Worthington's Champion of Champions 2026 Preview: 256 Players, Two Legs to Win – and Almost Anything Can Happen

 

There are bigger tournaments in darts. There are richer tournaments. There are tournaments with considerably longer matches and far more television coverage.

But there can't be many quite like the Worthington's Champion of Champions, which takes place on Saturday 22nd August 2026

In Cardiff, 256 qualifiers will come together for one of grassroots darts' great annual shootouts. Every player has earned their place through a qualifying venue, there are no PDC Tour Card holders in the field, and eventually one player will emerge as the 2026 Champion of Champions.

The extraordinary part is how little time they have to prove themselves.

Every match is best of three legs.

First to two.

That's it.

You could arrive as one of the strongest players in the tournament, lose the bull, watch your opponent throw a 15-darter, miss one dart at double in the second leg and be packing the darts away a few minutes later.

Equally, you could arrive in Cardiff as one of the lesser-known qualifiers and genuinely believe you can beat anybody in the room.

That's what makes the Champion of Champions special.

And this year's provisional field looks absolutely fascinating.

From Price and Clayton to the Grassroots Stars of Today

Red Dragon relaunched the Champion of Champions in 2014 and its roll of honour tells you plenty about the quality required to win it.

Steve Degville won the first edition in 2014 before Gerwyn Price took the title in 2015. Jonny Clayton followed in 2016, Paul Hogan in 2017 and Ryan Searle in 2018.

Jim Williams became champion in 2019 before the competition's interruption, with Alec Small winning in 2022, Kurt Parry in 2023, Nick Kenny in 2024 and David Davies becoming the latest champion in 2025.

It's quite a list.

Price, Clayton and Searle subsequently became established names at the highest level of professional darts, while Williams and Kenny have also competed extensively within the PDC system.

But perhaps the most remarkable statistic is this:

Nobody has ever won it twice.

Ten completed tournaments. Ten different champions.

And there is another sequence on the line in Cardiff.

The last five completed editions have all produced Welsh champions: Jim Williams, Alec Small, Kurt Parry, Nick Kenny and David Davies.

Can Wales make it six?

With the tournament being staged in Cardiff and another huge Welsh contingent expected, there is every reason to think it can.

But in this format, expecting anything is dangerous.

The Modern News of the World?

The Champion of Champions is sometimes compared to the old News of the World Championship and it's easy to understand why.

Short-format darts creates a completely different test.

In a best-of-11 or best-of-19 match, the stronger player has time to recover from a poor leg. Over best of three, there is almost no margin for error.

One leg against throw can effectively decide the match.

One missed double can decide the match.

One 12 or 15-dart burst can decide the match.

Even winning the bull could become hugely significant.

To win a 256-player straight knockout tournament requires eight victories.

Eight best-of-three matches.

That potentially means a player could become Champion of Champions by winning just 16 legs of darts.

Of course, actually doing it is anything but easy.

You have to repeatedly deal with the pressure of knowing there is virtually no recovery time. You have to find doubles immediately. And you need to survive the inevitable match where your opponent suddenly produces their best darts of the day.

That's why simply looking at the rankings won't tell us who is going to win.

But they can tell us who arrives with a particularly interesting chance.

Stevenson Sets the Statistical Standard

Of the provisional qualifiers I've been able to match against the Q4QS database, Simon Stevenson is the highest-ranked player.

Stevenson sits at No.62 in the database with an overall average of 88.47 and has won seven of his last ten recorded matches.

More importantly, the numbers show the level he's capable of producing.

He won the Legends Darts Lounge UK Open Grand Final Qualifier with a 92.31 tournament average and has recorded notable victories in the database including a 98.82 average against John Mann. His recent Challenge Tour appearances also include a Last 64 run at Event 18 where he averaged 92.44 across the event.

In a conventional tournament, Stevenson would be one of the obvious favourites.

He still is here.

But Champion of Champions favourites come with a very large warning label.

Jim Williams Could Become the First Two-Time Champion

If history is the theme, Jim Williams might have the biggest story of all.

The 2019 champion is back and attempting to do something nobody has managed before.

Win it twice.

Williams remains one of the highest-quality players in the provisional field. He is ranked 209 in the Q4QS database but averages 87.17 overall, while his recent results demonstrate that his scoring remains extremely dangerous.

He reached a Vault final at Shooters Bar in Leominster with a 92.55 event average and has subsequently produced Challenge Tour event averages around the 89 mark.

There are players ranked above Williams in this field.

There aren't many I'd particularly want to draw against him in a first-to-two shootout.

If Williams wins, he doesn't merely take the 2026 title.

He breaks one of the tournament's great traditions.

Paul Hogan Is Flying

Then there is the 2017 champion.

Paul Hogan might sit only 471st in the current Q4QS rankings, but that ranking seriously understates the form in which he arrives.

His database record reads:

Last 10: 10 wins, 0 defeats.

Hogan recently won at the Wolversdene Club in Andover with an 87.02 event average and has been collecting titles and deep runs consistently. His recent five-event sequence includes three victories, another win at Burghfield and a semi-final.

Experience also counts for something in a format like this.

Hogan knows how to win the Champion of Champions because he's already done it.

Nine years later, could he become its first repeat winner?

On current form, it certainly isn't an outrageous suggestion.

Alec Small and Kurt Parry Chase History Too

Two more former champions arrive with outstanding recent numbers.

Alec Small, champion in 2022, is another player showing 10 wins from his last ten recorded matches.

His recent Vault results include an 88.04 winning average at the National Club in Wattsville, while his database numbers show repeated tournament victories rather than one isolated good performance.

Then comes 2023 champion Kurt Parry.

Parry has won nine of his last ten, recently won a Vault at Duffy's in Pontypridd and then reached another final at the Mile End Inn while averaging 86.48.

His overall Q4QS average of 81.61 doesn't put him alongside Stevenson and Williams for pure scoring, but that's precisely where this tournament becomes interesting.

Parry doesn't need to average 90 for eight matches.

He needs to win two legs at a time.

And he has already demonstrated that he knows exactly how to do that on Champion of Champions day.

What About the Defending Champion?

David Davies is another fascinating inclusion on the provisional qualifier list.

