Manage your darts tournament from start to finish

Everyone had a match they wanted to see on the opening day of the Grand Slam. Nathan Aspinall gave us a number worth stopping for as well: 111.68. That was his average in Saturday's 5–1 win over Maik Kuivenhoven. The PDC's opening-day report calls it the highest televised average of his career. He also took out 149 and 120 in consecutive legs. For me, those finishes are as interesting as the headline average. Heavy scoring is lovely, but a big checkout can make an opponent's own good visit feel almost pointless....

Six-nil down in a race to eight. One more bad spell and the World Championship dream is somebody else's. Paul Krohne somehow turned that position into a ticket to Ally Pally. He beat Jan Schmidt 8–7 in Friday's Super League final in Hildesheim. According to PDC Europe's match report, Krohne recovered from 0–6 to 6–6, fell behind again at 6–7, then won the last two legs. That's the part that gets me. Coming all the way back is difficult enough. Doing it, seeing your opponent move one leg from victory again, and st...

Ross Smith thinks he belongs in the Premier League. After the autumn he's had, I find that a perfectly reasonable argument. If we're talking about players earning their place through results, his name ought to be in that conversation. Smith told Sky Sports on Thursday that he believes he should be included, while recognising the choice isn't his. I like that balance. Make your case, then get back to playing. Spending every match wondering what it means for an invitation sounds exhausting. His case has substance....

I'd have liked to see Vincent van der Voort have another go at reaching Ally Pally. Familiar names give a qualifier a bit of extra interest. But after reading his explanation for sitting this one out, I can understand the decision. In its report on 10 November, DartsNews, citing Darts Draait Door, says Van der Voort will not enter Saturday's qualifier for Dutch and Belgian players. His concern is sustaining his level through a full day of matches, rather than whether he can still play well in one. That distinctio...

Watching the big names on television is one thing. Picking up your own darts and putting your name down for a local tournament is another. For me, both belong in the same sport. That's why I want to give the Weerter Darts Competitie some space here. The WDC was founded in 1985 and serves Weert and the surrounding area, including Nederweert. Alongside its league, it organises cup darts and individual events. This is the part of darts I don't want us to overlook while we're talking about the next televised final. I...

Well, that gives Luke Littler something to think about. Beau Greaves and Niels Zonneveld in his Grand Slam group, with just one place available in the last 16. I wouldn't be looking much further down the draw yet. Monday's draw put all three in Group A. Littler starts against Greaves in Saturday evening's session on 14 November, as he begins his attempt to win a third straight Grand Slam title in Wolverhampton. That's an opening match worth making time for. Greaves has already beaten him in a World Youth Champion...

One final, two places on the big stage. Anton Östlund has had the sort of weekend that makes the qualifying stories worth following, even when the biggest names are playing somewhere else. The Swede beat Darius Labanauskas 8–4 in Sunday's Nordic & Baltic Championship final in Odense. That earned him a place at both the Grand Slam of Darts and the 2027 PDC World Darts Championship. A good weekend has turned into a very different end to the year. For me, these are some of the best stories in darts. It's easy to spend...

Beau Greaves against Christian Kist. That's one of the matches I'll be looking out for when the Players Championship Finals get going in Minehead later this month. Greaves makes her tournament debut as the eighth seed. For me, that seeding is as interesting as the debut itself. The field comes from the season's Players Championship rankings, so this is a place earned through results across the floor events. The bracket was confirmed on 5 November, after the last Players Championship of the year. With play at Butl...

There's something I like about a tournament that starts with groups. One bad match doesn't immediately send you home. You've got a chance to settle in, find your doubles and give yourself something to play for in the next game. It's part of what makes the Grand Slam interesting. With the last qualifiers now confirmed, the attention turns to the group stage and then the knockout matches. And it raises a fairly simple question: why keep that kind of tournament just for the professionals? You can bring the same grou...

Stephen Bunting is going to Wolverhampton. Michael Smith isn't. That tells you enough about Friday's Grand Slam qualifier to know it wasn't a day for taking anything for granted. Ten places were available at Leicester's Mattioli Arena on 6 November. Bunting took his with three averages above 100, finishing the job with a 5–2 win over Jimmy van Schie. For me, that's the way to handle being the highest-ranked player in a qualifier: give yourself as little trouble as possible. The bigger drama came elsewhere. Joe Cu...