Scott Williams has opened up about his intense efforts to overcome dartitis, a frustrating condition he has been grappling with for six to eight months. The Englishman, known as 'Shaggy', is overhauling not just his game but his entire lifestyle, focusing on nutrition, sleep, and mental support through hypnotherapy. Williams emphasized that structure, calm, and recovery are crucial in his quest to regain form, stating on the Double Tops Podcast: "Mentality is 85% of the game. I would say personally as well, because I'm going through it myself with dartitis. I've probably had it for six or eight months." He attributes the issue to subconscious brain processes, noting: "It's got nothing to do with darts or anything like that. It's usually, so it's apparently to do with the second part of your brain, your fight and flight. Where it's just subconscious stuff that you don't even think about."
To address this, Williams is seeing a hypnotherapist who previously helped Kevin Painter with dartitis, joining other players like Josh Rock, Cameron Menzies, Nathan Aspinall, and Stephen Bunting in seeking such support. He explained: "A lot of us players go to see him because he got dartitis away from Kevin Painter, who had it recently, really, really bad as well." Alongside mental care, physical well-being is a priority, with Williams highlighting challenges like maintaining nutrition while on tour: "Nutrition, for me as well as them guys. But the fact that we're on the road all the time, not everywhere has accessible, delicious food that's nutritious." He added that the demanding schedule makes consistent healthy living difficult: "Sometimes you just don't want it after you've finished playing or you've had a long travel. You've got to look after yourself. Your body is so important now."
In a striking move to focus fully on his career and recovery, Williams, the current world number 44, has closed his own darts shop. He revealed: "Mine recently, over the last six months to a year, has been darts. So, I literally yesterday got rid of my shop, all the stock out of my shop. So I've got nothing behind me. It was either leave the shop or leave the wife. And I thought it'd be easier to leave the shop." This decision underscores his commitment to overcoming dartitis, a condition that hasn't stopped him from achieving past success, such as reaching the semi-finals of the 2024 PDC World Darts Championship.
Looking ahead, Williams is drawing inspiration from top players like Gerwyn Price to find balance away from darts. He noted: "That's the thing that Gezzy his hobby is more than just darts." To rediscover equilibrium, Williams plans to explore new hobbies, saying: "I'm going to try loads of different hobbies. It'll be pub-based. It'll be pool, snooker, dominoes, maybe golf." Through these lifestyle changes and mental strategies, he aims not only to conquer dartitis but to return to the oche as a more well-rounded player.