The defending champion has the opportunity to become the first player ever to successfully retain the title.

His wider database numbers aren't as eye-catching as some of the headline contenders, but that hardly matters when discussing a player who proved only 12 months ago that he can navigate this unique format.

There is no gradual settling into the Champion of Champions.

The defending champion gets exactly the same two-leg target as everyone else.

Survive, and move on.

The Q4QS Top 20

Among the provisional qualifiers matched to the Q4QS database, the leading 20 are:

#	Player	Q4QS Rank
1	Simon Stevenson	62
2	Keenan Thomas	105
3	Neil Wild	136
4	Graham Usher	137
5	Jim Williams	209
6	Chas Barstow	241
7	Johnny Haines	307
8	Dean Reynolds	324
9	Jamie Kelling	360
10	Martin Thomas	417
11	Stephen Cake	423
12	Paul Hogan	471
13	Mike Huntley	516
14	Chris Hurds	518
15	William Thomas	547
16	Jason Collins	568
17	Matt Dennant	654
18	Clive Langford	671
19	Nigel Prior	685
20	Alec Small	691

That list itself demonstrates the depth.

Keenan Thomas has recently won a Vault event with an 86.29 average and has Challenge Tour experience. Graham Usher carries an 85.12 overall average and has been playing both Challenge Tour and ADC competition.
Chas Barstow has an 86.10 overall average, while Johnny Haines has won nine of his last ten and recently produced a 90.85 event average in a Vault victory.

And that's before we reach some of the most interesting form players in the entire tournament.

The Dangerous Outsiders

If you're looking for players capable of wrecking the predictions, Neil Wild immediately stands out.

Wild is 9-1 across his last ten matches in the database and has produced some extraordinary scoring. One recent tournament victory came with a 104.63 event average, including recorded match averages of 119.55, 104.51 and 100.31.

If anything approaching that Neil Wild turns up in Cardiff, nobody will want to see his name beside theirs.

Matt Dennant comes in at 9-1 and has been accumulating Vault titles. His recent results include multiple tournament victories and a recorded 104.86 match average.

Bryan Flew is another name I like in this format. He's 8-2 across his last ten and recently produced winning event averages of 88.39, 84.61 and 85.52 across a run of strong Vault performances.

Stephen Cake is in excellent form too. Cake is 8-2, recently won at the Junction Inn with an 85.15 average and has followed that with further titles and a final.

Mike Huntley brings a 9-1 recent record, while Alec McCready has the same last-ten record and has been collecting titles around Hereford and Leominster.
And don't overlook Gavin Sterio, also 9-1, or Dean Reynolds, whose recent 9-1 run includes victory at the Towy Sports Bar Open.
In a best-of-three tournament, those are exactly the sort of players who can suddenly find themselves five or six rounds deep.

Players to Watch

There are stories much further down the field as well.

Robbie Long's recent results include a nine-win unbeaten tournament at Hangar 61, while his database contains a 96.39 match average amongst his notable performances.

William Thomas deserves attention after winning all ten of his most recently recorded matches. His recent results include a tournament win, another final and a semi-final run at the Towy Sports Bar Open.

Kai Clark has Development Tour experience alongside strong grassroots results and is 8-2 in his last ten.

Clive Langford has also been winning, including success at the Out Out Bar UK Open Grand Finals, and has seven victories from his last ten recorded matches.

There will undoubtedly be others.

That's an important point with a tournament like this. Rankings tell us about what players have already achieved in the events captured by the database. They don't guarantee what happens when two players stand eight feet from a dartboard and race to two legs.

Can Wales Make It Six?

The Welsh dominance is difficult to ignore.

Five consecutive completed editions have been won by Welsh players.

The provisional field again contains enormous Welsh representation, including former champions Williams, Small, Parry and Davies alongside players such as Cake, Huntley, Flew, Sterio and a long list of dangerous qualifiers from across the country.

Home advantage doesn't guarantee anything.

But the sheer depth of Welsh grassroots darts means it would be no surprise whatsoever if the trophy remained in Wales.

The intriguing alternative is whether somebody from outside Wales can finally break the sequence.

Stevenson has the highest Q4QS ranking among the provisional qualifiers. Wild's recent numbers are frightening. Usher, Barstow, Haines, Hogan, Evans and Dennant provide serious opposition.

Wales may have the numbers.

It certainly doesn't have a monopoly on contenders.

Two Legs From Disaster – Eight Matches From Glory

That's ultimately why I love the Champion of Champions concept.

Imagine being the best player in a 256-player tournament and knowing that none of it matters if your opponent throws two brilliant legs.

Imagine being ranked well outside the leading contenders and knowing exactly the same thing works in your favour.

You don't have to beat Simon Stevenson over 19 legs.

You don't have to outscore Jim Williams for an hour.

You don't have to match Neil Wild's best tournament averages across an entire afternoon.

You have to beat whoever stands in front of you twice.

Then do it again.

And again.

Eight matches later, you're Champion of Champions.

The format creates jeopardy from the opening dart. It rewards nerve, doubling and the ability to produce your best darts immediately. There is almost no opportunity to play your way into a match.

That makes predicting a winner extraordinarily difficult.

But if I were building a shortlist from the provisional field and current Q4QS data, Simon Stevenson and Jim Williams have to be among the headline names, while the current form of Neil Wild, Paul Hogan, Johnny Haines, Alec Small, Kurt Parry, Lee Evans and Matt Dennant makes all of them extremely interesting.

Then there are another 200-plus players perfectly capable of making that prediction look ridiculous.

And that's the point.

The Red Dragon Champion of Champions has produced future PDC stars, established champions and grassroots heroes.

It has never produced a two-time winner.

Wales has won the last five.

And somewhere in Cardiff, among 256 qualifiers, there may be a player almost nobody is talking about who is only 16 winning legs away from becoming the 2026 champion.

In most major darts tournaments, saying almost anyone can win is a cliché.

At the Champion of Champions, it might actually be true.

Yesterday’s Darts Results: Caste Hits 112.69 as Tuesday Produces Huge Numbers (19th August 2026)

 

Tuesday 18 August was a busy night across the grassroots game, with 39 tournaments added to the Q4QS database and some seriously impressive numbers appearing along the way.

