Idea to improve Q School

[Deleted User]

- Top 4 ranked BDO players automatically get a tour card.

- Last 4 of the BDO World Championship automatically get a tour card.

- WDF World Champion and top ranked player automatically get a tour card

This 'improves Q School' how exactly? You want to potentially remove 10 cards - a third of the total - and leave the hundreds of other players to fight it out over two schools for 10 cards a piece? As ideas for 'improving Q School' go I don't think you have really thought this through.

As if tHe PDC would help out BDO players ahead of their own.

They already have. The lower ranked tour card holders who battled through q school and travelled the leisure centres had to sit at home during PDC worlds while Fallon Sherrock was given a wildcard by uncle Barry merely for being young blonde with a set of tits

Oh dear. You think she was helped because she was a BDO player? You give the real reasons in you last sentence. And for what she did at the PDC World's not in the BDO.

This is not an automatic thing. Plenty of other possible female players would not have got the bump Fallon got.

[Rout]

- Top 4 ranked BDO players automatically get a tour card.

- Last 4 of the BDO World Championship automatically get a tour card.

- WDF World Champion and top ranked player automatically get a tour card

This 'improves Q School' how exactly? You want to potentially remove 10 cards - a third of the total - and leave the hundreds of other players to fight it out over two schools for 10 cards a piece? As ideas for 'improving Q School' go I don't think you have really thought this through.

As if tHe PDC would help out BDO players ahead of their own.

They already have. The lower ranked tour card holders who battled through q school and travelled the leisure centres had to sit at home during PDC worlds while Fallon Sherrock was given a wildcard by uncle Barry merely for being young blonde with a set of tits

Correct.

[el_ringo]

They already have. The lower ranked tour card holders who battled through q school and travelled the leisure centres had to sit at home during PDC worlds while Fallon Sherrock was given a wildcard by uncle Barry merely for being young blonde with a set of tits

If you played a whole year or even a couple of years on the PDC tour and could not get into one of the 90 odd places available then you don't deserve to be there anyway.

I do believe Fallons slot was open to any lady who chose to enter and win the UK Ladies qualifier or even the European one.

The PDC were just fortunate that the lady who won the UK QUALIFIER was good enough to beat a low ranked tour card holder and then a current top 12 ranked player of the OOM. The fact that she is young , blonde and with a set of tits earnt her no advantage that was not available to any other lady nor did it assist her in any victory she gained at Ally Pally.

In fact she is the one who gains the most from being young blond and with a set of tits as this undoubtedly makes her more marketable to sponsors and tv companies which may lead to great exhibition opportunities. This says more about the chauvinistic attitude of darts viewers or how they are perceived by advertisers and sponsors but nothing about anyone's ability to win or failure to win a tour card.

[Skewball]

For me

Extend Pro tour to 192 spots. Top 64 get a bye to R2, 128 Play in Round 1. Adds 64 Games to the day, Using 32 boards thats 2 extra game per board adding about half an hour to the day, hour max, Tournaments still free entry but non top 64 need to win a game 2 games to get money, Top 64 need to win their match to get money.

Would mean more players keeping their card as the cut off for 128 is currently £8 meaning your not getting the same players doing qschool, not doing enough, going back to qschool after 2 years getting another card rinse and repeat.

Next season - All 128 keep their card for an extra year, top 24 from Challenge tour, top 8 from development tour, 32 Places at Qschool - One Qschool top 8 get a card each day

From them on - Top 128 Keeps their card each year, up from top 64. Top 16 from Challenge tour, Top 8 from Development tours, 8 Places for Champions of other affiliated tournaments (Ladies Champion, WDF Finalists), 32 from Qschool going back to one tournament but top 8 each day get a card.

Hey, this was basically my idea last week
..
Good idea though

[Dannyboy]

I see that no player inside the top 40 of the Challenge Tour rankings last year won a tour card, apart from the top 2 who got automatic cards.

That is really surprising.

[Dannyboy]

If there's a concern on the numbers, cap at 256 players per event ranked by QS OoM. Those in the top 256 (combined list) get automatic entry to all events whilst others enter like a Pro Tour event and hope for the best.

[ChrisW]

Can't see it ever being capped when so many are willing to pay.

[NvH]

- Top 4 ranked BDO players automatically get a tour card.

- Last 4 of the BDO World Championship automatically get a tour card.

- WDF World Champion and top ranked player automatically get a tour card

This 'improves Q School' how exactly? You want to potentially remove 10 cards - a third of the total - and leave the hundreds of other players to fight it out over two schools for 10 cards a piece? As ideas for 'improving Q School' go I don't think you have really thought this through.

As if tHe PDC would help out BDO players ahead of their own.

They already have. The lower ranked tour card holders who battled through q school and travelled the leisure centres had to sit at home during PDC worlds while Fallon Sherrock was given a wildcard by uncle Barry merely for being young blonde with a set of tits

Correct.

It isn't really correct though, is it? She came through a ladies qualifier.

[oche balboa]

I see that no player inside the top 40 of the Challenge Tour rankings last year won a tour card, apart from the top 2 who got automatic cards.

That is really surprising.

Most of them have been jobbing all though their darting careers

[oche balboa]

Give 256 players a card for Challenge Tour.

[NvH]

Is any of this necessary? Are there that many great darts players in the world that we need more players on the main tour or challenge tour? 128 is fine, and because some players like to do a Barney, there are opportunities for the likes of Mitchell to wangle a place in a PC and possibly earn some OOM money to get him up the rankings. So even those that failed to get through Q-school still have a chance of making it to the main tour.

