Dave Kelly Send EMail to Dave

Hello all!! As you may remember, last month I was talking about the different soft-tip dart machine companies and the tournament series' that they have offered. I left you with a cliff hanger. That cliff hanger was the new and improved Valley Gold Tournament Series.

Last year I wrote about the Valley Tournament in Vegas and my subsequent trip to Germany. As you may remember, after Paul Lim and I had a good showing in Vegas, we went over to be the male part of Team USA. It was one of the best trips of my life. Not only did we have some excellent matches, but we traveled to wineries, mountains, and great restaurants. I could not imagine how Valley could make such a great experience better.

I now know how. Let me explain.

There are three levels to their tournament series. There are local operator tournaments, Valley Gold Tour Regionals, and finally the Nationals in Minneapolis.

First of all there is the local operator's qualifier. This qualifier is a standard tournament with many events. The kicker is that every player, even if they finish dead last in every event, receive a certificate that allows them to play in any or all events at a Valley held regional without paying any entry fees. Also, there are two events at the Regional that you must have the certificate to play in. These events are Go for the Gold and the Men's/Women's Team USA.

The Go for the Gold event is 501, Cricket, and 501 Wipeout 103. The top 32 players from each region qualify to play at the National Tournament. They only way to play at the Nationals is by qualifying. Regional Go for the Gold prizes include money, airfare to the Nationals, TVs, CD Players, and more.

For the Men's Team USA and Women's Team USA events, it is roughly the same. You must qualify at a local operator's tournament. Also, the top 32 men and 32 women qualify to play at the Nationals. Prizes at the Regionals include cash and airfare to Minneapolis for the finals for the first place male and female player.

Regionals, the next step in the series, are $20,000+ tournaments held by Valley around the country. Tour stops include Cleveland Carson-CA, Denver, Tampa, and Springfield-IL. If you haven't played in an operator's tournament, you can still pay entry fees and get into the events except for Go for the Gold and Men's/Women's Team USA events.

Another thing Valley did was make your memberships to the NDA (National Dart Association) or the ADA (American Dart Association/Bud Light Dart League) worth some money. Members of these organizations receive discounts on their entry fees.

All of this leads up to the Valley Gold Tour Nationals in Minneapolis. This tournament has a $150,000 pay out. This includes fun prizes like a new Harley Davidson motorcycle, a years lease on a Mercury Cougar car, big screen TVs, and much more. Not to mention, the top two male and the top two females will win an all expense paid trip to Amsterdam to be on Team USA.

Anyone can show up for the Nationals and play in all events except for the two that you must qualify for at Regionals. It should be a great time.

Now, I don't claim to be an expert on Valley's new tournaments, but I can let you know how to get more information. You can e-mail me at dskelly@concentric.net and I will get you answers or you can call (888) TOUR-GOLD (toll free) for more information.

As always, I will continue to let you know about anything new and improved that I run into during my travels. But, I recommend you check this out.