PDC Darts competitions in 2022: Dates & venues for UK Open, World Cup and more

The PDC World Darts Championship final is the showpiece match of the organisation calendar of events.

It concludes the previous year’s schedule where the very best players in the world take part in several other events, including but not limited to the World Matchplay, UK Open, Premier League, and World Cup.

If this year’s thrilling World Championships have given you a taste for the PDC and you want to find out more about the other high profile events the organisation runs then here is everything you need to know about what’s coming up in 2022:

The Masters

• Dates: January 28 to January 30
• Venue: Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes
• Reigning champion: Jonny Clayton
• Winning prize money (2021): £60,000
• Is it a ranking event?: No

The first major event of the PDC calendar is The Masters which take place at the end of January.

The top 24 players in the PDC Order of Merit, following the conclusion of the World Darts Championship, will compete with the top eight automatically qualifying for the second round.

Jonny Clayton is the defending champion, having beaten Mervyn King in the 2021 final.

PDC Premier League of Darts 2022

• Dates: February 3 to May 26
• Venue: Various
• Reigning champion: Jonny Clayton
• Winning prize money (2021): £250,000
• Is it a ranking event?: No

The World Championship is unquestionably the biggest event of the calendar but the Premier League has been running it close ever since its inception in 2005.

Ten of the very best players in the world compete weekly across 17 nights in a unique league style format. The top four players in the Order of Merit qualify automatically with six other top ranking players invited to take part - chosen by the PDC.

The tournament tours the UK and Europe and features venues in Scotland, England, Wales, Northern Ireland, Rep. of Ireland and The Netherlands.

The reigning champion is Jonny Clayton who beat Jose de Sousa in the 2021 final.

UK Open

• Dates: March 4 to Match 6
• Venue: Butlin's Minehead Resort
• Reigning champion: James Wade
• Winning prize money: £100,000
• Is it a ranking event?: Yes

Nicknamed the “FA Cup of Darts”, the UK Open has a very simple format as 168 players compete in a single elimination tournament.

Unlike the World Championships there is no seeding in the UK Open meaning the draw can be as wide open as possible.

James Wade is the reigning champion, having won his third UK Open title with an 11–5 victory over Luke Humphries last year.

World Cup of Darts

• Dates: June 16 to June 19
• Venue: Eissporthalle, Frankfurt
• Reigning champions: Scotland (Peter Wright & John Henderson)
• Winning prize money (2021): £70,000
• Is it a ranking event?: No

The World Cup of Darts is a reasonably new but exceedingly popular event for the PDC.

The competition is the only doubles event in the PDC calendar and sees two players represent their respective countries with 32 nations taking part.

Scotland are the reigning champions as John Henderson and Peter Wright beat Austria in the 2021 final to claim the trophy.

World Matchplay

• Dates: July 16 to July 24
• Venue: Winter Gardens, Blackpool
• Reigning Champion: Peter Wright
• Winning prize money (2021): £150,000
• Is it a ranking event?: Yes

The World Matchplay has been held since 1994 and the trophy is named after the great Phil Taylor who won the competition 16 times.

It is held in Blackpool ever year making the Winter Gardens the longest serving regular venue on the PDC circuit.

Peter Wright is the reigning champion after beating Dimitri van den Bergh in last year’s final.

World Grand Prix

• Dates: October 2 to October 8
• Venue: Citywest, Dublin
• Reigning champion: Jonny Clayton
• Winning prize money (2021): £100,000
• Is it a ranking event? Yes

The Grand Prix is probably best known for the “double in, double out” format of play where players not only have to end a leg on a double but begin on one as well.

The field of 32 players consists of the top 16 on the PDC Order of Merit and the top 16 non-qualified players from the ProTour Order of Merit.

The reigning champion is Jonny Clayton who beat contryman Gerwyn Price in the 2021 final.

NOTE: Details for the 2022 Grand Slam of Darts and 2023 World Darts Championship are still to be confirmed at the time of this article being published.

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