ARRON MONK hopes that his run to the last 16 of the William Hill Grand Slam of Darts will be a stepping stone in his career.
The 22-year-old former World Youth Champion came through Group D in the tournament with wins over James Wade and Jan Dekker in the round-robin stage, before losing out 10-5 to Dean Winstanley in the second round of the event.
Monk has topped the PDC Unicorn Youth Tour Order of Merit this year and is set to make his second appearance in the Ladbrokes World Darts Championship next month.
And despite losing to Winstanley, Monk believes that he can use the experience to aid his bid to reach the top of the sport.
"I'm young and I want it all now," he admitted. "I know I'm good enough but I'm only 22 and I've got plenty of years ahead of me to come back here and do better.
"Dean played well after the second break but I made so many mistakes in the game and I'm so frustrated. I've practised so well but not shown what I can do on stage in all four matches, so it's annoying.
"It is progress but I just want to play my normal game up on stage. It must be inexperience because every now and then I got a little bit nervous up there, a little bit twitchy, and pulled a few darts.
"It's not a bad week because I've got through to the last 16, which I'm very proud of, and I'll look forward to the World Championship."