THE field of qualifiers for the William Hill Grand Slam of Darts has been confirmed.
The 32-player Grand Slam of Darts brings together champions and major finalists from both the PDC and BDO/WDF circuits, who compete in nine days of action at the Wolves Civic.
Play initially sees players drawn into eight four-man groups for the round-robin stage before the top two from each progress to the knockout phase from the last 16 onwards.
This year's Grand Slam of Darts field will be spearheaded by reigning champion Raymond van Barneveld, PDC World Champion Phil Taylor and Lakeside Champion Scott Waites, who are both former Wolverhampton winners.
Their rivals will include World Grand Prix and Premier League Darts champion Michael van Gerwen, European Champion Adrian Lewis, World Youth Champion Michael Smith and former major title winners Robert Thornton, Simon Whitlock, Kevin Painter and Christian Kist.
The field also includes players who have reached major finals within the past two years, including Wes Newton, Andy Hamilton, Gary Anderson, Mervyn King, Kim Huybrechts, Mark Webster and Tony O'Shea, plus World Youth Championship runner-up Ricky Evans.
Semi-Finalists from the previous two Grand Slam of Darts events, PDC World Championships and Lakeside Championships also qualify, meaning that Dean Winstanley, Mark Walsh, James Wade, Ted Hankey, Wesley Harms and debutant Richie George will also compete in Wolverhampton.
With 26 players having already qualified for the William Hill Grand Slam of Darts a further six places remain on offer for the finalists of the World Grand Prix, Championship League Darts and the new PDC event, The Masters, as well as for the PDC Unicorn World Youth Champion.
With The Masters being held from November 1-3 in Edinburgh, the Grand Slam of Darts Wildcard Qualifier, which will see any remaining places in the tournament filled at this knockout, will take place if needed on Monday November 4 in Wigan.
Entry for the Grand Slam of Darts Wildcard Qualifier is now open, and will be limited to 256 players. Entry is now available, costing, £30, and can be made through the PDC Online Entry System at http://pdclive.servasport.com/register.html.
The William Hill Grand Slam of Darts will be held from November 9-17 at the Wolverhampton Civic Hall. Tickets are available now by calling the Wolves Civic Box Office on 0870 320 7000, visiting www.wolvescivic.co.uk or at the Midland Box Office in Queen Square, Wolverhampton.
William Hill Grand Slam of Darts – 2013 Qualifiers
2012 Grand Slam of Darts
Winner Raymond van Barneveld
Runner-Up Michael van Gerwen
Semi-Finalists Andy Hamilton, Dean Winstanley
2011 Grand Slam of Darts
Winner Phil Taylor
Runner-Up Gary Anderson
Semi-Finalists Adrian Lewis, Mark Walsh
PDC Tournaments
2013 World Championship
Winner (Phil Taylor)
Runner-Up (Michael van Gerwen)
Semi-Finalists (Raymond van Barneveld), James Wade
2012 World Championship
Winner (Adrian Lewis)
Runner-Up (Andy Hamilton)
Semi-Finalists Simon Whitlock, (James Wade)
2013 World Matchplay
Winner (Phil Taylor)
Runner-Up (Adrian Lewis)
2012 World Matchplay
Winner (Phil Taylor)
Runner-Up (James Wade)
2013 World Grand Prix
Winner
Runner-Up
2012 World Grand Prix
Winner (Michael van Gerwen)
Runner-Up Mervyn King
2013 UK Open
Winner (Phil Taylor)
Runner-Up (Andy Hamilton)
2012 UK Open
Winner Robert Thornton
Runner-Up (Phil Taylor)
2013 Premier League Darts
Winner (Michael van Gerwen)
Runner-Up (Phil Taylor)
2012 Premier League Darts
Winner (Phil Taylor)
Runner-Up (Simon Whitlock)
2013 Championship League Darts
Winner
Runner-Up
2012 Championship League Darts
Winner (Phil Taylor)
Runner-Up (Simon Whitlock)
2012 Players Championship Finals
Winner (Phil Taylor)
Runner-Up Kim Huybrechts
2011 Players Championship Finals
Winner Kevin Painter
Runner-Up Mark Webster
2013 European Championship
Winner (Adrian Lewis)
Runner-Up (Simon Whitlock)
2012 European Championship
Winner (Simon Whitlock)
Runner-Up Wes Newton
2013 World Cup of Darts
Winner (Phil Taylor) & (Adrian Lewis)
Runner-Up (Kim Huybrechts) & Ronny Huybrechts
2012 World Cup of Darts
Winner (Phil Taylor) & (Adrian Lewis)
Runner-Up (Simon Whitlock) & Paul Nicholson
2013 The Masters
Winner
Runner-Up
BDO Tournaments
2013 Lakeside Championship
Winner Scott Waites
Runner-Up Tony O'Shea
Semi-Finalists Wesley Harms, Richie George
2012 Lakeside Championship
Winner Christian Kist
Runner-Up (Tony O'Shea)
Semi-Finalists (Wesley Harms), Ted Hankey
Other Criteria
2013 PDC World Youth Championship
Winner Michael Smith
Runner-Up Ricky Evans
2013 PDC Unicorn Challenge Tour
Order of Merit Winner
Grand Slam of Darts Wildcard Qualifier (number of places TBC)
World Champions of the last five years
All otherwise qualified (Martin Adams does not receive invitation under PDC Rule 3.10)
(2009 Taylor/Hankey, 2010 Taylor/Adams, 2011 Lewis/Adams, 2012 Lewis/Kist, 2013 Taylor/Waites)
Players Qualified So Far (26)
Gary Anderson
Ricky Evans
Richie George
Andy Hamilton
Ted Hankey
Wesley Harms
Kim Huybrechts
Ronny Huybrechts
Mervyn King
Christian Kist
Adrian Lewis
Wes Newton
Paul Nicholson
Tony O'Shea
Kevin Painter
Michael Smith
Phil Taylor
Robert Thornton
Raymond van Barneveld
Michael van Gerwen
James Wade
Scott Waites
Mark Walsh
Mark Webster
Simon Whitlock
Dean Winstanley