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2024 PDC World Darts Championship

April 11, 2024

The 2024 PDC World Darts Championship (known for sponsorship reasons as the 2023/24 Paddy Power World Darts Championship) was a professional darts event that took place at Alexandra Palace in London, England, from 15 December 2023 to 3 January 2024. It was the 31st World Darts Championship to be organised by the Professional Darts Corporation.

2023/24 Paddy Power World Darts Championship
Tournament information
Dates15 December 2023 – 3 January 2024
VenueAlexandra Palace
LocationLondon
Country England
Organisation(s)Professional Darts Corporation (PDC)
FormatSets
Final – first to 7 sets
High checkout
Champion(s)
 Luke Humphries
«2023 2025»
Luke Humphries won the PDC World Darts Championship for the first time
Sixteen-year-old Luke Littler reached the final on his World Championship debut

Michael Smith was the defending champion, having defeated Michael van Gerwen 7–4 in the 2023 final.[1] However, Smith lost 4–0 to Chris Dobey in the fourth round.[2] For the first time since the 2006 event, all four semi-finalists (Rob Cross, Luke Humphries, Luke Littler and Scott Williams) were English. For the first time since the 2010 event, two unseeded players (Littler and Williams) reached the final four.[3]

The third seed Luke Humphries won his first World Championship title, defeating 16-year-old debutant Luke Littler 7–4 in the final. He also became world number 1 for the first time in his career. The event sponsor pledged to donate £1,000 to the charity Prostate Cancer UK for every 180 scored during the tournament. The tournament set a new record for the most 180s achieved (914), raising £914,000 for the charity, which was ultimately rounded to £1,000,000.[4] Humphries scored the most 180s at the event (73), winning the inaugural Ballon d'Art trophy for the achievement.[5]

Steve Beaton made a record-extending 33rd consecutive World Championship appearance, but lost in the second round to Daryl Gurney. After 28 years with the PDC, referee Russ Bray retired at the end of the tournament after officiating his last televised ranking match at the world final.

Overview edit

The 2024 PDC World Darts Championship was the 31st World Darts Championship organised by the Professional Darts Corporation, and the 17th to be held at Alexandra Palace, London. It took place from 15 December 2023 to 3 January 2024 as the culminating event of the 2023 Professional Darts Corporation season.[6] The championship featured 96 players, with the top 32 highest ranked players on the PDC Order of Merit seeded through to the second round. Players ranked 33rd to 64th on the Order of Merit, and 32 other players from various qualifiers, started in the first round.[7]

Following the withdrawal of previous title sponsor Cazoo in July 2023,[8] bookmaker Paddy Power agreed a three-year deal to sponsor the event.[9] As part of its promotion of the event, Paddy Power announced that the triple 20 would be changed from its traditional red to green,[10] although this would later be revealed to be a hoax to raise awareness of the Big 180 campaign, for which the bookmaker would donate £1,000 to charity Prostate Cancer UK for every maximum score of 180 achieved during the tournament.[11][12][13] Additionally, the Irish betting provider inaugurated the Ballon d'Art for the player who achieved the most maximum scores throughout the event.[14][15]

Going into the event, Luke Humphries was viewed by players and bookmakers as the tournament favourite, having won three majors since October—the World Grand Prix, the Grand Slam of Darts, and the Players Championship Finals.[16][17][18] Sky Sports pundit Wayne Mardle backed Humphries to win the event, describing him as "the best player on the planet",[19] while former player Paul Nicholson described him as "a world number one in waiting".[20]

Defending champion Michael Smith was seen as unlikely to defend his title after a disappointing season, especially since he changed his darts supplier during the summer.[21] Smith himself acknowledged he was a likely target for players to up their game and eliminate him.[22] Going into the event, Smith began practicing with Nathan Aspinall in an effort to rectify his lack of practice throughout the year, which he attributed to a busier lifestyle following his championship win.[23]

Format edit

All matches were played as straight in, double out, requiring the players to score 501 points to win a leg, finishing on a double. The matches were played in the set format, with a minimum of three sets required to win a match. The following rules were observed:

  • All sets were played to the best of five legs in the first round, and also in non-deciding sets of subsequent rounds.
  • In the deciding set of all but the first round, the first player to win at least three legs and be leading by two or more won the set and the match. If the set reached a 5–5 tie without a winner, it was decided by a sudden-death leg with no throw for the bull.[6]
Round Best of (sets) First to (sets)
First & Second 5 3
Third & Fourth 7 4
Quarter-finals 9 5
Semi-finals 11 6
Final 13 7

Ranking edit

Rankings in the PDC Order of Merit are calculated on a two-year basis. Most of the players were defending their PDC Order of Merit prize money from the 2022 PDC World Darts Championship. At the end of the tournament, the PDC Order of Merit prize money from that event was deleted from their rankings. After the tournament, the top 64 in the PDC Order of Merit received a one-year extension on their tour card. The players in the final year of their tour card who finished the tournament outside the top 64 lost their tour card, unless players inside the top 64 resigned their tour card.[24]

Prize money edit

The total prize pool for the tournament remained at £2.5 million in total for the sixth year in a row.[25]

Position (no. of players) Prize money
(Total: £2,500,000)
Winner (1) £500,000
Runner-up (1) £200,000
Semi-finalists (2) £100,000
Quarter-finalists (4) £50,000
Fourth round losers (8) £35,000
Third round losers (16) £25,000
Second round losers (32) £15,000
First round losers (32) £7,500

Qualification edit

 
Defending champion Michael Smith was number one seed going into the tournament.

Seeding edit

The previous year's winner Michael Smith was top of the two-year PDC Order of Merit and number one seed going into the tournament. Michael van Gerwen, the three-time World Champion from 2014, 2017 and 2019, was the second seed, having won two major titles in 2023, the Premier League and the World Series of Darts Finals. Luke Humphries, winner of three of the last four ranked premier events in 2023, the World Grand Prix, Grand Slam and the Players Championship Finals, was the third seed. The 2022 world champion Peter Wright, who was also champion in 2020 and won the 2023 European Championship, was the fourth seed. As well as Smith, van Gerwen and Wright, four other previous PDC world champions qualified as seeds: 2021 world champion Gerwyn Price was the 5th seed, 2018 world champion Rob Cross was the 8th seed, 2015 and 2016 world champion Gary Anderson was seeded 21st, and 2007 world champion Raymond van Barneveld was seeded 29th. 2014 BDO World Champion Stephen Bunting qualified as 18th seed. He was one of two former BDO champions to qualify as seeds, alongside four-time BDO champion van Barneveld.[7]

The top seeds behind Smith, van Gerwen, Humphries, Wright and Price were 2023 World Matchplay champion Nathan Aspinall, 2022 UK Open champion Danny Noppert, Rob Cross, and Jonny Clayton, who, alongside Gerwyn Price, won the 2023 PDC World Cup of Darts. Other 2023 major event champions to qualify as seeds were Masters champion Chris Dobey at 17th, with 2023 UK Open winner Andrew Gilding three places below him at 20th.[7]

Pro Tour qualification edit

Ricardo Pietreczko, the winner of the 2023 German Darts Championship, was the highest-ranked non-seed on the 2023 PDC Pro Tour Order of Merit in his first World Championship participation. Gian van Veen, the 2023 World Youth runner up and a European Championship semi-finalist, and 2023 ProTour event winners Ryan Joyce and Radek Szagański were also amongst the qualifiers.

As well as Pietreczko, Van Veen and Szagański, other players qualifying for their PDC World Championship debuts were Mario Vandenbogaerde, Richard Veenstra, Kevin Doets, Connor Scutt, Dylan Slevin, Lee Evans, Jules van Dongen. Other players qualifying via the Pro Tour included 2010 runner-up Simon Whitlock, 1996 BDO champion Steve Beaton, and the 2012 BDO champion Christian Kist.[7] Beaton qualified for a record-extending 33rd consecutive World Championship appearance.[26]

International qualifiers edit

The final group of 32 qualifiers were determined by a series of international qualifiers and secondary tours. The PDC Asian Tour was held for the first time since 2019, and provided qualifiers for both the World Championship and the Asian Championship; the Professional Darts Japan qualifier was replaced with a place via the Asian Championship being reserved for a Japanese player. The Ukrainian qualifier that had been held for the first time in qualification for the previous year was discontinued, and the South West and West Europe qualifiers were combined.

Luke Littler, the 2023 World Youth Champion, qualified via the PDC Development Tour. Fallon Sherrock, the only woman to have previously won a match at the PDC World Darts Championship, and two-time BDO Women's World Champion Mikuru Suzuki qualified via the PDC Women's Series. In a rule change, the PDC announced that no player was eligible to compete in the 2024 PDC World Championship had they played at the 2023 WDF World Darts Championship which concluded a week earlier.[27] Beau Greaves, the winner of the 2023 Women's World Matchplay, chose not to compete in the PDC Championship for which she had qualified, instead opting for the WDF. Prakash Jiwa, the winner of the Indian Qualifier, was suspended by the Darts Regulation Authority on 16 November 2023 while an investigation is conducted into suspicious betting in the independent Modus Super Series.[28][29] Jiwa was replaced by the runner-up of the Indian Qualifier, Bhav Patel on 25 November 2023.[30] The final four places were awarded by a qualifier for non-qualified PDC Tour Card holders.

