Split in darts 2004. Former BDO stalwarts John Part and van Barneveld have won the PDC World Championship having previously won the BDO version. In addition, reigning BDO World Champion Mark Webster defeated PDC World Champion John Part 10–2 in legs in the second round of the 2008 Grand Slam of Darts. BDO player Scott Waites won the 2010 Grand Slam of Darts. Waites is the only BDO player to reach the final of the event. On 21 October 2009, Barry Hearn made a bid of £1 million to purchase the BDO. It was the first time that a formal offer had been
Martin Atkins (darts player) in the first round, and lost 3-2 having missed two match darts in the fourth set. Atkins finally progressed past the second-round stage of the World Championship when, in 2012, he defeated 7th seed John Walton and 10th seed Willy van de Wiel en route to a quarter-final match against Ted Hankey where he lost 5-1. In 2012, Atkins won the biggest title of his career so far by winning the BDO British Open, beating Robbie Green in the final. However, his season ended in disappointment when he lost in the first round of the World Championship to Jason Cullen.