Hopp on the verge of losing PDC Tour Card: "Certainly not an easy situation and gives him many sleepless nights"

Max Hopp is currently in 67th place on the PDC Order of Merit and runs the risk of losing his PDC Tour Card at the end of the year. Kevin Barth, who is best known in Germany as a darts co-commentator on Sport1, explained to Sportradio.

Barth explains that Hopp has had to deal with a lot of setbacks, including torn knee ligaments and Pfeiffer's disease at the start of the corona pandemic. ''And then it starts to go wrong in the head. Darts, of course, plays very much in the head. Eighty to ninety per cent, as they say."

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In 2018, Hopp reached the semi-finals of the European Championship, narrowly losing 11-10 to James Wade. 'The Maximiser' missed three match darts in that match and as a result a final spot.

Barth also sees this circumstance as a possible explanation for his downturn. "Maybe that was something that kept him busy for a while afterwards. He just couldn't keep the momentum going. Max was knocking on the door of the top 20 at the time and wouldn't have to defend a lot of prize money in 2019. He could not take advantage of it and is currently on the verge of losing his eligibility to play at professional level. That would cause him to have to start all over again, which is certainly not an easy situation for him either and also gives him many sleepless nights.''