2017 WDF World Cup Preview

No sooner has the dust settled on the Winmau World Masters, some of the best darters in the World are headed to Japan for the WDF World Cup.  The cozy little seaside resort of Bridlington seems a world away from the urban metropolis of Kobe on the main island of Honshu.

As always, the World Cup promises some thrilling action, and once again, America’s finest will be there.

The WDF World Cup comprises three events; Men, Women, and Youth, each a separate championship.  Each championship is contested by four-person teams, although not all nations are entering teams in each event.  The full list of entries (with each event indicated) is :

Australia (M,W,Y), Bahamas (M,W), Belgium (M,W), Canada (M,W,Y), Czech Republic (W), Denmark (M,W,Y), Finland (M,W), France (M,W), Germany (M,W,Y), Gibraltar (M), Hong Kong (M,W), Iceland (M), India (M,W), Iran (Y), Italy (M,W), Japan (M,W,Y), Luxembourg (M), Mongolia (M,W), Netherlands (M,W,Y), New Zealand (M,W), Northern Ireland (W), Norway (M,W), Republic of Ireland (M,W,Y), Russia (M,W,Y), South Africa (M,W,Y), South Korea (M,W), Sweden (M,W,Y), Switzerland (M,W), Trinidad & Tobago (M), Turkey (M,Y), USA (M,W).

While it is going to be a fantastic few days of darts, the costs of a trip to Japan have proved prohibitive for many nations.  Of the 31 countries involved, only ten have entered teams in all three events, and seven have entered just one team.  While teams like Iceland (men), Czech Republic (women), and Iran (youth) have only been able to send one, you will no doubt have noticed that teams like England, Scotland, and Wales are conspicuous by their total absence.

The US team will be represented by :

Lisa Ayers (Chattanooga, TN)
Carole Herriott (Bremerton, WA)
Paula Murphy (Orange Park, FL)
Cali West (Syracuse, NY)
Robin Curry (Team Captain)
Joe Chaney (Chattanooga, TN)
Robbie Phillips (Cary, NC)
Billy Squires (Hilton Head Island, SC)
Tom Sawyer (Boston, MA)
Joe Hogan (Team Captain)

Billy Squires is the only newcomer to international competition, while Herriott and Chaney are both making their World Cup debut.

The opening ceremonies are tonight (Tuesday), and play starts tomorrow at 10am (local time) with the Women’s Team event, followed 30 minutes later by the Men’s Team event.  Also being played are the Boys’ Singles and Girls’ Pairs.  All these events start with round-robin groups, leading into knockout brackets, and playing down the the final.

In the Women’s Team event, the U.S. are drawn in Group 7, and face South Korea and Norway.
In the Men’s Team event, the U.S. are drawn in Group 4, and face Switzerland, South Korea, and Hong Kong.

These team events are played using a round-robin singles format, with each player on the team scheduled to play each opponent in one leg of 501.  The first team to reach 9 points is the winner.  If a match is tied 8-8 after all legs have been played, there will be a tie-breaker – again one leg – between two nominated players.

Thursday sees the Girls’ Singles and Boys’ Pairs (round-robins and knockouts), Men’s Singles (knockout), and Women’s Pairs.  Again, all events are played down to the final.

Friday is Women’s Singles (knockout), Men’s Pairs (knockout), and Youth Mixed Pairs (round-robins and knockout), all playing down to the final.  Friday evening brings the finals of all Pairs events, senior and youth).

The World Cup concludes on Saturday with the finals of the senior Team events, and all Singles finals, senior and youth.

Daily results will be posted, as will the draws for the following day’s play.

Good luck to everyone!

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