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Rules and Regulations

(Updated for the 2026/2027 Tour)

Eligibility

The tour is open to anyone except for a PDC professional. (This rule has been in place for 8 years, we are not picking on anyone, I swear.) Our thought process is this a developmental tour, not a pro tour. We want to expose newer and lesser skilled players to long format steel tip competition and the ability to compete and win some money. Players with PDC cards have way more opportunities to do this and we totally respect their abilities and accomplishments.

Qualifiers (Tour Stops)

There will be 8 – 12 qualifiers (tour stops) a year. The tour is based out of St. Louis, MO but the goal is to have events all over Missouri (and slightly over the border into Kansas). In 2026/2027 once again there will be tour stops in Springfield, Kansas City area (Shawnee, KS), Columbia, Osage Beach, Joplin and St. Louis and we are now going to have events in Topeka, KS and Lawrence, KS. See the Upcoming Events page for dates and locations – this page is updated regularly when new dates and locations are added so check back often.

The entry fee for a qualifier is $30. $20 of the entry fee is paid back to the players that day in the payouts. $5 per player goes into a finale pot which is paid back to all the players on Championship weekend in one of the 3 tour finales – (New in 2026/2027) Open, Advanced and Challenger Championships. New in 2026/2027 – we will have three separate tour lists – Open, Advanced and Challenger tours with each having their own round robins and knockouts at a qualifier (details below). Finale pots for the Open, Advanced and Challenger divisions will be separate. The remaining $5 per entry is paid to the tournament director for the day ($3) and to Dart Connect fees ($2).

New in 2026/2027 – The Open tour list will be players with a PPR of 53 and above. The Advanced tour list will be all players with a PPR approx. between 42 and 52.99. The Challenger tour list will be all players with a PPR below 42. A player’s PPR to be used for classification will be determined from previous year(s) Dart Madness PPR’s as found on the website. If you played multiple years then a determination will be made to determine the best tour for you. Our goal is to be fair and competitive for everyone. Once you play your first qualifier for the year and are classified as Open, Advanced or Challenger you will remain on that tour list for the entire year, probably. For example – if you are a 41 PPR and get put on the Challenger tour and your PPR goes over 42 you will remain on the Challenger tour. However, if you have clearly improved your game and are no longer a Challenger level player (say your PPR is consistently 45 or more) then we will move you up to the Advanced tour. The same goes for players that may start out on the Advanced tour but their game has clearly improved to the point they belong on the Open tour then they will be moved up. Another exception would be if someone is obviously cheating or manipulating their PPR and sandbagging to stay on the Advanced or Challenger tour. That person will not be moved to the next level, they will just be kicked off the tour. Cheaters are not welcomed.

If you are a brand-new player to the Dart Madness tour you must show proof – tournaments or leagues listed on DCTV that show your PPR, or PPD/TOC or other soft tip league web sites – that you are a Advanced or Challenger level player. If we put you on the Challenger tour and you shoot over a 42 PPR consistently we will move you up to the Advanced tour. If you obviously are an Advanced or Open player and lied about being a lower level and were trying to sandbag to stay there, well then, we will kick you off completely, as mentioned, cheaters are not welcomed.

Any player that wants to play above their PPR is welcome to do so. If you are borderline and know your game has improved, then please play the higher tour from the get-go to avoid the suspicion of cheating.

All decisions on who is and who isn’t an Advanced or Challenger level player and who may or may not be moved will be made by the Dart Madness tournament directors and DPSTL. The goal is fairness and equal competition for the greater majority. If a decision goes against you, it’s not because we don’t like you, it’s because we are trying to be as fair as possible to the majority of the players and not just you. Sometimes you have to look beyond yourself and think of the greater good.

