Adam Paxton, currently 98th on the PDC Order of Merit with £30,750 in ranking prize money, has questioned the financial reality facing players at the lower end of the rankings. The 26-year-old, who earned his first two-year Tour Card at Q School in 2025, argues that Tour Card holders are increasingly expected to operate as full-time professionals without guaranteed income to support that lifestyle.
Speaking to Oche180, Paxton highlighted the disparity in prize money distribution: “Does a first-round winner need the extra £250? It's nice when you do, but when you don't, say you've got two ProTours, that extra £500 at least covers, or mostly covers, costs for the week. Something isn't quite... Obviously, it's very top-heavy for one reason. It's great for PR. It's great to say, 'Oh, the winner's won X, Y, Z.' It's not great for the people who don't qualify, or who are further down the rankings and getting the odd win here and there.”
Paxton has earned £19,000 in ranking money during 2026, a significant increase from the £11,750 he earned in his first season, but much of that has come from early-round wins at Players Championship events. He has reached the last 64 at 11 Players Championship events this season, alongside two last-32 appearances. His best result since gaining his Tour Card remains a last-16 appearance at Players Championship 34 in 2025.
When asked about the comparison with professional snooker, where minimum earnings have been made available to Tour Card holders, Paxton expressed surprise that darts had not followed suit: “It does, really. Especially, as you say, the snooker's covered. Darts... I watched the Matchroom documentary on Netflix, and they say darts is the biggest moneymaker. So why can't it?”
Paxton also pointed to the shift of Players Championship events from weekends to midweek dates, which he believes forces players to give up outside employment without providing adequate compensation: “It went from the weekend to then midweek to force you to become a professional darts player, as opposed to working alongside playing darts. But then it takes away your... They're like, 'Well, we're not paying you, though.' So we're not paying you to be a professional darts player and for it to be your job, but you're going to have to give up your job, or at least part of it, to be a darts player. So it doesn't quite work, I don't think.”
One potential solution raised was allowing lower-ranked players to compete in events like the MODUS Super Series, which Paxton won a weekly title in 2024 before earning his Tour Card. He believes either more opportunities or greater financial support is needed: “I think there's got to be something. Whether it be allowing us to play in other tournaments and it not be so monopolised, or it goes back to that whole thing: should we be paid? I think we should be.”
