WADE OPENS UP ON ADHD STRUGGLES

JAMES WADE says his son’s ADHD battle is “f***ing torture” and admits he feels at “fault” for passing it on.

‘The Machine’ was diagnosed with the condition in 2010 but confesses seeing his child face the same challenges has been far harder than anything he has dealt with himself.

10-times major winner Wade revealed the situation has brought back painful memories of his own youth and how misunderstood he felt growing up.

Wade acknowledges the hardest part is knowing how cruel the world can be for someone wired like his boy.

He told the Observer: “I’m really struggling at the moment with my son, because I know what shit he’s got ahead of him, and it’s my fault – he’s got it from me.

“It’s heartbreaking. We’ve had to pull him out of school, because he’s having outbursts. We’re going to go down the medication route, because it’s fucking torture for him.

“I know how to help him learn, because he’s like I was. I know how uncomfortable it is talking at people, because they won’t talk to you and you don’t know how to talk to people.

“He’s got to go through all that. And he will. He’ll be all right.

“ADHD makes things annoying. I get really impatient with people. Noises annoy me. I get overwhelmed a lot. There’s more negatives than there are positives.”

Aldershot slinger Wade also called out the Professional Darts Players Association (PDPA), saying players aren’t getting the mental health support they need.

He added: “I get players talking to me when they don’t feel very well.

“I’m happy to do it, but there should be somewhere [where] they feel they can talk to someone and trust someone. We’re talking high-profile players.

“The PDPA is not [doing] anything worthwhile, because they don’t represent us, they don’t understand a lot of things. It needs to be an active rather than a passive thing.”

Wade has been in stellar form this year as he made the finals of the UK Open and World Matchplay.

The 42-year-old also picked up his first senior title since 2022 at the Players Championship 19.

He continued: “It’s a miracle what I’ve achieved really.

“People don’t realise that you can’t just compare me to someone else, because it’s not about how good I am.

“It’s about what day I’m having. I’ve got to have five good days to do well in a tournament. Unfortunately, I have one, or none, or sometimes three.

“That’s why I’ve always struggled at the World Championships, because it’s such a long time span, and I get more obsessed with trying to keep myself in a good place than I do playing.”

World No.5 Wade also backed Saudi Arabia hosting a competitive darts event for the first time ever next year.

The World Series of Darts heads to Riyadh on January 19-20 of 2026 for the Saudi Arabia Masters.

He said: “I prefer the money now, I don’t prefer the timetable. Overall, it’s 100% a positive thing where darts has gone.

“But I could 100% stay in a hotel every day of the week and be doing something in darts. You don’t actually need to have a house. Is that healthy?

“I’d rather play in Saudi Arabia because if I’m going there, I only have to play a few games, you probably get more time away from the darts than if you stayed in the UK.

“Saudi Arabia is definitely a better place than Wigan, Barnsley, Hildesheim [in Germany], the list goes on. Have you seen Wigan? Now that’s bad for mental health.”

Wade returned to action at the Grand Slam of Darts on Saturday, suffering a narrow 5-4 defeat to Stefan Bellmont despite averaging 97.12 and landing a 114 checkout.

He’s back on stage tomorrow to face Gerwyn Price in Group D, knowing only a win will keep his hopes of reaching the last 16 alive.

Image by Taylor Lanning.