Debutants via the international and invitation qualifiers were Simon Adams, Owen Bates, Stowe Buntz, Tomoya Goto, Man Lok Leung, Luke Littler, Wessel Nijman, Sandro Eric Sosing, Bhav Patel, Berry van Peer, Darren Penhall, Reynaldo Rivera, Alex Spellman and Thibault Tricole, who was the first ever player from France to qualify for a PDC World Championship.[31]

List of qualifiers edit

  1. ^ Greaves chose to play the 2023 WDF World Darts Championship[33] following a ruling by the PDC which did not allow players to compete in both World Championships in the same year.[34]
  2. ^ The original qualifier Prakash Jiwa was suspended by the Darts Regulation Authority on 16 November 2023 due to an investigation into suspicious betting on matches in the independently-operated Modus Super Series.[28][36] Jiwa was replaced by the runner-up of the Indian Qualifier on 25 November 2023.[30]

Summary edit

 
Former champion Peter Wright was the highest seeded player to be eliminated in his first match.
 
Former champion Rob Cross reached the World Championship semi-final for the second time in his career.

Opening rounds edit

The tournament began on 15 December, with defending champion Michael Smith avoiding a shock on the opening night at the hands of Dutch qualifier Kevin Doets, winning 3–2.[38] James Wade was the first seeded player eliminated from the tournament, losing 3–2 to Canadian Matt Campbell.[39] Fourth seed and former two-time champion Peter Wright suffered a 3–0 defeat to Jim Williams,[40] who had whitewashed Guyanan Norman Madhoo in his opening match.[41]

16 year old Luke Littler made history by averaging 106.2 in a 3–0 win against Dutchman Christian Kist, the highest ever achieved by a débutant at the event,[42] and followed this by defeating 2023 UK Open champion Andrew Gilding 3–1 in the second round.[43] 2023 World Matchplay champion Nathan Aspinall also suffered a 3–0 defeat, being eliminated by "Rapid" Ricky Evans.[44]

In total, 11 seeds were eliminated in the second round; in addition to Wade, Wright, Gilding, and Aspinall, Danny Noppert, Dirk van Duijvenbode, Dimitri van den Bergh, Josh Rock, Jose de Sousa, Callan Rydz and Kim Huybrechts all lost their first game.[45]

Thibault Tricole became the first French player to win a game at the PDC World Championship, defeating Belgian Mario Vandenbogaerde 3–1,[46] before being eliminated in round two by 2018 world champion Rob Cross.[47]

Third round edit

Former world champion Gerwyn Price was the highest ranked player to be eliminated in the third round, going down 4–2 to Brendan Dolan.[48] Two unseeded players made it through to the fourth round, 16-year old Luke Littler continuing his debut run with a 4–1 victory over Matt Campbell and Scott Williams defeated Martin Schindler in a match which went all seven sets.[49]

Luke Humphries, one of the pre-tournament favourites, survived a scare against Ricardo Pietreczko, rallying from 3–1 down to triumph 4–3.[48] Damon Heta also beat Berry van Peer in another game to go the distance, while world champion Michael Smith and former champions Michael van Gerwen, Rob Cross, Gary Anderson and Raymond van Barneveld all continued their attempts to win the tournament for another time.[49][48][50]

Fourth round edit

Reigning champion Michael Smith's campaign to retain his title ended in the fourth round, being beaten 4–0 by Chris Dobey.[50] Gary Anderson was also eliminated 4–3 by Brendan Dolan, while Raymond van Barneveld was knocked out 4–1 by Luke Littler, in a match that attracted considerable attention, with BBC Sport unusually running a liveblog of the match and highlighting the fact that Littler had not been born the previous occasion that Van Barneveld had won the World Championship.[51]

Littler's fellow unseeded player Scott Williams also made the quarter-finals, eliminating Damon Heta. Luke Humphries again had to battle, going all the way to a sudden-death final leg against Joe Cullen before breaking his opponent's throw and keeping his Championship hopes alive.[52] Rob Cross reached the quarter-final for the first time since his 2018 triumph with a 4–0 victory over Jonny Clayton, and Michael van Gerwen also had a 4–0 win over Stephen Bunting. Dave Chisnall completed the quarter-final lineup with victory over Daryl Gurney.[53]

Quarter-finals edit

The quarter-finals were held on New Year's Day. The first to be played was between Rob Cross and Chris Dobey. Dobey took the first set against the throw and made a dominant start, going up 4–0. Cross fought back and held the next set, before breaking the Dobey throw to pull back to 4–2. The last leg of the seventh set saw Dobey miss one dart at bullseye to win the match before Cross took the set and again broke the Dobey throw to level the match. Cross won the first two legs of the final set to take the lead for the first time in the match before Dobey took the next two to bring the match into extra legs. Cross won the seventh leg in ten darts and took advantage of a missed dart by Dobey to break in the eighth set and win the match, qualifying for the semi-final for the second time in his career.[54]

The second game was between Brendan Dolan and Luke Littler. Littler won the first set despite Dolan taking a 2–0 lead, before breaking throw in the second set to take control of the match. Littler won the next two sets to solidify his lead. Despite Dolan breaking back in the fifth set 3–1, Littler took all three legs in the sixth set to secure the victory and continue his debut run.[55] The result confirmed that Littler would finish the tournament in the top 64 of the PDC Order of Merit, meaning he would carry his ranking money into the next season and meaning his previously secured two-year tour card was instead given to Nathan Rafferty. Littler was the first debutant to reach the semi-final since Nathan Aspinall at the 2019 tournament.

In the third quarter-final between Michael van Gerwen and Scott Williams, the first two sets went with throw before van Gerwen broke in the third set after Williams missed five darts at doubles to win the set. Williams however won the next six legs in a row to reverse the set lead to 3–2. Van Gerwen re-established himself in the match by winning the next set 3–0 but Williams won the seventh set to go one away. Williams again broke throw in the third leg of the eighth set and held the advantage to eliminate the three-time world champion and qualify for the first semi-final of his career.[56] He and Littler were the first semi-finalists to have been unseeded going into the tournament since Aspinall in 2019.

The final quarter-final was between Luke Humphries and Dave Chisnall. The first three sets went with throw but in the fourth set, after Chisnall took the first two legs to seemingly maintain the pattern, he missed two darts to hold the set and Humphries turned it around to get the match's first set break. Humphries held throw in the fifth set and then broke again in the sixth set to secure a 5–1 victory and qualify for his first World Championship semi-final.[57]

Semi-finals edit

In the first semi-final, Rob Cross played Luke Littler. Cross had throw in the first set and won it, before breaking in the third leg of the second set. Cross, however, missed one set dart in the next leg and Littler was able to come back and win the set, before breaking in the first leg of the third set, which he went on to win. Littler again held throw in the fourth set and missed one dart to take the fifth set, which Cross won. Littler took the sixth set and then broke Cross in the third leg of the seventh set to go one away. The eighth set went the distance, before Littler took out a finish of 80 to complete a 6–2 victory and qualify for the final.[58] Littler was the first debutant to reach a final since Cross himself in 2018, and the first unseeded player to do so since Kirk Shepherd in 2008.[59]

In the second semi-final, Scott Williams played Luke Humphries. Williams broke the Humphries throw in the first leg of the first set, but Humphries broke straight back in the next leg and was able to hold the first set. He broke the Williams throw twice in the second set to take it 3–0 before completing the highest possible 170 finish in the first leg of the third set, taking the set after Williams had missed a dart at the bullseye to break. Humphries extended his lead further after breaking throw in the final leg of the fourth set, before taking the fifth set 3–0. Humphries broke again in the third leg of the sixth set and took out a 20 finish in the next leg to wrap up a 6–0 sets victory and qualify for his first World Championship final and his fourth final in the last five PDC premier ranked events.[60] The result confirmed that Humphries would, for the first time, move to number one on the PDC Order of Merit following the tournament.[61]

Final edit

 
Russ Bray refereed the final of his 28th and final World Championship.

