“It is what it is at the end of the day. You’re playing darts and you’re traveling” – Damon Heta believes colleagues shouldn’t complain about longer travel times

As frustrations rise among players on the European Tour, Damon Heta remains strikingly composed. While colleagues openly complained about the travel issues en route to the recent event in Wieze, the Australian chose a different approach: accept it and move on.

The logistical problems surrounding the Belgian Darts Open caused plenty of irritation in the field. Since Brexit, British players can no longer use the fast e-gates within the EU and are therefore stuck with time-consuming manual passport checks.

That prompted fierce reactions. Nathan Aspinall voiced his displeasure on social media: “Another week, another Euro Tour, another wait to get through passport [control].”

Jonny Clayton also shared his frustration: “Two-hour wait in Brussels Airport, this could be the last European Tour of the year.”

Amid the complaints, Heta struck a very different tone. The world number fifteen decided to skip the plane and simply got in the car. “I don’t know. Just get on with it,” said Heta.

His message is clear: this is part of a pro darter’s life. “It is what it is at the end of the day. You’re playing darts and you’re traveling,” said Heta. “I went from one Euro tour to another, and then on the way, it just made sense to drive for myself."

That road-trip approach not only reduced stress but also brought a different mindset. “Just made a good time of it, I guess. You just got to look at it more of a positive sense and just, like I said, just get on with it, I think.”

Meanwhile, ‘The Heat’ is also trying to find form again on the oche. A semi-final at the Poland Darts Masters recently showed signs of recovery. Yet the big stage remains a hurdle for now: he has not reached a quarterfinal at a major for over a year.

For a player of his quality, that starts to grate — and he does not hide it. “I’ve probably just kept the same goals for the last couple of years now,” Heta explained. “Where I want to be and what I have set in place for myself.”

Strikingly, he now takes a critical look at his own words earlier this season. “I said something like I was very content being a darts player and that life’s great, and it doesn’t matter if you’re winning,” he said. “Not that it doesn’t matter, but I was happy with where I am — it just doesn’t sit right with me.”

The Australian makes it clear his ambitions go beyond just competing. “I’m not content because I work so hard and I do so much in darts and outside of darts, just trying to make everything better,” said Heta. “I need these results to come, so it pays off.”

For now, however, those results are lagging behind his expectations. “At the moment, the results just aren’t coming as much as I would like them to,” he admitted. “It just makes me a bit hungrier and a bit keener.”

It is precisely that hunger Heta will need to contend for titles on a regular basis again. His goals are set, the motivation is clearly there — now it’s about translating that onto the board.