Alan Norris, born on February 21, 1972, in Yeovil, carved out a remarkable darts career that spanned both the BDO and PDC. Due to work commitments, he lived in Sweden for a while and represented the country at international tournaments during the early stages of his career. His first major steps came in 2007, when he won the Swedish National Championship by defeating Daniel Larsson in the final. He had previously reached the semi-finals of the Finnish Open and made an impression at the Winmau World Masters, although he fell in the last-16 qualifying round to Jordy Terburg. He later reached the quarter-finals of the Swedish Open.
In 2008, Norris became more familiar to the wider public. He made his television debut at the Welsh Open, reaching the quarter-finals with victories over players including Martin Adams and Ian Jones, before losing to eventual winner Gary Anderson. That year he also reached the quarter-finals of the Norway Open, Denmark Open and Zuiderduin Masters, and the semi-finals of the Welsh Classic and Swedish Open. The international breakthrough came in 2009 when he qualified for his first BDO World Championship and upset 13th seed Steve West 3-0, before falling to Scott Waites in the second round. He later reached the Welsh Classic final again and his first semi-final at a major televised tournament at the Zuiderduin Masters.
The following years confirmed Norris was no one-hit wonder. At the 2010 World Championship, seeded eighth, he lost in the first round to Robert Wagner, but won the French Open by defeating Kim Huybrechts and reached the semi-finals of the European Open. In 2011, he defeated Ross Montgomery in the first round of the World Championship before falling to Garry Thompson in the second round. Away from Lakeside, he won the England Open Early Bird, defended his French Open title and claimed the Luxembourg Open. The 2012 BDO World Championship proved a turning point: Norris defeated Benito van de Pas and then Dean Winstanley, coming back from 3-1 down to win 4-3 and reach the quarter-finals for the first time. His run ended against Christian Kist, but he missed a dart at double 12 for a nine-darter, which would have been only the second nine-darter in the tournament's history. Later that year, he won the Welsh Masters and Luxembourg Open again, and reached the final of the Zuiderduin Masters, where he produced a 112 average and hit two 170 finishes in his final group match, but lost 5-0 to Stephen Bunting in the final.
After a less impressive season, Norris entered the 2014 BDO World Championship as an unseeded player. He defeated defending champion Scott Waites 3-0 in the first round, averaging more than 93 and converting almost half of his doubles. He then beat Glen Durrant 4-1 and James Wilson 5-2 to reach the semi-finals, where he faced Jan Dekker. In a thrilling match, Norris trailed 4-2 but fought back to win 6-5 and reach his first BDO World Championship final. His opponent was Stephen Bunting, the BDO's world number one. The final was level at 3-3 after six sets, but Bunting moved 6-3 ahead. Norris won the tenth set with a 140 finish and produced a brilliant 113 finish in the eleventh set to stay alive, but Bunting broke his throw to claim the title. Norris settled for £35,000 but had firmly established himself as one of the best in the BDO.
The defeat gave Norris even more motivation, and the rest of 2014 became the most successful year of his BDO career. He won the Denmark Open, Polish Open, British Classic, Swedish Open, Scottish Classic and Catalan Open in succession. His World Championship final appearance also earned him a debut in the Grand Slam of Darts, where he came through the group stage impressively, defeating Ronny Huybrechts and Terry Jenkins to finish top of his group. In the last 16, he faced Kim Huybrechts, who eliminated him 10-5. After the 2015 BDO World Championship, where he was eliminated by Darryl Fitton in the second round after missing three match darts, Norris decided to switch to the PDC. "I've been on the BDO circuit for a long time and things aren't changing quickly enough. I'm not getting any younger either, so now is the right time to give the PDC a chance," Norris said at the time.
Norris immediately made an impression at Q-School, securing his PDC Tour Card on the first day by defeating Carl Abbiss 5-3, having earlier hit a nine-darter. In October 2015, he claimed his first PDC title at Players Championship 18, defeating Kim Huybrechts 6-1 in the final with an impressive 108.06 average. The highlight of his first PDC season came at the 2016 World Championship, where he qualified via the Pro Tour Order of Merit as the highest-ranked non-qualified player. He defeated sixth seed Robert Thornton 3-0, then knocked out Joe Murnan, hitting eleven 180s in that match. He beat Mark Webster 4-1 to reach the quarter-finals, where he faced Jelle Klaasen. Norris took a 3-1 lead, but Klaasen fought back to level at 3-3. Norris came close to a nine-darter and had the chance to throw for the match, but Klaasen won the final five legs to eliminate him 5-4. Despite the defeat, Norris finished the tournament ranked 37th in the Order of Merit, was the best-performing graduate from the 2015 Q-School and was named Newcomer of the Year.
Norris continued to produce excellent results in 2016. He reached the final of a UK Open Qualifier, losing 6-4 to Michael van Gerwen, and reached the fourth round of the UK Open. He also made his debuts at the World Matchplay and World Grand Prix. His biggest success that year came on the European Tour, where he defeated Jelle Klaasen 6-5 in a thrilling final at the German Darts Championship to claim his first European Tour title. At the Players Championship Finals, he hit a nine-darter in his first-round match against Michael Smith, earning a £35,000 prize, and eventually reached the third round. Norris began 2017 with a comeback at the World Championship, falling 2-0 behind against John Michael but winning 3-2. He then lost 4-0 to Raymond van Barneveld in the second round, losing the first ten legs. Later that year, he claimed his third PDC title by defeating Peter Jacques 6-1 at the first Players Championship event of the season. He also came close to reaching the UK Open final, defeating Michael Smith and surviving two match darts against Kim Huybrechts. In his semi-final against Gerwyn Price, the score was 9-9. Norris had three darts to win the 19th leg but failed to take his chances. Price took the leg with a 100 finish and then broke Norris' throw to win 11-9.
Norris was struck by devastating personal tragedy in 2019 when his wife passed away following a battle with cancer. At the end of that year, he also lost his PDC Tour Card. Since then, he has tried several times to regain a tour card at Q-School but has so far been unsuccessful. He has also played in the qualifier for the PDC World Darts Championship, reaching the latter stages this past week, and has often played on the MODUS Super Series and Challenge Tour. Alan Norris' story is that of a player who worked his way to the top step by step. He rose through the BDO ranks to become a World Championship finalist before making the switch to the PDC later in his career and immediately enjoying major success there. His 2016 World Championship quarter-final, European Tour title and multiple Players Championship victories underline just how successful that switch ultimately was. Norris proved that a career does not necessarily have to follow a set path. He spent years building his reputation within the BDO before starting again in the PDC and establishing himself among the established names there too. His career therefore represents a fascinating chapter in the transition of a generation of players from the BDO to the PDC.
