Owen Bates snatches World Championship spot and Tour Card from John Henderson after final Challenge Tour event; title goes to James Hurrell
PDC
Owen Bates finished second on the Challenge Tour Order of Merit behind Berry van Peer. As a result, he, like Van Peer, may compete in the World Darts Championship and will receive a PDC Tour Card for the next two seasons.
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It wasn't really even about the title anymore during the final tournament of the 2023 PDC Challenge Tour. All eyes were on the battle for second place. After all, Van Peer had already secured the lead position, which also allows 'Bionic' to compete at the Grand Slam of Darts.
Prior to the final tournament, five players still had a chance at second place. In addition to Henderson and Bates, these were Andy Boulton, Cam Crabtree and Christian Kist.
Henderson and Kist were eliminated at the last 64. Then the long wait began for Henderson. The Scot had to hope that Boulton, Crabtree and Bates would not make the final. Boulton and Crabtree dropped out at the last sixteen.
Bates then won 5-4 over Peter Jacques in the quarter-finals and played a deciding leg against Mike Warburton in the last four. Warburton was ahead 4-1 and needed only one more leg to put Henderson in safe harbor, however, the Welshman lost 4-5 after several missed match darts. Bates thus secured his second place in that way.
The Englishman then played another final against James Hurrell, who was previously responsible for Henderson's elimination and had also defeated Jelle Klaasen, Martijn Dragt, Max Hopp, Steve Haggerty and Darryl Pilgrim. Hurrell eventually walked away with the title after a 5-2 win over Bates, who no doubt will not mourn this loss for a moment.
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Results PDC Challenge Tour 24
Last 16
Steve Haggerty 5 | 2 Harry Lane
James Hurrell 5 | 1 Max Hopp
Andy Jenkins 5 | 3 Alexander Merkx
Darryl Pilgrim 5 | 1 Cam Crabtree
Thibault Tricole 5 | 1 Andy Boulton
Mike Warburton 5 | 4 Danny Lauby
Owen Bates 5 | 1 Darren Armstrong
Peter Jacques 5 | 4 Chris Landman
Quarterfinals
James Hurrell 5 | 2 Steve Haggerty
Darryl Pilgrim 5 | 1 Andy Jenkins
Mike Warburton 5 | 2 Thibault Tricole
Owen Bates 5 | 4 Peter Jacques
Semi-final
James Hurrell 5 | 2 Darryl Pilgrim
Owen Bates 5 | 4 Mike Warburton
Final
James Hurrell 5 | 2 Owen Bates
Kieran WoodDarts Journalist
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He contributes to DartsNews.com, where he covers professional darts through news, match reports, analysis, and live coverage across the PDC calendar and major tournaments.
A key part of his work is on-site reporting from leading events. Kieran has covered the PDC World Darts Championship in person, reporting daily from the venue and providing first-hand insight from the tournament. During his coverage, he has conducted interviews with leading players including Luke Littler, Luke Humphries, and Gerwyn Price.
He is also one of the leading voices of the English-language Dartsnews Podcast, contributing regular analysis and discussion on developments across the professional darts circuit.
In his reporting, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles when new, verified information becomes available.
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- He produced some impressive numbers in that qualifying campaign. I'm excited to see him compete at the World Championship once again, even if it will be difficult to replicate last year's success even with an improved performance, with the draw playing a huge role in determining his fortunes.Deduce635811-11-2026
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- Good, absolutely no loss if we never see this dancing goof ever again......no that is not fair. He absolutely cannot and has never been remotely able to dance!richieburnettrocks10-11-2026
- 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
- Ultimately it is a bye for whoever draws Barney. It will be another stroppy and sulky performance once he goes behind. Barney was excellent but really must completely call it a day now.richieburnettrocks07-11-2026
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- Probably i will receive a lot of backlash and hate for this reaction, but well, so be it. I am more than sick and tired of those lies of you Barry Hearn. How dare you defend yourself over the back of Fallon’s son! He has a disability and not an illness, so let me correct that for you! I know because I have the exact same disability. I have tried to reach out to Fallon in the past, and offered her to help her and her son, because I was struggling with the same problems, and I understood the boy. I wanted him to have finally someone who understood him. However she told me that she did not want my help, and I have respected Fallon’s choice. I have never asked Fallon for money. They don’t need money in that case. I only ever wanted the best for Fallon and Rory, but I have to be honest about the situation. Fallon should tell the true story and not be forced to tell lies. I don’t hate Fallon, and I don’t begrudge or envy a single penny that she gets, but this situation/case is just not fair. I hate the lies and the dishonesty and injustice. I don’t want Fallon to be hated because there is an unfair disadvantage created. Don’t proclaim your false lies over the back of Rory! I only stand for integrity and justice. I am precisely the one who always sticks up for Fallon. And you don't, you don't give a damn about them. You were never there for them, and now you only want to save your own position! You are just trying to talk your way out of your own bad behavior at the expense of someone with a disability. And to Fallon, I don’t know if this may ever reach you, and you read it, but I want you to know I love you and I love your son Rory very much, I am sorry how things developed and went. I hope you and Harriet are still friends. I am sorry if I were too persistent to you, or you experienced it that way, but it was never my intention. Please understand I have autism as well. As Barry Hearn would say, I am only just a human being too, and I also make mistakes and misjudge things sometimes. I promise you I did everything out of the deepest love and care for you and Rory. If I were you, I should just keep all the money, only please never be dishonest or tell lies anymore for Barry Hearn, or anyone else. I hope you have the best life, and I wish nothing more than the best for you. I have always loved the two of you. Farewell.Hiddo05-11-2026
- She is a professional. If darts is her income, she is a professional. Same as Adrian Lewis, Martin Adams. A tour card just means someone can play on the PDC tour. You could even make a case that Clayton wasn't a professional (until recently I believe) because he had employment elsewhere.BandB04-11-2026
