PLAYER PROFILE - AUGUST 2005

Say Hello to Brad Halley

“The Man, the Legend, the Known Pro…”

As they say, back in the day, he was the man. It wasn’t John Gray or Richie Finn; it was the “Polish Pounder”, Brad Halley. He was just as good as all of them, and became the first Team USA member from Arizona.
I know it is hard to believe but he was also known as Bad Brad. Cocky, that was an understatement. First, he would make you wait to shoot as he sat at the table smoking a stogie and drinking tequila. When it was last call he would walk to the board, kick your butt and head back to the table.
He would ask the opponents what was their hurry to lose. But he always played the game right, to win, not to embarrass the other team. From then until now, I have never seen Brad shoot stats or run up the points on an opponent.
That is why he gained the respect of all the other players and still has it today. Brad wasn’t afraid to play anyone, anytime.
Whether it was the guys over in Germany or best player around here. Brad has won numerous steel tip titles to go with all his soft tip success. He has been the Known Pro for about 15 years - now, that is respect.
Someone keeps putting Brad’s name on the pro list and he never gets off. I believe he gets off in the year 2009, and when that comes, I am sure he will go on again. Brad is married to Marci, and together they are tough to beat in mixed tourneys.
Brad is a dedicated employee and puts in numerous hours for his customers. Day or night, he gets the job done. Having definitely mellowed in the last 10 years, he has almost become the nice guy in darts.
He is still a fierce competitor and can get hot at any time. On a trip to Reno for the Merit Dart Championships, Brad had some classic moments. We were looking all over for him to shoot and he was in the hallway spread eagle on the couch snoring away, with the security guard trying to wake him up.
There is also a saying that he is most famous for... We were warming up on the boards one day and asked him, “Brad what are you shooting at?” He looked at us and said, “ I pick em’ and I choose em’. We asked, “What the heck does that mean?”
I still don’t know what he meant. Neither does anyone else that I know of. Whatever the case, Brad Halley is a great friend, and an important part of the Arizona dart scene.