Open/Advanced Round Robin(s)

  • All registered open players (players with PPR 53 and above) and advanced players (42-52.99) will be split into Round Robin groups (maximum 4 groups). Each group will consist of at least a minimum of 4 players. Ultimately the number of total players in the Open, Advanced and Challenger qualifiers and board availability will determine the number of groups and the number of boards per group. The goal is to have at least two boards per group. Which group a player is in is determined by random draw in Dart Connect. There must be a minimum of 6 players to hold an open or advanced qualifier. If there are less than 6 players in either the Open or the Advanced groups, then the players will be combined together all in one round robin.
  • You will play each person in your group one match. A match will consist of 1, 2, 3 or 5 legs of 501 open in, double out depending on the number of players and the number of boards available. Assuming each group has a minimum of 2 dart boards to use – if a group has 4 or 5 players, then you will play 5 legs of 501 against each player in your group. If a group has 6-8 players, then you will play 3 legs of 501. If a group consist of 9 to 11 players, then you will play 2 legs of 501. If a group consist of more than 11 players, then you will play 1 leg of 501. In the event you have groups that consist of player counts from more than one group count, i.e. 3 groups of 8 players and 1 group of 9 players, everyone plays the number of legs of the highest group count. So, in this example all groups would play 2 legs because of the group of 9. Ultimately this decision lies in the hands of the tournament director. We want to get in as many games as possible but not take 5-6 hours to do it. The goal is all round robins completed in 3-4 hours.
  • In the event due to participation and board availability that any group would only have 1 board to play on, the tournament director will decide how many legs to play per match. Again, with the goal to complete the round robin in less than 4 hours.
  • Group winners will be determined by the player that wins the most legs (not matches) in the round robin. If two players are tied for the lead, then the head-to-head match between the two players will determine the group winner. If the two players played a 2 leg match and tied 1-1 then one game of 501 will be played to determine the winner. If more than 2 players tie for the group lead and a clear-cut winner cannot be determined based on head-to-head play, then a round robin of 1 leg will be played to determine the winner. If any players are still tied after the playoff round robin, the player with the highest PPR for the day between those still tied will be declared the winner of the group.
  • All Group winners will receive points for winning the group – 2 points if the group had 4 or 5 players, 3 points if the group had 6-8 players and 4 points if the group had more than 8 players. If there were different number of players per group, the winners will receive the points of the highest group number. Example if there were 3 groups of 8 players and 1 group of 9, all group winners will receive 4 points.
  • All group winners will also be seeded in the knockout round by PPR – meaning they cannot play another group winner in the first round and the group winner with the highest PPR will play the group winner with the lowest PPR once we get to those rounds. More explanation below.
  • If Advanced players are combined with Open players, then all Advanced players will receive 2 points. If any Advanced players win a group, they will get the 2 points on top of any points they may win for winning a group.
  • All players will be in the Knockout brackets. There is just one knockout bracket per tour in 2026/27.
  • Order of play – The iPads will list the matches each round. Matches should be played in the order listed on the iPads. Only skip a match if you are unable to locate a player that is supposed to play in a timely fashion, or if the tournament director tells you to skip a match for whatever reason. The object is to let everyone play at the same pace. It is not ok for one player to try to play all their matches in a row.
  • Pace of play – Round robins take a long time and there are a lot of matches to be played. Players are expected to be at their boards and ready to play when their match is up. Please take smoke breaks, bathroom breaks and trips to the bar when you are not playing. If a player is taking too long to get to the board for their matches, please inform the tournament staff. The offending player will be warned once, and continued behavior will result in being forfeited out of the tournament and their money will not be refunded. This includes slow play because of intoxication.
  • Scoring/chalking a match – As mentioned it takes a long time to get through a round robin so it is encouraged to have a scorekeeper/chalker for each match. They do indeed speed up the match. The only time a player may refuse a chalker is if there is obvious obstruction or distraction with a chalker or the physical placement of the chalker. If a player refuses a chalker please report to the tournament staff and a determination will then be made by them if a chalker is needed or not. All players are expected to chalk matches when you have a chance. Its understandable to need a break to go to smoke, go to the bathroom, go to the bar or just need a break or are physically unable to do so – bad knee, bad back, etc. But if you are able to chalk please do so. If someone is not doing their fair share of chalking please report them to the tournament staff.

