Roland Scholten – The Dutch trailblazer who made PDC history

In this feature, we regularly travel back in the day with a particular darts player. Today, we do so with Dutchman Roland Scholten. He was one of the Dutch players who played an important role in the transition from the traditional BDO circuit to the modern PDC.

The Hague-born player enjoyed success with the BDO as early as the 1990s, subsequently became a regular fixture on the PDC circuit and made history by winning the UK Open in 2004. Scholten also reached two other major finals and made the latter stages of the biggest darts tournaments on several occasions.

Roland Scholten was born on January 11, 1965, in The Hague. 'The Tripod' showed from an early age that he had the talent to compete at international level. In 1992, he reached the final of the Austrian Open, where he lost to Rod Harrington. A year later came an important success. Scholten won the 1993 WDF World Cup by defeating Dane Troels Rusel in the final.

In 1994, the Dutchman made his debut at the BDO World Championship. He beat Sean Palfrey in the first round, but then lost to Ronnie Sharp. Remarkably, Scholten was the only seeded player at that tournament to reach the second round. Later that year, he also reached the quarter-finals of the Winmau World Masters. He defeated Stefan Eeckelaert and Derek Hampton before Steve Beaton ended his run.

Over the following years, Scholten continued to develop. At the 1995 World Championship, he lost to Colin Monk in the first round, while at the World Masters he reached the second round. There, he beat Palfrey again, but Raymond van Barneveld proved too strong.

In 1996, Scholten broke through further. At the BDO World Championship, he defeated Mark Salmon 3-0 before losing to defending champion Richie Burnett in the second round. Away from the World Championship, however, Scholten enjoyed a particularly successful season that year. He won three major Open tournaments: the North Holland Open, the Swedish Open and the prestigious British Open.

He also made an impression at the World Masters by reaching the semi-finals. A year later, Scholten once again went deep at the World Championship. He defeated Mike Gregory and Bobby George to reach the quarter-finals, where Mervyn King proved too strong.

In 1997, Scholten also played an important role in the doubles alongside Raymond van Barneveld. The Dutch duo won the PDC World Pairs Championship in Bognor Regis by defeating Richie Burnett and Rod Harrington in the final.

Scholten remained among the better players on the BDO circuit in both 1998 and 1999. At the 1998 World Championship, he reached the semi-finals. He defeated fellow Dutchman Co Stompé, American Roger Carter and Sean Palfrey in succession. In the semi-final, Richie Burnett stood in his way once again, and this time the Welshman came out on top.

A year later, Scholten reached the quarter-finals of the World Championship again. Ronnie Baxter ended his run on that occasion.

Shortly afterwards, Scholten decided to switch from the BDO to the PDC. However, the transition did not go without problems. After the 1999 World Championship, he tried to leave the BDO, but because he was not given permission to do so, he had to miss the 2000 World Championship.

Nevertheless, Scholten continued with his new career. In 2000, he reached the final of the Antwerp Open, where Jamie Harvey defeated him. He then made his debut in PDC majors. At the World Matchplay, he lost to Rod Harrington in the first round, while Richie Burnett proved too strong for him at the World Grand Prix.

The real breakthrough came in 2001. Scholten made his debut at the PDC World Darts Championship and immediately reached the quarter-finals. He defeated Shayne Burgess and Cliff Lazarenko 3-0, before Harrington proved too strong in the quarter-finals, winning 4-2.

Later that year came an even bigger success. Scholten reached the final of the World Grand Prix. Along the way, he defeated Harrington, Mick Manning, John Part and John Lowe, among others. However, Alan Warriner-Little proved too strong in the final.

Scholten increasingly established himself as a player who regularly challenged for titles. In 2002, he won his first PDC event, the Open Holland. He also reached the semi-finals of the Las Vegas Desert Classic and the quarter-finals of the World Grand Prix.

2003 was another successful year. Scholten reached the quarter-finals of the World Championship, the semi-finals of the UK Open and the quarter-finals of the Desert Classic. He again reached the semi-finals of the World Grand Prix. In addition, he won the Eastbourne Pro and the Primus Masters.

The biggest success of Scholten's career came in 2004. After reaching the third round of the World Championship, he continued his strong form. He defended his title at the Eastbourne Open and then went on to win his first major PDC title.

At the UK Open, Scholten defeated Mark Dudbridge, Henry O'Neill, Denis Ovens, Alan Warriner and Steve Beaton. John Part awaited him in the final. Scholten held his nerve and claimed his first major PDC title.