The final between Luke Littler and Luke Humphries was held on 3 January 2024. It was the final World Championship game for referee Russ Bray, who announced his intention to retire from refereeing ranked events prior to the tournament.[62] Prior to the match, Bray was inducted into the PDC Hall of Fame.[63]

Littler had the throw at the start of the first set; but lost the throw to Humphries in the third leg, who won the set 3–1. Humphries broke the Littler throw again in the second leg of the second set, but Littler broke back in the third set after Humphries missed a dart for the set, before breaking again in the fifth set with a 120 finish to level the match. In the third set, Littler broke throw in the second leg but Humphries broke back in the third leg and broke again in the fifth leg to re-take the match lead. Littler, however, levelled up the match again after breaking in the first leg of set 4, before taking the match lead for the first time after winning the fifth set 3–1. Littler then took the sixth set without dropping a leg to go into a 4–2 lead.[64]

The seventh set went entirely against throw, with Littler ultimately missing one dart at double to take a 5–2 set lead and allowed Humphries to instead bring the match back to 4–3. Humphries won the eighth set 3–1 to bring the match level before breaking throw in the final leg of the ninth set to re-take the lead. Humphries got to one set away with a 3–1 win in the tenth set. The first four legs of the eleventh set went with throw before Littler missed three darts at double to take the final leg, before Humphries hit double 8 to win his first World Championship.[65] This was Humphries' fourth premier tournament victory in four months, having won the World Grand Prix, Grand Slam and Players Championship Finals prior to the tournament. Humphries went to the number 1 spot on the PDC Order of Merit for the first time following the tournament, whilst Littler rose 133 places to go 31st.[66]

Schedule edit

Friday, 15 December[67]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5
Evening session (19:00 GMT)
01 1   Kevin Doets 91.79 3–0   Stowe Buntz 88.26 3–1 3–1 3–2 —
02   Cameron Menzies 88.49 3–0   Rusty-Jake Rodriguez 81.83 3–0 3–2 3–2 —
03   Simon Whitlock 90.13 3–2   Paolo Nebrida 90.15 0–3 3–2 3–1 1–3 3–1
04 2   Michael Smith 100.09 3–2   Kevin Doets 99.46 3–1 2–3 2–3 3–1 3–1
Saturday, 16 December[68]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5
Afternoon session (12:30 GMT)
05 1   Lee Evans 85.02 3–0   Sandro Eric Sosing 75.59 3–1 3–0 3–2 —
06   Connor Scutt 95.97 3–0   Krzysztof Kciuk 91.82 3–0 3–2 3–1 —
07   Jules van Dongen 90.72 1–3   Darren Penhall 91.29 2–3 3–1 0–3 1–3 —
08 2   Dave Chisnall 90.94 3–1   Cameron Menzies 87.32 0–3 3–2 3–0 3–2 —
Evening session (19:00 GMT)
09 1   Jamie Hughes 81.36 3–1   David Cameron 82.19 3–2 2–3 3–2 3–0 —
10   Keane Barry 86.68 3–1   Reynaldo Rivera 87.38 3–1 3–2 0–3 3–1 —
11   Scott Williams 90.69 3–1   Haruki Muramatsu 90.43 3–2 3–0 0–3 3–2 —
12 2   Gary Anderson 98.29 3–0   Simon Whitlock 88.38 3–0 3–1 3–2 —
Sunday, 17 December[69]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5
Afternoon session (12:30 GMT)
13 1   Ricky Evans 92.34 3–0   Simon Adams 75.89 3–2 3–0 3–0 —
14   Jim Williams 87.84 3–0   Norman Madhoo 73.20 3–0 3–0 3–0 —
15   Matt Campbell 93.14 3–2   Lourence Ilagan 86.03 3–1 3–1 2–3 2–3 3–0
16 2   Joe Cullen 93.41 3–0   Darren Penhall 81.24 3–1 3–2 3–1 —
Evening session (19:00 GMT)
17 1   Dylan Slevin 90.21 1–3   Florian Hempel 91.06 3–1 2–3 2–3 1–3 —
18   Niels Zonneveld 79.86 3–1   Darren Webster 84.29 3–0 3–2 2–3 3–2 —
19   Jermaine Wattimena 90.99 3–1   Fallon Sherrock 87.32 2–3 3–1 3–0 3–2 —
20 2   Luke Humphries 93.58 3–0   Lee Evans 92.33 3–1 3–2 3–2 —
Monday, 18 December[70]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5
Evening session (19:00 GMT)
21 1   Mario Vandenbogaerde 85.59 1–3   Thibault Tricole 85.21 3–2 2–3 2–3 2–3 —
22   Gian van Veen 87.53 2–3   Man Lok Leung 96.26 3–2 3–2 1–3 1–3 1–3
23   Martin Lukeman 92.03 3–1   Haupai Puha 88.45 3–0 3–1 2–3 3–0 —
24 2   Gerwyn Price 98.01 3–0   Connor Scutt 88.83 3–0 3–0 3–2 —
Tuesday, 19 December[71]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5
Afternoon session (12:30 GMT)
25 1   Ian White 93.39 1–3   Tomoya Goto 90.71 2–3 2–3 3–1 0–3 —
26   Ritchie Edhouse 89.23 2–3   Jeffrey de Graaf 93.29 3–2 3–2 2–3 2–3 1–3
27   Keegan Brown 82.97 1–3   Boris Krčmar 91.05 3–2 0–3 0–3 2–3 —
28 2   James Wade 92.30 2–3   Matt Campbell 96.28 3–1 1–3 3–1 0–3 1–3
Evening session (19:00 GMT)
29 1   Steve Beaton 92.01 3–1   Wessel Nijman 92.82 3–1 3–2 0–3 3–2 —
30   Mike De Decker 94.34 3–0   Dragutin Horvat 83.65 3–1 3–1 3–2 —
31   Ricardo Pietreczko 92.37 3–0   Mikuru Suzuki 78.27 3–0 3–1 3–0 —
32 2   Michael van Gerwen 98.17 3–0   Keane Barry 95.81 3–1 3–1 3–0 —
Wednesday, 20 December[72]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5
Afternoon session (12:30 GMT)
33 1   Radek Szagański 82.40 3–2   Marko Kantele 78.47 3–1 2–3 2–3 3–1 3–0
34   Steve Lennon 88.75 3–2   Owen Bates 86.51 1–3 2–3 3–1 3–1 3–1
35   William O'Connor 98.74 3–0   Bhav Patel 82.00 3–0 3–0 3–0 —
36 2   Ross Smith 95.01 3–1   Niels Zonneveld 90.75 3–0 3–2 2–3 3–1 —
Evening session (19:00 GMT)
37 1   Ryan Joyce 100.32 3–1   Alex Spellman 95.46 0–3 3–2 3–1 3–0 —
38   Richard Veenstra 85.29 3–0   Ben Robb 89.51 3–2 3–1 3–2 —
39   Christian Kist 90.55 0–3   Luke Littler 106.12 0–3 1–3 1–3 —
40 2   Peter Wright 83.87 0–3   Jim Williams 90.45 2–3 2–3 0–3 —
