The iconic Madison Square Garden is to host top-class darts for the first time when the stars of the sport visit New York on the World Series of Darts tour in 2020.
The Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden will host the U.S. Darts Masters and North American Championship on June 5-6, bringing the likes of current world number one Michael van Gerwen to New York.
The World Series of Darts, promoted by the Professional Darts Corporation, incorporates six worldwide tournaments throughout each year, allowing local prospects their chance to challenge the biggest names in darts.
The 2019 U.S. Darts Masters had seen England’s Nathan Aspinall – one of the new stars making his breakthrough at the top level – take victory on his World Series debut in Las Vegas.
Reigning World Champion Van Gerwen won events in Melbourne and New Zealand, flamboyant Peter Wright – famed for his colourful mohawk hairstyle – took victory in Germany and Australian qualifier Damon Heta claimed a stunning triumph in Brisbane.
Florida’s Danny Baggish was the 2019 North American Championship winner, and will now go on to represent the U.S. in the World Championship in London in December before heading to New York to defend his title in 2020.
Eight American and Canadian players will get their chance to take to the Hulu Theater stage in the events, which begin on Friday, June 5 with the first round of the U.S Darts Masters.
The action on Saturday, June 6 will be held across two sessions, with the North American Championship in the afternoon ahead of the U.S. Darts Masters quarter-finals, semi-finals and final in the evening.
New York’s arrival as a new destination on the World Series tour represents further growth for darts, which has become the biggest indoor sport in the UK over the past 20 years.
Over 300,000 fans will attend PDC events annually, while the World Series has visited Dubai, Singapore, China and Japan since being introduced six years ago.
PDC Chairman Barry Hearn said: “This is a fantastic development for darts to be bringing the glitz and glamour of the World Series of Darts to the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden.
“This is a world-renowned venue and 20 years ago it would have been a pipedream for darts players to take to the stage in such an iconic arena – but this is another exciting move for us as the World Series continues to grow.”
Tickets will have an exclusive pre-sale from 12pm EST on Monday November 25 through MSG, before going on general sale from 12pm EST on Tuesday November 26 from Ticketmaster.
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