[Dannyboy]

I see that no player inside the top 40 of the Challenge Tour rankings last year won a tour card, apart from the top 2 who got automatic cards.

That is really surprising.

Most of them have been jobbing all though their darting careers

There were quite a few journeymen on that list.

In terms of averages...

12 players averaged over 90 at Q School
95 players averaged over 85
288 players averaged over 80, so plenty of players are there or there abouts to being semi competitive at least
A further 195 players averaged over 75, so not really competitive but good SL or county standard(?)
353 players averaged between 70 and 80, so good pub players.
208 dreamers averaging under 70 who really shouldn't be there.
59 jokers averaging under 60.
19 timewasters averaging under 50 and 4 under 40!
The worst tournament average by Jeremy Dolan was 32.67.

Two players didn't hit any ton scores or above AT ALL. 122 players didn't hit a 180 all week.

[Deleted User]

Is any of this necessary? Are there that many great darts players in the world that we need more players on the main tour or challenge tour? 128 is fine, and because some players like to do a Barney, there are opportunities for the likes of Mitchell to wangle a place in a PC and possibly earn some OOM money to get him up the rankings. So even those that failed to get through Q-school still have a chance of making it to the main tour.

Quite. Even the biggest golf and tennis events with eyewatering prize money have 128 or fewer at the main event.

Why would they increase tour cards above 128 places?

[Dannyboy]

Uncle Barry has always used the golf analogy to describe darts ("working mans golf"), so did some research. Clearly money levels are vastly higher in golf, but interesting how it's structured.

PGA Tour
-No longer has a Q School with direct entry onto the Main Tour.
-Q School since 2013 acts as entry to the Korn Ferry ("PGA Development") Tour, who can then qualify for the main tour the following year subject to results.
-Previously though players entered a pre-qualifying stage (costing around $2,700). Participants in this stage are former college players and mini-tour veterans who have never played in a PGA-sanctioned event or major international tour.
-Three further stages (another $12,000 in entry fees for those qualified) with players relegated from certain ranking levels joining at each of these stages. Undeniably a brutal, complex event - I've kept this pretty simplified! 262 holes played from day one until the end through several months and meetings of play.

Clearly there are huge sacrifices needed - you simply cannot turn up and wouldn't turn up unless you had a seriously good game.

European Tour
-Still has a Q School, but played over three stages so a similar format to the former PGA QS.
-Those lower in the rankings head onto the Challenge Tour and a further satelite - the EuroPro Tour which in comparison has terrible prize money, owned by Matchroom.

[lurchio]

Have 2 Q-Schools as such

Pro-Tour Q-School
Top 96 Keep their Card
8 Cards to - Devs Tour/WDF/Ladies
24 Cards left for | 4 a day and then Top 8 in table

Those that lost card join the Top 64 or 96 from Challenge Tour in this Pro-Tour Q-School in trying to win these 24 cards.

Q-School Challenge Tour

Everyone else pays the money to have a go at joining Challenge tour of 256 places.
That money goes towards Challenge Tour for new season and boosts prize fund giving some decent wedge for those to male more of a career out of it.

Those not in Top 256 = Tuff!
Those that are in Top 256 get a Challenge Tour Card

[1205]

Uncle Barry has always used the golf analogy to describe darts ("working mans golf"), so did some research. Clearly money levels are vastly higher in golf, but interesting how it's structured.

PGA Tour
-No longer has a Q School with direct entry onto the Main Tour.
-Q School since 2013 acts as entry to the Korn Ferry ("PGA Development") Tour, who can then qualify for the main tour the following year subject to results.
-Previously though players entered a pre-qualifying stage (costing around $2,700). Participants in this stage are former college players and mini-tour veterans who have never played in a PGA-sanctioned event or major international tour.
-Three further stages (another $12,000 in entry fees for those qualified) with players relegated from certain ranking levels joining at each of these stages. Undeniably a brutal, complex event - I've kept this pretty simplified! 262 holes played from day one until the end through several months and meetings of play.

Clearly there are huge sacrifices needed - you simply cannot turn up and wouldn't turn up unless you had a seriously good game.

European Tour
-Still has a Q School, but played over three stages so a similar format to the former PGA QS.
-Those lower in the rankings head onto the Challenge Tour and a further satelite - the EuroPro Tour which in comparison has terrible prize money, owned by Matchroom.

Similar to the Challenge Tour, players at the top of the PGA Development Tour can fill out fields for events.

It should be noted that the minimum prize fund for a PGA Development Tour tournament is $600,000. #25 on the tour earned $774,506 in 2019.
An intermediate tour works well when there's enough money to allow players on that tour to make a living.
The PDC doesn't have that luxury, so it cycles through new talent.

[MancheStar]

I think there should be a cut off for the challenge tour maybe the top 128 who didn't get a tour card can play challenge tour. Then offer more cards out to the challenge tour at the end of season.

[tootall]

Dont see what the problem is with Q school leave it as it is.
I would stop people who dont enter at least 2 challenge tour weekends from entering Q school the following year though

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[Wazza180]

Dont see what the problem is with Q school leave it as it is.
I would stop people who dont enter at least 2 challenge tour weekends from entering Q school the following year though

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When Jim Williams and Scott Mitchell are left out in the cold in favour of one-tournament wonders, there is a problem.

[Ginge]

Dont see what the problem is with Q school leave it as it is.
I would stop people who dont enter at least 2 challenge tour weekends from entering Q school the following year though

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When Jim Williams and Scott Mitchell are left out in the cold in favour of one-tournament wonders, there is a problem.

Enough to make you have a heart attack, isnt it mate?