Darts has produced some legendary surnames.
Taylor immediately brings to mind the greatest player of all time, Price represents one of the leading players of the modern era, while Wilson recalls the unforgettable Scottish world champion Jocky Wilson.
But how well do these famous names hold up across the wider Q4QS rankings?
For the first edition of this series, I looked at five surnames: Taylor, Smith, Jones, Wilson and Price.
I took the ten highest-ranked players with each surname and compared their overall Q4QS positions, points, playing averages and win percentages.
Only exact surnames were counted. Players with double-barrelled or combined surnames were excluded, so names such as Taylor James-Harding, Jake B-Smith, Jaymie Hilton-Jones and Pierce Speechley-Price do not count.
Taylor
It seemed right to begin with perhaps the most famous surname in darts.
Phil Taylor dominated the sport for decades, but how do the current Taylors compare across the Q4QS database?
Pos| Player| Overall Rank| Points| Average| Win Rate
1| Dom Taylor| #435| 559.80| 79.52| 80.5%
2| Michael Taylor| #852| 498.20| 78.02| 82.5%
3| Leon Taylor| #1,169| 467.82| 69.55| 68.7%
4| Kevin Taylor| #1,186| 466.52| 70.73| 70.3%
5| Scott Taylor| #1,372| 452.41| 71.91| 51.2%
6| Elliott Taylor| #1,436| 446.95| 70.47| 72.6%
7| Leigh Taylor| #1,558| 437.59| 66.05| 77.4%
8| Sean Taylor| #1,862| 416.26| 69.99| 73.0%
9| Dean Taylor| #1,940| 411.66| 66.61| 71.2%
10| Josh Taylor| #2,114| 403.23| 63.32| 63.0%
Dom Taylor leads the group at #435 and also has the best playing average at 79.52. Michael Taylor follows at #852 and records the group's highest win rate at an impressive 82.5%.
There are no Taylors challenging at the very top of the rankings, but the surname has reasonable depth. Seven of the ten are inside the top 1,600, while the collective win rate remains strong.
Top-ten average rank: #1,392
Top-ten playing average: 70.62
Top-ten win rate: 71.1%
Smith
The Smiths — and I am not talking about Morrissey and Johnny Marr — were always likely to be serious contenders.
Smith is an extremely common surname, so there was plenty of competition for a place in its top ten. More importantly, the quality at the top is exceptional.
Pos| Player| Overall Rank| Points| Average| Win Rate
1| Ross Smith| #9| 740.68| 95.75| 66.7%
2| Raymond Smith| #64| 674.69| 89.07| 86.1%
3| Michael Smith| #85| 662.12| 89.59| 56.7%
4| Jeff Smith| #234| 600.22| 85.36| 72.0%
5| Cayden Smith| #302| 583.81| 77.76| 66.5%
6| Daniel James Smith| #535| 542.43| 77.78| 45.5%
7| Benjamin Smith| #567| 536.96| 74.68| 71.0%
8| Danny Smith| #643| 527.14| 74.90| 77.0%
9| Kieran Smith| #691| 518.84| 77.98| 83.3%
10| Ky Smith| #709| 516.21| 76.15| 63.5%
Ross Smith leads the way at #9 overall with a 95.75 average. Raymond Smith and Michael Smith are also inside the top 100, while Jeff Smith makes it four Smiths inside the top 250.
All ten are ranked inside the top 709. That level of depth is unmatched by any of the other surnames in this comparison.
Raymond Smith has the best win rate at 86.1%, with Kieran Smith also recording an excellent 83.3%.
Top-ten average rank: #384
Top-ten playing average: 81.90
Top-ten win rate: 68.8%
Jones
If we include Smith, we must also look at Jones.
The Joneses do not possess the same elite top end as the Smiths, but they produce one of the most consistent groups in the comparison.
Pos| Player| Overall Rank| Points| Average| Win Rate
1| Howard Jones| #273| 588.72| 78.69| 67.3%
2| Louis Jones| #333| 576.55| 77.15| 75.4%
3| Kacey Jones| #724| 513.22| 79.28| 91.9%
4| Lyn Jones| #795| 504.12| 69.27| 62.0%
5| Wayne Jones| #830| 500.52| 82.80| 54.0%
6| Josh Jones| #914| 491.47| 74.13| 79.0%
7| Jayden Jones| #924| 490.25| 70.96| 74.1%
8| Timothy Jones| #980| 484.40| 76.03| 80.8%
9| Damian Jones| #1,260| 460.91| 71.02| 80.3%
10| Jimmie Jones| #1,314| 455.81| 74.05| 58.1%
Howard Jones is the highest-ranked at #273, followed by Louis Jones at #333. Wayne Jones records the highest playing average at 82.80, but the standout statistic belongs to Kacey Jones.
