William James O'Connor (born 15 July 1986) is an Irish professional

darts Darts is a competitive sport in which two or more players bare-handedly throw small projectile point, sharp-pointed projectile, projectiles known as dart (missile), darts at a round shooting target, target known as a #Dartboard, dartboard. Point ...

player who competes in

Professional Darts Corporation The Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) is a professional darts organisation in the United Kingdom, established in 1992 when a group of leading players split from the British Darts Organisation (BDO) to form what was initially called the Wor ...

(PDC) events. He reached his first major semi-final at the 2022 UK Open. O'Connor won his first ranking title at 2019 PDC Players Championship 13. He has finished as the runner-up in two

PDC European Tour The PDC European Tour is a series of darts tournaments held across Europe organized by the Professional Darts Corporation. Starting in 2012 with five events, the number of events has steadily risen with eight held in 2013 and 2014, nine in 2015, 10 ...

events. O'Connor has represented

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

at the

PDC World Cup of Darts For the current edition see 2025 PDC World Cup of Darts The PDC World Cup of Darts is a team darts tournament organised by the Professional Darts Corporation, and was one of the three new tournaments introduced into the PDC calendar in 2010. It i ...

. He reached the final at the 2019 edition, alongside

Steve Lennon Steve Lennon (born 25 November 1993) is an Irish professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Nicknamed "Scuba Steve", he reached his first major quarter-final at the 2018 Players Championship Finals. He ...

Career

O'Connor first came to prominence at the 2010 UK Open when he whitewashed Stuart Monaghan in the first round 6–0 in legs. He then defeated Mark Frost and Peter Wright to reach the fourth round, where he played world number 3

James Wade James Martin Wade (born 6 April 1983) is an English professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is currently ranked world number nine; he reached a peak ranking of world number two in 2010. ...

on the main board and lost 9–3. He qualified for the 2010 World Grand Prix, where he lost to Barrie Bates in the first round 2–0 in sets. O'Connor along with Mick McGowan represented Ireland at the inaugural

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

. The pair defeated Slovakia in the first round 6–3 in legs. However, they were narrowly beaten in the second round by the Australian duo of

Simon Whitlock Simon Whitlock (born 3 March 1969) is an Australian professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, having previously competed in British Darts Organisation (BDO) events. Nicknamed "The Wizard", he won th ...

and Paul Nicholson 6–5, who were number 4 and 16 in the world rankings respectively. He played in his second World Cup for Ireland in

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, again paired with McGowan and, as in 2010, they reached the second round this time by defeating Malaysia 5–2. They played the same Australian pair as in 2010 next and were whitewashed 0–4. The next week he reached the quarter-finals of the first UK Open Qualifier, but was defeated by Kevin Painter 4–6. This would later prove to be O'Connor's deepest run in a tournament in 2012. During the year he qualified for three of the five European Tour events. He was knocked out in the first round of the first two, but at the German Darts Masters he saw off Painter 6–5, before losing 3–6 to Wayne Jones. O'Connor was one of the two Irish qualifiers for the World Grand Prix and missed a dart for the match in the first round against Vincent van der Voort, losing 1–2 in sets. O'Connor began 2013 ranked world number 54, and played in his third World Cup of Darts and first with

Connie Finnan Connie Finnan (born 20 May 1962) is an Irish former professional darts player. Career BDO In September 2009, Finnan qualified for the televised stages of the 2009 World Masters (darts), World Masters. He defeated Darryl Fitton 3–1 in the l ...

in February. The pair beat Denmark 5–0 in their first match and despite losing to South Africa 4–5 they finished top of Group B on leg difference to reach the last 16. They faced Japan and were defeated 3–5. O'Connor was beaten 9–4 by

Dave Chisnall David Chisnall (born 12 September 1980) is an English professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is currently ranked world number twelve; he reached a peak ranking of world number five in ...

in the third round of the

UK Open The Ladbrokes UK Open is a ranking major darts tournament held annually at the Butlins Minehead Resort by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) in England. The event is often referred to as the "FA Cup of darts" as it has an unseeded open dr ...