Thursday, 21 December[73]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5
Afternoon session (12:30 GMT)
41 1   Mickey Mansell 89.94 3–0   Zong Xiao Chen 85.22 3–2 3–0 3–1 —
42   Luke Woodhouse 92.18 2–3   Berry van Peer 93.87 2–3 3–2 1–3 3–2 0–3
43 2   Madars Razma 91.33 3–1   Mike De Decker 89.94 3–0 1–3 3–2 3–2 —
44   Rob Cross 89.32 3–0   Thibault Tricole 85.39 3–0 3–2 3–0 —
Evening session (19:00 GMT)
45 2   Andrew Gilding 92.09 1–3   Luke Littler 92.65 2–3 2–3 3–0 1–3 —
46   Danny Noppert 94.13 0–3   Scott Williams 94.01 2–3 2–3 1–3 —
47   Gabriel Clemens 90.66 3–1   Man Lok Leung 92.56 3–1 3–2 0–3 3–0 —
48   Damon Heta 89.69 3–1   Martin Lukeman 87.66 3–2 3–0 1–3 3–0 —
Friday, 22 December[74]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5
Afternoon session (12:30 GMT)
49 2   Brendan Dolan 95.13 3–2   Mickey Mansell 95.36 3–2 0–3 3–2 1–3 6–5
50   José de Sousa 93.82 1–3   Jeffrey de Graaf 94.22 3–2 2–3 1–3 0–3 —
51   Krzysztof Ratajski 89.82 3–1   Jamie Hughes 85.74 2–3 3–2 3–2 3–1 —
52   Dirk van Duijvenbode 94.57 1–3   Boris Krčmar 96.84 3–1 0–3 1–3 0–3 —
Evening session (19:00 GMT)
53 2   Dimitri Van den Bergh 90.77 2–3   Florian Hempel 91.78 3–2 3–1 2–3 2–3 0–3
54   Martin Schindler 96.93 3–1   Jermaine Wattimena 89.85 3–1 3–1 2–3 3–0 —
55   Raymond van Barneveld 99.81 3–1   Radek Szagański 93.64 3–1 3–0 2–3 3–2 —
56   Chris Dobey 103.09 3–2   William O'Connor 97.22 3–1 1–3 3–1 1–3 3–1
Saturday, 23 December[75][76]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5
Afternoon session (12:30 GMT)
57 2   Kim Huybrechts 84.77 0–3   Richard Veenstra 99.46 0–3 0–3 0–3 —
58   Callan Rydz 96.65 2–3   Ricardo Pietreczko 99.27 0–3 3–2 0–3 3–1 0–3
59   Jonny Clayton 88.45 3–1   Steve Lennon 86.67 2–3 3–1 3–2 3–0 —
60   Daryl Gurney 100.79 3–1   Steve Beaton 91.16 3–0 3–1 2–3 3–2 —
Evening session (19:00 GMT)
61 2   Ryan Searle 91.11 3–1   Tomoya Goto 85.62 3–0 3–2 2–3 3–0 —
62   Josh Rock 91.87 1–3   Berry van Peer 91.32 1–3 2–3 3–2 1–3 —
63   Stephen Bunting 107.28 3–0   Ryan Joyce 90.25 3–0 3–2 3–1 —
64   Nathan Aspinall 90.54 0–3   Ricky Evans 99.38 1–3 0–3 1–3 —
Wednesday, 27 December[77]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7
Afternoon session (12:30 GMT)
65 3   Scott Williams 94.13 4–3   Martin Schindler 94.82 1–3 0–3 3–0 3–2 0–3 3–1 4–2
66   Dave Chisnall 95.49 4–1   Gabriel Clemens 96.16 3–1 3–0 3–1 1–3 3–2 —
67   Rob Cross 101.32 4–2   Jeffrey de Graaf 91.95 3–2 3–0 2–3 3–2 1–3 3–1 —
Evening session (19:00 GMT)
68 3   Matt Campbell 91.29 1–4   Luke Littler 97.19 0–3 0–3 2–3 3–2 1–3 —
69   Michael van Gerwen 101.39 4–0   Richard Veenstra 86.20 3–1 3–1 3–2 3–0 —
70   Michael Smith 93.73 4–1   Madars Razma 87.78 2–3 3–1 3–1 3–2 3–1 —
Thursday, 28 December[78]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7
Afternoon session (12:30 GMT)
71 3   Florian Hempel 93.79 0–4   Stephen Bunting 101.15 2–3 1–3 2–3 1–3 —
72   Joe Cullen 96.51 4–2   Ryan Searle 93.94 3–1 3–1 0–3 2–3 3–2 3–2 —
73   Ross Smith 103.33 2–4   Chris Dobey 102.36 1–3 1–3 3–2 3–1 2–3 1–3 —
Evening session (19:00 GMT)
74 3   Gerwyn Price 95.76 2–4   Brendan Dolan 95.73 2–3 3–1 2–3 3–0 2–3 2–3 —
75   Luke Humphries 91.38 4–3   Ricardo Pietreczko 91.02 3–1 1–3 2–3 0–3 3–2 3–1 3–0
76   Ricky Evans 93.23 2–4   Daryl Gurney 93.53 3–1 2–3 3–2 2–3 2–3 1–3 —
Friday, 29 December[79][80]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7
Afternoon session (12:30 GMT)
77 3   Damon Heta 96.06 4–3   Berry van Peer 88.29 0–3 2–3 3–0 3–2 3–1 1–3 3–1
78   Jonny Clayton 91.55 4–2   Krzysztof Ratajski 92.94 3–1 3–2 0–3 3–1 1–3 3–1 —
79   Jim Williams 91.71 1–4   Raymond van Barneveld 89.16 2–3 3–2 0–3 0–3 2–3 —
Evening session (19:00 GMT)
80 3   Boris Krčmar 94.80 1–4   Gary Anderson 99.29 3–2 1–3 2–3 1–3 0–3 —
81 4   Michael van Gerwen 99.80 4–0   Stephen Bunting 94.84 3–2 3–2 3–1 3–1 —
82   Michael Smith 102.47 0–4   Chris Dobey 102.43 1–3 2–3 0–3 1–3 —
Saturday, 30 December[81]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7
Afternoon session (12:30 GMT)
83 4   Scott Williams 92.96 4–1   Damon Heta 92.50 3–2 1–3 3–2 3–1 3–2 —
84   Daryl Gurney 91.03 2–4   Dave Chisnall 98.98 2–3 2–3 3–2 3–0 0–3 1–3 —
85   Rob Cross 98.41 4–0   Jonny Clayton 90.89 3–1 3–0 3–1 3–2 —
Evening session (19:30 GMT)
86 4   Brendan Dolan 94.01 4–3   Gary Anderson 93.38 3–0 3–1 1–3 1–3 1–3 3–1 3–1
87   Raymond van Barneveld 99.61 1–4   Luke Littler 105.01 1–3 1–3 2–3 3–2 2–3 —
88   Luke Humphries 99.23 4–3   Joe Cullen 98.66 2–3 0–3 3–1 3–2 2–3 3–0 6–5
Monday, 1 January[82]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7 Set 8 Set 9
Afternoon session (12:30 GMT)
89 QF   Chris Dobey 99.84 4–5   Rob Cross 100.70 3–1 3–2 3–0 3–0 1–3 1–3 2–3 1–3 3–5
90   Luke Littler 101.93 5–1   Brendan Dolan 86.45 3–2 3–0 3–2 3–1 1–3 3–0 —
Evening session (19:00 GMT)
91 QF   Michael van Gerwen 93.41 3–5   Scott Williams 96.32 0–3 3–1 3–2 0–3 0–3 3–0 1–3 1–3 —
92   Luke Humphries 103.50 5–1   Dave Chisnall 97.38 3–1 2–3 3–1 3–2 3–2 3–0 —
Tuesday, 2 January[83]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7 Set 8 Set 9 Set 10 Set 11
Evening session (19:30 GMT)
93 SF   Rob Cross 102.77 2–6   Luke Littler 106.05 3–2 2–3 1–3 2–3 3–2 1–3 1–3 2–3 —
94   Scott Williams 94.93 0–6   Luke Humphries 108.74 2–3 0–3 2–3 2–3 0–3 1–3 —
Wednesday, 3 January[84]
Match no. Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7 Set 8 Set 9 Set 10 Set 11 Set 12 Set 13
Evening session (20:00 GMT)
95 F   Luke Littler 101.13 4–7   Luke Humphries 103.67 1–3 3–2 2–3 3–1 3–1 3–0 2–3 1–3 2–3 1–3 2–3 —

