Six Americans and two Canadians vie for spot at Grand Slam of Darts on Saturday

On Friday, the CDC Continental Cup began in New York. Here, sixteen North American darters are competing for a spot at the 2023 Grand Slam of Darts and 2024 US Darts Masters.

Originally, the winner was only to receive a ticket to the US Darts Masters. However, Jeff Smith had won the North American Championship earlier this year but, as a Tour Card holder, was not eligible for an invitation to the Grand Slam of Darts because "The Silencer" was no longer in his first Tour Card year.

As a result, it was decided to give the Grand Slam spot to the winner of the CDC Continental Cup. On Friday, the first round was scheduled and the first eight players dropped out.

There were hardly any surprises as seven of the top eight seeded players managed to make it through their first round. Among others, Alex Spellman, David Cameron, Danny Lauby and Leonard Gates made it to the quarterfinals. Larry Butler was responsible for the only elimination of a top-8 seeded player. He knocked Jim Long out of the tournament 5-4. The tournament will conclude on Saturday with the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals, respectively.

Records CDC Continental Cup.

Alex Spellman (89.46) 5-0 (66.26) Ryan vander Weit

Jason Brandon (85.12) 5-3 (84.73) Doug Boehm

David Cameron (81.69) 5-3 (73.92) Gary Mawson

Danny Lauby (81.02) 5-3 (78.32) Keith Way

Stowe Buntz (104.15) 5-2 (88.68) Jake Macmillan

Larry Butler (83.23) 5-4 (88.30) Jim Long

Leonard Gates (92.95) 5-3 (85.77) Jake Womack

Jacob Taylor (93.94) 5-0 (77.08) J.T. Davis

Alex Spellman v Jason Brandon

David Cameron v Danny Lauby

Stowe Buntz v Larry Butler

Leonard Gates v Jacob Taylor