"It put me in a dark place. I don't want to go back there" - Steve West opens up on the dark side of life as a pro darter

Steve West is ready to go for it all over again. After his hip surgery, the 49-year-old Englishman is beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel and is thinking about his darts again.

A former UK Open quarter-finalist and five-time PDC World Darts Championship participant, West lost his PDC Tour Card back in 2022. "I always believe that I'm probably one of the best players to ever grace the stage at MODUS and probably on the PDC stage as well. I'm not saying I've ever won anything, I don't claim to have been the best ever, but I know what I feel," West explains in conversation with Online Darts. "I probably should have done a lot better in the career that I've had."

Clearly still high on self confidence, West is set to attempt a return to the big time at Q-School next year. "I'm going to go. I'm not sure with what mindset but I'm probably looking just to see where I'm at more than anything. I don't think I want to chase the pro thing anymore," he explains. "To be brutally honest, there's a lot of people in there, that I don't want to be associated with anymore. I'm happy with my life now as it is and I don't think I need to be in that environment, because at some point, that game destroyed me."

"I've had two three or years out now, and it's probably the happiest I've been for 20 years," West continues. "So I'm not going to Q-School to win my card back, I'm going to just see where I'm at for my future plans. See what I've still got and if I've got a little bit that I can give to the seniors next year from June."

Despite not going to Q-School to win a Tour Card, the chance remains that West could find himself winning one. What would the Englishman do then? "Would I accept it? No. I'm not sure if you're allowed to turn it down but I would," he explains. "It put me in a dark place. I don't want to go back there. I put myself through a lot of dark stuff and if I didn't meet Michelle when I did, I probably wouldn't even be talking to you now so I don't want to go. I'm still good enough! However, I don't want to actually."

"I know I've got a game, we've seen it. But where do I want to apply that game? I don't want to apply that game to a place that destroyed my life, so I'd rather go where I'm enjoying things and I feel comfortable," West concludes.