Draw edit

The draw was held on 27 November 2023 and was conducted by former world champions Dennis Priestley and Phil Taylor.[85][86]

Finals edit

April 11, 2024
2024, world, darts, championship, known, sponsorship, reasons, 2023, paddy, power, world, darts, championship, professional, darts, event, that, took, place, alexandra, palace, london, england, from, december, 2023, january, 2024, 31st, world, darts, champions. The 2024 PDC World Darts Championship known for sponsorship reasons as the 2023 24 Paddy Power World Darts Championship was a professional darts event that took place at Alexandra Palace in London England from 15 December 2023 to 3 January 2024 It was the 31st World Darts Championship to be organised by the Professional Darts Corporation 2023 24 Paddy Power World Darts ChampionshipTournament informationDates15 December 2023 3 January 2024VenueAlexandra PalaceLocationLondonCountry EnglandOrganisation s Professional Darts Corporation PDC FormatSetsFinal first to 7 setsHigh checkout170 Lee Evans Ross Smith Danny Noppert Jermaine Wattimena Scott Williams Luke Humphries x2 Luke LittlerChampion s Luke Humphries 2023 2025 Luke Humphries won the PDC World Darts Championship for the first timeSixteen year old Luke Littler reached the final on his World Championship debutMichael Smith was the defending champion having defeated Michael van Gerwen 7 4 in the 2023 final 1 However Smith lost 4 0 to Chris Dobey in the fourth round 2 For the first time since the 2006 event all four semi finalists Rob Cross Luke Humphries Luke Littler and Scott Williams were English For the first time since the 2010 event two unseeded players Littler and Williams reached the final four 3 The third seed Luke Humphries won his first World Championship title defeating 16 year old debutant Luke Littler 7 4 in the final He also became world number 1 for the first time in his career The event sponsor pledged to donate 1 000 to the charity Prostate Cancer UK for every 180 scored during the tournament The tournament set a new record for the most 180s achieved 914 raising 914 000 for the charity which was ultimately rounded to 1 000 000 4 Humphries scored the most 180s at the event 73 winning the inaugural Ballon d Art trophy for the achievement 5 Steve Beaton made a record extending 33rd consecutive World Championship appearance but lost in the second round to Daryl Gurney After 28 years with the PDC referee Russ Bray retired at the end of the tournament after officiating his last televised ranking match at the world final Contents 1 Overview 1 1 Format 1 2 Ranking 1 3 Prize money 2 Qualification 2 1 Seeding 2 2 Pro Tour qualification 2 3 International qualifiers 2 4 List of qualifiers 3 Summary 3 1 Opening rounds 3 2 Third round 3 3 Fourth round 3 4 Quarter finals 3 5 Semi finals 3 6 Final 4 Schedule 5 Draw 5 1 Finals 5 2 Top half 5 2 1 Section 1 5 2 2 Section 2 5 3 Bottom half 5 3 1 Section 3 5 3 2 Section 4 6 Final 7 Statistics 7 1 Highest averages 7 2 Ballon d Art 7 3 Representation 8 Media coverage 8 1 Television audience 8 2 Reality miniseries 9 ReferencesOverview editThe 2024 PDC World Darts Championship was the 31st World Darts Championship organised by the Professional Darts Corporation and the 17th to be held at Alexandra Palace London It took place from 15 December 2023 to 3 January 2024 as the culminating event of the 2023 Professional Darts Corporation season 6 The championship featured 96 players with the top 32 highest ranked players on the PDC Order of Merit seeded through to the second round Players ranked 33rd to 64th on the Order of Merit and 32 other players from various qualifiers started in the first round 7 Following the withdrawal of previous title sponsor Cazoo in July 2023 8 bookmaker Paddy Power agreed a three year deal to sponsor the event 9 As part of its promotion of the event Paddy Power announced that the triple 20 would be changed from its traditional red to green 10 although this would later be revealed to be a hoax to raise awareness of the Big 180 campaign for which the bookmaker would donate 1 000 to charity Prostate Cancer UK for every maximum score of 180 achieved during the tournament 11 12 13 Additionally the Irish betting provider inaugurated the Ballon d Art for the player who achieved the most maximum scores throughout the event 14 15 Going into the event Luke Humphries was viewed by players and bookmakers as the tournament favourite having won three majors since October the World Grand Prix the Grand Slam of Darts and the Players Championship Finals 16 17 18 Sky Sports pundit Wayne Mardle backed Humphries to win the event describing him as the best player on the planet 19 while former player Paul Nicholson described him as a world number one in waiting 20 Defending champion Michael Smith was seen as unlikely to defend his title after a disappointing season especially since he changed his darts supplier during the summer 21 Smith himself acknowledged he was a likely target for players to up their game and eliminate him 22 Going into the event Smith began practicing with Nathan Aspinall in an effort to rectify his lack of practice throughout the year which he attributed to a busier lifestyle following his championship win 23 Format edit All matches were played as straight in double out requiring the players to score 501 points to win a leg finishing on a double The matches were played in the set format with a minimum of three sets required to win a match The following rules were observed All sets were played to the best of five legs in the first round and also in non deciding sets of subsequent rounds In the deciding set of all but the first round the first player to win at least three legs and be leading by two or more won the set and the match If the set reached a 5 5 tie without a winner it was decided by a sudden death leg with no throw for the bull 6 Round Best of sets First to sets First amp Second 5 3Third amp Fourth 7 4Quarter finals 9 5Semi finals 11 6Final 13 7Ranking edit Rankings in the PDC Order of Merit are calculated on a two year basis Most of the players were defending their PDC Order of Merit prize money from the 2022 PDC World Darts Championship At the end of the tournament the PDC Order of Merit prize money from that event was deleted from their rankings After the tournament the top 64 in the PDC Order of Merit received a one year extension on their tour card The players in the final year of their tour card who finished the tournament outside the top 64 lost their tour card unless players inside the top 64 resigned their tour card 24 Prize money edit The total prize pool for the tournament remained at 2 5 million in total for the sixth year in a row 25 Position no of players Prize money Total 2 500 000 Winner 1 500 000Runner up 1 200 000Semi finalists 2 100 000Quarter finalists 4 50 000Fourth round losers 8 35 000Third round losers 16 25 000Second round losers 32 15 000First round losers 32 7 500Qualification edit nbsp Defending champion Michael Smith was number one seed going into the tournament Seeding edit The previous year s winner Michael Smith was top of the two year PDC Order of Merit and number one seed going into the tournament Michael van Gerwen the three time World Champion from 2014 2017 and 2019 was the second seed having won two major titles in 2023 the Premier League and the World Series of Darts Finals Luke Humphries winner of three of the last four ranked premier events in 2023 the World Grand Prix Grand Slam and the Players Championship Finals was the third seed The 2022 world champion Peter Wright who was also champion in 2020 and won the 2023 European Championship was the fourth seed As well as Smith van Gerwen and Wright four other previous PDC world champions qualified as seeds 2021 world champion Gerwyn Price was the 5th seed 2018 world champion Rob Cross was the 8th seed 2015 and 2016 world champion Gary Anderson was seeded 21st and 2007 world champion Raymond van Barneveld was seeded 29th 2014 BDO World Champion Stephen Bunting qualified as 18th seed He was one of two former BDO champions to qualify as seeds alongside four time BDO champion van Barneveld 7 The top seeds behind Smith van Gerwen Humphries Wright and Price were 2023 World Matchplay champion Nathan Aspinall 2022 UK Open champion Danny Noppert Rob Cross and Jonny Clayton who alongside Gerwyn Price won the 2023 PDC World Cup of Darts Other 2023 major event champions to qualify as seeds were Masters champion Chris Dobey at 17th with 2023 UK Open winner Andrew Gilding three places below him at 20th 7 Pro Tour qualification edit Ricardo Pietreczko the winner of the 2023 German Darts Championship was the highest ranked non seed on the 2023 PDC Pro Tour Order of Merit in his first World Championship participation Gian van Veen the 2023 World Youth runner up and a European Championship semi finalist and 2023 ProTour event winners Ryan Joyce and