The headline performance came from Mat Caste, who produced a spectacular 112.69 average on his way to victory in Milton Keynes, while Bryan Flew, Dan Williams, Sam Jackson and Jamie Chaplin were among several other players combining big scoring with tournament success.

There was plenty happening closer to home too, including a ten-win night for Steve Boundy at Portishead.

Caste steals the show with 112.69

The performance of the night belonged to Mat Caste at the Windmill Hill Golf Centre Vault Break in Milton Keynes.

Caste produced a huge 112.69 average during the tournament and backed it up with another ton-plus performance of 100.63.

More importantly, he turned the numbers into a tournament victory, finishing with seven wins and beating Adam King 3–0 in the final.

A 112 average at any level catches the eye, and producing another 100+ performance during the same competition makes Caste's night particularly impressive.

Boundy wins ten at Portishead

There was plenty to celebrate at Portishead Workmens Darts, where Steve Boundy came through Freddie's Birthday Bash.

Boundy amassed an impressive ten victories during the competition before beating Jack Collins 3–0 in the final.

The biggest average at the event actually came from Logun Godbeer, whose 91.09 topped the night's figures. Max Maggs, Phil Woodall and Andy Darbon all recorded 83.50 averages, while Boundy's best was 81.24.

It was a good example of why looking beyond the single highest average often tells you much more about a tournament – Boundy's consistency ultimately carried him all the way through.

Williams dominates at the Railway

Dan Williams produced one of Tuesday's most complete performances at the Railway Inn Round-Robin.

Williams won nine matches, beat Charlie Mossman 3–0 in the final and produced a superb 103.66 average during his run.

That wasn't an isolated burst either. Williams also recorded two 91.09 averages and an 88.41, making his overall performance one of the strongest of the night.

Flew fires in 107 at Tredegar

Another huge performance came from Bryan Flew at the Tredegar Vault Break.

Flew produced a massive 107.36, the second-highest individual average recorded across Tuesday's Q4QS results.

He also hit 92.02 twice, including in his 3–0 final victory over Callum Smith, to complete an excellent tournament-winning performance.

Chaplin comes through a high-quality Wicketts event

There were some excellent numbers at the Wicketts Tuesday Round Robin.

Daniel Astbury produced averages of 100.20, 98.02 and 96.97, but it was Jamie Chaplin who eventually claimed the title.

The pair met in the final and Chaplin produced a 96.69 average to win 3–1.

Both players finished with eight victories, making this one of the strongest head-to-head stories from Tuesday's results.

Jackson combines a ton average with the title

Sam Jackson also joined Tuesday's 100 club at St John's.

Jackson recorded a 100.20 average during the competition and eventually defeated Mark Burns 4–2 in the final.

Like Boundy at Portishead, Jackson finished the tournament with ten victories, underlining the consistency required to negotiate these longer round-robin competitions.

Plenty happening on the JDC VOLTS circuit

Tuesday also brought another busy programme of JDC VOLTS action.

Among the winners were Jack Powell at Resolven, Jenson Macey in Gosport, Tyler Shuck at Halesowen, Luke Bennett in Minehead, Lucas Milligan at Blackwood and Spencer Edwards at Ogmore Vale.

Macey produced a particularly impressive sequence in Gosport, recording a best of 85.89 and winning seven matches on his way to the title.

In Minehead, Luke Bennett took the title with six victories, while Ryan Elliott produced the tournament's highest recorded average at 73.32.

More winners across a busy Tuesday

There were plenty of other performances worth noting.

Darren Malt won his Cash Prize Round Robin with eight victories and a best of 93.94, while Clayton Ford also recorded eight wins on his way to the Chinnor Pavilion Vault Break title.

Lloyd Walker won the Fareham MIMO, George Whyte came through the IDL Super GP in Ruislip, Andy Hammond won at Widden Rugby Club and Taylor Mcguckian produced a 90.18 on the way to victory at Bedworth.

And at Newent, Sharon Brewer took the women's singles title with a 3–1 final victory over Ruby Kennedy.

A night of big numbers

The depth of Tuesday's scoring was perhaps the biggest story.

Mat Caste – 112.69
Bryan Flew – 107.36
Nathan Bull – 103.66
Dan Williams – 103.66
Rich Griffee – 102.48

Caste added another 100.63, while Stephen Cake, Sam Jackson and Daniel Astbury all recorded 100.20 averages.

Not everyone producing those numbers went on to win, which is another reminder of just how unpredictable these competitions can be.

Across 39 tournaments, Tuesday provided everything from junior events and Under-65 competitions to Vaults and money-in-money-out round robins – and another huge collection of results to feed into the growing Q4QS database.

Is There a Great Darts Player Hidden Inside Me?

 

Every so often, I throw a leg of darts that makes absolutely no sense.

Not because it's bad.

Because it's far better than the player I normally am.

I've hit 15-dart legs. I've had individual legs where I've averaged over 100. They certainly don't happen every week, and I don't want to pretend I'm regularly producing darts of that standard.

I'm not.

But they have happened.

And that has left me with a question I've been fascinated by for years.

If I can play darts that well occasionally, what is stopping me from getting closer to that level more often?

Or, to put it another way:

Is there a much better darts player hidden inside me?

The 10,000-Hour Question

I've always been fascinated by the argument popularised by books such as Matt Syed's Bounce: the idea that elite performance is built through thousands of hours of purposeful practice rather than simply being something you're born with.

The famous figure is 10,000 hours, although the original research is considerably more nuanced than simply doing something for that length of time.

The important part is deliberate practice.

There's an enormous difference between throwing darts for an hour and spending an hour deliberately working on specific weaknesses.

And that raises an interesting question in darts.

How much of the difference between an average pub player and an elite player is practice?

And how much is natural ability?

Surely Natural Talent Exists?

It's difficult to watch somebody such as Luke Littler throw darts and believe we're all starting with exactly the same raw materials.

The same could be said of Adrian Lewis at his best, or the apparently effortless action of Michael Smith.

They have obviously spent thousands upon thousands of hours playing darts.

But there appears to be something else there as well.

Call it talent, coordination, temperament, hand-eye coordination or simply an unusually high natural ceiling.

Whatever we call it, I find it difficult to believe that every person on Earth could practise for 10,000 hours and become Luke Littler.

