Lennon looking for upturn in fortunes at UK Open

Darts has become increasingly popular over the last couple of years, mainly thanks to the rise of one Luke Littler. Many were glued to their tv screens over Christmas as Littler won the World Championships at Ally Pally at the age of just 17, defeating the three time World Champion, Michael Van Gerwen in the final. Littler had previously finished runner up to Luke Humphries in his maiden World Championships last year.

However, one man who wasn’t at Ally Pally this year was Carlow’s Steve Lennon, having failed to qualify for the tournament. In fact, it’s been a tough couple of years for the former Premier League contender. Lennon lost his tour card last year after a tough year on the circuit which saw him fall out of the top 64 for the first time since turning professional. Lennon was vocal about his struggles with his mental health which impacted his game. He went on to storm through Q-School at the start of last year which saw him regain his tour card.

However, Lennon endured a tough year, going out of the UK Open in the first round and not qualifying for any of the big tv majors, including the World Championships. Now in his second year of the two year cycle of his tour card, Lennon knows the pressure is on him to retain his tour card and speaking ahead of the season, said his main goals for the season are to retain his tour card and make it back to Ally Pally.

“I am looking forward to getting back to playing on the PDC tour. It has been a long couple of weeks of preparing and practising while waiting for the darts to return for me. The main goal this year is to qualify for as many events as possible and, in doing so, retain the tour card, which is the target. Getting back to ally pally is definitely something I want to do this year as well. I'm really just looking forward to getting back to playing more regularly. I guess building stronger consistency and really making sure I give it my all this year is all I can really ask for.” He said that the last couple of years have been difficult for him and that he’s been dealing with a lot outside of darts which has impacted his game.

“It wasn't a good season last year, but I had a lot of personal issues I was going through. I got sick a lot throughout the year, which massively affected my performances. I wasn't as focused really last year too much on darts as I should have been, but I was spending more time getting fit and losing weight. Lots of running and spin classes helped. The main thing was to feel better in myself and, in turn, help my darts. I've done that now, so I feel it has helped me a lot with my stamina and energy levels in a long day of darts.

“Energy levels weren't great at times, I worked on getting fit, so that has helped fix that issue. Now, it's really about trying to be able to produce a high standard game more consistently going forward.” Lennon enjoyed a considerable break at the back end of last season due to not qualifying for the season ending majors, but he says the break was good for him.

“It did help in some ways with the break. Sometimes as well you need time off from it just to regroup and focus on other things for a while before getting back at it. Darts can be a mentally draining sport, so when you have a break, you need to use the time off as wisely as you can.” 

It was a difficult start to the season for Steve as he lost both matches in the Preliminary rounds of the Masters, not qualifying for the main tournament, and struggling in the Players Championship events and European Tour qualifiers. He has had a couple of strong runs though, reaching the Last 32 of Players Championship 3 and the last 40 in European Tour Qualifier 2.

Lennon says he’s been disappointed with his start but that he’s trying to take the positives.

“It hasn't been the best of starts so far but it's always hard trying to get back into things, especially with the travel. The run to the last 32 was decent and I played well that day but disappointed that I didn't follow up with good performances over the next 2 days. I struggled a lot with my scoring towards the end of last year which I seem to have started to improve back on again this year so it's a small positive to take going forward for the season.” Lennon competes in the FA Cup of Darts this weekend in the UK Open, facing Dom Taylor in the second round on Friday afternoon.

Lennon says it’s always a special tournament to play in.

“I'm a big fan of the UK Open. It's a great tournament and I'm a big fan of the open draw format so really looking forward to going back to it. As it's a big major that everyone gets a chance in it's always something you want to make an impression on. A good run of performances in this event can really set you up for the rest of the year. It will be nice to get back on stage. I don't really worry too much about the draw. It's all about how you play on the day. I'm hoping I can play my best and get a good run in the event.”