PDC World Darts Championship prize money as Van Gerwen bids to reclaim crown
The time has arrived!
The 2024 PDC World Darts Championship will get underway at the Alexandra Palace in London on Friday, with the best players battling for their share of a £2.5million prize fund. The winner will receive a £500,000 cheque from the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC).
The prize fund hasn't increased from last year when Michael Smith defeated three-time champion Michael van Gerwen to win his maiden title. It was one of the great finals, with Smith producing a nine-dart finish immediately after Van Gerwen failed to do so.
This year's tournament will start with the first round match between Kevin Doets of the Netherlands and Stowe Buntz of the United States on Friday at around 7pm. It will conclude with the final on Wednesday, January 3. But who will be there?
Luke Humphries is the favourite after a breakthrough year. The No.3 seed has won the World Grand Prix, Grand Slam and Players Championship to enter the World Championship in sensational form. He's a three-time quarter-finalist at the Alexandra Palace.
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Smith hasn't won a ranked televised event since his triumph at the start of this year but still goes into the the World Championship as the No.1 seed. Van Gerwen is the No.2 seed, and a player of his quality should really have more than three world titles to his name.
The most important thing is winning the Sid Waddell Trophy, but the £500,000 cheque is a welcomed bonus. The runner-up will receive £200,000, while the losing semi-finalists will bank £100,000. A prize of £50,000 is available to the quarter-finalists.
The first-round losers will get £7,500 for visiting the Alexandra Palace, as second-round participants will receive a £15,000 cheque. Those who exit the World Championship in the third round will get £25,000, and the fourth-round losers will pocket £35,000.
Michael Smith the defending world champion (Getty Images)Who do you think will win this year's World Darts Championship? Let us know in the comments below!
Humphries, Smith and Van Gerwen will all be confident of reaching the final on January 3, but other stars are also in contention. It would be foolish to ignore two-time champion Peter Wright, who won the European Championship in October. He is the No.4 seed.
A lot of fans will fancy Gerwyn Price to claim his second world title after a decent 2023. The 2021 champion reached finals of the Premier League and World Grand Prix this year, losing to Van Gerwen and Humphries respectively. Price is the No.5 seed.
Nathan Aspinall has never reached the final of the World Championship but is the No.6 seed and won the World Matchplay in July. Danny Noppert has always failed to get beyond in the third round at the Alexandra Palace but is the No.7 seed.
And what about Rob Cross? He shocked the great Phil Taylor to win at the Alexandra Palace on his maiden appearance in 2018 and is this year's No.9 seed. Ex-champions Gary Anderson and Raymond van Barneveld are seeded No.21 and No.29 respectively.
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