Radek Szaganski were also amongst the qualifiers As well as Pietreczko Van Veen and Szaganski other players qualifying for their PDC World Championship debuts were Mario Vandenbogaerde Richard Veenstra Kevin Doets Connor Scutt Dylan Slevin Lee Evans Jules van Dongen Other players qualifying via the Pro Tour included 2010 runner up Simon Whitlock 1996 BDO champion Steve Beaton and the 2012 BDO champion Christian Kist 7 Beaton qualified for a record extending 33rd consecutive World Championship appearance 26 International qualifiers edit The final group of 32 qualifiers were determined by a series of international qualifiers and secondary tours The PDC Asian Tour was held for the first time since 2019 and provided qualifiers for both the World Championship and the Asian Championship the Professional Darts Japan qualifier was replaced with a place via the Asian Championship being reserved for a Japanese player The Ukrainian qualifier that had been held for the first time in qualification for the previous year was discontinued and the South West and West Europe qualifiers were combined Luke Littler the 2023 World Youth Champion qualified via the PDC Development Tour Fallon Sherrock the only woman to have previously won a match at the PDC World Darts Championship and two time BDO Women s World Champion Mikuru Suzuki qualified via the PDC Women s Series In a rule change the PDC announced that no player was eligible to compete in the 2024 PDC World Championship had they played at the 2023 WDF World Darts Championship which concluded a week earlier 27 Beau Greaves the winner of the 2023 Women s World Matchplay chose not to compete in the PDC Championship for which she had qualified instead opting for the WDF Prakash Jiwa the winner of the Indian Qualifier was suspended by the Darts Regulation Authority on 16 November 2023 while an investigation is conducted into suspicious betting in the independent Modus Super Series 28 29 Jiwa was replaced by the runner up of the Indian Qualifier Bhav Patel on 25 November 2023 30 The final four places were awarded by a qualifier for non qualified PDC Tour Card holders Debutants via the international and invitation qualifiers were Simon Adams Owen Bates Stowe Buntz Tomoya Goto Man Lok Leung Luke Littler Wessel Nijman Sandro Eric Sosing Bhav Patel Berry van Peer Darren Penhall Reynaldo Rivera Alex Spellman and Thibault Tricole who was the first ever player from France to qualify for a PDC World Championship 31 List of qualifiers edit Order of MeritSecond round seeded 0 1 nbsp Michael Smith fourth round 0 2 nbsp Michael van Gerwen quarter finals 0 3 nbsp Luke Humphries champion 0 4 nbsp Peter Wright second round 0 5 nbsp Gerwyn Price third round 0 6 nbsp Nathan Aspinall second round 0 7 nbsp Danny Noppert second round 0 8 nbsp Rob Cross semi finals 0 9 nbsp Jonny Clayton fourth round 10 nbsp Damon Heta fourth round 11 nbsp Dave Chisnall quarter finals 12 nbsp Dirk van Duijvenbode second round 13 nbsp James Wade second round 14 nbsp Joe Cullen fourth round 15 nbsp Dimitri Van den Bergh second round 16 nbsp Ross Smith third round 17 nbsp Chris Dobey quarter finals 18 nbsp Stephen Bunting fourth round 19 nbsp Ryan Searle third round 20 nbsp Andrew Gilding second round 21 nbsp Gary Anderson fourth round 22 nbsp Gabriel Clemens third round 23 nbsp Josh Rock second round 24 nbsp Krzysztof Ratajski third round 25 nbsp Jose de Sousa second round 26 nbsp Martin Schindler third round 27 nbsp Daryl Gurney fourth round 28 nbsp Brendan Dolan quarter finals 29 nbsp Raymond van Barneveld fourth round 30 nbsp Callan Rydz second round 31 nbsp Kim Huybrechts second round 32 nbsp Madars Razma third round Pro Tour Order of MeritFirst round nbsp Ricardo Pietreczko third round nbsp Gian van Veen first round nbsp Ryan Joyce second round nbsp Luke Woodhouse first round nbsp Mike De Decker second round nbsp Ian White first round nbsp Jim Williams third round nbsp Mario Vandenbogaerde first round nbsp Radek Szaganski second round nbsp Richard Veenstra third round nbsp Steve Beaton second round nbsp Keane Barry second round nbsp Simon Whitlock second round nbsp Kevin Doets second round nbsp Matt Campbell third round nbsp Connor Scutt second round nbsp Martin Lukeman second round nbsp Mickey Mansell second round nbsp Dylan Slevin first round nbsp Steve Lennon second round nbsp William O Connor second round nbsp Scott Williams semi finals nbsp Christian Kist first round nbsp Ricky Evans third round nbsp Cameron Menzies second round nbsp Lee Evans second round nbsp Ritchie Edhouse first round nbsp Jermaine Wattimena second round nbsp Jules van Dongen first round nbsp Jamie Hughes second round nbsp Niels Zonneveld second round nbsp Keegan Brown first round International QualifiersFirst round nbsp Simon Adams African Qualifier first round nbsp Owen Bates PDC Challenge Tour first round nbsp Stowe Buntz CDC Pro Tour first round nbsp David Cameron CDC Pro Tour first round nbsp Tomoya Goto PDC Asian Tour second round nbsp Jeffrey de Graaf PDC Nordic amp Baltic 32 third round nbsp Beau Greaves Women s World Matchplay a withdrew nbsp Florian Hempel PDC TCH Qualifier third round nbsp Dragutin Horvat PDC Europe Super League first round nbsp Lourence Ilagan PDC Asian Tour first round nbsp Marko Kantele PDC Nordic amp Baltic 35 first round nbsp Krzysztof Kciuk East Europe Qualifier 30 first round nbsp Boris Krcmar PDC TCH Qualifier third round nbsp Man Lok Leung PDC Asian Tour second round nbsp Luke Littler PDC Development Tour runner up nbsp Norman Madhoo CLDC Pro Tour first round nbsp Haruki Muramatsu PDC Asian Championship first round nbsp Paolo Nebrida PDC Asian Tour first round nbsp Wessel Nijman PDC Development Tour first round nbsp Bhav Patel Indian Qualifier b first round nbsp Berry van Peer PDC Challenge Tour third round nbsp Darren Penhall DPA Pro Tour 37 second round nbsp Haupai Puha Oceanic Masters first round nbsp Reynaldo Rivera PDC Asian Tour first round nbsp Ben Robb DPNZ Qualifier first round nbsp Rusty Jake Rodriguez PDC TCH Qualifier first round nbsp Fallon Sherrock PDC Women s Series first round nbsp Sandro Eric Sosing PDC Asian Championship first round nbsp Alex Spellman CDC Pro Tour first round nbsp Mikuru Suzuki PDC Women s Series first round nbsp Thibault Tricole West Europe Qualifier second round nbsp Darren Webster PDC TCH Qualifier first round nbsp Zong Xiao Chen PDC China Premier League first round Greaves chose to play the 2023 WDF World Darts Championship 33 following a ruling by the PDC which did not allow players to compete in both World Championships in the same year 34 The original qualifier Prakash Jiwa was suspended by the Darts Regulation Authority on 16 November 2023 due to an investigation into suspicious betting on matches in the independently operated Modus Super Series 28 36 Jiwa was replaced by the runner up of the Indian Qualifier on 25 November 2023 30 Summary edit nbsp Former champion Peter Wright was the highest seeded player to be eliminated in his first match nbsp Former champion Rob Cross reached the World Championship semi final for the second time in his career Opening rounds edit The tournament began on 15 December with defending champion Michael Smith avoiding a shock on the opening night at the hands of Dutch qualifier Kevin Doets winning 3 2 38 James Wade was the first seeded player eliminated from the tournament losing 3 2 to Canadian Matt Campbell 39 Fourth seed and former two time champion Peter Wright suffered a 3 0 defeat to Jim Williams 40 who had whitewashed Guyanan Norman Madhoo in his opening match 41 16 year old Luke Littler made history by averaging 106 2 in a 3 0 win against Dutchman Christian Kist the highest ever achieved by a debutant at the event 42 and followed this by defeating 2023 UK Open champion Andrew Gilding 3 1 in the second round 43 2023 World Matchplay champion Nathan Aspinall also suffered a 3 0 defeat being eliminated by Rapid Ricky Evans 44 In total 11 seeds were eliminated in the second round in addition to Wade Wright Gilding and Aspinall Danny Noppert Dirk van Duijvenbode Dimitri van den Bergh Josh Rock Jose de Sousa Callan Rydz and Kim Huybrechts all lost their first game 45 Thibault Tricole became the first French player to win a game at the PDC World Championship defeating Belgian Mario Vandenbogaerde 3 1 46 before being eliminated in round two by 2018 world champion Rob Cross 47 Third round edit Former world champion Gerwyn Price was the highest ranked player to be eliminated in the third round going down 4 2 to Brendan Dolan 48 Two unseeded players made it through to the fourth round 16 year old Luke Littler continuing his debut run with a 4 1 victory over Matt Campbell and Scott Williams defeated Martin Schindler in a match which went all seven sets 49 Luke Humphries one of the pre tournament favourites survived a scare against Ricardo Pietreczko rallying from 3 1 down to triumph 4 3 