Scholten suffered with neck and shoulder problems from October 2008 which severely affected his performances. He suffered an early exit in the Championship of Darts and the European Championship, averaging a very poor 51.52 in losing to Mensur Suljović at the 2008 European Championship. He then lost in the first round of the 2009 PDC World Championship, losing to Spain's Carlos Rodriguez which dropped him outside the world's top 16. In 2009, he had his shoulder operated on and took a break from darts. Scholten lost in the first round of the 2010 PDC World Championship 3–2 against Steve Hine.