Rick Ney 1961-2017

It is with great sadness that we report the tragic passing of one of the all-time greats of American darts, Rick Ney.

One of the many Pennsylvanians to emerge in the great darts boom of the 1970’s, Rick was still a teenager when he made his international tv debut in the 1980 News of the World championship in London.  Six years later, he came oh-so-close to lifting this title, losing the final to Bobby George.

Rick appeared in the BDO’s World Professional Championship on four occasions. Rick’s best showing came in 1988 when making an impressive charge into the semi-finals, defeating Magnus Caris, Chris Johns, and Dennis Hickling, before going down to eventual champ Bob Anderson.

Perhaps the highlight of Rick’s career was in 1985, when he joined Tony Payne, John Kramer, and Dan Valletto on the US team at the 1985 WDF World Cup in Brisbane, Australia.  This World Cup is best remembered for the superb American performance in the team event, where they won gold, after destroying defending champions England 9-0 in the semi-final!

On the domestic front, Rick was a dominant force before his retirement from the tournament scene in the early 1990’s, and won the now-defunct US Open in 1980, 81, and 82, as well as the ADO National 501 Championship in 1990.

Ricky Ney passed away after a motor-vehicle accident.  We send our sincerest condolences to Rick’s family and friends.

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