I certainly don't expect to.

But that's not really the question I'm interested in.

I'm far more interested in finding out how good I could become.

Which One Is the Real Me?

I'm 52.

I've played a lot of darts over the years and I practise reasonably seriously for an amateur player. I enter tournaments, track statistics and probably think about my game considerably more than is healthy.

But my improvement has never followed a nice straight line.

Sometimes I play well.

Sometimes I wonder whether I've ever held a dart before.

And very occasionally everything clicks.

A 15-dart leg appears.

A leg with a 100-plus average appears.

Three darts suddenly seem to follow one another towards the treble rather than conducting independent experiments into different areas of the board.

Those exceptional legs are rare.

But they're fascinating to me because I threw them.

So which player represents my actual ability?

Is it the player represented by my average over hundreds of legs?

Almost certainly.

But what does that occasional brilliant leg represent?

Luck?

Variance?

Or a glimpse of a level that better practice could make slightly less unusual?

Maybe I'm Asking the Wrong Question

For years, I've thought about improvement in the obvious way:

How do I become a better darts player?

I'm starting to think there's another way of looking at it.

How do I make the difference between my best darts and my normal darts smaller?

That doesn't mean turning an occasional 15-darter into 15-dart legs every night.

That would be ridiculous.

But suppose the things that occasionally combine during one of those legs could be understood.

Better grouping.

Fewer darts in the 1 and 5.

More controlled finishing.

Better concentration.

More confidence.

Perhaps improvement isn't about discovering some magical new ability.

Perhaps it's about gradually removing the mistakes that prevent the ability I already possess from appearing more frequently.

Where Am I Actually Losing Darts?

My instinct has always been to blame scoring.

Those visits of 41 and 45 are incredibly frustrating because they often don't feel like terrible visits.

The darts aren't miles away.

But they're expensive.

Put two darts in the 1 instead of the 20 and you've effectively thrown away 38 points.

Do that repeatedly during a leg and suddenly the difference is enormous.

It doesn't necessarily require more 180s to become a considerably better player.

Sometimes it just requires fewer 26s.

But looking at my own statistics has made me wonder whether scoring is actually my biggest problem.

My first-nine average is often somewhere around 55–60 and rarely falls below 50.

Nobody on the PDC Tour needs to start worrying.

But for the standard I'm playing at, it suggests I'm at least getting myself through the first part of legs reasonably well.

What happens afterwards may be more important.

The Doubles Problem

This is an area where I think there may be considerable improvement available.

If I'm taking four darts, on average, to convert a finishing opportunity, I'm effectively operating at around 25%.

Get that closer to one in three and suddenly I'm winning legs earlier without improving my scoring at all.

That's what I find particularly interesting.

I've spent years thinking becoming a better darts player means scoring more heavily.

Maybe it doesn't.

Perhaps I don't need another 180.

Perhaps I need fewer wasted darts.

A 60 average achieved through better finishing wins exactly the same legs as a 60 average produced through heavier scoring.

And in match situations, better finishing may be considerably more valuable.

Why Do Young Players Seem to Improve So Quickly?

Age is another part of this experiment.

At 52, I'm obviously not approaching darts in the same circumstances as an emerging 18-year-old.

A young player may be playing several nights every week. They may have fewer family commitments and considerably more time available for practice and competition.

There may be physical advantages too. Motor learning, recovery, eyesight and reaction can all change with age.

But there's another factor.

Going from a 40 average to 50 is not necessarily the same challenge as going from 55 to 65.

Improvement becomes progressively harder.

The better you become, the more difficult each additional percentage point is to find.

So perhaps comparing improvement rates isn't particularly useful.

The more interesting question is what improvement is still realistically available to me.

Have I Actually Been Practising Properly?

This may be the uncomfortable part.

I practise.

But I'm not convinced I've always practised particularly well.

Throwing at treble 20 for a while, playing some 501 and then deciding I've completed a practice session isn't necessarily deliberate practice.

It's playing darts.

There's a difference.

So I'm going to try something different.

Rather than simply practising more, I want to practise with a purpose.

A session might include:

- 15 minutes concentrating purely on grouping and reducing darts into the 1 and 5.

- 15 minutes working through finishing combinations.

- 15 minutes of dedicated doubles practice.

- 15 minutes of competitive 501 or match simulation, with the statistics recorded.

And, crucially, I want to measure what happens.

Not after three days.

Over months.

An Experiment at 52

That's perhaps where this article changes from a philosophical question into something more interesting.

I want to find out.

I'm not trying to become a professional darts player.

I'm certainly not announcing a late assault on Luke Littler's world ranking.

I simply want to discover how much better a 52-year-old amateur darts player can become through genuinely structured practice.

I'll track things such as my overall average, first-nine average, checkout percentage, darts required at doubles and perhaps the frequency of particularly poor scoring visits.

Then I can see where the improvement actually comes from.

Maybe my scoring will rise.

Maybe my doubles will improve.

Maybe very little will happen at all.

That's part of the experiment.

So Can Anyone Become Elite?

I suspect the answer is no.

Natural ability matters.

Different people almost certainly have different ceilings, just as they do in virtually every other sport.

But I also suspect most amateur darts players have absolutely no idea where their ceiling is.

Because reaching it would require years of genuinely purposeful practice rather than simply playing darts.

Perhaps talent determines roughly where your ceiling might be.

Practice determines how close you ever get to it.

Most of us probably stop climbing long before we actually reach it.

The Player I've Occasionally Met

I don't regularly throw 15-dart legs.

That's precisely why they fascinate me.

Somewhere amongst thousands of completely ordinary legs of darts are a handful where everything has worked.

I've experienced what it feels like.

And I'm curious about whether I can make the gap between those rare moments and my normal game just a little smaller.

I'm not searching for a perfect throwing action.

I'm not looking for a secret aiming technique.

And I'm definitely not expecting to suddenly average 90.

I'm searching for consistency.

At 52, perhaps my ultimate ceiling isn't dramatically higher than my current level.

Or perhaps I've spent years practising inefficiently and there's considerably more improvement available than I realise.

There's only really one way to find out.

Practise properly.

Measure it.

And see what happens.

Maybe there isn't a great darts player hidden inside me.

