Laura Turner on obstacles she faced on darting journey: "I was refused access because I was female"
PDC
Now the PDC has a ever growing Women's Series with increased prize money and women's sport is firmly on the up but on International Women's Day, it is also a chance to look back on obstacles that females have had to go through.
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Laura Turner, not only a player but also a commentator and pundit for Sky Sports' Darts coverage spoke on the Love The Darts podcast about the barriers she faced in rising up the ranks and looking back, she couldn't believe that it wasn't that long ago in reality.
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"As a female, I'll never forget playing in a mixed league. I was the only woman in our team. I won't say where it was but somewhere in Surrey and I was refused access because I was female and it was a male orientated bar," said Turner on the Love the Darts Podcast.
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"So my team said no she's playing or none of us are playing. I was allowed in but I wasn't allowed to be served, I wasn't allowed to go to the bar. I just had to sit down and play. That was 20 years ago and just seems so surreal that was something that was a barrier. When you consider that it wasn't that long ago, that was a big thing."
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Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of DartsNews.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy across professional darts coverage. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces, playing a central role in the development and daily operation of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has extensive experience in darts media and has been closely involved in coverage of the professional darts circuit for several years. Within the UK darts community, he is a recognised figure known for his consistent editorial output and ongoing reporting on major tournaments and developments across the PDC calendar.
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- Yes Phil,now the money in the game is bigger than ever,you'd play littler. Well so would I! Retire on your memory Phil,and your successful careerrick6709-11-2026
- And why should he listen to you?Deduce635807-11-2026
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- She's technically not a professional though as she doesn't hold a pro tour card.mr-pablo04-11-2026
- Such a shame that lakeside has been reduced to this. Fantastic venue,and previously a great tournament. Not any morerick6703-11-2026






