Gary Anderson's Fires Back At Reporter When Asked If He Got Saudi Masters Invite
Gary Anderson immediately asked a darts reporter a nine-word question after being probed on whether he had been invited to play in the Saudi Arabia Masters.
Anderson competed in the World Masters last week, defeating Niels Zonneveld in the first round before losing 4-3 in sets to James Wade.
The 55-year-old reached the 2026 World Championship semi-final in January, and is currently ranked at world number six.
Anderson made headlines after his first round win at the Masters on Friday night when he engaged in an X-rated rant about darts influencers on YouTube, stating: "I don't do YouTube, but I'm watching - what do you call them? Influencers. 'How to play darts'.
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"I've never seen the bloke in my life. I've watched him play darts, and he's absolutely s**t. So why watch him?
"What a load of s**t. Absolute tossers."
After his second round defeat to Wade, 'The Flying Scotsman' was quizzed on whether he had received an invite to the Saudi Arabian Masters, which was held in Riyadh last month.
The tournament was the second event of the 2026 World Series season, with the first event having been held in Bahrain.
The 55-year-old has regularly spoken out about his desire not to travel long distances to play in darts events, meaning his absence - despite being world number six - from Saudi and Bahrain did not come as a massive surprise.
After admitting that he no longer watches darts on TV outside of tournaments he is competing in, Anderson turned the question back on the reporter, asking (as per The Sun): "Is it more than an hour in a plane [to Saudi]? There's your answer then."
Anderson returned to compete in European Tour events in 2024 after an absence of eight years, and has won two titles since his comeback.
But his European schedule solely depends on the travelling involved, and the Scot told Online Darts in December that he would never play in the Premier League again even if he won the World Championship.
"Even if I win the worlds and I went to number two, I couldn't do it," he said.
"Sixteen weeks is a long time. People think it's one night - it's not one night.
"Wednesday, you're travelling. Thursday, you're playing. Friday, you're trying to get home.
"I've said years ago they should have two divisions - an A and a B. You play once every fortnight. That would work better."
Topics: Darts
Ryan Smart