Darts starlet Leighton Bennett out to become new Phil Taylor after winning first senior event aged 12
Youngster won the BDO Cambridgeshire Open - beating Rhys Hayden 5-0 in the final to receive the £1,000 top prize
DARTS WHIZZKID Leighton Bennett wants to become the next Phil Taylor after winning his first senior event – aged 12!
Bennett stunned the world of darts by winning the BDO Cambridgeshire Open on Sunday, beating Rhys Hayden 5-0 in the final to receive the £1,000 top prize.
In the semi-finals, the Lincoln schoolboy was a 4-3 winner over PDC world No57 Ricky Evans, 28, who reached the last 32 of the 2016 world championships.
Bennett, who is already 5ft 10, started playing arrows aged eight and is eyeing turning pro like his idol Phil Taylor, the 16-time world champion.
He told SunSport: “I’m very happy and proud.
“I want to be a pro darts player like Phil Taylor. I would like to win as many world titles as I can possibly win. That would be the dream.
“I play 20-30 legs most night and then go on the board later on. I like beating top players. I love it. I get a right buzz from it.”
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Dad Scott, a nervous wreck during the weekend’s event, jokes his son will spend his winnings on a new watch.
Proud Scott said: “He wants really good one, like the top players, and I told him to keep saving.
“He wants a Rolex – he has expensive taste – but it will take time to get to that level.
“The young ones don’t have any nerves. I would have been shaking like mad and may have missed the board had I been in the same situation.
“But Leighton is awesome and deserved the tournament win.”
Defeated Evans said: “Leighton Bennett is a brilliant player. He is going to be a huge name in darts no doubt.”