To think fair enough that males darts champion wins 100k and female wins 12k

[DyslexicScientist]

Lots of people on my social media are going on about this. I don't have an issue with it, the prize money comes from advertising and less people are interested in women's darts.

Surely that just the free market at work?

I guess it is a bit catch 22, but if it makes them money they would of done it ages ago.

I agree Chicago. I watch football and tennis sometimes, I have limited time so away make sure I watch the most interesting ones, this does mean men's only.

I agree lack and clash

When I was in my teens I briefly took part in a youth target shooting club. On average, the girls were better than the boys. The coach told me later he believes it's because girls are more likely to listen to instruction and don't assume that they already know how to shoot because of video games...

Mixed tournaments were won by girls at least 50% of the time, probably more.

However, at an olympic level, there are separate men's and women's competitions and the best women are not on the same level as the best men. Is this because men are simply better at shooting? No. I would say that it's because of the freedom men have to pursue their (slightly eccentric) interests, more time without the children to practice, more free cash to spend on guns and ammunition.

What I'm trying to say is that even though I don't believe there is a big difference in raw ability, men have much more opportunity to nurture their skills.

The girl shooters I knew, only one of them still shoots, and very rarely. The boy shooters I knew (most of whom were pretty crap at the time I knew them ) several of them are still shooting frequently. Only at amateur level, but still.

And yes, I can see that point - take pool for example. Dh and all his male friends started playing pool from the age of eight or so - they'd get taken to the pub Sunday dinner time with dad and play, male bonding etc. I don't think I'd picked up a pool cue til I was eighteen.

This is exactly it. See also women's comedy. And so much else. There are just so few opportunities and such little encouragement, it's shocking. The good news is that it's changing, albeit slowly.

Ultimately, more people watch the men's game. Therefore they attract more advertising and sponsorship and so the prizes are higher. That's sort of fair enough in our capitalist world - but what isn't fair enough is why more people watch the men's game. Until recently, women's sports - apart from tennis, not coincidentally the place women can earn most - was virtually never mentioned on the news.

If it's not talked about, it's not sponsored. If it's not talked about, people don't get excited about it. If people don't get excited about it they don't do it - and so the circle continues.

The Daily Mail, which I know isn't exactly a forward-thinking example, has eleven stories in their "Top Sports Stories" section this morning. All are about men.

The mens final at wimbledon pisses me off its seems to have more coverage afterwards than womens or the doubles

The womens matches are shorter and they don't play as many as the men do (although I'm happy to be corrected). The men's darts attracts more viewers/sponsorship so its understandable why the prize money is more. Hence why the winner of the PDC gets more than the winner of the BDO will.

I don't think many people watch the women's darts simply because the standard is just not as good. The winner won yesterday with an average of 72, it's just not in the same league as the men. So I don't think you're being goady or unreasonable.

I have mixed feelings about this. I'm a darts fan and went to the Lakeside and was glad that the women's game is getn more exposure. I don' t think theres anything to prevent women playing in men's events Anastasia Dobromyslova competed in the Grand slam of darts against the men, but had little success and was routinely whitewashed.

Standards are going up and there appears to be more depth than there was 5 years ago, but the standards are nowhere as high as the men's game. The women's final was gripping, but they were routinely 21 dart legs and averages in the 70s. That sort of darts wouldn't get you past the first round in the men's competition. I agree that 12k is a paltry amount, but is 12k more than they'd have won if there was one competition. Darts isn't like tennis where the women's game is a draw in its own right for either punters or sponsors yet. If the game continues improving, but we aren't at that stage.

There were the same arguments over Womens' football. Obviously women can't compete directly against men due to physical differences. The popularity of the mens' game attracts big investment. The women's game is only just starting to attract media attention which is beginning to increase participation amongst women and girls. like me

I agree with Compos, the average is far lower than the men's. The darts are just not as good

The popularity of darts was built on the personalities. Eric Bristow comes to mind.
Yes,I know people look at darts players and see big ugly men with beer bellues, but sufficient charisma can override that.
Similarily, the popularity of snooker in the 80's was built on the Steve Davis- Alex Higgins rivalry, Ray Reardon and a few other personalities.
To gain popularity and hence sponsorship womens darts needs at least one (preferably 2) charismatic women who can be packaged as a star. Inevitably this will include looking reasonably attractive. The female equivalent of Jocky Wilson won't cut it.
You can probably tell I haven't watched snooker or darts for 20 years or so, lol. However the point stands, to gain traction on tv any sport needs it's stars.

mrsjayy money in sports isn't just earned by doing the sport. It's how much money is brought into the sport, how much sponsorship, how much mainstream media attention they can attract, how many tickets they can sell.
Women aren't bringing money into darts at the moment therefore they can't expect equal prize money.

Gymnastics and ice skating are probably the only sports where women are more popular than men for to etc.
I don't know about ice skating but in gym prize money is equal, even though men compete more events.

Take the total revenue from women's darts and male darts. Put it all in a pot. What % comes from the women, and what % from the men? There's your answer.

Same with football and men vs women's salaries.

To say "oh they should get paid the same" is just naive.

Maybe the women's side should be promoted more. But With both sports, the women's games just aren't as good to watch as the men's and never will be IMO.

As for minority sports, a lot of them are minority sports for a reason. Either the barriers to entry put it beyond the reach of ordinary people, like Polo or the they don't translate well to being televised like octopush.

Darts and snooker were both minority sports before the 70s, but colour tv (snooker) and split screens (darts) revolutionised their appeal. I think they work as they are easy to understand allow clise ups on the players and hinge on dramatic moments. Also most people have chucked darts in a pub at some point or played a frame of snooker or pool so can relate to the action on screen.

To say "oh they should get paid the same" is just naive.

Exactly, thankfully on here that's what 90% of the replies are about. Some really interesting comments on this topic. I dare not reply to any of the people that were flooding social media earlier!

Women can earn well in other sports - athletics, tennis, golf,eg. Rhonda Rousey is a top earner. Reaching the top level in any sport is just the beginning really. Both men and women have to be the total package nowadays - success, good looks, charisma, media skills. In turn they attract attention back to the sport and everyone benefits.
I would imagine it's very difficult for men to make much of a living at darts, let alone women. It's such an unglamorous sport.

"Throwing a dart is throwing a dart I dont understand why the prize money is less"

Why don't you go and win it then?

PDC World Darts Championship 2016 - first prize money £300,000.

BDO World Darts Championship 2016 - first prize money £100,000.

Both are, for all intents and purposes, men's tournaments. Same game, just different governing bodies.

The darts players in the PDC are better players, and therefore more entertaining. They get a bigger audience, more interest and more advertising. They win more money.

That's how it works.