Kiwi darts star Ben Robb admits the challenges many New Zealanders are facing getting into the country could force him to withdraw from the upcoming Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) World Darts Championship in London.
The country's top-ranked player, Robb was named as New Zealand's representative for the prestigious event after the top 16 qualifying tournament in Timaru was cancelled, with many players unable to travel due to the current alert levels.
But in a world dominated by COVID, it's more difficult to travel to the other side of the world to throw tungsten arrows, especially with New Zealand’s lottery managed isolation quarantine (MIQ) system.
Robb would be taking unpaid leave, while facing the prospect of being away from his fiancé and young children for an extended period.
“I have all intentions to go, but just like everything going on, it comes down to MIQ and getting home,” Robb told SENZ's Extra Time.
“I have a young family. I don't want to get stuck overseas, like others have.
“There is talk about self-isolation coming back, so that's a big call.”
The world championships, which run from December 15 to January 3, see 96 of the best players around the world competing for a £500,000 ($963,000 NZD) prize.
The 32-year-old previously competed at Alexandra Palace in 2019, where he suffered a first round defeat, although he did hit a 170 finish.
If Robb does travel over, there could be a bigger prize on the line, as he’d extend his stay in the UK to try win his PDC Tour Card at Qualifying School.
Last year, over 650 players battled it out for just 29 Tour Cards and if Robb is successful, he’d be he first New Zealander to hold one, which enables him to compete in every PDC event for the next two years.
“I'll be staying till February because I want to compete in Q-School to try win a tour card and be a professional for a couple of years.
“It's tough but I'm playing at the standard where I feel I can compete with the world's best.”