"I've played nine World Championships and I want to make it ten before I'm 40" - Benito van de Pas underlines target of dream Ally pally return

Benito van de Pas has been a forgotten name in darts, but his brief stint as a highly regarded young talent will live on in the memory of many darters. Following some time away from the oche, he is giving darts another shot with a return to Ally Pally the target.

The Dutchman caught a lot of eyes early on with some notable title wins and was regarded as one of the biggest prospects in the sport. It seemed to have fallen away from him as the years went by with 2020 marking the end of his time on the PDC Tour.

Nevertheless, 2026 is a new year and has brought out a motivated Van de Pas who is determined to get back to his prior heights. Playing again, he has featured in a number of tournaments beginning in his old pub and already featuring on the MODUS Super Series, where he spoke to them about his future ambitions in the sport.

'Big Ben' recalled the early parts of his darting career. "I think when I was 12 or 13 years old on the campsite with my dad. Then, when I was 14 or 15, I started playing tournaments," he stated. "We had a ranking event every Tuesday in Den Bosch. There were players like Michael van Gerwen, Toon Greebe, Gino Vos and Jelle Klaasen there. Every Tuesday night there were around 100 people playing darts, and I was 15 or 16 years old beating them.

"Then, when I was 18 or 19, I qualified for Lakeside and started playing BDO events. Everything was going up and up and up. Then I had the downs as well. Now I feel like I've experienced everything."

His BDO venture was topped by qualifying for the World Championship at Lakeside for the first time in 2012. "It was amazing. I remember winning the German Open that year. After that I travelled to England and other countries because before then I'd only played around Belgium, Holland and Germany. Thanks to Pierre from Orange Bar, we travelled to a lot of tournaments collecting ranking points. I was only 18 years old. It was amazing."

He still remembers his time debuting on that iconic stage. "It was amazing," he exclaimed. "I think we both averaged 97 or 98. We were number one and two for averages, and Alan Norris reached the final that year. It was an amazing experience."

Inevitably, he would make the step to the PDC where a lot of successful moments would occur. However, this was done almost by accident. "I remember I only went for one day because it was my birthday that week as well. On that day I qualified. My goal was actually just to go and play the Development Tour, and then I qualified. I didn't lose my Tour Card until four or five years ago."

While a struggle at first, he soon got in his mojo and became a threat to anyone on the oche. "The first eight or nine months weren't very good," he admitted. "After that I qualified for a lot of European Tour events, climbed the rankings, played well on the Euro Tour and qualified for TV tournaments. Very quickly I was inside the world's top 64.

The European Tour gave him a lot of confidence and necessary stage experience. "Back then we had European qualifiers and I qualified for a lot of them. They gave me so much experience. The same with the Youth Tour. I reached lots of semi-finals and finals, won a lot of matches and it gave me confidence. Within two or three years I was inside the top 32 and wasn't allowed to play the Youth Tour anymore."

He enjoyed success on the big stage as well as on the floor, where his 2026 season caught the eye of many. While a fellow Dutchman by the name of Michael van Gerwen was mopping up most of the titles, Van de Pas was also having his fair share. He won three titles on the ProTour along with reaching two finals.

His first PDC World Darts Championship came all the way back in 2015. He began with a very tight win over Paul Nicholson at Ally Pally. "I don't remember everything," he said. "I know it finished 3-2. We had a 109 checkout at the end. It was a close game. I was still young and I wasn't really thinking. I just won the game."

He reached the third round three years on the spin before making a trip to the fourth round in 2019. He found a lot of success on that stage, consistently picking up wins. "I don't know. I always had a really good feeling there," he said when asked what about Ally Pally suited him. "Sometimes you walk into a venue and just know, 'I'm going to play well here.' Barnsley was like that for me with the ProTours. Sometimes you just have those venues."

This was on top of his other deep major runs. He reached the quarter-final of the Players Championship Finals in 2015 before ending at that stage in 2016 and 2017 World Grand Prix.

He has not played in the World Championship since 2020 following a hiatus from darts. With a return to the big time possibly in the pipeline, he could be tempted to make a comeback with a target set. "I'm going to try. I want to have fun and play. I've played nine World Championships and I want to make it ten before I'm 40, so I've got seven more years."

He ruled out the WDF route. "No. I don't play Lakeside because I don't play the WDF tournaments," he confirmed. "I just want to have fun, play Q School close to home and maybe the ProTour or Challenge Tour. We'll see what happens in January."

The 33-year-old is in no rush to making this target, taking his time and putting in the hours to make sure his game is at the right level and most importantly he is having a lot of fun. "The last four months I've had ups and downs and I'm still not consistent. That's why I'm here. I want to play lots of games, become more consistent, play better and be less nervous.

"If I lose now, I go home to my children and my girlfriend. I'm different than I was a few years ago. Back then, if I lost, I'd be angry in my room and really down. Now I go home to my family. I'm a different man now. I have a job, I like my job, so I have no pressure."

Competing at the MODUS Super Series, there is a lot of talent on display with Van de Pas happy to be competing with them. "I want to give these guys a game. They're all weekly winners. Hopefully I can average over 90 regularly. That would be nice."

This has been a really good route for many players to take as they look to improve their skills on the oche and get that all-important competition under their belt at a high level with the next step up the rankings the target.

"I think it's really good for me to play five days and a lot of matches," he commented. "If everything goes well and there's no pain, then when I get home I'll practise again and have fun. I still feel okay, and I'm very happy to have reached Group B."

He has his eyes on Q-School at the start of 2027, unsure about what to expect. "I don't know. The first goal is to reach Final Stage, then we'll see what happens. I know I can beat anyone. If you have your day or your week, you can win. There are two Tour Cards available each day now, so I think you've got more chance."

He is looking to cause a possible surprise. "Maybe people will think, 'Oh, I've got Big Ben, easy.' Hopefully they think that, and then I can surprise them."

Van de Pas has always been recognisable when competing thanks to his distinctive throw. However, that is something he never really thinks about. "I never think about my throw. I've watched videos from a few years ago and it's changed again now, but it just happens. I'm not doing it on purpose," he said.

"I know I don't have a beautiful throw, but I still had some good results in the past, so I'll never change it. I do my own thing and keep practising. The bounce-outs have almost disappeared now. The darts stay in the board better, so hopefully my scoring becomes higher and more consistent. I practise every day for two or three hours, so hopefully by the end of the year I'll be back where I want to be."

The main thing is that he has the quality to be competing with the top players, and the belief to go alongside it as he eyes up a fresh start on the PDC Tour. Time will tell if he is able to make that step up and re-kindle that spark on stage.