The PDC’s Q-School offers players the opportunity to earn a Tour Card to compete at major tournaments for the next two years. Earning one of these coveted prizes can make the career of a darts player.
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When 397 players took to the myriad of oches at Robin Park Tennis Centre, there were a host of stories to be told.
The relaxing of BDO rules meant more players than ever before, from the rival organisation, took their chance to punch a ticket for a spot on the potentially lucrative PDC Tour – Glen Durrant, Jamie Hughes and Mark McGeeney were among the 19 players to claim a Tour Card for the next two years.
Some of the world’s best female players were also in the frame. Lisa Ashton and Lorraine Winstanley were among the names to impress but ultimately fall short during four days of drama in Wigan.
But Q-School is a tough place where even former world champions look to rekindle old glories and potentially make a name for themselves again – or to miss out once more, as Ally Pally finalists of yesteryear Kevin Painter and Andy Hamilton did.
Just over a decade on from their World Championship final, Kirk Shepherd and John Part had different stories to tell. Part prevailed on the Ally Pally stage in 2008, while Shepherd, a 21-year-old qualifier who had stunned the world in making the final, struggled to make his mark on the Tour.
Last weekend, triple world champion Part failed to regain a Tour Card – but Shepherd was successful in the pressure-cooker environment. Here, the two men take up their Q-School stories…
Kirk Shepherd
I saw John, and we had a good chat – but not about the final! We were all there for the same thing, to slug it out for a place back on Tour.
I’ve had to go back a few times now and it’s not something I want to keep doing. The aim is to try and stay in the top 64 – but I seem to have it sussed out when I get there!
It’s a gruelling four days that is getting tougher and tougher. The standard is increasing and I really don’t want to be back there.
The players in that room are top quality. There are former world finalists, seasoned pros for decades and a lot of them came away without a card. So many players now are so capable – the game has gone mental.
There are also people throwing in 100+ averages as well, and they are not coming through. If the draw doesn’t break for you, you know you might not be getting a card.
Over the next two years, the target is to get into the top 64 and keep my card. There is always a part of me that wants to get back to the World Championship too, so those are the aims.
When you turn up, you are looking for consistency and good runs. Last year, halfway through I was heading back to Ally Pally but then just fell off the radar. You need to be consistent.
It’s a totally different type of pressure and it’s immense, all or nothing if you like, as it sets you up for the year. There is such a difference between the Pro Tour and the Challenge Tour, where you play if you don’t get through.
John Part
Less than one in 20 players can be successful at Q-School. The physical side is [difficult]. It is a long four days, and I felt it.
It’s an early start and it’s tough if you lose the first game, because you’ve got to go away until the next morning.
Some people can’t get going due to the pressure – you see some terrible darts! Some games you are rolling, some games you are not.
I lost on the first day to Lorraine Winstanley in a heck of a game. She scored better. But she couldn’t keep it going.
I always had the idea that ladies’ darts had potential and that they should play with men on a regular basis. This is how you get better. Lorraine, against me, had an 88 average but in the whole BDO Championship, her average was about 80.
Did she underperform because the level wasn’t as high? You play to the level that you need to play at.
I want to play another World Championship and the consequence of not [getting a Tour Card] is by playing on the North American circuit. My focus will be there, for the first time in 20 years.
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