WAYNE Mardle is a former professional darts player who now works as a commentator and pundit.
Known for his Hawaiian shirts and energetic dance moves, Mardle will once again take to the mike at the 2023 PDC World Darts Championship.
Wayne Elliot Mardle was born on May 10, 1973 in Dagenham, east London.
He is often referred to as Hawaii 501 — a play on the TV series Hawaii Five-O — because he began wearing Hawaiian shirts after losing a bet.
His dad taught him to play darts from the age of 11 and he took to it like a fish to water, hitting his first 180 within a fortnight.
Wayne won his first competition at the Double Top pub on his 13th birthday.
He has gone one to have a long career in the sport he loves, first as a professional player, then as a commentator and pundit.
Mardle also works as a professional speaker at events and exhibitions, and has set up the Wayne Mardle School of Darts for anyone wishing to improve their game.
Wayne started commentating at the 2011 PDC World Darts Championship alongside Sid Waddell and Dave Clark — as well as predicting results in the tournament with Eric Bristow and Rod Harrington.
He has gone on to become a regular commentator and pundit for Sky Sports.
Mardle famously produced an iconic piece of commentary during the 2023 PDC World final, when Michael Smith triumph over Michael van Gerwen.
He could be heard screaming “I can’t speak” after van Gerwen narrowly missed a nine-darter and Smith hit one with his next visit.
Before lending his expertise of the game to viewers of the sport as a pundit and commentator, Wayne was a professional player who reached the world championship semi-finals five times — four in the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) and one in the British Darts Organisation (BDO).
He also lost in three major finals to Phil Taylor — the 2003 World Matchplay, and the Las Vegas Classic in both 2004 and 2005.
Speaking about why he stopped playing, Wayne told the Guardian in 2021: “I can honestly say I was fraught with the pressure, with the tension.
“My head was swimming, my arm was tight, my hand was cold, my feet were freezing.
“I don’t want to be that pressurised ever again. And you know what? I absolutely hated it.”
Wayne is married to Donna Mardle.
The couple like to keep their private life out of the public domain, so there is very little information about them available.
But he did let on that they don’t have kids in a post on X, formerly Twitter, in 2018.
He posted a picture of his brown Labrador Sherlock, along with the words: “Donna and I have no kids so our life revolves around this beast.
“In two days I’ll be home and kissing him all over. Who in there right mind wouldn’t want to snog him!!! Look at him!!! What a sexy beast.”
