi-finalists and the players finishing fifth and sixth moved into group two, where they were joined by the next three players in the Order of Merit. The format of the second group was the same as the first group with players moving into the third group. In total there was 8 groups before the final group took place.

This format ensured that all players who do not win the group or finish in the last two positions had another chance to qualify for the winners group.

Qualification

Players must have been in top 29 places in PDC Order of Merit following 2009 World Matchplay Darts in order to qualify. Thirty places used because of Raymond Van Barneveld withdrawing.

PDC Order of Merit following 2008 World Matchplay Darts.

1. Phil Taylor | 2. James Wade | 3. Raymond van Barneveld | 4. John Part | 5. Terry Jenkins | 6. Mervyn King | 7. Ronnie Baxter | 8. Adrian Lewis | 9. Colin Lloyd | 10. Alan Tabern | 11. Dennis Priestley | 12. Colin Osborne | 13. Wayne Mardle | 14. Mark Walsh | 15. Kevin Painter | 16. Andy Hamilton | 17. Robert Thornton | 18. Vincent van der Voort | 19. Denis Ovens | 20. Peter Manley | 21. Mark Dudbridge | 22. Jelle Klaasen | 23. Wayne Jones | 24. Andy Smith | 25. Roland Scholton | 26. Kirk Shepherd | 27. Co Stompé | 28. Tony Eccles | 29. Michael van Gerwen | 30. Barrie Bates

Prize money

The prize money remained the same as last years tournament.

Groups 1–8 In groups 1–8 the prize money were as follows:

Group Matches – £50 per leg won Play-off Matches – £100 per leg won

Winners group In the winners group the prize money was as follows:

Group Matches – £100 per leg won Play-off Matches – £200 per leg won In addition the winners group had separate prizes for the winner, runner-up and losing semi-finalists. These prizes broke down as follows:

Winner – £10,000 and a place in the 2009 Grand Slam of Darts Runner-Up – £5,000 and a place in the 2009 Grand Slam of Darts Losing Semi-finalists – £2,500 each

Prize money won

The following table shows the amount of prize money that has been won by each player.

Player Group Legs won Play-Off Legs won Winners Group Legs won Winners Play-Off Legs won Final position money won* Total money won Mervyn King10020231£2,500£11,900 Phil Taylor71224210£5,000£17,550 Adrian Lewis16062800£11,400 Alan Tabern874000£4,750 Colin Lloyd1140000£6,200 Mark Walsh108212800£10,300 James Wade4112242£2,500£8,550 Vincent van der Voort548000£3,500 Colin Osborne95103712£10,000£21,850 Robert Thornton300000£1,500 Andy Hamilton260000£1,300 Dennis Priestley240000£1,200 John Part220000£1,100 Ronnie Baxter210000£1,050 Mark Dudbridge413000£2,350 Wayne Mardle36122000£5,000 Denis Ovens640000£3,200 Peter Manley270000£1,350 Kevin Painter6110000£4,050 Terry Jenkins798000£4,750

Tournament dates

The tournament took place over 9 days throughout September and October 2008. One group were played on each day. The dates were as follows:

Group 1 – Tuesday 15 September 2009 Group 2 – Wednesday 16 September 2009 Group 3 – Thursday 17 September 2009 Group 4 – Tuesday 22 September 2009 Group 5 – Wednesday 23 September 2009 Group 6 – Thursday 24 September 2009 Group 7 – Tuesday 20 October 2009 Group 8 – Wednesday 21 October 2009 Winners Group – Thursday 22 October 2009

The tournament took place at the Crondon Park Golf Club in Essex.

Groups

The groups were as follows:

Note: Bold indicates group winner, italics indicate the eliminated players. In groups 1–7, players were eliminated for finishing in the bottom two of the league and in group 8, the players are eliminated for finishing in the bottom four and losing in the semi-finals and the final of the Group 8 playoff. Although in the Winners Group players are out of contention for the title for failing to win outright.

Group 1

Phil Taylor James Wade John Part Mervyn King Ronnie Baxter Adrian Lewis Colin Lloyd Alan TabernGroup 2

Phil Taylor Mervyn King Adrian Lewis Colin Lloyd Alan Tabern Dennis Priestley Mark Walsh Andy HamiltonGroup 3

Mervyn King Adrian Lewis Colin Lloyd Alan Tabern Mark Walsh Colin Osborne Robert Thornton Vincent van der VoortGroup 4

Adrian Lewis Colin Lloyd Mark Walsh Colin Osborne Vincent van der Voort Terry Jenkins Kevin Painter Denis Ovens

Group 5

Adrian Lewis Colin Osborne Terry Jenkins Kevin Painter Denis Ovens Wayne Mardle Peter Manley Mark DudbridgeGroup 6

Adrian Lewis Colin Osborne Terry Jenkins Denis Ovens Mark Dudbridge Jelle Klaasen Wayne Jones Andy SmithGroup 7

Adrian Lewis Terry Jenkins Jelle Klaasen Wayne Jones Andy Smith Kirk Shepherd Co Stompé Tony EcclesGroup 8

