STOECKLI & MOL REACH Q SCHOOL FINAL STAGE AS FIRST STAGE CONCLUDES

Switzerland’s Bruno Stoeckli and former Development Tour winner Damian Mol headlined the list of 16 players to automatically progress to the Final Stage of PDC Qualifying Schools on Wednesday.

Day Three of the 2025 PDC Qualifying Schools saw the First Stage action conclude in Milton Keynes and Kalkar, as hundreds of hopefuls continued to battle for the chance to compete on the professional circuit in 2025-2026.

First Stage, which took place from January 6-8, saw players from across the globe attempting to qualify to compete in Final Stage, where 29 Tour Cards will be on offer from January 9-12.

Eight players per day progressed from First Stage at each venue, with the remaining places going to players from a First Stage Order of Merit in each region.

Wednesday’s play saw four Dutchmen progress to Final Stage at European Qualifying School, with Mol joined by Dennie Olde Kalter, Davy Proosten and Angelo Balsamo in winning through automatically.

Swiss World Cup star Stoeckli also advanced to the last eight, with Spain’s Angel Rodriguez, Frenchman Nicolas Thuillier and Germany’s Maximilian Czerwinski making up the eight automatic qualifiers.

Former Tour Card Holder Jason Heaver headlined the automatic qualifiers from UK Qualifying School, with young prospect Nathan Potter also booking his Final Stage spot alongside Justin Hood and Nicholas Ellis.

Ryan O’Connor defeated former Lakeside Champion Scott Mitchell on his way to automatic qualification, and he was joined by Scotland’s Colin Gibson, Welsh star Alex Williams and Ireland’s Ultan McDyer.

However, Mitchell did enough on the UK First Stage Order of Merit to confirm his place in Final Stage at UK Qualifying School, which will feature 128 players and take place over the next four days at Arena MK.

Mark McGeeney claimed top spot on the UK First Stage Order of Merit, with Welsh veteran Richie Burnett, former UK Open semi-finalist Alan Norris and 2022 Women’s World Matchplay winner Fallon Sherrock also progressing to Final Stage.

Germany’s Michael Unterbuchner finished top of the European First Stage Order of Merit, as he became one of 82 players to advance to Final Stage in Kalkar.

Sweden’s World Cup quarter-finalist Oskar Lukasiak recorded a top-ten finish, with New Zealand’s Ben Robb and Belgium’s Brian Raman securing spots in the top 16.

Austria’s Rusty-Jake Rodriguez - a winner of seven Development Tour titles - will also feature in Final Stage, which gets underway on Thursday morning in Kalkar.

There will be a total of 29 PDC Tour Cards on offer in Final Stage from January 9-12, with each of the daily winners in the UK and Europe receiving an automatic Tour Card.

The remaining 21 Tour Cards will be allocated to players from the UK and European Q School Final Stage Orders of Merit, with a further 12 Tour Cards on offer via European Q School, while nine players will come through the UK rankings.

Any ties in the respective Q School Orders of Merit will be split as follows based on all match results: Leg Difference, Legs Won, then DartConnect average. If players still cannot be split, a play-off would be organised.