FORGOTTEN DARTERS: Bert Vlaardingerbroek, the first ever Dutchman at a World Darts Championship

In this column, we regularly reminisce about forgotten darters from the past. Today it is the turn of Dutchman Bert Vlaardingerbroek.  

Bert Vlaardingerbroek was born on March 24, 1960 in The Hague, Netherlands. In 1986 he made a first appearance by reaching the quarter-finals at the Winmau World Masters, where he lost to Jocky Wilson. A year later he won the Dortmund Open, his first major international title.

That excellent performance also allowed him to qualify for the 1988 BDO World Championship immediately becoming the first Dutchman ever to compete at a World Darts Championship. In the Lakeside Country Club, however, he immediately went down 3-1 in the opening round against the later world champion Bob Anderson.

In 1989, 1990 and 1992 Vlaardingerbroek also participated in the BDO World Championship, but each time he was eliminated in the first round. In 1990 he also participated in the News of the World tournament, but the preliminary round proved to be the end of the line.

In 1993, a year after his last participation in the BDO World Championship, he did win the EDC Spring Cup, a former tournament that was held annually and in which, in addition to the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Germany, Spain and Austria, among others, participated. Vlaardingerbroek defeated Erik Clarys in the final.

Big Bert remained active in the darts world in the years that followed, mainly on the national level. In 1999 he once again reached the last 32 of the Winmau World Masters, but afterwards he suffered from darteritus and never fully recovered.

Between 2003 and 2006, Vlaardingerbroek made another brief comeback in the sport, more specifically at the PDC. In some Pro Tour tournaments that took place in the Netherlands, however, he was unable to impress. Vlaardingerbroek ended his career at the end of 2006 at the age of 46.