But I'd quite like to meet the best one that's in there.

Yesterday's Darts Results: Big Ton-Plus Averages Headline Monday's Action 18th August 2026 (South and South West)

 

After a huge Sunday schedule, Monday 17 August brought a more manageable 22 tournaments into the Q4QS database, but there was no shortage of quality.

Anthony Bennett produced the performance of the night with a superb 107.36 average, while Stephen Cake and Geoff James also broke the 100 barrier.

There was South West interest too, with Riley Milligan winning the JDC VOLTS event in Salisbury, while James continued his good form with victory at the Wolversdene Club.

Milligan takes the honours in Salisbury

One of the most interesting results locally came from the latest JDC VOLTS Series 7 event at Stratford Social Club in Salisbury.

Riley Milligan came through the tournament with eight victories, eventually defeating Joshua Stott 3–1 in the final.

Milligan also produced the highest average of the competition, hitting 77.08 against Mason Beaven.

There was plenty to like elsewhere among the young players. Zachary Petty registered a 76.15, while Beaven reached 75.15 and finished the night with five wins.

It was another good example of the strength developing through the junior game, with the JDC VOLTS continuing to provide regular competitive opportunities around the country.

Geoff James breaks 100 on way to title

Geoff James produced one of Monday's standout performances at the Wolversdene Club.

James won the Money In Money Out Round-Robin, defeating Jamie Kelling 3–1 in the final, and recorded eight victories across the competition.

The highlight was a huge 102.48 average, the third-highest individual average recorded anywhere in Monday's Q4QS results.

Kelling also enjoyed a strong tournament, winning seven times and producing an 88.56, while David Moule and Henry Povey both hit 91.09.

Bennett produces the performance of the night

The biggest average of the day came at Brynmawr Social Club.

Anthony Bennett fired in a superb 107.36, before going on to win the tournament with a 3–1 victory over Cameron Edwards in the final.

Bennett also produced a 93.94 earlier in the competition and averaged 85.43 in the final itself.

Craig Dobbins was another strong performer, reaching 87.78, while both Bennett and Gethyn Bennett finished with six victories.

Cake combines big scoring with the title

There was another 100+ performance at Nantyffyllon Non Political Club, where Stephen Cake didn't just produce one of the biggest numbers of the day – he also took the title.

Cake's 103.66 was second only to Bennett across Monday's results.

He went on to beat Gavin Sterio 3–0 in the final, averaging 86.71 in the process, and finished with seven victories.

Mike Huntley also impressed with a 90.18, while Connor Hopkins recorded an 88.06.

Kenny wins at Cwmbran

Another familiar name came through at Cwmbran Working Men's Band Club.

Nick Kenny won the opening Vault Break event, beating Jose Van Angeles 3–1 in the final.

Kenny recorded eight victories and produced several strong averages along the way, headed by 93.94, with another 89.26 also among his better performances.

Meneer comes through at Welshpool

There was a strong standard at The Angel in Welshpool, where Neil Meneer defeated Jamie Kay 3–1 in the final.

Kay actually produced the two biggest averages of the tournament at 95.94 and 93.94, but Meneer responded when it mattered with an excellent 93.34 in the final.

Meneer finished the event with seven wins and also recorded a 90.18 during his run to the title.

Plenty more winners across Monday

Elsewhere, Luke Grantham came through a huge 99-match Monday Flyer at 8 Ball Bar & Sports, defeating Finlay Cleave 2–1 in the final and hitting a best of 91.09.

Jason Kenderdine won an Under-65 round-robin with eight victories and an 81.98 best, while Louis Melville won the Champion of Champions Shooters warm-up and Joshua Russell took the Clive Arms Vault Break.

Shane Turner also enjoyed an excellent evening at the Riverside Club, winning eight matches on his way to the title and producing a best average of 89.57.

Monday's standout numbers

Three performances broke through the 100 barrier:

Anthony Bennett – 107.36
Stephen Cake – 103.66
Geoff James – 102.48

Behind them came Liam Forward at 96.97 and Jamie Kay at 95.94, with Nick Kenny, Gavin Mercer and Jamie Elliott among those recording 93.94 averages.

It may have been a quieter Monday after Sunday's enormous schedule, but there was still plenty to take from the results – particularly the combination of big averages and tournament victories from Bennett, Cake and James, alongside another encouraging JDC VOLTS performance from Riley Milligan in Salisbury.

Vault 18 Regional Finals: Wales Shows the Depth, but the South West Has Plenty of Firepower

 

Vault 18 came to an end on 16 August, bringing seven weeks of qualification to a close and setting up the next stage: the Regional Finals.

For the players who have made it through, the rewards are significant. There is serious prize money available, but perhaps even more importantly, an opportunity to progress towards the MODUS Super Series and the exposure that comes with playing live on Pluto TV.

That can open doors well beyond one weekend.

For this first look at the Regional Finals, I am concentrating mainly on the two areas I have covered most closely throughout Vault 18: the South West and Wales.

I am not making outright predictions yet. That will come closer to the Regional Finals themselves.

Instead, I wanted to answer a different set of questions.

How strong were the Vault events in each region? Which venues consistently produced the toughest fields? How do the final Top 32s compare? And does the regional table necessarily tell us who the most dangerous players actually are?

The results are fascinating.

---

Wales Has the Deeper Top 32

The clearest finding comes from comparing the actual Vault averages of the 32 qualifiers in each region.

At the very top, there is virtually nothing between them.

The five strongest averages in the South West produce a combined figure of 83.32, while the equivalent five in Wales come out at 83.48.

That is effectively level.

Move further down the field, however, and Wales begins to pull away.

Field depth	South West	Wales
Best 5 average	83.32	83.48
Best 10	80.75	82.70
Best 16	78.84	81.49
Best 20	77.82	80.69
Full Top 32	74.55	78.26

The contrast becomes even clearer when looking at the number of players reaching certain standards.

The South West has four players averaging 80 or more.

Wales has 11.

The South West has 15 players averaging at least 75.

Wales has 26.

So the story is not that Wales necessarily possesses a far stronger group of favourites.

It is that the Welsh field appears to lose much less quality as you travel through the draw.

That could make the Welsh Regional Final particularly unforgiving.

