Bizarre Q-School rule surrounding Final Stage unearthed which denies players entry to Challenge Tour if condition not met
PDC
PDC Q-School starts today in the UK and Europe with three days of action in Milton Keynes and Kalkar to decipher the final stage line-up. But those who qualify for the Final Stage need to play a maximum number of days to be eligible for the Challenge Tour.
Geert Nentjes was cited in the initial tweet with the Dutchman playing this week to get onto the Challenge Tour over sealing his Tour Card. But if he manages to get through to the Final Stage, he needs to play all four days to be eligible to play it.
This means in practice, he will deliberately lose games in order to not make the Final Stage. This perhaps weedles out those only wanting to play Challenge Tour and perhaps get through based off the Order of Merit to play in the Final Stage.
But also goes for those who win a Tour Card and decline it, they cannot then decide to play on the Challenge Tour next year merely as they played at Q-School.
This also perhaps is pertinent for somebody like Beau Greaves who will play Q-School for the first time in the Final Stage but it is uncertain whether she would accept the prize offered. But either way she will need to play all four days merely to play Challenge Tour next year.
The rule states: "Entrance to Q-School constitutes acceptance of a Tour Card. If so earned by a player's performance. If a player earns a Tour Card by virtue of their performance at Q-School but declines a Tour Card, or is eligible for Final Stage either by exemption or qualification and does not participate on all days unless they are a daily winner, they are not eligible to appear on the Q-School Points List or play in ProTour (including European Tour qualifiers) or Secondary Tour events in 2025."
This new rule has made Q-School unnecessary difficult. A player who starts in Final Stage based on an exemption but doesn't want to win a Tour Card (e.g. Geert Nentjes) needs to play all four days to be eligible for Challenge Tour. Which means he'll just deliberately lose games. pic.twitter.com/9y2kTXSS9J
— Jetze Jan Idsardi (@JJIdsardi) January 6, 2025
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- Why is World Champion Richie Burnett not highlighted in bold font nor 2 time World Champion Scotty 2 Hotty. COME ON RICHIE BURNETT AND SCOTTY 2 HOTTY Although where the hell has 2 HOTTY been the past year!richieburnettrocks07-01-2025
- It's not tennis, snooker or golf, nobody mentioned Fallon,great as she is. Beau beats her week in,week out. But she isn't interested. If you want to include crowd pleasers,get Les Wallace back!!! He was a world champion,and wore a kilt!!!rick6707-01-2025
- I'm glad wright and van Ben bergh were overlooked. Too much dancing,not enough darting. Bunting is always quality,as for price,he's a crowd pleaser(!!?) too. Aspinall has had his problems,but it's nice to see him back,he's a decent chap. Dobey is a top player,big hitter,so I won't complain. Cross will finish bottom,much as I like him,he seems to be off lately. I'm glad they didn't pick a Belgian just for the audience. But I don't agree with the tournament or format,so I guess it's immaterial to me. They might as well turn up at a random pub and play for the beers!!!rick6707-01-2025
- I think the PDC's choice is too conservative. EIther or both of Damon Heta and Mike de Dekker should have been in, at the expense of Aspinall and possibly Price. I guess the PDC's reasoning is that they do not want too much turnover from year to year, and so having already rejected Smith and Wright, they have kept Price and Aspinall, but I guess those two are "on probation".
UndartedWaters06-01-2025 - Two from the three of Price, Aspinall and Dobey should have been excluded, De Decker and Edhouse should have been in. I would have offered a place to Beau Greaves though i doubt she would have accepted it and probably not really ready for it confidence wise.Mysstree06-01-2025
- Tennis has a protected ranking system for injuries and Golf has a system that as a Major winner you get invited back of a number of years regardless of your ranking. Barry Hearn gave Stephen Hendry a wildcard for some tournaments though he still had to enter at the qualification stage. Doubt the PDC would give Burnett an exemption as he has never won a PDC Major, same would apply to Steve Beaton. It’s a slippery slope to abandoning a meritocratic system, if the PDC did do so they could then (for example) award a place to Fallon Sherrock even though she has yet to qualify at any level for a tour card.Mysstree06-01-2025
- I'd have said the same about Ady Lewis,but the PDC is indeed a law unto itself,so sorry bud,get your leg kicking and do it for the good lads!!rick6705-01-2025
- COME ON RICHIE BURNETT Surely a World Champion and player with the calibra of Richie should be exempt from ever losing a tour card and having to qualify.richieburnettrocks04-01-2025
- That's true, Richie. Taylor used to call it, "Manley's millions."MrYnyslas197103-01-2025