48 Damon Heta also beat Berry van Peer in another game to go the distance while world champion Michael Smith and former champions Michael van Gerwen Rob Cross Gary Anderson and Raymond van Barneveld all continued their attempts to win the tournament for another time 49 48 50 Fourth round edit Reigning champion Michael Smith s campaign to retain his title ended in the fourth round being beaten 4 0 by Chris Dobey 50 Gary Anderson was also eliminated 4 3 by Brendan Dolan while Raymond van Barneveld was knocked out 4 1 by Luke Littler in a match that attracted considerable attention with BBC Sport unusually running a liveblog of the match and highlighting the fact that Littler had not been born the previous occasion that Van Barneveld had won the World Championship 51 Littler s fellow unseeded player Scott Williams also made the quarter finals eliminating Damon Heta Luke Humphries again had to battle going all the way to a sudden death final leg against Joe Cullen before breaking his opponent s throw and keeping his Championship hopes alive 52 Rob Cross reached the quarter final for the first time since his 2018 triumph with a 4 0 victory over Jonny Clayton and Michael van Gerwen also had a 4 0 win over Stephen Bunting Dave Chisnall completed the quarter final lineup with victory over Daryl Gurney 53 Quarter finals edit The quarter finals were held on New Year s Day The first to be played was between Rob Cross and Chris Dobey Dobey took the first set against the throw and made a dominant start going up 4 0 Cross fought back and held the next set before breaking the Dobey throw to pull back to 4 2 The last leg of the seventh set saw Dobey miss one dart at bullseye to win the match before Cross took the set and again broke the Dobey throw to level the match Cross won the first two legs of the final set to take the lead for the first time in the match before Dobey took the next two to bring the match into extra legs Cross won the seventh leg in ten darts and took advantage of a missed dart by Dobey to break in the eighth set and win the match qualifying for the semi final for the second time in his career 54 The second game was between Brendan Dolan and Luke Littler Littler won the first set despite Dolan taking a 2 0 lead before breaking throw in the second set to take control of the match Littler won the next two sets to solidify his lead Despite Dolan breaking back in the fifth set 3 1 Littler took all three legs in the sixth set to secure the victory and continue his debut run 55 The result confirmed that Littler would finish the tournament in the top 64 of the PDC Order of Merit meaning he would carry his ranking money into the next season and meaning his previously secured two year tour card was instead given to Nathan Rafferty Littler was the first debutant to reach the semi final since Nathan Aspinall at the 2019 tournament In the third quarter final between Michael van Gerwen and Scott Williams the first two sets went with throw before van Gerwen broke in the third set after Williams missed five darts at doubles to win the set Williams however won the next six legs in a row to reverse the set lead to 3 2 Van Gerwen re established himself in the match by winning the next set 3 0 but Williams won the seventh set to go one away Williams again broke throw in the third leg of the eighth set and held the advantage to eliminate the three time world champion and qualify for the first semi final of his career 56 He and Littler were the first semi finalists to have been unseeded going into the tournament since Aspinall in 2019 The final quarter final was between Luke Humphries and Dave Chisnall The first three sets went with throw but in the fourth set after Chisnall took the first two legs to seemingly maintain the pattern he missed two darts to hold the set and Humphries turned it around to get the match s first set break Humphries held throw in the fifth set and then broke again in the sixth set to secure a 5 1 victory and qualify for his first World Championship semi final 57 Semi finals edit In the first semi final Rob Cross played Luke Littler Cross had throw in the first set and won it before breaking in the third leg of the second set Cross however missed one set dart in the next leg and Littler was able to come back and win the set before breaking in the first leg of the third set which he went on to win Littler again held throw in the fourth set and missed one dart to take the fifth set which Cross won Littler took the sixth set and then broke Cross in the third leg of the seventh set to go one away The eighth set went the distance before Littler took out a finish of 80 to complete a 6 2 victory and qualify for the final 58 Littler was the first debutant to reach a final since Cross himself in 2018 and the first unseeded player to do so since Kirk Shepherd in 2008 59 In the second semi final Scott Williams played Luke Humphries Williams broke the Humphries throw in the first leg of the first set but Humphries broke straight back in the next leg and was able to hold the first set He broke the Williams throw twice in the second set to take it 3 0 before completing the highest possible 170 finish in the first leg of the third set taking the set after Williams had missed a dart at the bullseye to break Humphries extended his lead further after breaking throw in the final leg of the fourth set before taking the fifth set 3 0 Humphries broke again in the third leg of the sixth set and took out a 20 finish in the next leg to wrap up a 6 0 sets victory and qualify for his first World Championship final and his fourth final in the last five PDC premier ranked events 60 The result confirmed that Humphries would for the first time move to number one on the PDC Order of Merit following the tournament 61 Final edit nbsp Russ Bray refereed the final of his 28th and final World Championship The final between Luke Littler and Luke Humphries was held on 3 January 2024 It was the final World Championship game for referee Russ Bray who announced his intention to retire from refereeing ranked events prior to the tournament 62 Prior to the match Bray was inducted into the PDC Hall of Fame 63 Littler had the throw at the start of the first set but lost the throw to Humphries in the third leg who won the set 3 1 Humphries broke the Littler throw again in the second leg of the second set but Littler broke back in the third set after Humphries missed a dart for the set before breaking again in the fifth set with a 120 finish to level the match In the third set Littler broke throw in the second leg but Humphries broke back in the third leg and broke again in the fifth leg to re take the match lead Littler however levelled up the match again after breaking in the first leg of set 4 before taking the match lead for the first time after winning the fifth set 3 1 Littler then took the sixth set without dropping a leg to go into a 4 2 lead 64 The seventh set went entirely against throw with Littler ultimately missing one dart at double to take a 5 2 set lead and allowed Humphries to instead bring the match back to 4 3 Humphries won the eighth set 3 1 to bring the match level before breaking throw in the final leg of the ninth set to re take the lead Humphries got to one set away with a 3 1 win in the tenth set The first four legs of the eleventh set went with throw before Littler missed three darts at double to take the final leg before Humphries hit double 8 to win his first World Championship 65 This was Humphries fourth premier tournament victory in four months having won the World Grand Prix Grand Slam and Players Championship Finals prior to the tournament Humphries went to the number 1 spot on the PDC Order of Merit for the first time following the tournament whilst Littler rose 133 places to go 31st 66 Schedule editFriday 15 December 67 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5Evening session 19 00 GMT 01 1 nbsp Kevin Doets91 79 3 0 nbsp Stowe Buntz 88 26 3 1 3 1 3 2 02 nbsp Cameron Menzies88 49 3 0 nbsp Rusty Jake Rodriguez 81 83 3 0 3 2 3 2 03 nbsp Simon Whitlock90 13 3 2 nbsp Paolo Nebrida 90 15 0 3 3 2 3 1 1 3 3 104 2 nbsp Michael Smith100 09 3 2 nbsp Kevin Doets 99 46 3 1 2 3 2 3 3 1 3 1 Saturday 16 December 68 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5Afternoon session 12 30 GMT 05 1 nbsp Lee Evans85 02 3 0 nbsp Sandro Eric Sosing 75 59 3 1 3 0 3 2 06 nbsp Connor Scutt95 97 3 0 nbsp Krzysztof Kciuk 91 82 3 0 3 2 3 1 07 nbsp Jules van Dongen 90 72 1 3 nbsp Darren Penhall91 29 2 3 3 1 0 3 1 3 08 2 nbsp Dave Chisnall90 94 3 1 nbsp Cameron Menzies 87 32 0 3 3 2 3 0 3 2 Evening session 19 00 GMT 09 1 nbsp Jamie Hughes81 36 3 1 nbsp David Cameron 82 19 3 2 2 3 3 2 3 0 10 nbsp Keane Barry86 68 3 1 nbsp Reynaldo Rivera 87 38 3 1 3 2 0 3 3 1 11 nbsp Scott Williams90 69 3 1 nbsp Haruki Muramatsu 90 43 3 2 3 0 0 3 3 2 12 2 nbsp Gary Anderson98 29 3 0 nbsp Simon