"I just remember it being all over Twitter and all over Facebook" - Owen Bates recalls furore over 'Master' nickname cancellation

Even though he didn't manage to claim a PDC Tour Card until the start of the 2024 Pro Tour season, Owen Bates was a name widely known among fans of the sport. A big reason for that was his playful nickname 'The Master', something that made worldwide headlines when he denied using it by the PDC on his Alexandra Palace debut in December 2023.

“I remember when I first started with Loxley and they were asking about the names, we only had thought of master as a joke," Bates recalls on the latest episode of the Weekly Dartscast, revealing how one of the sport's most iconic nicknames came about. “Then Tom and Matt were really supportive of the idea of just having it in the darts. But it was something that was fortunate, personally, and it was just as a joke, that’s what it’s all about, really.”

After finishing second on the PDC Challenge Tour Order of Merit in 2023, Bates earned both a PDC Tour Card and the aforementioned debut at the PDC World Darts Championship. Despite his relatively unknown to the wider audience however, the Englisman's name was soon a hot topic of debate in the sports world as it came to light that John McDonald wouldn't be bellowing out "Owen 'The Master' Bates" at the Ally Pally, thanks to PDC stepping in and preventing the use of the colourful nickname.

Bates recalls one moment in particular, where he was the topic of conversation on the radio. “That was a big moment for me on the show. I was listening to TalkSport. And my name was mentioned and how I reacted to it, I just remember it being all over Twitter and all over Facebook," recalls the 22-year-old, who has since risen to number 86 in the PDC Order of Merit. “It was only a bit of a terrible feeling, but it was all fun.”