With Peter Wright beeing crowned champion of the world almost 2 weeks ago, Q-School is just around the corner. This is going to be an interesting one, since there are a lot of great players competing for a tour card. Here are 5 players, that I really hope can do it. Remember: This is written from the perspective of a German darts fan, so obviously I know German players better than lesser known players from around the world. This is not meant as an "exclusive" list, these are just a few players that are stuck in my head.
Fallon Sherrock
I guess this is the most obvious call. Beeing the first woman to defeat a man at the PDC World Darts Championship, she sent shockwaves around the world and has even made it to mainstream news. She truly proved that she can play phenomenal darts, and she really deserves a shot at the Pro Tour. Also, a woman on the tour would make the world of Darts a bit richer. Fallon has won all the hearts at Ally Pally, let's hope she wins a tour card as well!
Mikuru Suzuki
While we're at female players, I'll continue with the reigning two-times BDO women's world champion. She showed - just like Sherrock - that her game is on a level that makes it possible to compete on the tour, having lost to James Richardson just in the deciding leg, and recovering from being 0-2 down in sets. At last years's BDO World Championship, she won the tournament without losing a single set, including her first round win against Lisa Ashton, who she defeated in the final to defend her title this year. The audiences loved her both at the 2019 Grand Slam and the 2020 PDC World Championship. If she can play her A game at Q-School, she is one of the top contenders for a tour card.
Nico Kurz
Nico Kurz was one of the surprises of this years World Championship. averaging 96 and 93 points in his wins against James Wilson and Joe Cullen, and again 96 in his 3rd round loss against Luke Humphries. Just 22 years old, Nico wanted to focus on his job before considering playing darts full-time, but winning a tour card would give him the chance to try focussing on darts a bit more. He dominated last years German Super League, beating tour card holder Martin Schindler in the final for a ticket to Ally Pally, so he has the game on floor tournaments and can produce in the most important moments, which makes him one of the main contenders in my eyes.
Michael Unterbuchner
"T-Rex" Michael Unterbuchner had a difficult year 2019, but showed before that he can play tremendous darts. The BDO World Championship semi-finalist of 2018 and 2019 dropped from 6th place on the BDO Invitation Table to somewhere around 20, struggeling to play his A game at various occasions. At the 2018 Grand Slam of Darts he was one of only two BDO players surviving the group stage, beating James Wade to reach the quarter finals, where he lost to the later finalist Gary Anderson. After considering a switch to the PDC, he decided to stay with the BDO for one more year and go for a PDC tour card at Q-School 2020. If he can find his form for Q-School - and even though he went out early he played quite well at this year's BDO worlds -, he for sure is a player with the potential to make his way through the field.
Paul Nicholson
'The Asset' was one of the most prominent players to lose his tour card last year, and he stayed off the circuit for one year. Now he wants to be back, and he would for sure be a great addition. Even though he was known for provocative behaviour on stage, his games were always fun to watch, and when he got his game together, he was able to beat pretty much everyone. I don't know in what form he is at the moment, but I really hope for him to claim a tour card at Q-School. And, coming back, he would not be the most-hated player by the audience anymore, since Gerwyn Price did everything to claim his title (even though I love to see him play as well, but I can't deny the general reception).
But who are you rooting for at this year's Q-School? Leave your opinion in the comments!
Write a comment