Barney's Path To The Top

RAYMOND VAN BARNEVELD faces a tough task to make an immediate impression in the Professional Darts Corporation.

The Dutch superstar will now have to work his way up the PDC's rankings over the coming months in his bid to reach the top of the game.

To qualify for the Budweiser UK Open in June, van Barneveld will now play in the last three Regional Finals in the hope of earning enough money to get into the top 96 of the Order of Merit for that event.

He will enter the open qualifiers for the Las Vegas Desert Classic in June, with 16 places in the main event on offer.

The Dutchman, as a PDPA member, will enter their qualifiers for the Stan James World Matchplay and Sky Bet World Grand Prix, which offers four places in each event for PDPA players.

The top 32 in the PDC rankings qualify automatically for the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship.

However, should he not reach the top 32 come December 2006, 16 places are open to PDPA members, with a further 16 International wildcards on offer.