What's Easier, A Hole-In-One, 9 Darter Or 147? This Company Will Answer That Question Via An Interesting Experiment

Anyone who plays golf regularly will know how rare making a hole-in-one is, with no guarantee of achieving it even once in a lifetime.

But how does it compare to making a nine-darter in darts or a maximum 147 break in snooker?

For those unaware, a nine-darter is the perfect leg in the game of darts beginning at 501, while achieving the maximum in snooker requires potting all 15 reds followed by the black after each, and finishing off the break with the six colors.

In other words, like a hole in one, neither the darts nor snooker achievement is a given for anyone – even seasoned pros – but which is the easiest?

Betting company Paddy Power aims to settle the debate, at least for another year, with the return of the annual Paddy’s Perfect Challenge, which will see golf, darts and snooker pros trying to achieve perfection in their respective sports, until two of them complete it.

From the golf world, the biggest name is Matt Wallace. For the Englishman, who made a hole-in-one during the 2018 PGA Championship, the challenge will offer some light relief days after competing in the RSM Classic in a battle to secure his PGA Tour card.

He will be joined by Ross Fisher, who, like Wallace, took part in the challenge a year ago. Robert Rock will be the third golfer trying to make an ace.

Aiming for a nine-darter from the oche will be Michael van Gerwen, Luke Humphries, Johnny Clayton, Damien Heta, Gerwyn Price and Nathan Aspinall.

The snooker stars looking for a maximum break will be Luca Brecel, Kyren Wilson and Shaun Murphy, who achieved a 147 at last year’s challenge – the only one of the three to be completed.

Incredibly, Murphy doesn’t just return having achieved a maximum a year ago. In 2022, he claimed on X that he had managed all three of the sporting landmarks, surely putting him in very exclusive company.

A year ago, a time limit of two hours was set on the challenge, but that’s not the case this year, with the competitors continuing until we have two of either a hole-in-one, a nine-darter or a 147.

The challenge will begin at noon on Tuesday, November 25th, with coverage on Paddy Power’s YouTube channel and other social media channels.

The PDC’s X, Facebook, and YouTube channels will also show the progress of the players, with coverage on Sky Sports Darts, too.