CDC Brings the Continent’s Best to New Jersey With Cross-Border Darts Challenge

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Inaugural event reignites rivalry between US and Canada, aims to attract die-hard supporters and casual fans alike.
Tickets on sale NOW

JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY (NOVEMBER 17, 2022) – White Eagle Hall, Jersey City’s historic entertainment venue, will play host to the best darts players on the continent for the inaugural Cross-Border Darts Challenge, presented by Championship Darts Corporation, April 21 and 22, 2023. Eight Americans and eight Canadians will take the stage to compete for national glory, a minimum of $15,000 in prize money, and a berth in the largest darts event in North America – the US Darts Masters –taking place in New York City in June.

This invitational event will kick-off the ninth year of the Championship Darts Circuit – North America’s professional darts tour – and provide darts enthusiasts and new fans alike the opportunity to experience the energy and passion that makes darts truly “the biggest party in sports!”

VIP ticketholders will have exclusive access to a Friday afternoon pre-tournament reception to meet players like North American champion, Leonard “SOULGER” Gates, “Excalibur” David Cameron and Danny “The Gambler” Baggish.  The full field of event participants will be later announced in December.

“We’re excited to work with Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (HBSE) to launch this new headline event at one of the best darts venues I’ve ever seen,” said Peter Citera, CEO of Championship Darts Corporation, “the intimate nature of White Eagle Hall provides the perfect backdrop to showcase our sport with all the modern technology necessary to ensure a great fan experience.”

Friday evening will feature eight first-round “USA vs. Canada” clashes with the winners advancing. The action will resume on Saturday with the quarterfinals and conclude with the crowning of the first “CANUSA Champion!”

“Professional darts is among the most fun atmospheres I have ever witnessed in my 30 years in the live events industry. In that vein, we are now thrilled to welcome Championship Darts Corporation to historic White Eagle Hall,” said Dylan Wanagiel, Vice President of Sports Properties & Special Events for Harris Blitzer Sports and Entertainment. “HSBE takes great pride in providing diverse programing at White Eagle Hall, and we know the residents of Jersey City and all of the tri-state area will love The Biggest Party in Sports.”

Tickets for the inaugural Cross-Border Darts Challenge start at $30.00 plus applicable fees and go onsale to the general public November 17 at 12:00 PM ET at https://ffm.bio/cdcweh

Ticket Information:

Two Day Pass (access to both April 21 & 22 Events): https://www.seetickets.us/event/2-DAYPASSCross-BorderDartsChallenge/517505

Friday, April 21, 2023: https://www.seetickets.us/event/Cross-Border-Darts-Challenge/517509

Saturday, April 22, 2023: https://www.seetickets.us/event/Cross-Border-Darts-Challenge/517507

 

About Championship Darts Corporation:
Championship Darts Corporation (CDC) owns and operates the Championship Darts Circuit, North America’s professional darts tour, consisting of 12 regular season tournaments leading into The Continental Cup Tour Finals Championship. We are the official North American affiliate of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) – the global head of professional darts, which stages events across the world with over $17 million in prize money. CDC provides the exclusive path to the World Darts Championship, World Series of Darts, World Cup of Darts and other major international events for US and Canadian players. The company also focuses on the next generation of players, running two youth tours to provide exclusive opportunities to play internationally via our affiliation with both the PDC and Junior Darts Corporation (JDC). Further information is available at www.champdarts.com.

 

About White Eagle Hall:
White Eagle Hall is a historic 8,000-square-foot live performance and private event venue in Jersey City, NJ which hosts live performances and private events before an 800-standing and 350-seated capacity audience. Originally constructed in 1910 and reopened in 2017 after a multi-year, multi-million-dollar renovation, the venue has hosted a variety of notable artists over the years including The Front Bottoms, Mitski, Kamasi Washington, Japanese Breakfast, The Bouncing Souls, Parquet Courts, Yo La Tengo, The Mountain Goats, Thursday, Screaming Females, Spoon, Waxahatchee, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Guster, Built to Spill, New Found Glory, and many more. White Eagle Hall has presented numerous sold out shows, community events, theater productions, and private events. As of 2021, the venue is operated by the entertainment, management and booking team at Prudential Center.

 

About Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (HBSE):

Recognized as one of the most innovative and entrepreneurial companies in the industry today, Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (HBSE), is a leading sports and entertainment company, with a focus on inspiring possibilities in people and enhancing the communities where we live, work, play and win. Founded by Josh Harris and David Blitzer, HBSE’s global portfolio has grown to include premier sports franchises, brands, venues and investment platforms, centered around marquee assets, the Philadelphia 76ers, the New Jersey Devils and the Prudential Center.

Campbell Out Of This World in Galaxy Grand Prix

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Championship Darts Corporation kicked-off the 2022 season Saturday in Indianapolis, Indiana. With COVID restrictions a thing of the past, Americans and Canadians did battle face-to face for the first time since 2019 on a combined Tour as designed. 14 Canadians made the trip across the border to join 49 Americans for the Galaxy Grand Prix – sponsored by Galaxy Barrel Design – with the “Ginga Ninja,” Matt Campbell, taking the title over fellow Tour Card holder, Danny Baggish.

Canadian Jim Long posted the highest First Round average of 95.23 with a 5-1 victory over John Steinhofer in a best of 9 format. Darin “Big Daddy” Young landed the first 180 of the tournament almost immediately in the first leg of his matchup with Louis Vessels.

Doug Boehm triumphed 5-3 over Shawn Brenneman in what was arguably the most nailbiting first-rounder, with 5 breaks of throw between the two.  Boehm grabbed control of the match in the 5th leg with a 13-darter, followed by a 12-darter in leg 6, seeing out the next two legs despite Brenneman hitting his first 180 in leg 7.

