By Brad Williams
Shortly removed from the memorable 2026 World Championship campaign, we are headed back to Bahrain for the fourth instalment of the Bahrain Darts Masters. This is everything you need to know:
When is it taking place?
The Bahrain Darts Masters kicks off on Thursday, 15th January, and runs until Friday, 16th January. The two-day event takes place at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain, and will be live from 5pm.
Who is participating?
The 16-player field sees eight PDC representatives and eight Asian representatives, including the 2026 World Darts Championship winner and world number one, Luke Littler, reigning Bahrain Darts Masters winner Stephen Bunting, as well as returns to the oche for the 71-year-old “Singapore Slinger” Paul Lim, and one of the sports new fan favourites, Motomu Sakai, who won the hearts of the darting World after his unforgettable 2026 World Championship appearances.
Abdullah Saeed and Basem Mahmood both earned their place at the event through a national qualifying competition.
PDC representatives:
Luke Littler, Gian Van Veen, Luke Humphries, Michael Van Gerwen, Danny Noppert, Gerwyn Price, Nathan Aspinall, and Stephen Bunting.
Asian Representatives:
Alexis Toylo, Lourence Ilagan, Motomu Sakai, Ryusei Azemoto, Paul Lim, Man Lok Leung, Abdulla Saeed, and Basem Mahmood.
What is on the line?
The total prize fund of the event is £100,000, of which the winner will receive £30,000, and the runner-up will bag themselves £16,000. The first round and quarterfinals will be best of eleven legs, while the semi-finals and final will be best of thirteen and fifteen legs, respectively.
It is the opening event of the 2026 World Series of Darts. Stephen Bunting is the defending champion after defeating Gerwyn Price 8-4 in last year’s final and will look to become the first player to win the event back-to-back.
Previous years have held some memorable moments, including Luke Littler becoming the youngest player to hit a televised nine-darter in 2024, and the appearance of Hasan Haji, whose quirky throw left an indelible impression on fans of the sport.