PDC chief executive Matt Porter says it is imperative that darts’ top players manage their schedules carefully to avoid burnout after confirming a busy January for the sport.
The first month of the year is traditionally quiet following the World Championship and before the Masters and the start of the Premier League.
But many of the biggest names in the sport will be busy after the PDC confirmed two World Series of Darts events for January, including its first-ever tournament in Bahrain. The Bahrain Darts Masters will take place on January 12-13 and will be swiftly followed by the Nordic Darts Masters in Copenhagen on January 20-21.
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World Series events traditionally take place in the middle of the year, but a shortage of available slots led to the Bahrain date while organisers of the Copenhagen event wanted a January date.
When put to Porter that January is usually a holiday period for players, he told Online Darts TV: “They can choose to get on holiday. No one’s got a gun to their head being forced to go to these events. No one is being forced to play in any events.
“If a player wants to go on holiday, as I’ve said on plenty of occasions, they’re perfectly within their rights. And I would encourage them to go on holiday because you can’t play in everything, or you’ll be knackered.
“So manage your calendar, manage your schedule. If you need to miss something, then choose what you want to miss.
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“Some of the well-managed players will miss events because it’s the right thing to do. Take some family time, some time away from the pressure, the media, the fans. Just unwind and come back fresher.
“You can’t have a player getting to September and October being exhausted because they’ve played every week.”
Gerwyn Price is among the players to have complained about the sport's hectic schedule, especially the Premier League’s new format which sees a mini tournament take place each night. He has spoken to Porter about his concerns and has said he intends to manage his schedule carefully to avoid burnout.
Meanwhile, Michael van Gerwen and Peter Wright have taken time out this year for injury and health reasons respectively.
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