DARTS star Paul Nicholson retired live on TV to begin a new career.
Nicholson started playing professionally in 1990 and won the Players Championship Finals in 2010.
He also famously had a feud with Phil Taylor after beating the English legend in the 2011 UK Open.
Nicholson stopped playing competitively in 2018 after moving into commentary and media – although he never officially retired.
That changed at the Modus Super Series where the 46-year-old confirmed his playing days were over.
He said: “I can actually tell you, at this point in time, I’ve never said this out loud until now, I am retired. I have decided to not play darts anymore.
“That is something I’ve said to myself over the new year. I am 100 per cent media now and I’ve decided not to play darts anymore.”
Before his move into media, Nicholson was forced to apply for a job in a bar after a dip in form saw his darts earnings cut.
He said on the Tops and Tales Podcast: “I wouldn’t qualify for the Worlds for a while.
“The European Tour was very, very difficult to get on all of a sudden after being a seed for the first two, three seasons and tour life was different.
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“I was earning a lot less money and around 2016, I’m close to losing my card. I’m close to running out of money.
“I had to sell my house and rented an accommodation with my girlfriend. She had to support me for a little bit of time.
“There was a time in the summer of 2016, where I swallowed my pride whole, like it was a five pound pill. I said ‘go and get a job then.’
“I haven’t had a job since 2008. So, eight years, what do I do? I was one of the best 10 players in the world at one point.
“But this is a massive reality check. So I actually got a job to work at a golf club in the bar. I got the job and I thought, right, okay, we’re going to do this.’”
Nicholson’s fortunes changed when his agent – Dave Allen – found him a commentary gig that would set him up for the rest of his career.
He said: “That same week, my saviour called me, Dave Allen again.
“My saviour said, ‘Rod Harrington doesn’t want to do the Austrian darts event next week and you’ve had a bit of commentary experience. Would you like to go and work there with Chris Murphy and Dan Dawson?’
“I said, yes, please. I’ll take that. Yes. Thank you. I’ve done some commentary gigs, but that was my break. That was my big break.
“Vienna 2016. That tournament was brilliant and it coincided that was the last European tour event Phil Taylor would play.
“He won that one. It was his last one, but it was my first one. That was where things sort of tipped towards the media side.”
