sharing a selection of specialty darts Kevin creates~and an article printed years ago in our local newspaper, The Pilot.. archives.thepilot/September2000/09-13-2000/091300darts.html Burdelsky Is Always On Target -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BY TIM WILKINS Kevin Burdelsky is always on target. Whether the local dart champion is competing in a national tournament or selling his dart-themed jewelry to other bull’s-eye enthusiasts, Burdelsky always has a good time. Because unlike most other competitive sports, darts is more about the experience and the camaraderie shared by the participants than the actual competition. Sure, you’ve got your cutthroat competitors who want to win at any cost, but in what other sport — with the possible exceptions of softball and bowling — can you quaff the head off a cold, frosty one, and still keep your own head in the game? “There’s a real camaraderie in darts,” Burdelsky said. “Everybody wants to win but everybody is willing to help each other get better, too. “And it’s the only sport in the world where any guy off the street can play against the world champion — if you pay the entrance fee and throw well enough to advance. In golf you have to have a tour card and go to PGA school to qualify. But if some guy off the street has $100, he can enter the North American Open and compete against a world champion. “Imagine a regular golfer getting a shot at Tiger Woods — that’s the reality of tournament play.” Even though, theoretically, any Joe Six-pack can play against a world champion, don’t be fooled into thinking that you can just walk right in and start throwing bull’s-eyes against the best. Burdelsky has honed his throwing expertise over a period of almost 30 years. In fact, Burdelsky — who owns and operates the custom jewelry store Kevin’s Creations — has been throwing darts since his teen-age days in south Florida, picking up the game when his tennis court building father returned from the Caribbean with a dart board in hand. It was a game that the naturally athletic Burdelsky mastered easily and which soon infected his entire family. Burdelsky’s sister Paula is the former Florida state champion and even Burdelsky’s mother used to play competitively. Burdelsky himself has excelled at the game, winning the North Carolina state singles and triples championship and recently placing in the top 64 out of approximately 800 competitors at the prestigious North American Open held in Las Vegas. That annual tournament was televised worldwide and offered over $50,000 in prize money. He adds that world-class dart throwers make between $75,000 and $100,000 annually, with most of these competitors earning sponsorships from, fittingly, darts manufacturers and beer companies. But Burdelsky has yet to earn “big money” from his sideline, going more for the good times than the good bucks. “I make a couple hundred dollars when I do well,” Burdelsky said. “I just like to go to Vegas and compete. I keep a picture of the view from my Vegas timeshare over my workbench as a reminder of why I work so hard — just so I can go down and have fun once a year.” And despite the loosey-goosey atmosphere associated with darts, Burdelsky stresses that the truly world-class players are just as committed to their craft as a major league pitcher or NFL quarterback. He says that the best dart throwers are comparable to “machines” when they get in a groove. Burdelsky points to the example of close friend and world champion dart thrower John Lowe. Lowe is the perennial British national champion and is the first man to shoot the first televised ‘perfect game’ — an honor for which he won 50,000 pounds. Lowe also owns the Guinness Book of World Records record for most consecutive double bull’s-eyes in 10 hours. “I’ve done that maybe 15 times in my life,” Burdelsky said. “John did four or five times that number in a matter of hours.” For casual dart throwers who can only dream of hitting even one double bull’s-eye, Cricket is perhaps the most familiar game. But Burdelsky’s favorite dart game — and the one the big boys (and girls) play in the national tournaments — is the heavily math-based 501. Indeed, the scoring of this particular game is so rooted in elementary math education that Burdelsky reasons if every child in America played 501, math problems would disappear overnight. But he admits that in a game which often mixes a barroom atmosphere with sharp, pointy objects, keeping track of the complicated 501 scoring system can be a bit of a problem for competitors who imbibe a little too freely. “There is an etiquette to darts,” Burdelsky said. “You can drink and smoke on the side but not while you’re up there throwing darts. Unfortunately, I was playing at a tournament in Vegas and one of my competitors had a little too much to drink in between matches. “In fact, he was to the point that he couldn’t keep score for himself. I had to play him and keep his score. Which was fine with me — I won. And like I said, darts is a lot more casual and relaxed than say, baseball.” So casual, in fact, that after tossing a game of friendly darts at a tournament, Burdelsky then pulls out his handmade wares, hawking his custom dart-themed jewelry at prices ranging from $35 on up to $250. Burdelsky’s creations include dart and board charms made of gold and silver. His latest creation is a dart talisman crafted from crystal and gold. Burdelsky has the sole concession for jewelry at the tournaments and he has garnered a worldwide following of fans, despite having an uphill battle against a predecessor who sullied the reputation for subsequent purveyors of dart finery. “Folks were hesitant to buy jewelry from me for awhile because one guy sold a lot of poor quality stuff at one time,” Burdelsky said. “I just give them my card and tell them I’ve been at the same location for years and if they aren’t happy with my work they know where to find me. No one has ever returned a piece that I crafted. I take a lot of pride in my work.” Off the national stage, Burdelsky is working to bring competitive darts to Moore County. With local tavern O’Donnell’s as his home base, Burdowsky is forming a fall dart league for anyone interested in learning or mastering the game. “Darts has been such a big part of my life,” Burdowsky said. “I want to get as many people involved in the sport as possible and help make it a big part of somebody else’s life. “After all, it’s more than a game…it’s a good time.”
Posted on: Wed, 12 Mar 2014 18:23:10 +0000
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