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 .jpg) Butlin's Minehead | |
| Founded | 2003 (2003) |
|---|---|
| First season | 2003 |
| Organising body | PDC |
| Country | England |
| Venue | Butlin's Minehead |
| Most recent champion |  Luke Littler(2025) |
| Tournament format | Legs |
TheLadbrokesUK Open is a ranking majordarts tournament held annually at theButlins Minehead Resort by theProfessional Darts Corporation (PDC) in England.[1] The event is often referred to as the "FA Cup of darts" as it has an unseeded open draw made after each round, and entry is open to players at all levels of darts.[2] One-hundred-and-sixty players compete in the multi-board event over eight-stages before the PDC’s Top 32 enter the tournament in the fourth round. The tournament has a prize fund of £600,000; the victor’s prize is £110,000.[3]
From 2003 to 2013, the UK Open took place in June each year at theReebok Stadium, in Bolton. In 2014, it moved toButlin's Minehead taking place in early March.Phil Taylor beatShayne Burgess in the inaugural final. DutchmanRaymond van Barneveld won the tournament in 2006, in his first appearance in a PDC ranking event. He knocked out 13-times World Champion Phil Taylor 11–10 en route to the final where he beatBarrie Bates 13–7. He also successfully defended the title in 2007, again beating Taylor en route.
As the event has amateur and semi-professional qualifiers, it has produced some upset results over the years.[4] In 2014,Aden Kirk, playing in his first televised match, beat defending and five-time champion Phil Taylor 9–7 in the third round.[5] Kirk then beatPeter Wright 9–5 in the next round.[6] In 2016, Rileys amateur qualifierBarry Lynn recorded a 9–3 win over reigning world championGary Anderson and reached the quarter-finals.[7] A year later, Anderson lost to another Rileys qualifier,Paul Hogan, who followed up by beatingAdrian Lewis in the next round.[8]
Taylor achieved the perfectnine-dart finish four times (2004, 2005, 2007 & 2008).Mervyn King (2010),Gary Anderson (2012),Wes Newton (2013),Michael van Gerwen (2016 & 2020),Jonny Clayton (2020), Sebastian Białecki (2021), Jitse van der Wal (2021),José Justicia (2022),James Wade (2022) andMichael Smith (2022) have also achieved a nine-dart leg (although Newton's, Białecki’s, van der Wal’s and Justicia's were not televised live, while Clayton's and Smith's were only live on the PDC website). The tournament had a different runner-up for the first 13 years.
Because ofextreme weather conditions and fears for the safety of visiting fans the unprecedented decision was taken by the host venueButlins to play the entire2018 UK Open behind closed doors leaving the public only being able to watch the event thoughITV4’s live coverage and the PDC live web feed.[9]
The Tournament was moved to the Marshall Arena in 2021 due to theCOVID-19 pandemic and played behind closed doors.[10]
Qualifying events for amateur players are organised byRileys and held in various locations across the UK. 16 players qualify through these events.
The format is as follows (as of 2020):
The draws for the first three rounds are made in full after all qualifying players are known, while the draws for the fourth round onward are made separately on stage as soon as each preceding round has concluded.
| Rank | Player | Won | Runner-up | Finals | Appearances |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Phil Taylor | 5 | 1 | 6 | 14 |
| 2 |  Michael van Gerwen | 3 | 1 | 4 | 18 |
| James Wade | 3 | 1 | 4 | 23 | |
| 4 | Raymond van Barneveld | 2 | 0 | 2 | 18 |
| 5 |  Peter Wright | 1 | 2 | 3 | 18 |
| 6 | Gary Anderson | 1 | 1 | 2 | 17 |
| 7 | Luke Littler | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Nathan Aspinall | 1 | 0 | 1 | 10 | |
 Dimitri Van den Bergh | 1 | 0 | 2 | 8 | |
| Andrew Gilding | 1 | 0 | 1 | 12 | |
| Adrian Lewis | 1 | 0 | 1 | 20 | |
| Danny Noppert | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | |
| Roland Scholten | 1 | 0 | 1 | 11 | |
| Robert Thornton | 1 | 0 | 1 | 13 | |
| 15 | Luke Humphries | 0 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
 Gerwyn Price | 0 | 2 | 2 | 12 | |
| 17 | Barrie Bates | 0 | 1 | 1 | 12 |
| Shayne Burgess | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
 Corey Cadby | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| Rob Cross | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | |
| Andy Hamilton | 0 | 1 | 1 | 16 | |
| Terry Jenkins | 0 | 1 | 1 | 16 | |
 Gary Mawson | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | |
| Wes Newton | 0 | 1 | 1 | 14 | |
| Colin Osborne | 0 | 1 | 1 | 9 | |
 John Part | 0 | 1 | 1 | 14 | |
| Michael Smith | 0 | 1 | 1 | 17 | |
| Vincent van der Voort | 0 | 1 | 1 | 17 | |
| Mark Walsh | 0 | 1 | 1 | 13 |
| Country | Players | Total | First title | Last title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| England | 6 | 12 | 2003 | 2025 |
| Netherlands | 4 | 7 | 2004 | 2022 |
| Scotland | 3 | 3 | 2012 | 2018 |
| Belgium | 1 | 1 | 2024 | 2024 |
Fifteennine-darters have been thrown at the UK Open. The first one was in 2004, and eleven of them have been televised.Wes Newton in 2013, Sebastian Białecki and Jitse van der Wal in 2021 andJosé Justicia in 2022 hit nine-darters that were not broadcast.
† not televised
| Ten highest UK Open one-match averages | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average | Player | Year (+ Round) | Opponent | Result |
| 118.66 | Phil Taylor | 2010, Last 32 | Kevin Painter | 9–0 |
| 115.92 |  Niko Springer | 2025, 1st Round |  Cor Dekker | 6–2 |
| 115.62 | Phil Taylor | 2009, Quarter-Final | Mark Lawrence | 10–0 |
| 115.51 | Phil Taylor | 2009, Last 32 | Ken Mather | 9–3 |
| 114.91 | Michael van Gerwen | 2015, Last 16 | Kim Huybrechts | 9–2 |
| 114.54 | Phil Taylor | 2008, Last 16 | Wes Newton | 9–3 |
| 113.05 | Phil Taylor | 2010, Semi-Final | Denis Ovens | 10–5 |
| 111.67 | Phil Taylor | 2015, Last 16 | Vincent van der Voort | 9–3 |
| 110.88 | Peter Wright | 2017, Quarter-Final | Raymond van Barneveld | 10–8 |
| 110.81 | Michael van Gerwen | 2020, Quarter-Final | Rob Cross | 10–4 |
| 110.72 | Phil Taylor | 2012, Last 16 | Ronnie Baxter | 9–4 |
| Five highest tournament averages | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average | Player | Year | ||
| 107.82 | Phil Taylor | 2015 | ||
| 107.38[18] | Phil Taylor | 2009 | ||
| 106.81 | Phil Taylor | 2013 | ||
| 106.43 | Phil Taylor | 2010 | ||
| 105.57 | Michael van Gerwen | 2015 | ||
From 2003 until 2013, coverage for the UK Open was shown onSky Sports in June. In 2014 the tournament was moved to March and coverage of the event moved toITV4.
