UK Open Darts: Rounds 1-3 Explained

The 2024 UK Open brought intense excitement to Butlin’s Minehead Resort, where Dimitri Van den Bergh narrowly defeated Luke Humphries in a thrilling 11–10 showdown to secure his maiden title. With its unpredictable open draw format, the tournament was packed with unforgettable moments, including an impressive four 170 checkouts.

With so many players we take a look at the first 3 rounds of the UK Open in depth to explain who qualifies, when and where they play and how you can watch the opening 3 rounds of the tournament.

Who qualifies for the first three rounds of the UK Open 2025?

Referred to as the ‘FA Cup of Darts’ the UK Open Darts is like no other format in the darts calendar. It is unseeded, an open draw is made after each round, and entry is open to players at all levels of darts.

All 128 PDC Tour card holders are given automatic entry into the tournament and will be joined by eight of the best players from the previous year’s Challenge & Development Tour Order of Merits and 16 winners from Riley’s Amateur Qualifiers.

Who are playing in the opening rounds matches and what stage are they on?

ROUND 1:

ROUND 2:

ROUND 3:

*NB: Tim Wolters has withdrawn from the 2025 Ladbrokes UK Open due to medical reasons, while Jeffrey de Graaf has withdrawn due to family reasons.

Which Target players will be playing in the first 3 rounds

What is the format of the 2025 UK Open Darts first three rounds?

With the number of games played in the opening day, the first round is a best of 11 legs format.

• First round: The 16 Rileys qualifiers, 8 Challenge Tour qualifiers, 8 Development Tour qualifiers and Tour Card holders ranked 97–128 in the PDC Order of Merit.
• Second round: Players ranked 65–96 in the PDC Order of Merit join the 32 winners of the first round.
• Third round: Players ranked 33–64 join the 32 winners of the second round.

In the fourth round players ranked 1-32 in the PDC Order of Merit join the 32 winners of the third round.

Here is a breakdown of the rest of the tournament’s format:

• Rounds 4, 5, 6 and the quarter-finals – best of 19 legs.
• Semi-finals and final – best of 21 legs.

What is the Schedule?

The UK Open darts order of play sees rounds 1-4 played on the first day, rounds 5-6 on the second day, and then the event concludes with the quarterfinals, semi-finals and final on the third and final day.

When will the first three rounds of the UK Open 2025 take place?

The first three rounds for the UK Open Darts will take place on February 28th.

Where will the first three rounds of the UK Open 2025 take place?

UK Open will be held in Butlins, Minehead.

How do you watch the first three rounds of the UK Open Darts 2025?

The 2025 Darts UK Open will be broadcast live on ITV 4 for UK fans, for Germany, Austria, and Switzerland DAZN will provide the coverage, and on PDCTV in all other global territories.

Has Anyone Ever Won the UK Open Starting from Round 1?

No player who started their UK Open campaign in Round 1 has ever gone on to win the tournament. While some have made deep runs, the challenge of battling through multiple matches before even reaching the later rounds has always proven too much.

That said, the early rounds have produced some of the biggest shocks in UK Open history. The most famous came in 2014 when 22-year-old Aden Kirk, making his televised debut, stunned reigning champion and 16-time world champion Phil Taylor with a 9–7 victory in the third round. Kirk followed up by beating Peter Wright before bowing out in the fifth round, but his win over Taylor remains one of the greatest upsets the tournament has ever seen.

With the UK Open’s unpredictable nature, could this be the year that history is finally made, and a Round 1 player goes all the way to lift the title?

Read about the rest of the UK Open Darts 2025 including the later rounds.