Challenger Round Robin

  • All registered challenger players (players with a PPR under 42) will be split into Round Robin groups (maximum 4 groups). Each group will consist of at least a minimum of 4 players. Ultimately the number of total players in the Open, Advanced and Challenger qualifiers and board availability will determine the number of groups and the number of boards per group. The goal is to have at least two boards per group. Which group a player is in is determined by random draw in Dart Connect. There must be a minimum of 6 players to hold a challenger qualifier. If there are less than 6 players in either the Advanced or the Challenger groups, and the Advanced group did not combine with the Open players, then the Advanced and Challenger players will be combined together.
  • You will play each person in your group one match. A match will consist of 1, 2, or 3 legs of 501 open in, double out depending on the number of players and the number of boards available. Assuming each group has a minimum of 2 dart boards to use – if a group has 4 – 6 players, then you will play 3 legs of 501 against each player in your group. If a group has 7 or 8 players, then you will play 2 legs of 501. If a group consist of more than 8 players, then you will play 1 leg of 501. In the event you have groups that consist of player counts from more than one group count, i.e. 3 groups of 6 players and 1 group of 7 players, everyone plays the number of legs of the highest group count. So, in this example all groups would play 2 legs because of the group of 7. Ultimately this decision lies in the hands of the tournament director. We want to get in as many games as possible but not take 5-6 hours to do it. The goal is all round robins completed in 3-4 hours.
  • Group winners will be determined by the player that wins the most legs (not matches) in the round robin. If two players are tied for the lead, then the head-to-head match between the two players will determine the group winner. If the two players played a 2-leg match and tied 1-1 then one game of 501 will be played to determine the winner. If more than 2 players tie for the group lead and a clear-cut winner cannot be determined based on head-to-head play, then a round robin of 1 leg will be played to determine the winner. If any players are still tied after the playoff round robin, the player with the highest PPR for the day between those still tied will be declared the winner of the group.
  • All Group winners will receive points for winning the group – 2 points if the group had 4 or 5 players, 3 points if the group had 6-8 players and 4 points if the group had more than 8 players. If there were different number of players per group, the winners will receive the points of the highest group number. Example if there were 3 groups of 8 players and 1 group of 9, all group winners will receive 4 points.
  • All group winners will also be seeded in the knockout round by PPR – meaning they cannot play another group winner in the first round and the group winner with the highest PPR will play the group winner with the lowest PPR once we get to those rounds. More explanation below.
  • If Challenger players are combined with Advanced players, then all Challenger players will receive 2 points. If any Challenger players win a group, they will get the 2 points on top of any points they may win for winning a group.
  • All players will be in the Knockout bracket. There is just one knockout bracket per tour in 2026/27.
  • The order of play, pace of play and scorekeeping rules listed in the Open Round Robin section above also apply to the Challenger Round Robin.

Knockout Brackets

  • Each group will have a knockout bracket following the round robin play. Each knockout bracket is a single elimination long format knockout. The number of games played each round in listed in the charts below.
  • The knockout brackets will be partially seeded based on round robin group play results. The winners of each group will be seeded so as not to play each other in the first ‘x’ number of rounds (which round depends on the total number of players). They will also be seeded by PPR for the day, so if there were four groups and the PPR’s of the 4 group winners were the following – Group A 51.23, Group B 52.98, Group C 45.36 and Group D 49.35 then the knockout bracket will be set up where the Group B winner is seeded #1, Group A winner seeded #2, Group D winner seeded #3 and Group C winner seeded #4. So, if they all made the final four it would Group B winner vs Group C winner and Group A winner vs Group D winner in the final four.
  • All other players will be randomly drawn into the knockout brackets.
  • Players will receive tour points in their respective tour based on how they finish in the knockout bracket. All players will receive at least one (1) point. Players will receive more or less “finish” points based on the total number of players for the qualifier:
  • In the event that there were not enough players in a tour group and the player were combined then the format will be the higher tour format, and all players will receive points based on where they finish as normal. The points a player wins will go to the tour list they are a part of as normal.
  • Reminder, if groups were combined at a qualifier, players that played “up” a level will receive 2 extra “finish” points on top of whatever “finish” points they earn from their finish for the day in the group play and knockout rounds.

