Photo: PDC Europe / (Gabor Kiss)
By Ryan Segal
Tom Sykes has said he's "excited" ahead of his upcoming Grand Slam debut.
The 34 year old from Castleford earned his spot at the tournament in Leicester last week, coming through the Tour Card Holder Qualifier to reach the Wolverhampton stage.
It marks yet another milestone in what's been a superb debut season on the Tour for the Castleford Tiger - one which has seen him reach a European Tour Semi-Final and 2 x Quarter-Finals on the Players Championship circuit.
Those achievements over the course of the year have seen him qualify for both the Players Championship Finals and World Championship - And whilst the process of GS qualification was far removed from how he reached those majors, it doesn't make it any less sweet:
"It does feel a bit different - but it's still a big achievement to get through one of those qualifiers with the people that are in them. Especially the Grand Slam one - as with both the Luke's sweeping up everything in the last year, there was plenty of quality there. To get through is a massive achievement."
He started that qualifying process in the L160 - being drawn to play a preliminary round compared to some of his rivals in the hat.
Tom, however, sees playing the extra game as a general positive:
"It can be, unless you draw a seed and then you're knackered! I like to get up and running early, and hitting a 91 average in my opener set me up in good stead for the day. Then playing against someone in the second round that hasn't played yet, it gives you a bit of a one up. It's always good to be warm, or warmer, than the guy you're playing against."
This is the Castleford Tiger's first appearance in front of the Sky Sports cameras since joining the top table of darts - an opportunity he's relishing:
"I love playing on the stage, so I'm excited to get up on there in front of the Sky Sports cameras!"
His two opponents in Group J are Luke Woodhouse and Krzysztof Ratajski - who sit 9th and 10th on the year-to-date OoM. Both have won European Tour events in 2026 - And have prior experience facing the Emperor of West Yorkshire:
"I've beaten Krzysztof this year - but I've played Luke a few times and lost every time. There would be no better time to grab my first win over him than Saturday afternoon!"
Tom kicks off the entire tournament, facing Woodhouse at 13:15 GMT on Saturday - with the scheduling of his match against Ratajski based on whether he wins or loses. UK viewers can catch every dart on Sky Sports, with the event also being shown by the PDC and PDC Partners around the world.
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