Barry Hearn aims subtle dig at Luke Littler as solution for PDC 'issue' raised

Barry Hearn has issued a warning to top darts stars for missing tournaments as he spoke about increasing prize money.

Reigning world champion Luke Littler is the highest-ranked player in the PDC Order of Merit, which is based on prize money earned.

Littler, who has won twice at Alexandra Palace, made history by becoming the first player to amass more than £3 million in prize money after his dominance in the sport.

Recently, however, 'The Nuke' has been skipped a number of darts events and received criticism for doing so.

On his Darts Draait Door podcast, Vincent van der Voor spoke about Littler missing European and Pro Tours, while also singling it Luke Humphries, Nathan Aspinall and Gerwyn Price for their infrequent involvement.

Hearn, the chairman of the PDC and president of Matchroom Sport, spoke about the problem in a wide-ranging interview with Online Darts.

Asked about top players missing too many events, Hearn said: "To be honest with you, I'm such a fan of the overall system, and I'm going to take all the credit for it. Of course, it wasn't just me. I like the idea, and people can criticise lots of things. They do in lots of our sports.

"But the idea of your ranking list being built on prize money means that if you miss too many events, your ranking is going to go down. We've seen that accelerate with the increased prize money. You'll get more volatility in the rankings."

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He continued: "So people that you thought were going to be safe for five years, you don't know. We put names to it because it doesn't matter. They know. They see the evidence. Peter Wright, Michael Smith, people that have had problems with injury or whatever, you can dive down, which means you've got to make the most of every opportunity. Which means you don't tend, sensibly, to miss too many events.

"We've had a few players that have missed a few events and suddenly realised. Nathan Aspinall, 'Well, crikey, is he going to qualify for this or that?' And he's a top player. So I don't want to lose top players, but I think the system is so good that it actually encourages other people. So when I see a few big names not in a Pro Tour event, I'm genuinely, quietly happy."

Barry Hearn addresses solution to big names pulling out of darts tournaments

Hearn was then asked about the problem with the European Tour, where tickets sold on the premise that they big names will be in action. Hearn admitted that big names pulling out at short notice is a major problem that he is looking to address by adding to the prize money pot.

He stated: "That is an issue. And part of the addressing will be increasing prize money because at the end of the day, that's the first thing they look at. You know, I think we've got it just about right. If you're an invited player, effectively one of the top seeds, if you don't win your first game, you get paid, but it doesn't count towards your rankings. That's good. That's really good because it means you're under scrutiny. When you see other players that are in that top 16 pull out, that's not good, because they're not justifying the system that's given them the opportunity in the first place.

"The way you motivate them is you pay them more money. And if they want to miss out, they run the risk of slipping down those rankings. And before you know it, you won't be qualifying for the World Matchplay, the Grand Prix, the Grand Slam. And maybe, because the competition is so intense, you'll be struggling in a couple of years for a Tour Card.

"But if someone starts pulling out of events, don't hold your breath to get invited to the World Series. If you're a top player, behave like a top player. You've got to give back as well as take. And that's the way it will be."

The next event in the darts calendar is the Australian Darts Masters, followed by the World Series of Darts Finals and the World Grand Prix.

In 2026, Littler has won the World Championship, UK Open, Premier League, Masters and World Matchplay.

However, he hasn't featured in any of the Players Championship events. The next two take place in Germany, where Littler has not enjoyed playing.

There are a further eight events before the finals in November in Minehead, which will feature 64 players.

With currently £0 on this table, Littler is around £25,000 behind Martin Schindler and is running out of events to qualify for the finals.