---

Henry Cooper Sets the Standard in the South West

If Wales wins the depth argument, the highest individual average across the two fields belongs to the South West.

Henry Cooper leads the South West rankings with a superb 87.22 average.

He finished on the maximum 320 points despite competing in only 12 events, making his qualification particularly impressive.

And he isn't alone at the top.

Gareth Griffiths sits seventh in the regional table but averaged 85.59.

Josh McCarthy is sixth at 81.66.

Robbie Martin, despite being only the 14th seed, averaged 82.40.

That latter number is particularly interesting when cross-referenced with the wider Q4QS database.

Martin is one of the strongest South West qualifiers in the wider data and arrives with a 10-0 recent record, including consecutive Vault 18 titles.

That immediately shows why simply following the regional seedings could be dangerous.

---

The South West Players Whose Seeds Could Be Misleading

The wider Q4QS data throws up several players who look considerably stronger than their Vault position might initially suggest.

Gareth Griffiths ranks extremely highly in the wider Vault-filtered Q4QS data despite qualifying seventh.

Robbie Martin is 14th.

Zach Quinn, with a 78.32 Vault average, qualified only 22nd.

Then comes perhaps the most eye-catching example.

Declan Cox qualified 32nd.

Last place in the Regional Final field.

Yet Cox has already demonstrated that his ceiling is considerably higher than that seed suggests. At North Star Club in Calne he produced a 103.66 average, while Josh McCarthy hit 100.20 at the same event. Cox went on to win the tournament.

That is not the profile of somebody you would necessarily want as the bottom seed in your section of the draw.

The South West may not have the same depth of 80-plus averages as Wales, but it contains plenty of players capable of producing very high-level darts on the right day.

---

Wales: Danger Almost Everywhere

The Welsh field looks different.

The eye-catching feature is not just the top of the rankings.

It is how many strong players appear deep into the 32.

The first 12 qualifiers all finished on 320 points, but even that does not tell the full story.

Some of the strongest statistical players are much further down.

Llew Bevan is only the 26th seed but averaged 84.39 — the highest average in the entire Welsh Top 32.

Keenan Thomas is 29th with an 81.38 average.

Luke Newport is 17th at 81.59.

Ryan Davies is 20th at 79.98.

Gavin Sterio is 27th at 79.46.

That is extraordinary depth.

It means drawing somebody ranked in the twenties in Wales offers no guarantee whatsoever of getting an easier match.

---

Connor Hopkins Leads the Wider Q4QS Picture

Cross-referencing the Welsh qualifiers with the larger Vault 18 database produces another significant name.

Connor Hopkins ranks second across the entire Vault-filtered Q4QS player pool.

He qualified fifth in Wales.

That demonstrates just how little the regional seed alone tells us about underlying playing standard.

And we already have evidence of his ceiling.

At Wattsville National Club, Hopkins produced averages of 98.92 and 95.94, while Stephen Cake hit 100.20 and 95.94 at the same event.

Cake eventually finished top of the Welsh Regional rankings.

Alec Small, another of the Welsh 320-point qualifiers, also appeared prominently in that same event and later won at Tredegar, where he produced a 92.02 average.

So the Welsh depth isn't merely the product of accumulated averages.

There have been plenty of high-level performances behind those numbers.

---

Points Do Not Tell the Whole Story

This is another important part of the Vault 18 picture.

Players competed in very different numbers of events.

That means points partly reflect performance, but they also reflect opportunity and volume.

Take the South West.

Henry Cooper reached 320 points from just 12 events.

Gareth Griffiths earned 212 from only eight.

Jamie Kay reached 208 from nine.

Compare that with some players who competed in more than 20 tournaments.

Wales provides an even more extreme example.

Alex Williams reached 320 points from only 11 events.

Stephen Cake also scored 320 but competed in 26.

Timothy Jones required 28 events to reach the same total.

None of this makes one player automatically better than another.

But it does highlight why points, averages and underlying Q4QS strength should all be considered together rather than treating the regional standings as a simple power ranking.

---

Which Region Had the Strongest Vault Events?

The tournament-strength export produces one of the more surprising findings.

I use a calculated Tournament Strength score in the Q4QS database. It is important to stress that this is not simply an average. Player strength and the quality of the field contribute to the calculation.

Looking across the Vault 18 series, Wales and the South West were actually much closer than the Regional Final averages might suggest.

Across the events I could confidently classify, the average Tournament Strength multiplier was approximately:

Wales — 1.085

South West — 1.081

That is almost nothing between them.

The median figures are similarly close.

So this isn't a case of Wales simply having much stronger Vault tournaments throughout the seven-week series.

The everyday playing environments in the two regions were broadly comparable.

The bigger difference appears when we get to which players accumulated enough points to form the final 32.

That is a much more interesting conclusion.

---

Lindsay Constitutional Club Leads the Way in Wales

When the venues are separated out, one stands above the rest.

Lindsay Constitutional Club, Cefn Hengoed

Across seven recorded Vault 18 events, Lindsay produced an average Tournament Strength multiplier of approximately 1.254.

Its strongest individual event reached 1.350, comfortably the highest figure I found across the South West and Welsh comparison.

The average Top-20 figure across its events was also around 67.82.

And the results data supports that strength.

Stephen Cake won there during Vault 18, producing 91.69 and 90.73 performances on the night.

Behind Lindsay, some of the other strongest recurring Welsh venues included:

Cardiff County Conservative Club

Brynmawr Social Club

PILCS Sports & Social Club

Mile End Inn, Swansea

Brynmawr is particularly noteworthy because it produced 14 recorded Vault events while still maintaining a strong overall field level.

That suggests sustained depth rather than one unusually strong tournament.

---

Sartan Leads a Strong South West Group

The strongest recurring South West venue was:

Sartan Club, Bishopsworth

Across eight events, Sartan produced an average Tournament Strength multiplier of approximately 1.235, with a best event of 1.305.

That makes it the South West benchmark for Vault 18.

Behind it came:

North Star Club, Calne

Elmore Football Club, Tiverton

Yeovil Labour Club

Indian Queens WMC, Cornwall

with Magpies Social Club, Stonehouse and Saintbridge Sports Club, Gloucester very close behind.

