What is the PDC?
The PDC (Professional Darts Corporation) is the British organisation that runs professional darts. It stages more than 200 events a year: televised majors such as the World Championship and the Premier League, events for Tour Card holders, and youth, women’s and regional tours. Most events are held in the UK and Germany, with others in the Middle East, the USA, Oceania and Asia.
Basic rules (501)
Every PDC match is played as 501. Both players start on 501 and take turns throwing three darts, subtracting what they score. The first to bring their score down to exactly zero wins the leg.
The final dart must land in a double (the thin outer ring, worth twice the number) or the bullseye (50). Scoring more than what is left, or leaving 1, is a "bust", and that visit does not count.
A match is won by the first player to reach a set number of legs. Some events, such as the World Championship, use sets (groups of legs), and match length varies by event and round.
- The centre of the board is 1.73 m above the floor, and the throwing line (oche) is 2.37 m from the face of the board.
- 180: the maximum score with three darts (three treble 20s).
- 170: the highest finish possible in one visit (treble 20, treble 20, bull).
- Nine-darter: checking out 501 in the minimum nine darts — darts’ equivalent of a hole-in-one.
How to read averages
The (three-dart) average is the number of points scored per three darts: total points divided by darts thrown, times three. It is the most common way to compare players.
In this site’s 2025 data, the average at Players Championship events (the pro events for Tour Card holders) was about 92, and about 11% of performances topped 100. The Challenge Tour averaged about 82, the Development Tour (young players) about 73 and the Women’s Series about 65. On television, a top player averaging over 100 is in good form; over 110 is rare.
Each player’s season averages are on their player page; rankings are on the Stats page. ›
Steel-tip and soft-tip darts
PDC events are steel-tip darts: darts with metal points thrown at a board made of compressed sisal fibre, with scores counted by people.
What most people play in Japan and across East and Southeast Asia is soft-tip darts: plastic-tipped darts thrown at an electronic board full of small holes, with scoring done automatically. The throwing distance and board size are different, and soft-tip has its own pro tours.
More and more players who started in soft-tip are switching to steel and making their mark on the PDC Asian Tour and at the World Championship.
Tour Cards and Q-School
A Tour Card lets a player enter the PDC ProTour (Players Championships and more). It lasts two years and around 128 players hold one. The "TOUR CARD" badge on a player page means the player currently holds one.
The main route to a Tour Card is Q-School (Qualifying School): several days of tournaments every January, split into a UK & Ireland event and a European event, with the best performers winning cards. Players who keep a high world ranking, and the top players on the Challenge Tour and Development Tour rankings, also earn Tour Cards.
Types of events
Majors
Calendar ›The big televised events: the World Championship (December–January, Alexandra Palace, London), the World Matchplay (July, Blackpool), the UK Open, the World Grand Prix, the Grand Slam, the Players Championship Finals, the European Championship, the World Masters and the World Cup (a team event between nations). Field sizes vary from 32 players to 128 at the World Championship.
Premier League
Calendar ›The top eight players tour cities in the UK and Europe every Thursday from February to May. Each night is an eight-player knockout, and players earn league points for how far they go. The season is decided at the May play-offs at The O2 in London. Because it is played for points, this site does not show money for Premier League results.
World Series
Calendar ›Invitational events held outside the UK, with sixteen players: PDC stars plus local players. In 2026 they were held in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the Nordic region, the USA, New Zealand and Australia. The top players on points go through to the World Series Finals.
European Tour
Calendar ›Forty-eight-player events across Europe, mostly in Germany — 15 in 2026. Most of the field comes through qualifiers, including qualifiers for local players. The top 32 on European Tour prize money play the European Championship in October.
Players Championship (PC)
Calendar ›One-day, 128-player knockouts for Tour Card holders. There were 34 in 2026, none televised. The top 64 on Players Championship prize money qualify for the Players Championship Finals, a major, in November. The number in a name such as "Players Championship 31" is the event number within the season.
PDC Asian Tour
Calendar ›The Asian tour run by PDC Asia. Each stop holds four events over a weekend; in 2026 there were 28 events across seven stops: Dubai, Shizuoka, Kuala Lumpur, Ulaanbaatar, Singapore, Manila and Changjiang (Hainan). The season ends with the 64-player Asian Championship. The leading players on the Asian Tour Order of Merit earn places in the World Championship and other events.
Women’s Series
Calendar ›A series for women players, with 24 events in 2026. The top-ranked players earn places in the World Championship and other events. Women also play in Players Championships, sometimes going deep against the men.
Challenge Tour / Development Tour
Calendar ›The Challenge Tour is for players without a Tour Card; the Development Tour is for young players. Fields are large, sometimes 200 to 300+ players in a single event. The leading players on each ranking earn Tour Cards and places in bigger events.
Qualifiers
Calendar ›Qualifying events for places in the European Tour, the World Championship and more. They are hidden on the calendar by default; choose "All" to show them.
How the rankings work
Almost all PDC rankings are based on prize money.
- World Rankings: prize money over the last two years. The most important ranking, used for seedings and entry to the majors. Rankings ›
- ProTour Rankings: ProTour prize money (Players Championships, European Tour and more) over the last 12 months. Rankings ›
- Players Championship ranking: prize money from this season’s PCs. The top 64 play the PC Finals. Rankings ›
- European Tour ranking: prize money from this season’s European Tour. The top 32 play the European Championship. Rankings ›
- World Series ranking: points, not money. The leaders go to the World Series Finals. Rankings ›
- Challenge / Development / Women’s: prize money on each tour. The leaders earn Tour Cards and places in events. Rankings ›
- Asian Tour Order of Merit: Asian Tour prize money (USD). The leaders earn places in the World Championship and other events. Rankings ›
Event counts, field sizes and venues come from the official PDC data (pdc.tv) and the PDC Asia website (pdc-asia.tv), which this site imports daily. Qualification details change every year; check the official websites for the current rules.