Darts legend passes first test in bid for PDC return

4 days ago 2

Darts legend passes first test in bid for PDC return originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

A further 32 players edged closer to their PDC Pro Tour dream yesterday with the list including the legendary Steve Beaton as well as other star names Jeffrey De Zwaan and Boris Krcmar progressed through to the Final Stage of their respective Qualifying Schools on Tuesday, as Stage One continued in Milton Keynes and Kalkar, Germany.

Day One of 2026 PDC Qualifying School saw the likes of Shane McGuirk, Jamie Hughes and current WDF Champion Jimmy Van Schie progress through to the Final Stage outright, with Wednesday being the final opportunity for players to secure their place, either automatically, or via their respective Order of Merit’s.

UK Q School

Former Lakeside Champion, Beaton, who relinquished his PDC Tour Card in January 2025, continued his quest to return to the professional circuit, as the 61-year-old was amongst the further 16 automatic qualifiers at UK Q School, as he recorded victories on the day against Kyle Manton, Declan Corcoran, John Brown, Keelan Kay and Darren Armstrong.

THE PDC Q-SCHOOL: How to win a Pro Tour golden ticket

Former PDC Tour Card Holders Harry Ward and Ciaran Teehan were also amongst the automatic qualifiers, as the pair defeated Jarred Cole and Dale Gadsby respectively in their decisive ties. Elsewhere, further qualifiers included the likes of Chas Barstow, Niall Culleton and David Sharp, with the Scot averaging over 104 in his Last 32 victory against Jamie Kelling.

European Q School

Former World Matchplay Semi Finalist Jeffrey De Zwaan was amongst the further 16 automatic qualifiers at European Q School, as the Dutchman recorded victories on the day against DJ Van Klaveren, Tobias Limbach, Jens Kniest, Brian Raman and Mylo Michiels, dropping a total of five legs along the way.

Croatia’s World Cup Star Boris Krcmar was also another automatic qualifier as he looks to regain his PDC Tour Card, with the 46-year-old recording victories against Jan Grootaerdt, Lukas Unger, Gergo Ascsillan, Sebastian Steinmetz and Dustin Straver.

Elsewhere, the further automatic qualifiers included the likes of Cristo Reyes and David Cameron, both of which competed at the 2025/26 PDC World Darts Championship, as well as Former Tour Card Holder Jeffrey Sparidaans.

The day also saw the first nine-dart leg hit on the 2026 PDC circuit by Jamie Owens at UK Q School during his second-round victory against Travis Baur.

2026 PDC Qualifying School continues on Wednesday, in the UK and Europe, with the final 32 automatic spots up for grabs, with the remaining spots to be offered out via the Order of Merit’s across both fields to make-up a 128-player field for the Final Stage commencing on Thursday 8 January. Play will commence in Europe at 12:00 CET and in the UK at 12:00 GMT. All live scores and results can be viewed at tv.dartconnect.com.

2026 UK Qualifying School

Stage One Day Two – Tuesday 6th January

Last 32

Niall Culleton 5-2 Sam Jackson

Jack Aldridge 5-1 Ultan McDyer

Steve Beaton 5-1 Darren Armstrong

Shaun Carroll 5-3 Tommy Morris

David Sharp 5-2 Jamie Kelling

Harry Ward 5-3 Jarred Cole

Damien Grimes 5-2 James Richardson

Harrison Leigh 5-2 Alan Norris

Stephen Rosney 5-1 Damien O’Driscoll

Ryan Furness 5-1 Jack Male

Ciaran Teehan 5-1 Dale Gadsby

Thomas Cromwell 5-1 Danny Trueman

Chas Barstow 5-3 Adam Leek

Alfie Busby 5-0 Andrew Cass

Daniel Ayres 5-0 John Henderson

Jordan-Lee Rawlings 5-0 Aden Kirk

2026 European Qualifying School

Stage One Day Two

Last 32

Pal Szekely 5-1 Yorick Hofkens

Damian Vetjens 5-2 Marcel Otter

Nandor Major 5-3 Bruno Stoeckli

Davy Proosten 5-0 Robin Pietsch

Dennis Van Bergen 5-3 Ron Meulenkamp

Ruben Lopez 5-2 Wesley Van Trijp

Zvonimir Lesic 5-0 Maikel Verberk

Jason Riedtke 5-2 Jonny Pedersen

Jeffrey Sparidaans 5-2 Stef Kosters

David Cameron 5-1 Liam Maendl-Lawrance

Jeffrey De Zwaan 5-0 Mylo Michiels

Bjorn Quoiffy 5-3 Jesus Noguera

Luitsen Elzinga 5-2 Patrick Bulen

Cristo Reyes 5-2 Marc Spalt

Boris Krcmar 5-2 Dustin Straver

Jeroen Caron 5-1 Richard Balogh

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