Adrian Lewis Terry Jenkins Wayne Jones Kirk Shepherd Tony Eccles Roland Scholten Michael van Gerwen Barrie Bates

Winners Group

James Wade Phil Taylor Mervyn King Mark Walsh Wayne Mardle Colin Osborne Jelle Klaasen Adrian Lewis

Results

Group One Tuesday September 15 Pos NameP W L +/-Pts 1 James Wade 7 6 1 +14 12 2 Phil Taylor 7 5 2 +14 10 3 Adrian Lewis 7 5 2 +8 10 4 Mervyn King 7 5 2 +8 10 5 Colin Lloyd 7 3 4 +1 6 6 Alan Tabern 7 2 5 −11 4 7 Ronnie Baxter 7 1 6 −16 2 8 John Part 7 1 6 −18 2

Group Results Score James Wade 6 – 5 Phil Taylor Colin Lloyd 6 – 2 Alan Tabern Adrian Lewis 6 – 3 Ronnie Baxter Mervyn King 6 – 5 John Part Phil Taylor 6 – 5 Alan Tabern John Part 6 – 4 Adrian Lewis Mervyn King 6 – 1 Ronnie Baxter James Wade 6 – 4 Colin Lloyd Alan Tabern 6 – 4 John Part Phil Taylor 6 – 3 Adrian Lewis Mervyn King 6 – 2 Colin Lloyd James Wade 6 – 4 Ronnie Baxter Phil Taylor 6 – 1 John Part Adrian Lewis 6 – 2 Alan Tabern James Wade 6 – 2 Mervyn King Colin Lloyd 6 – 1 Ronnie Baxter Colin Lloyd 6 – 4 John Part Phil Taylor 6 – 1 Ronnie Baxter Adrian Lewis 6 – 5 James Wade Mervyn King 6 – 2 Alan Tabern Alan Tabern 6 – 5 Ronnie Baxter James Wade 6 – 1 John Part Adrian Lewis 6 – 5 Colin Lloyd Mervyn King 6 – 4 Phil Taylor Phil Taylor 6 – 3 Colin Lloyd Ronnie Baxter 6 – 1 John Part Adrian Lewis 6 – 2 Mervyn King James Wade 6 – 5 Alan Tabern

Play-Offs Score Semi-finals (1) James Wade 6 – 5 Mervyn King (4) (2) Phil Taylor 6 – 3 Adrian Lewis (3) Final (1) James Wade 6 – 4 Phil Taylor (2)

Group Two Wednesday September 16 Pos NameP W L +/-Pts 1 Phil Taylor 7 7 0 +29 14 2 Mark Walsh 7 4 3 +4 8 3 Alan Tabern 7 4 3 +1 8 4 Mervyn King 7 4 3 +1 8 5 Adrian Lewis 7 3 4 −7 6 6 Colin Lloyd 7 2 5 −8 4 7 Andy Hamilton 7 2 5 −9 4 8 Dennis Priestley 7 2 5 −11 2

Group Results Score Phil Taylor 6 – 2 Mervyn King Mark Walsh 6 – 1 Andy Hamilton Alan Tabern 6 – 3 Dennis Priestley Adrian Lewis 6 – 5 Colin Lloyd Phil Taylor 6 – 5 Andy Hamilton Dennis Priestley 6 – 2 Adrian Lewis Alan Tabern 6 – 4 Colin Lloyd Mervyn King 6 – 5 Mark Walsh Adrian Lewis 6 – 5 Andy Hamilton Phil Taylor 6 – 2 Dennis Priestley Mark Walsh 6 – 5 Colin Lloyd Alan Tabern 6 – 1 Mervyn King Phil Taylor 6 – 0 Adrian Lewis Dennis Priestley 6 – 3 Andy Hamilton Colin Lloyd 6 – 5 Mervyn King Mark Walsh 6 – 2 Alan Tabern Adrian Lewis 6 – 3 Mark Walsh Phil Taylor 6 – 3 Alan Tabern Mervyn King 6 – 3 Dennis Priestley Andy Hamilton 6 – 2 Colin Lloyd Andy Hamilton 6 – 3 Alan Tabern Mervyn King 6 – 5 Adrian Lewis Mark Walsh 6 – 3 Dennis Priestley Phil Taylor 6 – 0 Colin Lloyd Phil Taylor 6 – 1 Mark Walsh Alan Tabern 6 – 5 Adrian Lewis Colin Lloyd 6 – 1 Dennis Priestley Mervyn King 6 – 0 Andy Hamilton

Play-Offs Score Semi-finals (1) Phil Taylor 6 – 3 Mervyn King (4) (2) Mark Walsh 6 – 4 Alan Tabern (3) Final (1) Phil Taylor 6 – 0 Mark Walsh (2)