having earlier seen off Robbie Singleton and Johnny Haines. He struggled for form after this until the first weekend of November when he lost in the last 16 to Mensur Suljović and Gary Anderson in two Players Championships, earning himself £2,000 in the process. O'Connor entered 2014 ranked world number 68, just outside the top 64 who had full playing privileges for the year ahead. He entered Q School and had his best result on the third day when he was defeated 5–0 by Pete Dyos in the last 16. The result helped him finish 24th on the Q School Order of Merit to claim the final place on offer for a two-year tour card. He was edged out in the third round of the

9–8 by Jamie Lewis. O'Connor and Finnan lost five successive legs in the first round of the World Cup of Darts to be beaten 5–3 by Singapore. He was knocked out in the first round of two European Tour events, before picking up his first victory of the season at the European Darts Trophy by averaging 104.36 in a 6–4 win over Mensur Suljović. In the second round, O'Connor was 5–4 ahead of

Justin Pipe Justin Pipe (born 9 November 1971) is an English former professional darts player who competed in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He won six PDC titles. Playing career Pipe was a Boxing, boxer in his youth, and, as a staunch anti- ...

but bust his score when on 70 and missed one match dart at double six to be beaten 6–5. At the 2015 UK Open, O'Connor overcame Dean Winstanley 5–3, Mark Webster 9–5 and Ian White 9–6 to reach the fifth round of the event for the first time where he played

Stephen Bunting Stephen Bunting (born 9 April 1985) is an English professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is currently ranked world number four. Nicknamed "the Bullet", Bunting formerly competed in Brit ...

. The opening eight legs were shared, before Bunting took four of the next five and he went on to eliminate O'Connor 9–6. He saw off Ian White 6–1 and Vincent van der Voort 6–3 to reach his first quarter-final in three years and first in a European Tour event at the German Darts Masters. O'Connor led world number one

Michael van Gerwen Michael van Gerwen (; born 25 April 1989) is a Dutch professional darts player, who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where is currently ranked PDC Order of Merit, world number three; he was ranked world number one from 20 ...

3–1, but went on to lose 6–4 despite taking out three 100 plus finishes. O'Connor and Finnan's

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

second round match with Hong Kong went to a doubles match which they lost 4–3. O'Connor was unable to advance past the first round of the World Grand Prix for the fourth time as he missed two match darts against Jamie Lewis. In 2016, O'Connor was beaten 6–5 by Jeffrey de Graaf in the second round of the

. He ousted Tomas Seyler 6–3 and Kim Huybrechts 6–1 at the German Darts Masters, before losing 6–2 to Gary Anderson in the third round. O'Connor did not get past the last 64 of any individual event in the rest of the year. At the

he and Mick McGowan squeezed past Hong Kong 5–4 in the first round, but they exited the tournament in the next round after they lost their singles matches to the Northern Irish team of

Daryl Gurney Daryl Gurney (born 22 March 1986) is a Northern Irish professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is currently ranked world number twenty-five; he reached a peak ranking of world number thre ...

and

Brendan Dolan Brendan Gabriel Dolan (born 2 August 1973) is a Northern Irish professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He was the first player to hit a nine-dart finish in a "double-to-start" event (where a pla ...

. O'Connor just avoided having to enter PDC Q-School in 2017 as he was ranked 64th on the Order of Merit, keeping his PDC Tour Card. He kicked off 2017 when he defeated Max Hopp, Christian Kist,

Keegan Brown Keegan Brown (born 5 November 1992) is an English professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He has won two ranking PDC Players Championship titles. Brown reached the quarter-finals at the 2014 Gran ...

, Ritchie Edhouse and Devon Peterson on the way to a quarter final in UK Open Qualifier 1. He eventually lost to Ricky Evans, but coupled with a run to the Last 32 in Qualifier 5, he did enough to make his way into the 2017 UK Open. O'Connor entered the UK Open in the second round, where he took on fellow Irishman

. O'Connor got the better of Lennon 6–2 to book a spot in the Last 64. Here, he played Mick Todd, who O'Connor beat 10–3 over the longer format. In the Last 32, he played

Ronnie Baxter Ronnie Baxter (born 5 February 1961) is an English former professional darts player who competed in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He used the nickname "The Rocket" for his matches. Baxter was known for his fast robotic throwing a ...