Again, this is useful context.

The South West doesn't rely on one strong pocket of darts.

There are competitive fields spread across Bristol, Wiltshire, Somerset, Devon, Cornwall and Gloucestershire.

At Indian Queens, for example, Gareth Griffiths and Neil Meneer met in a Vault final after both producing 96.97 averages during the event. Griffiths also hit 91.84 in the final.

---

South West v Wales: What Have We Actually Learned?

There are three different comparisons here.

And they don't all produce exactly the same answer.

At the very top of the Regional Finals

Almost nothing separates the regions.

South West even possesses the highest individual average through Henry Cooper.

Across the full Top 32

Wales looks significantly deeper.

The Welsh field contains far more 80-plus players and very few qualifiers whose averages drop much below the mid-70s.

Across the Vault tournaments themselves

The regions were surprisingly similar in overall tournament strength.

Wales has the strongest individual venue in Lindsay Constitutional Club and a slightly higher average strength figure, but the difference across all events is relatively small.

That leads me to perhaps the most interesting conclusion of all.

The strength difference in the Regional Finals isn't necessarily because Wales had vastly harder Vault events.

It appears to be more about the depth of players who successfully emerged from them.

---

Some Seeds May Mean Almost Nothing

This is perhaps the thing I'll be watching most closely once the actual Regional Finals begin.

There are players buried deep in both rankings whose underlying numbers look far stronger than their seed.

In the South West:

Robbie Martin — #14

Zach Quinn — #22

Joe Bagguley — #27

Logan Symons Jr — #30

Declan Cox — #32

And in Wales:

Luke Newport — #17

Llew Bevan — #26

Gavin Sterio — #27

Keenan Thomas — #29

Dean Reynolds — #30

A draw involving some of those players could look favourable on paper while being anything but.

---

What Comes Next?

For now, I'm stopping short of predicting winners.

That will come closer to the Regional Finals themselves, when I'll look at the actual draws, recent form and the strongest routes through each field.

That is where the likes of Cooper, Griffiths, Hopkins, Cake, Bevan, Martin and others can be assessed properly as potential winners rather than simply interesting statistical profiles.

But one thing is already clear.

The jump from a local Vault night to the Regional Finals represents a significant opportunity.

There is prize money to be won, but beyond that lies the prospect of appearing in the MODUS Super Series, playing in front of a much larger audience and potentially opening doors that simply aren't available on an ordinary local darts night.

For 64 players across the South West and Wales, the seven weeks of Vault 18 have got them this far.

Now the serious part begins.

Yesterday's Darts Results: 16 August 2026 Vernall Doubles Up as Taunton Produces Huge Numbers

 

Sunday 16 August was a packed day of grassroots darts, with 56 tournaments added to the Q4QS database.

And while there was action right across the country – from the PDC Challenge Tour to JDC VOLTS and a huge programme of Vault events – there was plenty happening closer to home.

Shaun Vernall won twice, Paul Gardiner came through a high-quality event in Taunton, Charlie Wiles followed a Taunton final with victory in Kentisbeare, and the junior circuit visited both Exeter and Minehead.

There were some exceptional individual performances too, headed by a remarkable 111.33 average from Daren Field at the Queens Arms in Taunton.

Vernall completes a Sunday double

It was quite a day for Shaun Vernall, who managed to win not one but two Vault events.

The first came at Matson Rugby Club in Gloucester, where 57 matches were recorded. Vernall won eight times on his way through the competition and defeated Cody Kibble 3–1 in the final.

His best recorded average was an 88.41, with James Mann producing the performance of the tournament with a 100.20.

Vernall then did it all over again at the Nags Head in Cinderford.

Another eight victories followed, this time culminating in a 3–1 final win over Mark Wellington. Vernall produced an 85.39 during the tournament before averaging 85.03 in the final itself.

Sixteen wins and two tournament victories in the same day makes that one of Sunday's standout stories.

Fireworks at the Queens Arms

The Queens Arms in Taunton produced arguably the most eye-catching collection of numbers anywhere in the grassroots results.

Daren Field fired in an extraordinary 111.33, the highest individual average recorded across Sunday's 56 tournaments.

But he wasn't alone.

C-Jay Pipe hit 100.20, Dave Fisher recorded 97.64, Charlie Wiles produced 96.97 and Andy Steed added a 93.94.

With that standard being produced, winning the tournament was never going to be straightforward.

It was Paul Gardiner who ultimately came through, defeating Charlie Wiles 3–2 in the final.

Wiles actually recorded eight wins across the event – the most of anybody – but Gardiner was the player left standing at the end.

Wiles responds with Kentisbeare victory

For Charlie Wiles, however, Sunday wasn't finished.

After reaching the final in Taunton, he headed the winner's list at the Wyndham Arms in Kentisbeare, beating Mason Doble 3–2 in another close final.

Wiles and Doble both recorded seven victories, while C-Jay Pipe again produced some excellent scoring with a tournament-best 96.97 and another 88.41.

Mason Doble hit 91.09 and Andy Steed recorded 88.98.

So Wiles' day amounted to a final and a tournament victory across two separate events – a very productive Sunday.

Portishead title for Danny Williams

There was a different sort of competition at Portishead Workmens Darts, with the Under-55 Sunday Lunch event.

Danny Williams took the title after a particularly close final against Josh Rose, eventually winning 5–4.

Williams recorded seven victories, while Rose won six and produced each of the four highest listed averages in the tournament, headed by 62.62.

JDC action in Exeter and Minehead

There was plenty of junior darts around the country as the JDC VOLTS Series continued, including two South West stops.

At The Kings Pub in Exeter, Charlie Fone came through a 49-match event, defeating George Miller 3–2 in the final.

Both players recorded six wins, while Oliver Hutchings produced the highest average of the tournament at 77.08.

Meanwhile, at the Banckers Draught in Minehead, Charlie Ely took the title, defeating Kyle Chivers 3–1 in the final.

With VOLTS events taking place around the country on Sunday, it was another busy day for the next generation.

Klose takes Challenge Tour 20

At the other end of the darting pathway, Daniel Klose won PDC Challenge Tour 20.

Klose put together eight victories and defeated Derek Coulson 5–1 in the final.