Newly-minted US Darts Masters qualifiers, Danny Lauby Jr and Doug Boehm, fell in the second round to Jeff Springer and Joey Lynaugh, respectively.  Fellow US Masters player David Cameron tossed a 93.66 average to glide into the Last 16 with a win over Jason Brandon.

The Last 16 saw an even split of 8 Canadians and 8 Americans vying for spots in the Quarterfinals.

American Jeff Springer continued his run against 3-Time World Champion John Part, despite Darth Maple executing a beautiful 11-dart break of throw in the third leg. Springer stole the darts in the fourth leg and checked out 105 in the fifth to keep the advantage.   The two traded holds until the end, where Springer came out on top, 6-3.

In other notable last-16 matches, Canadian John Norman Jr bowed out 6-4 to a charging Alex Spellman in a match that saw no leg go more than 19 darts, Larry “The Eagle” Butler fell to New Brunswick’s Keith Way 6-4 and “Captain America,” Jim Widmayer, saw-off Canada’s Kiley Edmunds 6-1 with a 93.51 average.

The Quarterfinal Round saw Jeff Springer in continued top form in defeating Alex Spellman 6-3, logging a 158 checkout along the way and sealing the match with an 11-darter. Meanwhile, Danny Baggish ended Widmayer’s bid for glory with a 6-1 win and Newfoundland phenom, Jacob Taylor, ground out a victory over Chuck Puleo, despite averaging under 80 and managing only one 180 in ten legs.

The Semifinal lineup guaranteed that both countries would be represented in the final, with Baggish going up against Springer and a Taylor-Campbell matchup in the other half of the draw.

Taylor shook-off his subpar performance with eleven 140s and averaging almost 94, but it wasn’t enough to put away Campbell, who claimed the 7-5 victory with steady play and a 14-dart break of throw to advance to his finals tie with Danny Baggish.

Baggish started slow in the all-USA semifinal and Springer bounded out to a 2-0 lead before “The Gambler” went all-in with 134, 140, 100 to set up a 14-dart break and get back into the game. After a thrilling 13-dart hold of throw, the two were back on equal terms before Springer hit back with a 17-dart hold of his own to pull ahead once again. However, that would be the last leg the Washington man would win on the day as Baggish took control with successive finishes of 13, 14 and 12 darts and cruised into the final with a 7-3 victory.

The mouthwatering final did indeed live up to its billing and was everything one would expect from two PDC Tour Card holders. Campbell averaged 98.5 and Baggish 96.8 in a tungsten shootout that would have wowed audiences on any stage. The proceedings opened with a 12-dart break-of-throw from Campbell, sealed with a tournament-topping 160 finish (matched only by Gary Mawson in Round 1). Baggish broke back immediately with a 15-darter of his own, and the race was on. Both players were exceptional in cover shots throughout the match, firing-in consistent 134s and 137s.

Campbell would go up 4-1 before Baggish put up clinical 13 and 14-dart finishes to close within one. Following three straight holds of throw, the Florida man failed to finish 85, allowing the Canadian a look at 25 – which he finished off in two for a 13-dart break to seal the 7-4 win and hoist the trophy.

CDC and NAWDA Announce Partnership

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Three-Year Agreement Provides Opportunity for Top Women to Join Sport’s Elite in US, Canada

(Chicago, Illinois and Nashville, Tennessee – March 14, 2022) Championship Darts Corporation, owner of the Championship Darts Circuit – North America’s professional darts tour – and the North America Women’s Dart Association, the premier organization showcasing top-level talent in the ladies’ game, today announce the formation of a three-year strategic partnership that will provide two women players the opportunity to join the ranks of professional darts players on the “CDC Tour.”

Beginning in 2022, the winner and runner-up in the NAWDA Championship (to be held in conjunction with the Music City Classic in Nashville in August this year) will receive their CDC Tour Cards for the following calendar year, allowing them to enter the otherwise-closed professional events and play against the continent’s best. Championship Darts Corporation will also sponsor entry fees into two of the CDC Tour events for each player. Further, the two NAWDA-qualified players will be able to take additional sponsorship dollars earned via NAWDA play and apply it to either:
• Assist in covering costs for the following year’s Women’s Series events run by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) in Europe; or
• Cover entry fees to the remainder of the CDC Tour events for the year in which their Tour Card is valid (not to exceed 10 additional events, for a total of 12 paid event entries between CDC and NAWDA sponsorship).

“We’re excited to partner with Rita (Wilkinson) and Amy (Fahey) at NAWDA to provide top women players the opportunity to play alongside the best on the continent,” said Peter Citera, CEO of Championship Darts Corporation, “darts is a sport where the biological differences between men and women are largely irrelevant. Look, for example, at the success Fallon Sherrock has enjoyed in the most elite events put on by our partners at the PDC. There is no reason that talented women with the drive and determination to succeed in our game shouldn’t have the opportunity to compete and prove themselves against all comers.”

In addition to providing the Tour Cards and sponsorship, CDC stands ready to advise and assist the NAWDA leadership team on an as-needed basis in event planning and any potential future expansion of the organization.
“Given the talent our women darters possess, I believe they will have no problem competing with the men of the CDC,” said Rita Wilkinson, Administrator of the NAWDA. I’m so excited for NAWDA to partner with the CDC to provide equal opportunities for North American women darters they would not otherwise have. This organization started off being an avenue for women to compete in the PDC World Championship qualifiers in hopes to advance to the Alexandra Palace stage in England. The women will still have that opportunity if they choose but, given the international travel challenges at the moment, providing them an added opportunity stateside is more than we could have hoped for!”