For many players on the cusp of professional success, earning a PDC Tour Card is a career-defining moment — the ticket that grants access to the full ProTour schedule and a chance to compete with the world’s best week in, week out. But for one rising star, the dream slipped through his fingers in the cruelest of circumstances: a deciding leg that ended in heartbreak.
Swedish darter Andreas Harrysson, fresh off a breakthrough run at the World Darts Championship where he became the first player from his country to reach the fourth round, narrowly missed out on securing his debut Tour Card at European Qualifying School. Needing crucial points and a strong finish, Harrysson ultimately fell just behind another competitor in the Order of Merit, finishing ninth — agonisingly one spot outside the qualifying places.
It was a dramatic finale that many described as the epitome of darts’ unforgiving nature: one match, one throw, one deciding leg making all the difference. Harrysson pushed veteran rival Jeffrey de Zwaan all the way, with the contest going down to the final leg before de Zwaan edged it 6–5. Harrysson amassed equal points to the qualifying group’s final spot holder, but his leg difference — crucial in the event standings — was just inferior, meaning he missed out despite a heroic effort.
“I came so close,” Harrysson said afterwards. “It felt like the whole week, the whole year, was all boiling down to that last leg. I just wanted to grab it, but in darts, sometimes it’s that tiny margin that changes everything.”
That tiny margin carried enormous emotional weight for the 50-year-old Swedish ace. His appearance at the World Championship had captured headlines and hearts, as he knocked out several big names on his way to an historic run at Ally Pally. Standing on stage among the sport’s elite, Harrysson showed both flair and composure — qualities that made him a favourite among fans and pundits. But in the world of Qualifying School, reputation counts for little; results do.
As the dust settled on the final day, it wasn’t just Harrysson who tasted Tour Card disappointment. A host of well-known players, including the ever-popular Fallon Sherrock, Steve Beaton, and Steve Lennon, also failed to secure their spots for the 2026 ProTour season. Sherrock’s tough week, in particular, drew widespread attention, with the former World Championship trailblazer unable to find rhythm during her matches and bowing out early.
For Sherrock, whose historic runs in major events helped boost the sport’s global profile, missing out on a Tour Card was another bitter pill to swallow. “I gave it everything,” she said after her defeat. “I’ve had some setbacks in recent years, but I keep fighting. This just means I’ll come back stronger.”
For Harrysson, the path forward now leads back to competing on satellite tours like the Winmau Challenge Tour and his regional PDC Nordic & Baltic circuit — platforms that offer another route back into the ProTour but without the guarantee of the exposure and competition a Tour Card provides. It’s a familiar road for many players who hover around the top tiers of the sport: brilliant performances do not always translate into silverware or direct promotion.
Yet there’s every reason to believe that Harrysson’s moment will come. His World Championship exploits proved he has what it takes to rise to big occasions, and his Q-School campaign showed grit under pressure. “I’m disappointed,” he added, “but I’m not done. This isn’t the end.”
The sting of missing out on such fine margins will linger for a while — a reminder that in darts, like life, destiny can turn on a single throw. But for Harrysson and others who tasted both glory and heartbreak this season, there remains another season ahead, another chance to cement their place among the very best. And with his talent and experience, many believe it’s only a matter of time before he walks straight through the door that just barely closed this time around.
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