Interestingly, Coulson produced the two biggest averages of the tournament – a massive 110.68 and 110.44 – but couldn't convert that scoring into the title.

Jack Main also averaged 104.38, Kevin Burness 102.28 and Klose himself 101.55 during his winning run.

It was another reminder that the biggest average doesn't necessarily tell the story of who ultimately wins a tournament.

A Sunday packed with big averages

Daren Field's 111.33 topped the entire day's figures, ahead of Coulson's two 110+ performances.

Elsewhere, James Parkin hit 107.36, Chris Bryant-Evans produced 103.66 and 103.37, and James Mann's 100.20 at Matson completed an impressive list of performances.

There were plenty more strong tournament wins too.

Ricky King won at Swanage, Steve Sewell took the Bostin Darts Vault, Chris Hurds won in Hereford and Steve Boundy came through the CUFC Open.

But from a South West perspective, Vernall's double, the extraordinary standard at the Queens Arms and Wiles' final-and-win combination make Sunday particularly interesting.

Fifty-six tournaments, hundreds of players and yet another huge amount of grassroots darts to add to the Q4QS database.

MODUS Super Series Week 3 Preview – A Fascinating Mix of Experience, Form and Emerging Talent

 

The MODUS Super Series returns for Week 3 of Series 15, and this week's line-up offers exactly the sort of mixture that makes the competition so interesting.

There are players with considerable experience at the top level, some currently trying to fight their way back towards the PDC circuit, emerging names making progress on the Development and Challenge Tours, and others arriving with excellent form away from the PDC system.

And when I put the field through the Q4QS database, there isn't necessarily one overwhelming favourite.

Paul Krohne is the highest-ranked player in the field in the Q4QS data at No.21, but there are plenty of reasons to look further down the list – not least Dylan Slevin arriving as a brand-new Challenge Tour champion and Llew Bevan bringing an extraordinary recent winning record.

Paul Krohne Sets the Q4QS Benchmark

Krohne probably deserves to start as one of the major names to watch.

The German sits 21st in the Q4QS rankings, with a rating of 711.31 and an overall database average of 89.56. More importantly, he has demonstrated winning form.

His recent Swiss Open & Helvetia Open title came with a 91.87 tournament average, while his five most recent recorded tournaments also contain two further quarter-finals.

Short-format MODUS matches can be unforgiving, but Krohne appears to have the combination of scoring and consistency required to make a serious challenge.

Slevin Arrives as a Challenge Tour Champion

Perhaps the most timely storyline of the entire week belongs to Dylan Slevin.

The database already shows the Irishman reaching a Development Tour 19 semi-final with an 87.14 tournament average, as well as a quarter-final at Development Tour 20.

But he has subsequently gone one better on the Challenge Tour.

Slevin won Challenge Tour Event 19 on Saturday, going through seven rounds and claiming his maiden Challenge Tour title. That is significant form to take straight into a week of MODUS competition.

He's certainly one I'll be watching closely.

Don't Overlook Andy Baetens

Andy Baetens is another player whose recent record deserves attention.

His overall Q4QS database average stands at 89.03, and there is a reassuring consistency to his recent tournament numbers.

Baetens averaged 92.25 during a run through a PDC European Tour Host Nation Qualifier, 92.29 in reaching a Belgian Open quarter-final and 89.04 during a Denmark Open & Masters semi-final run.

He might not have the freshest title next to his name, but his underlying performances suggest he could be very difficult to shift.

McEwan Back on Familiar Ground

Jim McEwan immediately stands out for another reason – he knows exactly how to win the MODUS Super Series.

McEwan is already a former weekly champion, having won Week 5 of Series 14, and he comes into this appearance with some excellent numbers behind him.

He's 8-2 across his last ten matches in the Q4QS database and recently reached an Isle of Man final with a 93.65 event average.

Perhaps even more eye-catching was a 103.08 average in his most recent recorded event.

Experience of this particular environment shouldn't be underestimated either.

Llew Bevan – The Form Player?

If we're looking purely at momentum, Llew Bevan is impossible to ignore.

His Q4QS ranking of 299 doesn't tell the full story.

Bevan is currently 10-0 across his last ten recorded matches, while his recent tournament record includes multiple titles. He averaged 93.27 when winning the Towy Vault Break Round Robin 2 and has individual recorded performances of 107.36 and 109.98.

The obvious question is how that form translates to the MODUS stage against a deeper international field.

That's precisely why he's one of the most intriguing players of the week.

Cansdale Continues to Progress

Asa Cansdale provides another interesting storyline.

He's 8-2 in his last ten and recently reached the semi-finals of the ADC Winmau Championship South Event 11 with an 85.21 tournament average.

His recent results also contain an 86.04 average during a Development Tour Last 64 run, demonstrating that he can compete effectively in different environments.

This feels like another opportunity to see how far that progression has come.

Plenty More Beyond the Leading Six

And that's what makes this field particularly difficult to call.

Ciaran Forde is 7-3 across his last ten and has produced a 94.52 individual match average, while his recent calendar has included plenty of Development Tour competition.

Former Grand Slam champion José de Sousa needs little introduction. His more recent database results haven't matched the heights of his best years, but there's still evidence of his scoring ability, including a 93.94 match average during Q-School.

Mike Warburton is another fascinating one. His recent Challenge Tour results have been inconsistent, but his database contains a remarkable 110.51 match average, showing exactly what he's capable of when everything clicks.

Killian Heffernan comes in at 7-3 across his last ten, with plenty of recent Development Tour action behind him, while Darren Webster brings vast experience despite having much less recent data available in the Q4QS database.

Arne Spee completes the line-up, although there isn't currently enough information within this Q4QS export for me to make the same sort of data-backed assessment of his chances.

A Difficult Week to Call

There are arguments for experience, current form and raw numbers throughout this field.

Krohne has arguably the strongest overall Q4QS profile. Slevin has the freshest major result. Baetens brings consistency. McEwan knows how to win here. Cansdale continues to progress.

And then there's Bevan.

A player arriving 10-0 in the database after a succession of excellent performances away from the major professional circuits is exactly the type of story I enjoy following with Q4QS. Now we get to see how that form translates to the MODUS environment.

It should make Week 3 of Series 15 well worth watching.