The victory was the culmination of the development Scholten had undergone in the preceding years. The Dutchman was no longer merely a former BDO star who had switched to the PDC, but had himself become a player with a major title on his résumé.

Scholten also played a prominent role in the Premier League Darts. In 2005, he reached the semi-finals and faced Phil Taylor. Scholten made an excellent start to the match, building leads of 4-1, 5-2, 6-3, 7-4 and eventually even 11-7.

Taylor, however, refused to be beaten. The Englishman won six legs in a row and completely turned the match around. Taylor eventually won 13-11, meaning Scholten narrowly missed out on a place in the final.

A year later, Scholten got another chance. In the semi-final of the 2006 Premier League, he faced Raymond van Barneveld. Scholten was again the underdog, but this time he completed the upset. He defeated Van Barneveld convincingly 11-3 to reach the final.

Taylor awaited him there once again. This time, the Englishman proved far too strong and won the final 16-6. Nevertheless, Scholten had established himself as one of the prominent players of his generation with his second consecutive semi-final appearance and first Premier League final.

Scholten also came close to another major final at the 2006 World Matchplay. He reached the semi-finals and ultimately lost to James Wade in a decisive stage. Scholten even had a dart at tops to win the match, but was unable to take the opportunity.

Scholten remained active at the highest level in 2007. As the number four seed, he reached the third round of the World Championship, where Colin Osborne eliminated him 4-2. In the Premier League, Scholten finished last, although he managed to hold Phil Taylor to 7-7 twice during the season.

At that year's World Matchplay, Scholten faced Taylor again. This time, the difference was enormous: Taylor won the quarter-final 16-1.

From October 2008, Scholten began experiencing serious problems with his neck and shoulder. These physical issues had major consequences for his performances. At the 2008 European Championship, he lost to Mensur Suljovic with an average of just 51.52.

The problems continued. At the 2009 World Championship, Scholten lost to Carlos Rodriguez in the first round, causing him to drop outside the world's top 16. That same year, he underwent shoulder surgery and took a break from darts.

Upon returning at the 2010 World Championship, Scholten lost 3-2 to Steve Hine in the first round.

Although his performances later no longer reached the level of his best years, Scholten remained involved in the darts world. From the 2010 World Matchplay onwards, he worked for a period as an expert for German television channel Sport1.

The former major winner nevertheless remained active as a player himself. At the 2012 World Championship, he defeated Jamie Caven 3-1 in the opening round, but was then eliminated 4-0 by Wayne Jones in the second round. Later that year, he reached the quarter-finals of a UK Open Qualifier, defeating players including Ted Hankey and Brendan Dolan. Dave Chisnall ultimately proved too strong.

At the 2012 UK Open, Scholten also showed that his experience was still valuable. Against fifteen-time world champion Phil Taylor, he came close to a major upset in the last 64. Scholten eventually lost 9-7.

His final years as a professional were difficult. In qualifying for the 2013 World Championship, he reached the quarter-finals, where Terry Temple defeated him. At that point, Scholten was ranked 47th in the world. At the 2013 UK Open, he lost 5-4 to Conan Whitehead.

The 2013 season subsequently became one of the most disappointing seasons of his career. Despite playing the full PDC schedule, Scholten did not progress beyond the last 32 at any event.

In 2022, Scholten put on his playing shirt once again. He was invited to the World Seniors Championship. At the iconic Circus Tavern in Purfleet, however, the Dutchman immediately lost in the first round to Terry Jenkins. Scholten finished with an average of 76.19.

Later that year, he also competed at the World Seniors Darts Masters. There too, things immediately went wrong in the opening round after a 4-1 defeat to Englishman Wayne Jones. Once again, Scholten finished with an average of 76.99.

It was immediately Scholten's final appearance on a major stage. He did, however, continue working as an analyst for Viaplay until the end of 2023, when his contract was not renewed.

Roland Scholten's career is difficult to confine to a single period. He was first a successful BDO player, then made the switch to the PDC and developed into a player capable of beating big names and competing for titles on the biggest stages.

His 2004 UK Open victory represents the absolute highlight, but his other two major finals and his semi-final appearance at the 2006 World Matchplay also underline his significance.

At the same time, his career shows how unpredictable a professional sporting career can be. After Scholten spent years among the world's elite, physical problems became an increasingly important factor. His neck and shoulder problems had a direct impact on his performances and ultimately forced him to seek a different role within the darts world.

As an analyst, Scholten nevertheless remained involved in the sport in which he had played a leading role for many years. His career therefore entered a second chapter. The Dutchman who once broke through from the BDO, conquered the PDC and won a major in 2004 thus remained a recognisable face within the international darts world.