Qualifier Payouts

Qualifier payouts will be vary based on the number of players that play and based on receiving sponsorship money from the host venue. $20 of the $30 entry fee will go to that day’s qualifier payout. The host venue will be asked to pay sponsorship money of – $100 minimum, $150 if we reach 32 players, $200 if we reach 48 players. New in 2026/2027 – $15 or $30 of this money will be added into the finale payout – $5 or $10 to each tour finale – Open, Advanced and Challenger (regardless if tours were combined for the day or not). If $100 was added, then $5 to each finale pot. If $150 or $200 was added, then $10 to each finale pot. All of the remaining money will be added to the payout for the qualifier for that day. This money will be split equally between all three tours. So, for instance if we have 32 players – 10 in the Open, 12 in the Advanced and 10 players in the Challenger – we will ask the venue for $150 (based on having 32 players) and $30 will go to the three tours finales and $120 – $40 to be added to each tour’s payouts for the day. If the venue refuses or is unable to contribute then no money will be added.

Each group – Open, Advanced and Challenger – will have separate payouts at each qualifier assuming we have enough players for each group and they weren’t combined. The payouts can be found in this document – Tour Payouts. This is a guide for our tournament directors to use and in general should be followed. It shows payouts for 6 to 48 players per group when no money is added. However, in general money will be added so payouts may/probably will change from what is shown here.

Corking Rules

Corking rules for the Round Robin matches:

  • The player listed first for the match will determine who throws first – see or show
  • Double bulls tie, single bulls tie
  • Double bull beats a single bull
  • Single bull beats out of bull
  • If both out of bull closest to the bull wins cork
  • Winner of the cork goes first in legs 1 and 3

Corking rules for the knockout brackets are:

  • The player on the top of the bracket will determine who throws first – see or show
  • Must hit a bull to win the cork – all single bulls tie
  • Double bull beats single bull – double bulls tie
  • If both players out of bull – recork – on recorks always switch throwing order
  • If a dart falls out or is knocked out before both darts stick, both players must re-throw with the second player now corking first
  • Winner of the cork goes first in all odd legs – 1,3,5, etc. – including the decider

Tour Points Lists (changes made for 2026/2027)

The tour points lists will be used to determine the players invited to participate in the Tour Championships finale weekend – tentatively scheduled for April. 2 – 4, 2027 – location TBD. The money collected all year long from each qualifier will be added to the payouts for the Championships. The tour points list is also used to determine seeding for these Championships (more on that below). The top 16 point leaders in all three tours will be invited to compete in their tour’s Championship. You must play at least 3 qualifiers to be eligible for a tour Championship. All other players that played at least 3 qualifiers will be invited to compete for added money on finale weekend. More info below.

The tours points list also will determine seeding in all the championships. How seeding is done is explained in the Championship Seeding section below.

Here’s how it will work:

