In the latest edition of our retrospective feature, we turn the clock back to the career of Justin Pipe, the Englishman who became one of the most recognisable figures in darts – not just for his results, but for his famously slow throwing style. Pipe's journey to the top was anything but conventional: he started as an amateur who avoided smoke-filled pubs, later worked as a tree surgeon, and even suffered a serious car accident in 1993 that paralysed his right arm for three months – an injury that partly explains his unique throwing action.
Born on November 9, 1971, in Taunton, Pipe's early darts career was held back by his staunch opposition to smoking, as cigarette smoke in local pubs caused his eyes to water. The introduction of the smoking ban in England in 2007 changed everything. A year later, he made his first major stage appearance at the 2008 UK Open as a pub qualifier, defeating Geoff Wylie and Lionel Sams before losing to James Wade in the third round. In 2009, he joined the PDC Pro Tour and again reached the third round of the UK Open, where Andy Jenkins proved too strong, winning 9-5.
Pipe's real breakthrough came in 2011. He qualified for the World Championship and made his World Matchplay debut, immediately upsetting Mervyn King 10-6 in Blackpool. Later that year, he won his first PDC Pro Tour title in Dublin, defeating none other than Phil Taylor 6-5 in the final. He followed that with another Players Championship win, and his superb form saw him become the number one seed at the Players Championship Finals, having reached the final in six of his previous ten tournaments. At the 2012 World Championship, he fought back from 2-0 down against Wes Newton to win 4-3 and reach the last 16 for the first time, where Terry Jenkins beat him 4-1. His performances earned him the PDPA Players' Player of the Year award at the annual PDC Awards.
2012 proved to be a standout year. Pipe won the first Players Championship of the season, thrashing Paul Nicholson 6-0 in the final, before losing to Michael Smith 6-3 in the next day's final. In April, he claimed one of the most important victories of his career at the Austrian Darts Open, beating James Wade 6-3 in the final, having also defeated Raymond van Barneveld 6-3 in the semi-final with an average of 107. That win propelled him into the world's top 16 for the first time, climbing to 15th. He reached the quarter-finals of the World Matchplay, where Ronnie Baxter beat him 16-11, and later the quarter-finals of the World Grand Prix. He also qualified for the Championship League Winners Group by defeating Phil Taylor 6-5. His consistent Pro Tour season earned him fifth place on the Order of Merit, and he reached the semi-finals of the Players Championship Finals for the first time, losing 11-6 to Kim Huybrechts.
2013 brought more highlights, including a second consecutive World Matchplay quarter-final, where he produced a spectacular 170 finish against Raymond van Barneveld before losing 16-10 to Phil Taylor. At the World Grand Prix, he defeated Andy Smith, Adrian Lewis, and Andy Hamilton to reach the semi-finals – a run he himself described as the best achievement of his career. He led Dave Chisnall 2-1 but eventually lost 5-2. He also reached the semi-finals of the Players Championship Finals for the second straight year, but Taylor again proved his nemesis, hitting a crucial 132 finish via the bull at 5-4 before winning 10-4.
In 2014, Pipe reached the final of the German Darts Championship, where he led Gary Anderson 5-3 but missed six match darts and lost 6-5. He also lost a Players Championship final 6-2 to Peter Wright in May. However, at the fifteenth Players Championship of the year, he claimed his first title in over two years, defeating Adrian Lewis in a deciding leg in the semi-final and then reigning world champion Michael van Gerwen in a deciding leg in the final. Just two days later, he suffered a first-round exit at the World Grand Prix, losing 2-0 in sets to Robert Thornton.
From 2015 onwards, Pipe's form declined. At the 2015 World Championship, he led Laurence Ryder 2-1 but lost six consecutive legs and was eliminated. He reached the final of the Dutch Darts Masters that year, but Michael van Gerwen demolished him 6-0. At the 2016 World Championship, he lost 3-0 to Christian Kist with an average of just 75.55, losing the final seven legs. There were occasional flashes of his old self, such as reaching the semi-finals of the final Players Championship of 2016, where he beat Peter Wright before losing 6-5 to Benito van de Pas. In 2017, as the 23rd seed at the Players Championship Finals, he defeated Daryl Gurney 10-9 in the quarter-finals before losing 11-3 to Michael van Gerwen in the semi-finals.
Pipe's career took a controversial turn at the 2018 World Championship. In the first round against Bernie Smith, he appeared to cough deliberately as Smith was throwing during the decisive stage. Smith missed, and Pipe won the match 3-2. The incident, dubbed 'Cough-gate', led to the Darts Regulation Authority fining Pipe £3,000 on January 8, 2018. In the second round, he lost 4-0 to Phil Taylor, winning just two legs. Pipe lost his PDC Tour Card in 2021 and did not return to the professional circuit. He will be remembered as one of the most unconventional players in modern darts – a man who overcame countless obstacles, including a background in boxing and a career as a tree surgeon, to defeat the likes of Phil Taylor, Michael van Gerwen, Raymond van Barneveld, and Adrian Lewis, and to spend time among the world's elite.
