US Darts Masters: Everything you need to know as PDC visits New York
What is the US Darts Masters?
The US Darts Masters is the third event of the PDC World Series of Darts 2024. From 31st of May to the 1st of June 2024, eight selected players from the PDC will duel with the best players in North America. After two tournaments in January, the competition in New York's Madison Square Garden is the first World Series of Darts event in four months.
The US Darts Masters also provides the setting for the North American Championship in darts, which means a possible place in the World Darts Championship and the Grand Slam of Darts. The eight qualified North Americans take part.
What is the World Series of Darts?
The World Series of Darts is a series of tournaments organised by the PDC in which, unlike Pro Tour events, players cannot qualify via the Order of Merit - all tournaments are invitational events.
What format is used?
The first two rounds, up to and including the quarter-finals, are played in best-of-11 legs. In the semi-finals, two more legs are added before a best-of-15 legs is played in the final.
Who takes part?
Players are invited to all World Series of Darts events according to the same logic: The PDC awards eight wildcards directly to its players, while the other eight starting places go to regional participants. These can also be awarded as part of a wildcard or linked to certain qualifications.
At the US Darts Masters, the decision was made in favour of a mixture of these requirements. In addition to the three North American Tour Card holders, the winners of last year's CDC Continental Cup and CDC Cross-Border Challenge 2024, the two winners of the qualifying tournaments and the best player in the qualifier rankings will take part in this year's event.
PDC Wildcards
North American PDC Tour Card Holder
Winner of the CDC Continental Cup 2023
Winner of the CDC Cross-Border Challenge 2024
Winner of the two qualifying tournaments
Best player in the qualifier rankings
Who are the favourites?
Freshly crowned Premier League Champion, with a win at this year's World Series of Darts and another final to his name, Luke Littler is probably the big favourite to win the next tournament at Madison Square Garden. But Michael van Gerwen, against whom Littler played both of his finals, should also remain at the top of the favourites' list.
How does the seeding list work?
In the small field of only 16 players, only four players are seeded. The seeding list is based on previous performances at the World Series of Darts and the resulting World Series Order of Merit.
At the US Darts Masters, the two double finalists Michael van Gerwen and Luke Littler are seeded in positions one and two. They are followed by Gerwyn Price (three) and Luke Humphries (four).
When will the tournament be played?
The tournament takes place over two days, with the starting shot being fired on the 31st of May and the winner being crowned on the 1st of June. Due to the time difference, the tournament will take place from midnight UK time (Saturday AM).
Friday, May 31st: First round - from 19:00 local time, 01:00 CET (Saturday AM)
Saturday, June 1st: Quarter-finals to final - from 19:00 local time, 01:00 CET (Sunday AM)
What do the players earn?
Every participant in the tournament receives prize money, regardless of whether the player wins or loses their first round match. However, as the US Darts Masters is an invitational tournament, the prize money is not included in the PDC Order of Merit.
Winner: £20,000
Final: £10,000
Semi-final: £5,000
Quarter-final: £2,500
First round: £1,250
Who has won the US Darts Masters in the past?
The US Darts Masters has been held a total of five times since its inaugural edition in 2017 - only in 2020 and 2021 was the tournament cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
With victories in 2017 and 2023, Michael van Gerwen is the tournament's record winner. Gary Anderson (2018), Nathan Aspinall (2019) and Michael Smith (2022) also won one event each.
Where does the tournament take place?
The US Darts Masters has been held at the famous Madison Square Garden in New York City since 2022 (2020 was originally planned as a change of venue).
The MSG is the home venue of the NHL franchise New York Rangers, as well as the NBA team New York Knicks.
Boxing legends Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier also fought twice in the arena.
Who broadcasts the US Darts Masters?
The US Darts Masters will be broadcast in the UK by ITV.