PDC ProTour Explained: Players Championships, Rankings and How It Works
While TV viewers follow the big televised majors, the backbone of professional darts is the PDC ProTour — a dense calendar of weekly events that determine who holds a Tour Card, who qualifies for the majors, and ultimately who builds the career consistency to reach the top of the world rankings.
What is the PDC ProTour?
The PDC ProTour is the collective name for the PDC’s Players Championship and European Tour events — the non-televised, weekly circuit that runs almost continuously from January to November each year.
Unlike the major televised events, ProTour events are not open to the public for entry. They are exclusively for the 128 players who hold PDC Tour Cards — making them the closed circuit of professional darts. If you hold a Tour Card, competing on the ProTour is your job. If you don’t, you can’t enter.
The live PDC ProTour Order of Merit shows the current standings for all 128 Tour Card holders, updated after every event.
Players Championship Events: The Weekly Circuit
Players Championship events are the core of the ProTour. Typically held over a single day or across a weekend, they follow a straightforward knockout format:
- All entered Tour Card holders are drawn against each other in the first round
- Matches are played best-of-X legs or sets depending on the round
- The winner takes a cut of the event prize fund
- All prize money earned counts on both the ProTour Order of Merit and the main PDC Order of Merit
Multiple events can be held on the same day at the same venue — it is common for two or four individual Players Championship events to be run over a single weekend, with players re-entering for each event.
The regularity of the schedule means that a prolific performer who consistently reaches the later rounds of weekly events — even without winning them — can accumulate substantial prize money and climb the rankings. Consistency on the ProTour is at least as important as big wins in the televised events.
European Tour Events
European Tour events operate similarly to Players Championship events but are held at venues across mainland Europe — Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Gibraltar, and others. They are open to Tour Card holders plus top European-based qualifiers who earn entry through national or regional qualifying rounds.
Prize money from European Tour events counts on both the ProTour Order of Merit and the European Tour Order of Merit, the latter of which determines qualification for the European Championship.
The European Tour has been instrumental in developing darts talent from Germany, the Netherlands, and other continental European nations who might otherwise have less access to the weekly UK-based events.
The ProTour Order of Merit
The PDC ProTour Order of Merit ranks all 128 Tour Card holders by prize money earned in Players Championship and European Tour events in the current calendar year. Unlike the main Order of Merit — which uses a rolling two-year window — the ProTour OOM resets to zero each January.
This annual reset means the ProTour OOM is a measure of current-year performance, not historical record. A player who had a brilliant 2024 but struggles in 2025 will drop down the ProTour rankings quickly, regardless of their main Order of Merit position.
Why the Top 64 Is Everything
The single most consequential threshold in professional darts is finishing in the top 64 on the ProTour Order of Merit at year end. Players who achieve this retain their Tour Cards for the following two-year cycle. Players who fall outside the top 64 (and are in their second year of a Tour Card) lose their cards and must re-qualify through Q-School or the Challenge Tour.
This creates enormous pressure on players ranked around positions 55–75 in the final months of the year. A single strong weekend can be the difference between retaining a professional career and having to fight back from scratch through Q-School in January.
You can track the Tour Card battle in real time on the Tour Card Race page.
How ProTour Results Feed into the Main Order of Merit
Every pound earned on the ProTour also counts towards the main PDC Order of Merit — the world ranking. The main OOM uses a two-year rolling window across all ranking events, including Players Championship and European Tour events. So strong ProTour results double up: they push a player up the ProTour annual ranking and also boost their world ranking.
For players ranked outside the top 32 on the main OOM, the ProTour is the primary way to accumulate the prize money needed to climb up the world rankings and break into the seeded positions for the World Championship and other majors.
ProTour Results on Player Profiles
Each player profileon this site shows a complete prize money breakdown by tournament type. The “By Tournament Type” section shows exactly how much of a player’s Order of Merit total comes from ProTour events versus televised majors — giving a clear picture of whether their ranking is built on consistent circuit work or big-event performances.
The Players Championship Finals
At the end of the ProTour season, the top 64 players on the Players Championship Order of Meritqualify for the Players Championship Finals — a televised major held in Minehead in November. This event serves as the ProTour’s flagship conclusion and carries a substantial prize fund that can meaningfully affect both the ProTour OOM and the main Order of Merit in the final weeks of the season.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Players Championship events shown on TV?
No. Players Championship events are not televised. They are professional closed-circuit events held at non-public venues. Results are reported by the PDC and third-party sites, but there is no broadcast coverage. The lack of televised coverage means many casual darts fans are less aware of these events, even though they are the backbone of the professional season.
Can wildcards be given to non-Tour Card holders for Players Championship events?
In standard Players Championship events, only Tour Card holders can compete — there are no wildcards. European Tour events have a small number of spots available to top European qualifiers via national qualifying events.
What is the difference between a Players Championship event and a ProTour event?
They are the same thing. "ProTour events" is the collective term; "Players Championship events" is the specific name for the individual non-televised events that make up the ProTour. The European Tour events are also part of the ProTour but have their own separate naming convention.
Why do some players have very different main OOM and ProTour OOM positions?
A player's main Order of Merit position can be high due to strong results in televised majors (World Championship, Premier League, World Matchplay etc.) even if they are inconsistent on the weekly ProTour circuit. Conversely, a player who grinds out consistent ProTour results might have a high ProTour OOM but a lower main OOM if they haven't had major tournament success recently.
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