FORGOTTEN DARTERS: Shayne Burgess: three-time major-finalist who ran into Taylor each time

In this column, we regularly reminisce about a "forgotten darter" from the past. Today it is the turn of Englishman Shayne Burgess.  

Shayne Burgess was born June 1, 1964 in Hastings. He was known for his unorthodox way of throwing, bringing the tip of the dart close to his eyeball before releasing.

In 1993 he made his first appearance at the highest level by reaching the quarter-finals at the Winmau World Masters. Partly due to this excellent performance, he made his debut at the BDO World Championship in January 1994. In the opening round he lost 3-0 to Steve McCollum.

Burgess switched to the PDC after that World Championship and almost immediately impressed there. At the World Matchplay he lost in the semi-finals 11-7 to the later winner Larry Butler. In the following years he was also always present at the PDC World Championship, but did not get further than the quarter-finals.

1999, however, was the year of his final breakthrough. At the World Grand Prix, he survived the group stage and then eliminated Dennis Priestley in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, Burgess was too strong for Peter Manley, 5-4, to prepare for his first major final. Against Phil Taylor he eventually went down 6-1 in the final.

A few months later, Burgess also caused a shock at the PDC World Championship. In the second round, he eliminated first-seeded Rod Harrington. Eventually, he would not be stranded until the semifinals against Peter Manley.

A year later, Burgess again managed to reach the final of the World Grand Prix, again Phil Taylor was too strong 6-1. In the years that followed, Burgess had a hard time confirming those strong performances, but at the 2003 UK Open he was suddenly there again. Somewhat surprisingly, he reached the final at this first edition of the UK Open, but again that devil Taylor stood in the way of a first major title.

That major title ultimately never came. In 2008, Burgess left the PDC. Between 2012 and 2014 he was briefly active with the BDO, without much success, however. They were the last appearances at the international level of "The Bulldog".