In a change mirroring that of the 2019 PDC World Darts Championship, the field of this competition increased from 64 to 96 players, who competed in 32 groups of three, with the winner of each progressing to the knockout stages.
The group stage and knock-out phase from the last 32 to the semi-finals was played at Robin Park Centre, Wigan, on 5 November 2018. The final took place on 25 November 2018, before the final of the 2018 Players Championship Finals.
Van den Bergh successfully defended his youth title by beating Germany'sMartin Schindler 6–3 in the final.
Van den Bergh became the first player to defend the title and overall to win two times the PDC World Youth Title.
Prize money
Position (no. of players)
Prize Money (Total: £60,000)
Winner
(1)
£10,000
Runner-up
(1)
£5,000
Semi-finalists
(2)
£2,500
Quarter-finalists
(4)
£1,600
Last 16
(8)
£1,000
Last 32
(16)
£500
Second in group
(32)
£300
Third in group
(32)
£250
Qualifiers
74 players from the final 2018 PDC Development Tour Order of Merit qualified, as did 22 international qualifiers.[1]Tahuna Irwin, who would have been the 23rd international qualifier, withdrew due to an issue with immigration.[2]Bradley Brooks, Dawson Murschell and Rusty-Jake Rodriguez qualified through the Development Tour Order of Merit as well as through an International Qualifier, which means the players ranked 75, 76 and 77 all qualified. Levy Frauenfelder replaced Jakob Kelly.