Nathan Aspinall has opened up about his long-standing battle with nerves, revealing that anxiety once caused him to develop a nasty rash. The two-time major champion, known for his boisterous on-stage persona, admitted on the Double Tops Podcast that his confidence away from the oche is a different story.
“I was really nervous as a kid,” Aspinall said. “Still get nervous now doing stuff like this... But when I do stuff that’s out of my comfort zone, I’d get dead blotchy and stuff like that.” He recalled a particularly difficult moment from his school days: “When I was a kid in school, I didn’t do my English exam because I couldn’t stand up in front of the class to do my presentation. That’s how bad I was.”
The 2020 Premier League runner-up also addressed his exclusion from the 2026 Premier League Darts, a decision that sparked controversy among fans. Despite a strong year that included a run to the final of the Players Championship Finals and three Euro Tour triumphs, a poor showing at the PDC World Darts Championship and a sharp ranking drop saw other players get the nod. “I’ll be in it next year,” Aspinall predicted. “I think I’ll be in it. It’s done me the world of good being off this year. I’m not going to lie. It really has. I love it. But five years doing it is tough.”
Aspinall admitted that stepping away from the weekly spotlight has been a relief. “The scrutiny on you when you’re in it every single week, you’re on Sky, you in the limelight, you’re getting criticised on social media. It’s just been nice to just take a back burner and see everyone else getting slated for it. It is nice. I’m planning the wedding.”