  • In order to be invited to any Dart Madness Championship Finale a player must play in a minimum of 3 qualifiers.
  • Players collect points based on how they finish in round robin play and in the knockout bracket at a qualifier. All players earn a minimum of 1 point at each qualifier. A player will earn 2, 3 or 4 “finish” points for winning a group at a qualifier. A player also earns “finish” points the further you go in the knockout brackets. The point totals as listed above. Point totals increase the more players that are playing in the qualifier. Also, if the Advanced or Challenger groups end up combined at a qualifier and have to play up a level, then a player that played up will receive 2 extra “finish” points on top of whatever “finish” points they earned that day for the qualifier.
  • Players will be ranked by tour points – highest to lowest – the top 16 players in each tour will be invited to play in your tour’s Dart Madness Championship Finale. The top 2 players in each of the Tour points list will get free entry into their Championship Finale. If more than 2 players max out their points, then all players that are maxed out will get free entry into their Championship. (Note: the tour points list is for invitations only and not the final seedings at the Championship).
  • All other players that do not get invited into the Championships will be eligible for other money added events finale weekend assuming they played at least three (3) qualifiers during the year. More on that below.
  • Once a player reaches 57 or more “finishing” tour points in the tour points list they can no longer play in a qualifier for that year. NOTE: Bonus points do not count towards this maximum level, only “finish” points earned from how you finish at qualifiers counts towards this maximum. If you are in the Challenger or Advanced tour and max out, you can play a higher qualifier.
  • BONUS POINTS (Changes for 2026/2027) – All players that attend more than 2 qualifiers will receive bonus points for each qualifier they attend up to their 6th qualifier – 3 bonus points for their third qualifier, 4 bonus points for their fourth qualifier, 5 bonus points for their fifth qualifier and 10 bonus points for their 6th qualifier. A player may attend as many qualifiers as they like until they reach the maximum of 57 “finish” points. Bonus points max out at 22 bonus points though after your 6th qualifier.
  • If players are tied in points then they will be ranked by their PPR performance in the qualifiers. For example:
    1.  Steve 70 points (71.8 ppr) – higher PPR than Dan
    2.  Dan 70 points (68.6 ppr)
    3.  Dave 65 points (65.3 ppr)
    4.  Bill 63 points (79. 1 ppr) – higher PPR than Kevin
    5.  Kevin 63 points (69.4 ppr)
    6.  Kurt 55 points (59.6 ppr)
    7.  Larry 50 points (62.3 ppr)
  •  For invites into a Championship Finales all that matters is to be ranked in the top 16 in your respective group (and played a minimum of 3 qualifiers). If anyone does not or can’t accept their invitation, then an invite will go to the next eligible player on the list.
  • All Championship Finale will be a $40 entry. All the Finales will require acceptance of your spot in the championship a week or two before the finales. The reason for this is because these finales are seeded based on your performance throughout the Tour. In order to do this, we must have confirmation you will be playing.
  • Players accepting their invitations are required to pay their entry fee as soon as you accept your invitation, if possible. If you cannot pay at that time you can make arrangements to pay at a later date or the day of the event. However, whether you show up or not you are obligated to pay your entry fee. The reason for this is because besides the seedings and the payouts for these finales is posted based on the expected entry fee of all the players that accepted their invitation. If one or more people don’t show and don’t pay then that money has to come from somewhere as we will not reduce the payouts because someone backed out of their commitment. Plus if someone accepts and then doesn’t show then they took the spot of someone else that could have played and they now gave someone a BYE in the bracket which is unfair to everyone else. We understand stuff happens – people get sick, weather issues, etc. But we have to have this hard fast rule so that no one abuses this rule and also to encourage people to show up unless its absolutely impossible. This rule has angered some over the years and we apologize for that. But it has to be this way.
  • All other players not invited into a Championship Finales that play in a minimum of 3 qualifiers will be eligible to play other money added events at the finale. More details below.

Championship Seedings

All the Championship Finale brackets will be seeded based on the following:

  • Seeding for all finale championships will work as follows:
    • Players will be separated into groups based off the total tour points they earned (both playing finishes and bonus points)
    • All players in the three Tour points list with 57 total points and above will be seeded by PPR – so based off the list above the seeding would be as follows – Bill #1 seed, Steve #2, Kevin #3, Dan #4, and Dave #5. Even though Bill is #4 in the rankings, his 79.1 PPR makes him #1 in the seedings.
    • Next all players with total points from 50-56 will be seeded by PPR
    • Next all players with total points from 40-49 will be seeded by PPR
    • Next all players with total points from 30-39 will be seeded by PPR
    • Next all players with total points from 20-29 will be seeded by PPR
    • Next all players with total points from 15-19 will be seeded by PPR
    • Next all players with total points from 10-14 will be seeded by PPR
    • Next all remaining invited players will be seeded by PPR