Kacey has won 91.9% of his matches, the highest win percentage among all 50 players included in this first surname comparison.
Eight of the ten Joneses are inside the top 1,000, and their collective win rate of 72.3% is the highest of the five surnames.
Top-ten average rank: #835
Top-ten playing average: 75.34
Top-ten win rate: 72.3%
Wilson
There were not enough Lowes or Bristows in the rankings to produce meaningful top tens, so Wilson was next in line.
It is a surname with a firm place in darts history through Jocky Wilson, but how does the current group fare?
Pos| Player| Overall Rank| Points| Average| Win Rate
1| Carl Wilson| #359| 572.99| 85.89| 69.9%
2| Callum Wilson| #638| 527.62| 80.55| 48.8%
3| Jason Wilson| #720| 513.61| 78.09| 50.0%
4| Stu Wilson| #1,337| 454.94| 77.03| 42.1%
5| Dave Ian Wilson| #1,582| 435.42| 75.42| 29.0%
6| Freddie Wilson| #1,739| 423.55| 66.36| 67.1%
7| Mackenzie Wilson| #2,153| 401.35| 67.76| 62.2%
8| Kevin Wilson| #2,758| 370.48| 70.34| 61.3%
9| Noah Wilson| #2,761| 370.41| 65.05| 49.0%
10| Benjamin Wilson| #3,039| 357.56| 65.10| 68.7%
Carl Wilson is the clear leader, sitting at #359 with an excellent 85.89 average. Callum and Jason Wilson also make the top 720, giving the group a respectable leading three.
The rankings fall away after that. Only three Wilsons make the top 1,000, while three members of the top ten sit outside the top 2,700.
Freddie Wilson is the group's workhorse, having played 132 events and 711 matches, but Carl remains the only Wilson in this top ten with a win rate approaching 70%.
Top-ten average rank: #1,709
Top-ten playing average: 73.16
Top-ten win rate: 54.8%
Price
The final surname in this first edition is Price, and it contains the highest-ranked individual player in the entire comparison.
Pos| Player| Overall Rank| Points| Average| Win Rate
1| Gerwyn Price| #3| 775.41| 98.91| 69.6%
2| Samuel Price| #450| 557.52| 85.32| 58.9%
3| Eddie Price| #719| 513.63| 79.72| 74.4%
4| Steve Price| #889| 493.73| 77.41| 72.1%
5| Martin Price| #1,762| 422.33| 72.59| 70.4%
6| Lewis Price| #1,985| 409.15| 65.01| 64.2%
7| Darryl Price| #2,348| 390.67| 63.46| 67.6%
8| Jack Price| #2,551| 380.41| 61.76| 68.4%
9| Paul Price| #2,665| 374.96| 66.88| 71.4%
10| Ciaran Price| #2,753| 370.60| 63.59| 66.7%
Gerwyn Price is ranked #3 overall, with 775.41 points and a 98.91 average. All three figures are the best achieved by anyone included in this article.
Samuel Price provides strong support at #450 with an 85.32 average, while Eddie and Steve Price both make the top 900.
The weakness is the gap between the leading four and the remainder of the group. Martin Price is next at #1,762, while four of the top ten Prices are ranked outside the top 2,300.
Top-ten average rank: #1,613
Top-ten playing average: 73.47
Top-ten win rate: 68.4%
Final Standings
Position| Surname| Leading Player| Best Rank| Average Top-Ten Rank| Average Top-Ten Performance
1| Smith| Ross Smith| #9| #384| 81.90
2| Jones| Howard Jones| #273| #835| 75.34
3| Taylor| Dom Taylor| #435| #1,392| 70.62
4| Price| Gerwyn Price| #3| #1,613| 73.47
5| Wilson| Carl Wilson| #359| #1,709| 73.16
Conclusion
The Smiths take the first Q4QS surname title, and they do so comfortably.
Ross, Raymond and Michael Smith all sit inside the top 100, while every member of the Smith top ten is ranked inside the top 709. No other surname comes close to matching that combination of elite players and strength in depth.
The Joneses finish second after placing eight players inside the top 1,000. They also record the highest collective win rate, helped considerably by Kacey Jones's remarkable 91.9%.
The battle for third is more complicated. Taylor has the better depth and average ranking, while Price has comfortably the strongest individual representative. Gerwyn Price is ranked #3 and averages 98.91, but the Price rankings drop away significantly after the leading four.
On the basis of the complete top ten, Taylor narrowly takes third place. However, anyone valuing elite star quality more heavily could easily place Price ahead of them.
Wilson has a strong leading player in Carl Wilson and a respectable top three, but the surname cannot match the depth of the other four.
Taylor may remain the most famous surname in darts, and Price may supply the best current individual in this contest, but this first edition belongs to the Smiths.
For once, the most common name is also the strongest.
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