, with O'Connor claiming a super 10–6 win to reach his second ever

Last 16.

was his opponent, and the Aussie proved just too much, defeating O'Connor 10–7, although the Limerick man picked up £6,500 for his run. O'Connor continued his form in Barnsley the following weekend, reaching the Last 16 of Players Championship 3, and the Last 32 of Players Championship 4. He defeated Zoran Lerchbacher and Christian Kist to set up a tie with the world champion

in the Last 32. O'Connor beat van Gerwen 6–4, but lost to Ritchie Edhouse in the following round. In Players Championship 4 the next day, he beat Jermaine Wattimena and Mick Todd, but was beaten by Mensur Suljović in the Last 32. O'Connor then had a couple of bad months, with his best result being a Last 32 in Players Championship 12, where he defeated

and Paul Harvey before a 6–5 loss to

. He once again teamed up with Mick McGowan at the World Cup of Darts. O'Connor reached his first PDC final at the 2018 European Darts Matchplay, losing to

by a scoreline of 8–2. He then won a first PDC title at Players Championship 13 on 30 April 2019, beating

Nathan Aspinall Nathan Aspinall (born 15 July 1991) is an English professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is currently ranked PDC Order of Merit, world number six; he reached a peak ranking of world number ...

8–4 in the final. In June 2019, O'Connor alongside

made it all the way to the final of the

2019 PDC World Cup of Darts The 2019 BetVictor World Cup of Darts was the ninth edition of the PDC World Cup of Darts. It took place from 6–9 June 2019 at the Barclaycard Arena (Hamburg), Barclaycard Arena in Hamburg, Germany. The Dutch pairing of Michael van Gerwen and Ra ...

where they eventually lost to Scotland 3–1. In the 2020 PDC World Championship, O'Connor made an apparent calculation blunder in losing his second round match against

Gerwyn Price Gerwyn Price (born 7 March 1985) is a Welsh professional darts player and former professional rugby union and rugby league player. He competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is currently ranked PDC Order of Merit, world ...

. O'Connor was selected as a 'challenger' for the 2020 Premier League night in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, Ireland. In March 2022, O'Connor reached the semi-finals of the 2022 UK Open, recording wins over Connor Scutt,

, Sebastian Białecki and recent world champion Peter Wright before losing 9-11 to eventual champion Danny Noppert. O'Connor was again joined by

for the World Cup of Darts, beating Canada 5-2 in the first round before losing 2-0 to the Netherlands. In September 2022, O'Connor reached his second European Tour final, losing 8-3 to Joe Cullen in the 2022 Hungarian Darts Trophy, after beating the likes of

, Michael Smith and Dimitri Van den Bergh in earlier rounds. He won his opening game at the

World Championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

with 3-0 whitwewash win over Beau Greaves. O'Connor exited the tournament at the second round stage losing to

Gabriel Clemens Gabriel Clemens (born 16 August 1983) is a German professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. He reached the semi-finals at the 2017 World Masters, the 2023 PDC World Championship and the 2023 Player ...

3–0. O'Connor was joined by a new playing partner for the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...

for the 2023 PDC World Cup of Darts with Keane Barry replacing

World Championship results

PDC

* 2018: First round (lost to Steve Beaton 1–3) * 2019: Third round (lost to Ryan Searle 1–4) * 2020: Second round (lost to

2–3) * 2021: Second round (lost to

2–3) * 2022: Third round (lost to Michael Smith 2–4) * 2023: Second round (lost to

0–3) * 2024: Second round (lost to Chris Dobey 2–3) * 2025: First round (lost to Dylan Slevin 1–3)

Career finals

PDC team finals: 1

Performance timeline

PDC European Tour PDC Players Championships

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oconnor, William 1986 births Living people Irish darts players Professional Darts Corporation current tour card holders PDC ranking title winners PDC World Cup of Darts Irish team Sportspeople from Limerick (city)