Darting phenomena Beau Greaves has already secured her in the pantheon of the female darting greats. Now she’s earned the sport’s equivalent of a golden ticket inside a Willy Wonka chocolate bar – a PDC Tour Card. In doing so, she becomes only the second female player – after the legendary Lisa Ashton – to achieve that feat.
It’s hard to comprehend that at just 21 years old, the Doncaster belle has already reached that level of darting immortality. Then again, there’s a kid from Warrington who’s even younger and will probably end up with his face carved onto a darting Mount Rushmore – so youth excellence shouldn’t really shock us anymore.
While Luke Littler has been smashing records like plates at a Greek wedding on the men’s side, Greaves has been doing an equally, if not more, destructive job in the women’s game. She’s comfortably the best in her field. So good, in fact, that if she were a musician, she’d be David Beau-ie. If a were a footballer, we’d be calling her Beah Salah. We’re genuinely talking that level of ability in her profession.
Having dominated the PDC Women’s Series this season, Beau has also been flying high on the Development Tour. With a couple of events still to spare, she’s in an unassailable position to gain full professional status.
Whereas Ashton (above) earned hers through the annual and fiendishly difficult PDC Q-School greaves becomes the first to earn hers through overall qualification over a full season on an open tier tour – in this case the Winmau Development Tour.
Of course, one small question remains: will she accept it? Beau has yet to publicly confirm whether she’ll defend her World Championship crown – which is practically her property at this point – or take up the spot earned at Alexandra Palace.
The general consensus is that she’ll indeed feature in the PDC’s elite event and graciously accept her tour card. And let’s be honest – Beau won’t be there just to make up the numbers. Fans have already seen her challenge the very best on the big stage. It wasn’t long ago in Minehead that the Yorkshire youngster pushed Luke Humphries all the way in the UK Open. And if you can give that fella a scare, you’re clearly doing something right.
Should Beau take up the challenge and give the PDC Pro Tour a real shot, it would be fantastic for the sport as a whole. With all due respect to the other women currently plying their trade, Greaves is in a different league entirely – and that’s something her peers would freely acknowledge. Many of them are capable of producing great performances and lofty averages, but the Doncaster chucker does it consistently.
Once Beau joins the tour, it’s hard to imagine her ever dropping off it. She won’t just survive – she’ll thrive. Playing against that calibre of competition on a regular basis will only sharpen her game further. It’s entirely possible she could end up in the winners’ circle next year – perhaps at a Players Championship or even a Euro Tour event – such is her talent.
So, for fans of this phenom, just continue to Beau-lieve.
—–ENDS—–
Images: PDC
