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Snooker fans may wish to look away after Gary Anderson entered the discussion as to which feat is more difficult: a 147 maximum break or a nine-dart finish.
Biased as he might be, the two-time darts world champion went a step further in his analysis by suggesting one can even "fluke" the most difficult achievement in snooker. That's after the debate was recently revived following input from darts legends Wayne Mardle and Chris Mason.
Hawaii 501 took to Twitter and teased snooker supporters, whom he said were "disgusted a 147 turns out to be easy." When confronted by a fan suggesting fellow commentator Mason "agreed 147s are way harder," Mardle cited data from the past 30 years or so that appeared to show a nine-darter was in fact rarer, and therefore more difficult.
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It's an argument that's run for years between two fanbases that have plenty of crossover, albeit without much agreement over the matter. And Anderson helped spark the fire afresh after offering his two cents in a manner that might have insulted some snooker aficionados.
"You can’t fluke a 9 darter," replied 'The Flying Scotsman', leaving little room for pure luck being able to clear 501 in the fewest possible throws. "You can a 147."
What do you think is a harder achievement? Let us know in the comments section.
The tweet came equipped with a winking emoji to acknowledge Anderson's tongue-in-cheek demeanour, though that inevitably didn't stop some social media users running to snooker's defence. One commenter even called the Scot a "mad man," while others sought to forge some peace between the two camps.
Mardle referenced figures that suggested there was a nine-dart finish thrown every 2,440 legs at the PDC World Championships between 1994 and the present day. However, the snooker equivalent suggested it took only 2,041 frames to record a 147 maximum break.
One can understand why a 147 might be perceived as the simpler of the two given a player can miss their shot in snooker and still pot the desired ball (or a suitable replacement in the case of the red). What's more, the layout of the balls can often make some 147s more straightforward than others, while the orientation of a dart board never changes.
"There is more room for error in a 147," one fan highlighted in the replies to Anderson's tweet. "There is wiggle room for not quite perfect shots." Others argued deflections in darts do leave room for error themselves, though it's incredibly rare a wayward throw results in hitting a satisfactory target.
With few signs of let-up from either camp, it's highly unlikely the debate between those devoted to the nine-darter and 147 loyalists will reach its end any time soon (or ever).
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