Whitlock 88 38 3 0 3 1 3 2 Sunday 17 December 69 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5Afternoon session 12 30 GMT 13 1 nbsp Ricky Evans92 34 3 0 nbsp Simon Adams 75 89 3 2 3 0 3 0 14 nbsp Jim Williams87 84 3 0 nbsp Norman Madhoo 73 20 3 0 3 0 3 0 15 nbsp Matt Campbell93 14 3 2 nbsp Lourence Ilagan 86 03 3 1 3 1 2 3 2 3 3 016 2 nbsp Joe Cullen93 41 3 0 nbsp Darren Penhall 81 24 3 1 3 2 3 1 Evening session 19 00 GMT 17 1 nbsp Dylan Slevin 90 21 1 3 nbsp Florian Hempel91 06 3 1 2 3 2 3 1 3 18 nbsp Niels Zonneveld79 86 3 1 nbsp Darren Webster 84 29 3 0 3 2 2 3 3 2 19 nbsp Jermaine Wattimena90 99 3 1 nbsp Fallon Sherrock 87 32 2 3 3 1 3 0 3 2 20 2 nbsp Luke Humphries93 58 3 0 nbsp Lee Evans 92 33 3 1 3 2 3 2 Monday 18 December 70 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5Evening session 19 00 GMT 21 1 nbsp Mario Vandenbogaerde 85 59 1 3 nbsp Thibault Tricole85 21 3 2 2 3 2 3 2 3 22 nbsp Gian van Veen 87 53 2 3 nbsp Man Lok Leung96 26 3 2 3 2 1 3 1 3 1 323 nbsp Martin Lukeman92 03 3 1 nbsp Haupai Puha 88 45 3 0 3 1 2 3 3 0 24 2 nbsp Gerwyn Price98 01 3 0 nbsp Connor Scutt 88 83 3 0 3 0 3 2 Tuesday 19 December 71 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5Afternoon session 12 30 GMT 25 1 nbsp Ian White 93 39 1 3 nbsp Tomoya Goto90 71 2 3 2 3 3 1 0 3 26 nbsp Ritchie Edhouse 89 23 2 3 nbsp Jeffrey de Graaf93 29 3 2 3 2 2 3 2 3 1 327 nbsp Keegan Brown 82 97 1 3 nbsp Boris Krcmar91 05 3 2 0 3 0 3 2 3 28 2 nbsp James Wade 92 30 2 3 nbsp Matt Campbell96 28 3 1 1 3 3 1 0 3 1 3Evening session 19 00 GMT 29 1 nbsp Steve Beaton92 01 3 1 nbsp Wessel Nijman 92 82 3 1 3 2 0 3 3 2 30 nbsp Mike De Decker94 34 3 0 nbsp Dragutin Horvat 83 65 3 1 3 1 3 2 31 nbsp Ricardo Pietreczko92 37 3 0 nbsp Mikuru Suzuki 78 27 3 0 3 1 3 0 32 2 nbsp Michael van Gerwen98 17 3 0 nbsp Keane Barry 95 81 3 1 3 1 3 0 Wednesday 20 December 72 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5Afternoon session 12 30 GMT 33 1 nbsp Radek Szaganski82 40 3 2 nbsp Marko Kantele 78 47 3 1 2 3 2 3 3 1 3 034 nbsp Steve Lennon88 75 3 2 nbsp Owen Bates 86 51 1 3 2 3 3 1 3 1 3 135 nbsp William O Connor98 74 3 0 nbsp Bhav Patel 82 00 3 0 3 0 3 0 36 2 nbsp Ross Smith95 01 3 1 nbsp Niels Zonneveld 90 75 3 0 3 2 2 3 3 1 Evening session 19 00 GMT 37 1 nbsp Ryan Joyce100 32 3 1 nbsp Alex Spellman 95 46 0 3 3 2 3 1 3 0 38 nbsp Richard Veenstra85 29 3 0 nbsp Ben Robb 89 51 3 2 3 1 3 2 39 nbsp Christian Kist 90 55 0 3 nbsp Luke Littler106 12 0 3 1 3 1 3 40 2 nbsp Peter Wright 83 87 0 3 nbsp Jim Williams90 45 2 3 2 3 0 3 Thursday 21 December 73 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5Afternoon session 12 30 GMT 41 1 nbsp Mickey Mansell89 94 3 0 nbsp Zong Xiao Chen 85 22 3 2 3 0 3 1 42 nbsp Luke Woodhouse 92 18 2 3 nbsp Berry van Peer93 87 2 3 3 2 1 3 3 2 0 343 2 nbsp Madars Razma91 33 3 1 nbsp Mike De Decker 89 94 3 0 1 3 3 2 3 2 44 nbsp Rob Cross89 32 3 0 nbsp Thibault Tricole 85 39 3 0 3 2 3 0 Evening session 19 00 GMT 45 2 nbsp Andrew Gilding 92 09 1 3 nbsp Luke Littler92 65 2 3 2 3 3 0 1 3 46 nbsp Danny Noppert 94 13 0 3 nbsp Scott Williams94 01 2 3 2 3 1 3 47 nbsp Gabriel Clemens90 66 3 1 nbsp Man Lok Leung 92 56 3 1 3 2 0 3 3 0 48 nbsp Damon Heta89 69 3 1 nbsp Martin Lukeman 87 66 3 2 3 0 1 3 3 0 Friday 22 December 74 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5Afternoon session 12 30 GMT 49 2 nbsp Brendan Dolan95 13 3 2 nbsp Mickey Mansell 95 36 3 2 0 3 3 2 1 3 6 550 nbsp Jose de Sousa 93 82 1 3 nbsp Jeffrey de Graaf94 22 3 2 2 3 1 3 0 3 51 nbsp Krzysztof Ratajski89 82 3 1 nbsp Jamie Hughes 85 74 2 3 3 2 3 2 3 1 52 nbsp Dirk van Duijvenbode 94 57 1 3 nbsp Boris Krcmar96 84 3 1 0 3 1 3 0 3 Evening session 19 00 GMT 53 2 nbsp Dimitri Van den Bergh 90 77 2 3 nbsp Florian Hempel91 78 3 2 3 1 2 3 2 3 0 354 nbsp Martin Schindler96 93 3 1 nbsp Jermaine Wattimena 89 85 3 1 3 1 2 3 3 0 55 nbsp Raymond van Barneveld99 81 3 1 nbsp Radek Szaganski 93 64 3 1 3 0 2 3 3 2 56 nbsp Chris Dobey103 09 3 2 nbsp William O Connor 97 22 3 1 1 3 3 1 1 3 3 1 Saturday 23 December 75 76 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5Afternoon session 12 30 GMT 57 2 nbsp Kim Huybrechts 84 77 0 3 nbsp Richard Veenstra99 46 0 3 0 3 0 3 58 nbsp Callan Rydz 96 65 2 3 nbsp Ricardo Pietreczko99 27 0 3 3 2 0 3 3 1 0 359 nbsp Jonny Clayton88 45 3 1 nbsp Steve Lennon 86 67 2 3 3 1 3 2 3 0 60 nbsp Daryl Gurney100 79 3 1 nbsp Steve Beaton 91 16 3 0 3 1 2 3 3 2 Evening session 19 00 GMT 61 2 nbsp Ryan Searle91 11 3 1 nbsp Tomoya Goto 85 62 3 0 3 2 2 3 3 0 62 nbsp Josh Rock 91 87 1 3 nbsp Berry van Peer91 32 1 3 2 3 3 2 1 3 63 nbsp Stephen Bunting107 28 3 0 nbsp Ryan Joyce 90 25 3 0 3 2 3 1 64 nbsp Nathan Aspinall 90 54 0 3 nbsp Ricky Evans99 38 1 3 0 3 1 3 Wednesday 27 December 77 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7Afternoon session 12 30 GMT 65 3 nbsp Scott Williams94 13 4 3 nbsp Martin Schindler 94 82 1 3 0 3 3 0 3 2 0 3 3 1 4 266 nbsp Dave Chisnall95 49 4 1 nbsp Gabriel Clemens 96 16 3 1 3 0 3 1 1 3 3 2 67 nbsp Rob Cross101 32 4 2 nbsp Jeffrey de Graaf 91 95 3 2 3 0 2 3 3 2 1 3 3 1 Evening session 19 00 GMT 68 3 nbsp Matt Campbell 91 29 1 4 nbsp Luke Littler97 19 0 3 0 3 2 3 3 2 1 3 69 nbsp Michael van Gerwen101 39 4 0 nbsp Richard Veenstra 86 20 3 1 3 1 3 2 3 0 70 nbsp Michael Smith93 73 4 1 nbsp Madars Razma 87 78 2 3 3 1 3 1 3 2 3 1 Thursday 28 December 78 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7Afternoon session 12 30 GMT 71 3 nbsp Florian Hempel 93 79 0 4 nbsp Stephen Bunting101 15 2 3 1 3 2 3 1 3 72 nbsp Joe Cullen96 51 4 2 nbsp Ryan Searle 93 94 3 1 3 1 0 3 2 3 3 2 3 2 73 nbsp Ross Smith 103 33 2 4 nbsp Chris Dobey102 36 1 3 1 3 3 2 3 1 2 3 1 3 Evening session 19 00 GMT 74 3 nbsp Gerwyn Price 95 76 2 4 nbsp Brendan Dolan95 73 2 3 3 1 2 3 3 0 2 3 2 3 75 nbsp Luke Humphries91 38 4 3 nbsp Ricardo Pietreczko 91 02 3 1 1 3 2 3 0 3 3 2 3 1 3 076 nbsp Ricky Evans 93 23 2 4 nbsp Daryl Gurney93 53 3 1 2 3 3 2 2 3 2 3 1 3 Friday 29 December 79 80 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7Afternoon session 12 30 GMT 77 3 nbsp Damon Heta96 06 4 3 nbsp Berry van Peer 88 29 0 3 2 3 3 0 3 2 3 1 1 3 3 178 nbsp Jonny Clayton91 55 4 2 nbsp Krzysztof Ratajski 92 94 3 1 3 2 0 3 3 1 1 3 3 1 79 nbsp Jim Williams 91 71 1 4 nbsp Raymond van Barneveld89 16 2 3 3 2 0 3 0 3 2 3 Evening session 19 00 GMT 80 3 nbsp Boris Krcmar 94 80 1 4 nbsp Gary Anderson99 29 3 2 1 3 2 3 1 3 0 3 81 4 nbsp Michael van Gerwen99 80 4 0 nbsp Stephen Bunting 94 84 3 2 3 2 3 1 3 1 82 nbsp Michael Smith 102 47 0 4 nbsp Chris Dobey102 43 1 3 2 3 0 3 1 3 Saturday 30 December 81 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7Afternoon session 12 30 GMT 83 4 nbsp Scott Williams92 96 4 1 nbsp Damon Heta 92 50 3 2 1 3 3 2 3 1 3 2 84 nbsp Daryl Gurney 91 03 2 4 nbsp Dave Chisnall98 98 2 3 2 3 3 2 3 0 0 3 1 3 85 nbsp Rob Cross98 41 4 0 nbsp Jonny Clayton 90 89 3 1 3 0 3 1 3 2 Evening session 19 30 GMT 86 4 nbsp Brendan Dolan94 01 4 3 nbsp Gary Anderson 93 38 3 0 3 1 1 3 1 3 1 3 3 1 3 187 nbsp Raymond van Barneveld 99 61 1 4 nbsp Luke Littler105 01 1 3 1 3 2 3 3 2 2 3 88 nbsp Luke Humphries99 23 4 3 nbsp Joe Cullen 98 66 2 3 0 3 3 1 3 2 2 3 3 0 6 5 Monday 1 January 82 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7 Set 8 Set 9Afternoon session 12 30 GMT 89 QF nbsp Chris Dobey 99 84 4 5 nbsp Rob Cross100 70 3 1 3 2 3 0 3 0 1 3 1 3 2 3 1 3 3 590 nbsp Luke Littler101 93 5 1 nbsp Brendan Dolan 86 45 3 2 3 0 3 2 3 1 1 3 3 0 Evening session 19 00 GMT 91 QF nbsp Michael van Gerwen 93 41 3 5 nbsp Scott Williams96 32 0 3 3 1 3 2 0 3 0 3 3 0 1 3 1 3 92 nbsp Luke Humphries103 50 5 1 nbsp Dave Chisnall 97 38 3 1 2 3 3 1 3 2 3 2 3 0 Tuesday 2 January 83 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7 Set 8 Set 9 Set 10 Set 11Evening session 19 30 GMT 93 SF nbsp Rob Cross 102 77 2 6 nbsp Luke Littler106 05 3 2 2 3 1 3 2 3 3 2 1 3 1 3 2 3 94 nbsp Scott Williams 94 93 0 6 nbsp Luke Humphries108 74 2 3 0 3 2 3 2 3 0 3 1 3 Wednesday 3 January 84 Match no Round Player 1 Score Player 2 Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7 Set 8 Set 9 Set 10 Set 11 Set 12 Set 13Evening session 20 00 GMT 95 F nbsp Luke Littler 101 13 4 7 nbsp Luke Humphries103 67 1 3 3 2 2 3 3 1 3 1 3 0 2 3 1 3 2 3 1 3 2 3 Draw editThe draw was held on 27 November 2023 and was conducted by former world champions Dennis Priestley and Phil Taylor 85 86 Finals edit Quarter finals best of 9 sets 1 January 87 Semi finals best of 11 sets 2 January 88 Final best of 13 sets 3 January 17 nbsp Chris Dobey 99 8448 nbsp Rob Cross 100 7058 nbsp Rob Cross 102 772Q nbsp Luke Littler 106 056 td, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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Quarter-finals
(best of 9 sets)
1 January
[87]		Semi-finals
(best of 11 sets)
2 January
[88]		Final
(best of 13 sets)
3 January
         
17   Chris Dobey 99.84 4
8   Rob Cross 100.70 5
8   Rob Cross 102.77 2
Q   Luke Littler 106.05 6