"I do want to play Q School" - Benito van de Pas appears to be seriously preparing for a return to darts after only playing again for six weeks

Four days a week he now works at the hospital, in the pharmacy. A different rhythm, a different life. But since January 1, there’s a dartboard back at Benito van de Pas’s home. And that has set something in motion.

“I’m in the hospital pharmacy now, four days a week, and it’s all going really well,” Van de Pas told Viaplay. “But I’ve started playing darts again a bit. About six weeks now. Since January 1 I’ve been taking it seriously again.” The smile is audible when he talks about darts. The joy is back. “I’m really enjoying it again. And there are also high peaks in my game. So I can’t complain.”

Anyone following results on DartConnect has seen Van de Pas’s name regularly at the top in recent weeks. Averages in the 90s, spikes towards 100 – it raises eyebrows among followers. What is he up to?

“Like I said: I’ve only been at it for about six weeks. Before that I didn’t even have a dartboard at home,” he laughed. “I was still registered in the first division and maybe played three or four matches a year. But at Christmas my girlfriend gave me a dartboard. Since January 1 I’ve started again.”

His girlfriend didn’t just give him a present, she also gave him a nudge in the right direction. “She said: go find yourself a hobby. Then I thought: I’ll pick darts back up.”

Since then he’s been at the Oranjebar every week, a fixture in Dutch darts. “I go to the Oranjebar every Tuesday, I’m playing Super League again, and I try to squeeze in a tournament at the weekend too.”

And with success: he recently won a tournament in Mariahout straight away. “There were a few good averages in there,” he said matter-of-factly. “But it’s still a bit tense. It’s been a long time. One time you throw a 105 average and the rest of the night 85. I’m still finding my feet.”

Still, you can sense there’s ambition. Van de Pas wants to be in form by the end of the year. For what exactly? “I don’t quite know yet myself,” he admitted. “But I do want to play Q School. Then we’ll see where the chips fall. First try to reach the Final Stage.”

It’s a cautiously stated goal, fitting his current phase. No grand announcements, no bravado. “Just let me play darts for a few months and rediscover the fun,” he said. “All those reactions are nice, but I’m not really into that. I’m making an exception for you.”

Van de Pas is more than a player who just ‘wants to come back.’ In 2015 he reached his first Euro Tour final in Riesa, where he lost to Michael Smith. “That was an important moment,” he reflected. “On the floor I’d already started to play well. Thanks in part to that final, I was in a position to play all the Euro Tours.”

A year later came his absolute peak season. In 2016 he won three Pro Tour events and reached seven finals in total. “That was a really good year,” he said. “I think I played seven finals that season.”

A striking detail: in his first two Pro Tour finals he faced Michael van Gerwen. “The first day I lost to him and was allowed to ride back with him in the taxi,” Van de Pas laughed. “The second day I won… and then I wasn’t allowed anymore.”

He also made his mark at the World Championship. He reached the last 16 four times. He went no further, but it underlined his consistent presence on the biggest stage. “I never got beyond the last 16, but four times in the last 16 isn’t bad either.”

He also cherishes fond memories of the World Grand Prix, the unique double-in, double-out event. “I always liked that tournament. I think I reached the quarterfinals there two or three times as well.”

His decline had several causes. A pivotal moment was missing out on the World Championship by just £500, after which he also lost his Tour Card. “That was a blow,” he admitted. “And then came the Covid period.”

The changed format, with multiple tournaments in a short span, suited him less. “I was always a player who, after a bad weekend, would train all week to be better the next weekend. But with Covid you sometimes had five tournaments in one week. If you then play four badly, things go downhill fast.”

In 2023 his name briefly resurfaced at MODUS. He had played Q School and the Challenge Tour and had started training more intensively again. Until his body protested. “I got elbow trouble after about eight weeks. I remember playing at MODUS and at home I couldn’t even lift my kids anymore. That was the moment I thought: this isn’t going to work.”

What followed was a three-year spell without serious darts. Now, early 2026, Van de Pas sounds relaxed. He’s training two to three hours a day again. “And I’m not struggling with anything. That’s the most important thing.”

No big talk about a full-blown comeback. No statements about rankings or TV tournaments. Just trying to find the love for the game again. “I’ve got about ten months left,” he said with an eye on Q School. “We’ll see where the chips fall.”