Dart Madness Championship – updated for 2026/2027

The Dart Madness Championship Finale weekend is tentatively scheduled to be held April 2-4, 2027. The money collected all year at the qualifiers will be added into the championship finale pots. All the money collected will be added to the payouts for these Finales as well as paying the Dart Connect fees of the players involved. The Open, Advanced and Challenger tour money will be kept separate. The majority of the finale pot money (approximately a 65/35% split) will go into each tour’s Championship with the remaining money going into other events for all players that played at least three qualifiers. These events are TBD.

As mentioned above the top 16 players in the respective rankings that played a minimum of 3 qualifiers will be invited to play in their tour’s Championship Finale brackets. Entry fee for a Championship Finale is $40 and must be prepaid so we know who is attending and we can set up the seedings. The Top 2 players in each Tour’s points list will get free entry into their Championship bracket. If more than 2 players max out points in either tour points list, then all maxed out players will receive free entry into their respective Championship.

For all Championship Finales if a player accepts the invitation to play then they are also agreeing to pay the $40 entry fee whether they show up or not. From year one the rule was the entry must be pre-paid which is still the preferred method however we will allow on good faith a player to agree to pay at a later date or at the Finale. Reasons for doing this are explained above in the Tour Points section.

If a player paid or promised to pay at the finale but cannot play at the last minute for whatever reason or the player simply did not show, no re-seeding will be done last minute and their spot becomes a BYE. As mentioned above the missing player will still owe their $40 (or if they paid already they will not receive a refund) as its factored into the payout. Failure to pay your $40 will result in expulsion from all future Dart Madness events until you settle up your fee. This is not meant to be a punishment and we understand things happen, however because of seeding, and hoping to have a full bracket and the published payouts this entry fee must still be paid if you agreed to play.

Corking rules for the Championship brackets will be the same as for the Qualifiers knockout listed above.

Below is an estimate of the payouts for the 2026/2027 Championship Finales based on an average of 12 players per tour per qualifier and based on having – 15 qualifiers in 2026/2027 – $1000+ total added (60-70% added to Championships:

Tour Championship Finale Payout (2026/2027 estimates shown)

1st – $400   2nd – $250   Top 4 – $150   Top 8 – $75

Total Payout Goal ($1250 for each Championship Finale)

  •  Entry fees (14 X $40) = $560 (Top 2 get free entry)
  •  % of Prize fund (collected at each qualifier) = $700 (this is an estimate)

These are estimated payouts based on prize fund collected at each tour stop and getting sponsors/advertisers to contribute as well. Payouts could go down or could go up based on money collected and costs. Also keep in mind that there are Dart Connect fees ($1 per player) for each of these events that will be paid for with hopefully sponsorship money otherwise it will come from the collected prize fund.

Player Conduct

  • All players are expected to behave in sportsmanlike manner
  • Any loud, obnoxious, unruly, degrading, intimidating, threatening, or rude behavior must immediately be altered or else it will be grounds for forfeiture of your match and possible expulsion from the qualifier or Finals and possibly any future Dart Madness events
  • There will be a ZERO TOLERANCE on any violence towards another player or staff member of Dart Madness. Immediate expulsion from event and all future events
  • Any cheating during play or in the keeping of stats will also be grounds for expulsion from current and possibly all future Dart Madness events
  • Anyone determined to be too drunk during round robin, knockout play or the blind draw will be forfeited out of the event. Come, drink and have fun, but if you can’t be there all day and handle your liquor please do not come. Decisions on what is “too drunk” will be made by all the Dart Madness staff and are final. Anyone that disagrees with our decision is more than welcome to argue their case but they better do it in a respectful manner or else face future expulsion from Dart Madness events.

ADO Tournament rules

Any rules not covered on this page and dealing with actual game play will be covered in the ADO Tournament Rules.