Group Three Thursday September 17 Pos NameP W L +/-Pts 1 Mark Walsh 7 6 1 +11 12 2 Mervyn King 7 4 3 +9 8 3 Colin Osborne 7 4 3 +1 8 4 Vincent van der Voort 7 4 3 −2 8 5 Colin Lloyd 7 3 4 +3 6 6 Adrian Lewis 7 3 4 −2 6 7 Robert Thornton 7 3 4 −6 6 8 Alan Tabern 7 1 6 −14 2

Group Results Score Adrian Lewis 6 – 3 Mervyn King Vincent van der Voort 6 – 4 Robert Thornton Mark Walsh 6 – 3 Colin Osborne Colin Lloyd 6 – 3 Alan Tabern Mervyn King 6 – 1 Vincent van der Voort Mark Walsh 6 – 3 Colin Lloyd Colin Osborne 6 – 2 Robert Thornton Robert Thornton 6 – 4 Adrian Lewis Vincent van der Voort 6 – 4 Colin Lloyd Mark Walsh 6 – 4 Colin Lloyd Robert Thornton 6 – 5 Alan Tabern Colin Osborne 6 – 4 Adrian Lewis Mervyn King 6 – 4 Colin Lloyd Mark Walsh 6 – 4 Vincent van der Voort Alan Tabern 6 – 5 Adrian Lewis Colin Osborne 6 – 3 Robert Thornton Robert Thornton 6 – 3 Colin Lloyd Colin Osborne 6 – 5 Mervyn King Adrian Lewis 6 – 2 Mark Walsh Vincent van der Voort 6 – 5 Alan Tabern Vincent van der Voort 6 – 5 Colin Osborne Colin Lloyd 6 – 1 Adrian Lewis Mark Walsh 6 – 5 Robert Thornton Mervyn King 6 – 2 Alan Tabern Mervyn King 6 – 0 Robert Thornton Colin Lloyd 6 – 1 Colin Osborne Mark Walsh 6 – 4 Alan Tabern Adrian Lewis 6 – 5 Vincent van der Voort

Play-Offs Score Semi-finals (1) Mark Walsh 3 – 6 Vincent van der Voort (4) (2) Mervyn King 6 – 1 Colin Osborne (3) Final (4) Vincent van der Voort 2 – 6 Mervyn King (2)

Group Four Tuesday September 22 Pos NameP W L +/-Pts 1 Terry Jenkins 7 7 0 +24 14 2 Kevin Painter 7 5 2 +12 10 3 Adrian Lewis 7 4 3 +7 8 4 Mark Walsh 7 4 3 +4 8 5 Colin Osborne 7 3 4 −1 6 6 Denis Ovens 7 3 4 −3 6 7 Colin Lloyd 7 1 6 −16 2 8 Vincent van der Voort 7 1 6 −21 2

Group Results Score Terry Jenkins 6 – 4 Adrian Lewis Denis Ovens 6 – 2 Vincent van der Voort Mark Walsh 6 – 4 Kevin Painter Colin Osborne 6 – 2 Colin Lloyd Terry Jenkins 6 – 3 Denis Ovens Kevin Painter 6 – 1 Colin Lloyd Mark Walsh 6 – 4 Colin Osborne Adrian Lewis 6 – 0 Vincent van der Voort Denis Ovens 6 – 3 Colin Lloyd Terry Jenkins 6 – 5 Kevin Painter Colin Osborne 6 – 3 Vincent van der Voort Adrian Lewis 6 – 3 Mark Walsh Terry Jenkins 6 – 2 Colin Lloyd Kevin Painter 6 – 4 Denis Ovens Adrian Lewis 6 – 5 Colin Osborne Mark Walsh 6 – 4 Vincent van der Voort Vincent van der Voort 6 – 5 Colin Lloyd Terry Jenkins 6 – 5 Mark Walsh Kevin Painter 6 – 5 Adrian Lewis Colin Osborne 6 – 4 Denis Ovens Denis Ovens 6 – 5 Mark Walsh Colin Lloyd 6 – 2 Adrian Lewis Kevin Painter 6 – 1 Vincent van der Voort Terry Jenkins 6 – 4 Colin Osborne Terry Jenkins 6 – 4 Vincent van der Voort Mark Walsh 6 – 3 Colin Lloyd Kevin Painter 6 – 4 Colin Osborne Adrian Lewis 6 – 2 Denis Ovens

Play-Offs Score Semi-finals (1) Terry Jenkins 3 – 6 Mark Walsh (4) (2) Kevin Painter 6 – 3 Adrian Lewis (3) Final (4) Mark Walsh 6 – 4 Kevin Painter (2)

Group Five Wednesday September 23 Pos NameP W L +/-Pts 1 Mark Dudbridge 7 6 1 +18 12 2 Wayne Mardle 7 5 2 +4 10 3 Terry Jenkins 7 4 3 +5 8 4 Colin Osborne 7 4 3 +4 8 5 Denis Ovens 7 4 3 −1 8 6 Adrian Lewis 7 3 4 +1 6 7 Peter Manley 7 2 5 −11 4 8 Kevin Painter 7 0 7 −20 0

Group Results