"Do I want another potential week in a hotel room on my own?": Ryan Searle 'didn't feel like' playing Grand Slam of Darts qualifier

Ryan Searle arrived in Exeter in relaxed spirits, grateful for the rare luxury of a short commute. “It’s nice to be somewhere where it’s not been so much of a drive,” he laughed. “Fifteen minutes on the train — I’ll take that.”

With the World Championship looming, Searle admitted the excitement is building. “It feels like Christmas now that the Worlds are here,” he said to Online Darts. “I’m getting my head out of the way now and we’ll be ready. With the prize money at the Worlds, that’s the one to focus on. If you can do well in that, you’re flying.”

One of the big talking points among fans was Searle’s decision not to participate in the Grand Slam qualifier.

“To be honest, I just didn’t feel like it,” he admitted. “I was in the hotel at the Pro Tours thinking, ‘If I qualify, do I want another potential week in a hotel room on my own?’ And I was like, nah, I don’t fancy it, so I pulled out.”

He believes the qualification criteria need revisiting. “I think if you’re winning Pro Tour events you should be in, and there should be less qualifying spots. But that’s just my opinion.”

With the Slam set to expand to 16 groups next year, Searle is hopeful changes will benefit players. But his main target is simpler: climb back into the top 16.

“If they’re keeping the top 16 spots, that’s where you need to be. That’s the goal for the end of this season and the start of next.”

Asked whether he’s been practising with Gary Anderson ahead of the Worlds, Searle smiled. “No, but we need to. I don’t know how much he’s throwing now, and Tai plays, so whether Tai drags him on the board or not, I don’t know. I think Gary said he gets a bit narky with him at times! We’ll pencil in a few dates and see how it goes.”

With £1 million awaiting the World Champion, the magnitude isn’t lost on him.

“Winning that is life-changing money,” Searle acknowledged. “It’s life-changing for your rankings too — you’re in the top four for at least two years. The other events will need to catch up eventually; it’s too top-heavy right now.”

The conversation turned to last year’s Euro Tour ranking changes, which many players heavily criticised.

“In the end I got called in as a top seed because the Premier League lads don’t play all of them. But a lot of the time I was being called up while at the airport, so I’d waste a day. I was in limbo all last season, not knowing when I was playing.”

Searle described his 2024 Euro Tour campaign bluntly: “This season was terrible. For whatever reason, I don’t play well on the Euro Tour. Last season I thought I’d cracked it — I made a final, a semi, loads of quarters. Then this season it went back to normal where I wasn’t performing.”

He also hit some brutal draws: “I ran into amazing performances — playing Littler second game, Price, lost with 105 to both of them. You need a bit of luck sometimes. With the seedings, they’ll do what they want. You just go along with it.”

Despite frustrations, Searle sees opportunity ahead. “It’s happy days for me for the next two years because I’ve hardly won a game at a major, so I’ve got all that ground to make up,” he said.

His target for Ally Pally is clear: “I’ve said it the last couple of years — the aim is a quarter-final. If you make a quarter this year, that’s £100k. That makes a massive difference, especially around the rankings where I am. Minimum is a quarter, obviously I want to go further. But that’s the goal.”

He chuckled when asked if his mother-in-law was updating him on ranking scenarios again. “I don’t really look at it, to be honest. I check now and again. But the Worlds is top-heavy, and like you say, Premier League depends on the top four. What if someone outside the top four, or someone whose face doesn’t fit, wins the Worlds? What are they going to do?”

Searle, close friends with Luke Humphries, wasn’t surprised when Humphries revealed he never fully felt like the true world number one. “That was clear for everyone to see,” he said. “All the limelight was on Luke Littler. And he deserved it — he’s phenomenal, and after losing the World final he backed it up massively.”

He believes Humphries was overshadowed unfairly: “Luke went under the radar as world number one. But he hasn’t done badly off the back of it either. Maybe a bit of pressure’s lifted from him now.”

Searle is less happy about Humphries’ plan to skip many Pro Tours next year. “That’s a shame. Since he’s been in the Premier League I hardly see him — just the Euros and Pro Tours. If he’s not doing Pro Tours, I’ll hardly see him. I’ll try and convince him!”

Searle’s relaxed approach to darts has become part of his identity.

“So many get wrapped up in rankings and titles,” he was told — and he didn’t disagree.

“Yeah, honestly. I actually wish I cared a bit more, but I don’t. Minehead this weekend? I don’t care. The Finals? I don’t care. I’m more worried about the Worlds.”

In a moment of unexpected honesty, Searle revealed a recent injury scare. “Bit of a secret — me and my son went to the skate park. I ended up taking my skateboard; I haven’t skateboarded in 20 years. I pulled a muscle in my calf and couldn’t walk for three days. It still hurts now, but I’m walking.”

Even so, he hasn’t ruled out getting back on the board. “When I was doing it, I was really enjoying it. I might get myself a new one again. We’ll see.”