The FA Cup of Darts as it is known has a claim to be the most popular of the PDC major events with fans and players alike, especially those ranked outside the top 16.
Since its inception 2003 we have all enjoyed this unique event with 8 boards, originally all in one room at the Reebok Stadium, Bolton. Although there have been a great many variations in how the field is made up, the common element has always been a strong ‘amateur contingent’ from outside the current top eschelons of the PDC.
Currently, 16 Amateur Qualifiers come through open qualifiers at Riley’s Sports bars in January and February and another 16 from the Challenge and Development tour Orders of Merit. With the 128 Pro Tour card holders this means a field of 160 players are eligible.
It’ll will come as a shock to no one that Phil Taylor is the first name on the famous trophy. Although we should note that despite the event being founded and running throughout Phil’s PDC peak he never dominated in Bolton , nor Minehead, as he did in the other events and big 5 majors.
5 wins in total, and never more than two on the bounce, mean that The power left possibilities for others to set a few records here.
Since moving to Butlins Minehead the action takes place in a twin centred venue including ‘Reds Bar’ and the main stage setting also used for The Players Championship Finals.
As this fabulous event attempts to follow Andrew Gilding’s surprise win of 2023, we note some of the most significant events and statistics over the years:
Roll of Honour
2003 Phil Taylor def Shayne Burgess 18-8
2004 Roland Scholten def John Part 11-6
2005 Phil Taylor def Mark Walsh 13-7
2006 Raymond van Barneveld def Barrie Bates 13-7
2007 Raymond van Barneveld def Vincent van der Voort 16-8
2008 James Wade def Gary Mawson 11-7
2009 Phil Taylor def Colin Osborne 11-6
2010 Phil Taylor def Gary Anderson 11-5
2011 James Wade def Wes Newton 11-8
2012 Robert Thornton def Phil Taylor 11-5
2013 Phil Taylor def Andy Hamilton 11-4
2014 Adrian Lewis def Terry Jenkins 11-1
2015 Michael van Gerwen def Peter Wright 11-5
2016 Michael van Gerwen def Peter Wright 11-4
2017 Peter Wright def Gerwyn Price 11-6
2018 Gary Anderson def Corey Cadby 11-7
2019 Nathan Aspinall def Rob Cross 11-5
2020 Michael van Gerwen def Gerwyn Price 11-9
2021 James Wade def Luke Humphries
2022 Danny Noppert def Michael Smith 11-10
2023 Andrew Gilding def Michael van Gerwen 11-10
2024 Dimitri Van Den Bergh def Luke Humphries 11-10
Winners (13 players):
5 Phil Taylor
3 Michael van Gerwen, James Wade
2 Raymond van Barneveld,
1 Roland Scholten, Robert Thornton, Adrian Lewis, Peter Wright, Gary Anderson, Nathan Aspinall, Danny Noppert, Andrew Gilding and Dimitri Van Den Bergh
Nine-Darters (10):
2004 Phil Taylor v Matt Chapman
2005 Phil Taylor v Roland Scholten
2007 Phil Taylor v Wes Newton
2008 Phil Taylor v Jamie Harvey
2010 Mervyn King v Gary Anderson
2012 Gary Anderson v Davey Dodds
2013 Wes Newton v Adrian Lewis
2016 Michael van Gerwen v Rob Cross
2020 Jonny Clayton v Chris Dobey
2020 Michael van Gerwen v Daryl Gurney
Ever-Present Players
Steve Beaton, James Wade
Oldest & Youngest:
Steve Beaton, 59, is the oldest player this year.
Luke Littler, 16, is the youngest player – he qualified to play via a Rileys’ Sports Bar event on his 16th birthday – in 2023.
Female Competitors:
Deta Hedman (2003, 2004, 2005), Crissy Manley (2003), Anastasia Dobromyslova (2008, 2009), Lisa Ashton (2020), Fallon Sherrock (2020)
Father & Son:
Steve Brown & John Brown competed in the event together in 2021.
Colin & Arron Monk competed in the 2011 tournament, with Colin losing in the first round and Arron losing in the second round.
Sponsors
- Sky Bet 2003
- Budweiser 2004-06
- Blue Square 2007-09
- Riley’s 2010
- Speedy Hire 2011-14
- Coral 2015-18
- Ladbrokes 2019-21, 2024-
- Cazoo 2022-23
—–ENDS—–
Images: PDC
