"Whether it’s the next two years or the next ten years, it doesn’t really matter": Sky's the limit for Charlie Manby with post Q-School ambitions set

Charlie Manby has reached a major milestone in his still young darts career. The 20-year-old English talent has secured a two-year PDC Tour Card via UK Qualifying School in Milton Keynes, allowing him to call himself a full-time professional for the next two seasons. After a nerve-racking qualifying tournament, Manby even claimed a day win on the final day, cementing his status in convincing fashion.

Manby had already made a big impression on the world stage in December by reaching the last 16 on his World Darts Championship debut at Alexandra Palace. That achievement not only earned him international recognition, but also meant he arrived at Q-School with high expectations. Even so, earning a PDC Tour Card proved anything but a formality.

The final phase of UK Q-School consists of four grueling days, where every misstep can be fatal. After the first three days, Manby had won six matches, but that was not enough to put himself in a safe position. The Englishman knew he needed an excellent run on the last day to make his dream a reality.

And that run came. On Sunday, Manby won no fewer than six matches in a row. His fourth win of the day, against darts legend Steve Beaton, was already enough to qualify for the PDC ProTour via the UK Q-School Order of Merit. Still, Manby was not satisfied. He stayed focused, then dispatched Mervyn King with a clear scoreline (6-2) in the semi-final and secured one of the two available day tickets.

He was over the moon afterwards. “It feels amazing, I think all the hard work has finally paid off."

According to Manby, the goal was clear from day one. “When you start Q-School, you basically want to win every day,” he explained. “Going into every day at Q School, you want to win it outright anyway. Whether it’s the first day or the last day, it doesn’t matter – winning a day puts a bit of a statement out there."

That victory only came on the final day, but it made the success no less sweet. On the contrary. The first two days of the tournament were frustrating for the young Englishman. “On day one I actually didn’t play badly at all, but I lost. That was difficult to process. On day two roughly the same thing happened. That felt pretty heartbreaking.”

Even so, Manby kept faith in his ability. “On the first day I didn’t struggle, but I was trying to deal with it all. I played well and lost – it was a bit heartbreaking, the same as the second day. It was a lot to take in, but I knew I had the ability to do it, and the last couple of days have showed that.”

After his impressive World Championship campaign at Alexandra Palace, many tipped Manby as one of the leading contenders for a PDC Tour Card. That status inevitably brought extra pressure, but he tried to stay as level-headed as possible. “I feel like anyone can say what they want to say, it’s just one of those things. If I'm putting pressure on myself, that’s when I should be worried. There have been a couple of games this week where I have put a bit too much pressure on myself. But the pressure from everyone else is fine."

A good example was his match against Steve Beaton, a player with an impressive résumé and decades of experience. “There was a bit of pressure against Steve Beaton, but I felt comfortable and the same as every other game. You still have to get over the line no matter who your opponent is. Everything just dropped in sweetly on Sunday.”

Charlie Manby became known to the wider public at the recent World Darts Championship, where he reached the last 16 on his debut. Along the way he defeated, among others, Cameron Menzies, Adam Sevada and Ricky Evans, before bowing out to Gian van Veen, the eventual finalist. Those performances not only gave him confidence, but also proved he can compete at the highest level.

In 2025, Manby has already appeared three times on the Players Championship circuit, and he also won a title on the Development Tour. That earned him fourth place on the Development Tour Order of Merit. With his PDC Tour Card in hand, he now gets the chance to test himself regularly against the world’s best. "It should be good. I play better against better players too,” asserted Manby.

“I’ve had a decent week this week, playing against top quality players. I will try and put some more hard work in and we will see if it pays off on the ProTour."

For the next two years, Manby is guaranteed entry to all ProTour events. Still, he is looking beyond the short term. “Everyone always said to me, the sky is the limit, you can do whatever you want to do. I think if I put the hard work in, I can do anything in this sport."

Whether that’s within two years or only in ten, makes little difference to him. “Whether it’s the next two years or the next ten years, it doesn’t really matter. I believe I can, and other people do as well. I want to do all sorts in this sport.”