Alexander Merkx heads to Lakeside with ambition: "But a Tour Card remains the highest goal anyway"

Alexander Merkx makes his debut at this year's WDF World Championship. The 29-year-old Dutchman is seeded 13th and will take on the winner of the duel between Danny Porter and Arjan Konterman in his opening match.

"Seeded or not, it's hard to say whether that's an advantage or not," Merkx opens to Darts Actueel. "You have to play one less match, but on the other hand sometimes it can also be an advantage to already get into the rhythm a bit. Oh well, we'll see, I'm not really awake to it."

Merkx already has some stage experience, having reached the final night at the Modus Super Series on four occasions. "Those tournaments really helped me raise my level, hopefully I can use that experience on the Lakeside Country Club stage as well."

However, the year had not started well for Merkx. "True, Q-School was really a disappointment for me, I expected much more from it. Afterwards it took a while before I found the motivation again. It was a disappointment I had to deal with for a while.

Still, Merkx did extremely well again this year, with a selection for the Dutch national team as a reward. "I thought that was quite an honor to compete for my country, it was also another experience they can never take away from me again. It was also proof to me that I am doing well."

But if Merkx has to choose between the WDF and the PDC, the choice is quickly made. "Then I will definitely choose the PDC," he says. "I'm going to Q-School again early next year anyway. I have learned that it is difficult to have certain expectations for Q-School, after all the level there is so incredibly high, but I do hope to capture a Tour Card."