INTERVIEW - Menzies enjoying himself on Euro Tour: 'Otherwise you will never love playing darts'

Cameron Menzies was an unknown quantity for many people when he made his PDC debut at the Grand Slam of Darts last November. The Scot, who plies his trade as a plumber away from the oche, thrilled in the group stage. A stunning win over Simon Whitlock was followed by defeat to Gary Anderson.

Needing victory over dartitis-ridden Berry van Peer to reach the knockout stage, Menzies succumbed to an agonising defeat. But the Glaswegian won the hearts of a lot of darts fans by wearing his heart on his sleeve throughout. The Grand Slam appearance kickstarted Cammy’s career. After a disappointing World Championship first round exit at the Lakeside, Menzies tried his luck at Q-School. The seven points earned over four days in Wigan weren’t enough to seal a Tour Card, so the maverick Scot has turned his hand to the Challenge Tour. He sits in the top 15 of the Challenge Tour Order of Merit, supplementing it with forays into European Tour events. Menzies even managed a nine-darter during a victory over Jamie Caven in a successful German Darts Open qualifying push. “Playing at the Challenge Tour improved my consistency,” said Menzies in an interview with Dartsnews.com. “When I was playing in BDO tournaments, most of the games were best of five, sometimes best of seven.“ “The PDC-tournaments are played in a bigger format, what means there’s no panic when you lose the first two, three legs of a match.” Menzies reached the last 16 at the Dutch Darts Masters in Zwolle, losing in a deciding leg against Kyle Anderson. Although the loss clearly hurt the 28-year-old, the result was one to be proud of. “Despite the travelling, it’s an amazing experience to play on the Euro Tour,” said Menzies. “If you can’t enjoy yourself while playing on this big stages with amazing crowds, you’ll never love playing darts.” After Menzies took an early lead against Kevin Münch, he had the Dutch crowd behind him, taunting the German with shouts of “Auf Wiedersehen” (goodbye). “My German is far from good, so I probably need to learn this language!” Menzies joked. “When I want to play these tournaments I’ve to be in German-speaking countries more often.” The decision to swap the BDO for the PDC was heavily influence by the support that Menzies got from outside. “I did not only grow as a person, but I also got offers from sponsors and a management team. Thanks to that I could professionalise my game,” Menzies said. The target for the Scottish Open champion is getting that elusive Tour Card. For him, the hard work has only just begun.