Eric Bristow, the darts superstar who was ranked world No.1 six times between 1980 and 1990, once shared some wild tales from his heyday.
In his autobiography, 'Eric Bristow: The Crafty Cockney', he recalled three-day benders with teammates and the wilder side of the sport. Bristow, who sadly passed away in April 2018 following a heart attack at the age of 60, also won five World Masters titles and was awarded an MBE for services to sport in 1989.
He fondly remembered his time playing for England with "hardcore boys who could drink." The darts legend admitted he enjoyed a drink but knew when to stop, especially before an important tournament.
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However, he shared a memorable story about being caught out by fellow player Cliff Lazarenko - known for his prolific drinking ability - on their way to the Canadian Open. The pair were upgraded to first class for the 12-hour flight, and the champagne started flowing.
"I knew I was in for a rough ride after having four or five pints at the airport bar," read an extract from the book. "Then, on the plane, it was champagne galore until they ran out. We'd finished all 12 bottles on board. Cliff then started ordering more drinks - Cointreau, Bailey's on ice, then Southern Comfort.
"When we landed, I was so drunk I was worried about getting through customs. I tried to sober up by splashing cold water on my face in the toilet. I was seeing double and struggled to say goodbye to the stewardess. Luckily, I managed to get through customs."
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A booze session may not be as easily forgiven as the reason why one of the world's top players couldn't make it to a tournament. However, Bristow and Lazarenko's lash had made for a close call on this occasion.
"At the hotel, Cliff said we should freshen up and meet in the bar in 25 minutes. After a quick shower, I headed downstairs," the passage continued. "It was only seven in the evening. We had a few beers in the hotel bar before heading to a nearby British Legion for a game of darts. The beers at the hotel had topped me up again and I was completely wrecked.
"We returned to the bar, then hit a rock bar and a few more late-night spots for more drinks. By this point, I was struggling to stand up. I was completely out of it, not knowing what day it was or even which country we were in. We ended up in a bar with 18 different spirits lined up. We drank vodka, brandy, whisky, gin, rum, Bacardi, and more until we'd tried all 18. The measures were much larger than what you'd get back in England.
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"I woke up the next morning to find a half-eaten curry on a chair. I don't remember buying or eating it, and I'm amazed I made it back to my room. The curry stayed there for another day and a half because I couldn't get out of bed for the next 36 hours. I had alcohol poisoning and was shaking uncontrollably. In hindsight, I should've gone to hospital, but I just kept drinking water in my room. I did the same thing in Las Vegas a few years later.
"I got hooked on gambling and spent 28 hours at the tables, downing White Russians non-stop. But I won $12,000 so it didn't matter. After that, I went to bed and passed out, losing another day-and-a-half. Cliff and I had another encounter years later during a TV tournament in Scotland. We both missed our darts for the win, got knocked out and ended up drowning our sorrows at the bar with large Southern Comforts.
"I'm not one for spirits, never have been. The next day, I was shaking like a leaf and couldn't move. After that experience, I never tried to keep up with Cliff's drinking again."
Recovering from those heavy drinking sessions sometimes took days. Even when Bristow thought he'd shaken off a hangover, it often took half a week before he felt fully recovered.
It's only natural to draw a connection between Bristow's diet and his sudden death from a heart attack while walking back to his car at Liverpool's Echo Arena. And the oche icon was aware of the signs, too, often wondering how his liver didn't pack in sooner when he returned from trips abroad.
"If I had died in my sleep, they would've done an autopsy and thought, 'This bloke deserved it'. The American tournaments were the worst, starting at 10 in the morning and ending at two the next morning.
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Amazon Buy Now"At two o'clock, you'd grab a few beers, hit the sack for a few hours, then get up and ready for the next day's play which started at 10. It was non-stop darts until two the next morning. If you were good, it would be a straight 16-hour shift; no food, just boozing, sleeping, and getting up at eight for breakfast.
Said breakfast would begin with a Bailey's coffee "to calm the shakes from the night before." And he'd soon slip back to a liquid lunch of beers "to steady the nerves" in a routine that wasn't built to last.
The darts player confessed: "The adrenaline rush used to pull me through, but as soon as the last dart was thrown on a Sunday night to signal the end of the tournament it was like, 'Urgh! Thank Christ for that, it's over.'"
He continued: "The game has changed so much since I started out. That's the trouble with having been a darts baby: I look back and all my friends of yesteryear who I played with are gone.
"The way I've lived my life I should've been gone long ago but I'll continue plodding on, drinking, smoking, eating curries and probably getting in trouble with the law once or twice. I might even throw the odd dart or two."
*This article was crafted with the help of an AI tool, which speeds up Daily Star's editorial research. An editor reviewed this content before it was published. You can report any errors to starletters@dailystar.co.uk
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