In this feature, we regularly look back at a darts player from the past as we go Back in the Day With. Today it is the turn of Englishman Colin Monk, who won the only major title of his career at the 1996 Winmau World Masters and whose son later tried to follow in his footsteps.
The wider darts public first saw Colin Monk in action at the 1994 BDO World Championship. At the legendary Lakeside Country Club, he defeated Dane Jann Hoffmann 3-0 in the opening round. In the second round, he lost 3-1 to Englishman Steve McCollum. "Mad Monk", as his nickname went, spent the following years travelling the international circuit and won his first major title at the 1995 Denmark Open. As a result, he qualified once again for the BDO World Championship and this time reached the quarter finals, where Raymond van Barneveld eventually proved too strong.
Monk was becoming more and more of a player to be reckoned with and in 1996 he struck at the Winmau World Masters. In a thrilling final at the Paragon Hotel in London, he defeated reigning BDO world champion Ritchie Burnett 3-2. Monk recorded a 92.70 average in that final compared to his opponent’s 91.71. For winning the title, Monk received a cheque worth £13,100. Monk remained a regular fixture at the BDO World Championship in the years that followed. Having never progressed beyond the quarter finals previously, he finally bettered that achievement in 1998. After victories over Ritchie Davies, Robbie Widdows and Ted Hankey, Monk faced Raymond van Barneveld in the semi finals. The images became legendary, with a tearful son Arron in the crowd as Monk eventually lost 5-3 to Barney. In 2002, Monk reached the semi finals once again at the Lakeside Country Club. He did so after a series of excellent performances. In the opening round, Tony O'Shea was beaten 3-2. One round later, top seed and defending champion John Walton was defeated by the same scoreline. In the quarter finals, Monk edged Wayne Mardle 5-4. However, just like four years earlier, his run ended in the semi finals, this time with a 5-1 defeat to Mervyn King.
The Englishman made his final appearance at the BDO World Championship in 2004, where he lost to Ted Hankey in the opening round. He then switched to the rival PDC, where he had already reached the quarter finals of the UK Open the previous year. Monk found it particularly difficult to establish himself in the PDC and never got beyond the first round in four World Championship appearances. He also never came close again to matching that UK Open quarter final run at any other major event. Monk continued to slide down the world rankings and had to attend Q School in 2012 to try to regain a PDC Tour Card. He failed in that attempt and never tried again. As a result, his career ultimately yielded just one major title. Since then, he has focused mainly on guiding his son Arron, who showed his talent in 2011 by winning the PDC World Youth Championship. In the final, he defeated none other than Michael van Gerwen. That same year, he also won the Colin Monk Classic, a tournament named after his father. Arron Monk held a PDC Tour Card from 2011 to 2015, then again in 2018 and 2019, and most recently from 2023 to 2024. He returned the tour in 2023 wanting to shed the New Kids on the Oche benchmark and said that he practiced with his father but he fell off the tour again after.
For a long time, Colin Monk’s career appeared to be over, his last official tournament having come back in 2013, until he suddenly reappeared at the 2022 World Seniors Darts Masters. In the opening round, he defeated Deta Hedman 4-0. With an average of just 70, however, he remained well below the level he produced during his prime years. Monk’s run ended in the second round when he lost 4-2 to Canadian David Cameron. With a 77.37 average, he did improve on his performance from the opening match. Since then, Monk has not appeared again on the World Seniors Darts Tour. With no fewer than fifteen World Championship appearances, eleven with the BDO and four with the PDC, Colin Monk more than earned his place in darts history. He was not a prolific winner, but his World Masters title in 1996 means he will forever be recorded as a major champion, something not many darts players can say. Monk may not have been the greatest talent, but he was a fighter who was never easy to finish off in a match. Someone who always gave everything and, because of that attitude, built a very respectable career. His son Arron is still only 36 years old, so perhaps we will still see the Monk name appear in tournaments around the world in the years ahead.
