Parletti: "I found it brutal. It is gruelling on the mind."
Monday 20 January 2020 18:50, UK
After four days of drama at the darting dream factory, there was euphoria for those who grasped the opportunity of a lifetime, while for others, there was heartbreak - their hopes of stardom crushed in agonising fashion.
One of the sport's most compelling aspects is the fine margin between success and failure. That notion is perfectly illustrated at Qualifying School, where over 850 players made the trip to Wigan and Hildesheim respectively in a bid to claim a coveted two-year Tour card.
For some it was the chance to make themselves a hero - for more established figures it was last-chance saloon. Nothing captures the remarkable contrast in ambitions better than the four-day pursuit of a place in the PDC ranks, and a plethora of remarkable stories emerged.
Four-time women's world champion Lisa Ashton made history by becoming the first woman to win a PDC Tour Card at Qualifying School, whilst two-time BDO world champion Scott Waites claimed a place on the PDC circuit, along with former Premier League semi-finalist Andy Hamilton.
Then there's Aaron Beeney - a 36-year-old prison officer who won just £150 in prize money on the 2019 PDC Challenge Tour. He is essentially a pub player having represented his County just three times, but he came through a stacked field to achieve the seemingly impossible.
However, while 31 players fulfilled their darting dreams, a host of hopefuls didn't make the cut and we caught up with BDO star Dave Parletti and former women's world No 1 Lorraine Winstanley to reflect on missing out on their Tour Cards.
Dave Parletti enjoyed his first taste of PDC action at last year's Grand Slam of Darts - defeating Premier League 'challenger' William O'Connor before bowing out in the group stages.
Parletti - seeded fourth at this year's BDO World Championship, was handed a series of difficult draws throughout Q-School and admitted it gave him a stark insight into the gulf of class between the organisations.
"I found it brutal. I had a few tough draws. I lost three of my games 5-4 where I was sitting on doubles and they were going out," the 36-year-old told Sky Sports.
"I played John Part on the first day. He was on 65 and hit the bullseye with his first dart - I put my head down and thought 'come on'. I lifted my head up and he was shaking my hand. It was brutal.
"In the long run, I think it's set my mind in good stead where I think 'right I'm going to have to brush up on my doubles', because you get away with that on the other side but it was a totally different kettle of fish I noticed. It is gruelling on the mind."
It was Parletti's first experience of the unique event and the Surrey star admitted the uncompromising nature of it took him by surprise, but he's determined to use the disappointment as motivation to elevate his game to the next level.
"When I look back and reflect on what happened, I was too patchy and I wasn't consistent. I think that will set me up and give me a goal to try and get there for next year, and especially Challenge Tour this year.
"There were some games where I played really well, but then there were other times when I was dreadful, but if I can put that all together, I know on the day, if I get my mindset right and play well every single game, I have no doubt in my mind that I will be there one day.
"I don't mean this in a disrespectful way but I think the place you want to be if you want to play good darts is the PDC, there's a better depth so for me that's all I want to do now, play the best darts."
It was a landmark year for the women's game at Qualifying School, with Ashton becoming the first woman to win a PDC Tour Card, in a field featuring a record 16 female participants.
One of the hopefuls vying for a place on the Pro Tour circuit was former World Masters winner Lorraine Winstanley - appearing in Wigan for the second straight year.
Winstanley was unable to accrue any points towards the Order of Merit standings after registering two victories across the four days of competition, although she was opting to take the positives from her campaign.
"It's always a great experience. It's lovely to play under professional conditions and know exactly what's happening and being surrounded by so many great players as well, it all adds to the experience.
"You have to try and take the positives away, even though the results don't quite go your way so I don't feel disheartened at all, it's all positive and I'm looking forward to the rest of the year.
Amid the uncertainty surrounding the future of the British Darts Organisation, Winstanley revealed that she would be competing on the Challenge Tour in 2020, whilst trying to juggle her other darting commitments.
"I'm hoping to do both. I won't be doing all the Challenge Tours because with the World Darts Federation announcing the new calendar, that looks like it could be very busy.
"It's going to take a bit of planning. It's not just three or four tournaments you would be going to as we have following the BDO system over the last few years. It's going to be an interesting year I think."
Arguably the biggest story of this year's Qualifying School was Ashton's history-making success and last year's World Championship finalist was full of praise for her fellow female and the ladies' game in general.
"There are some great players in the ladies game, we don't always come across them because perhaps they don't do the tour or they perhaps just play locally. There are lots of brilliantly talented ladies out there, we just don't get to showcase it sometimes.
"What an achievement for Lisa. It can only help to move the women's game forward, surely? She is probably the most consistent women's player at the moment.
"Fallon did amazing at the World Championships, Lisa performed brilliantly at Q School, so this is opening the door for the ladies along the way."
Darts is back on Sky Sports in February when the Premier League gets underway in Aberdeen, 17 weeks of action gets underway on February 6 and continues every Thursday until the Play Offs at The O2 in May.
