Nicholson goes a long way to proving doubter's wrong
'The Asset' Paul Nicholson has been somewhat of an enigma since his Players Championship's finals victory in January 2010, but he finally got back on the winning trail on Saturday as he won a tour event in Crawley.
The Geordie-come-Aussie is not known for his floor prowess but he not only proved a point to his doubters, but he proved a point to himself that he can have success away from the television camera's.
That's vital to his career because he can't rely on his bad-boy persona if he want's to move higher up the PDC Order of Merit.
The hard yardage to make it into the television events is put in on the numerous weekends of the year around the country where 128 players convene to compete against each other to try and win the £6000 winner's prize.
He had to beat some terrific players on his way to glory too, including the 2011 World Championship finalists - Gary Anderson and Adrian Lewis. He also overcome the likes of Robert Thornton and Mark Walsh on Sunday afternoon.
Proof of the awards that victories on the floor can hand a player can be seen through Wez Newton's success - who was, ironically, the player who denied Nicholson a double win in the final on Sunday.
Newton continues rise up PDC Order of Merit
It wasn't so long ago that he was adrift from the top players in and around the 25-30 mark in the rankings, but several Pro Tour tournament wins and improved displays in the major's as seen him skyrocket to eighth in the world.
This is the kind of ranking that Nicholson's class and quality merit, but unless he builds on his win over the weekend, he will not find the improvement he desires.
Anderson shows quality to reach two semi-finals
Gary Anderson was another player to impress over the weekend by reaching the semi-finals on both days.
The Scot is usually more accustomed to winning event's rather than settling for a semi-final spot but his current form on the floor as been a bit wayward to say the least after several early exits.
Maybe it was the initial acclimatisation to the travelling and playing in the Premier League alongside the Pro Tour but the signs in Crawley were that he is ready to start on the victory trail again
The defeats that he did suffer over the weekend have been narrow defeats to the eventual winners so all-in-all, he can't be too downhearted with his failure to convert those semi-final spots into a final.
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