Mardle's poor form continued in the 2010 PDC World Championship, where he lost to Jyhan Artut 3-0 with a poor average of 72. Mardle continued to drop out the rankings and was ranked as low as 85th in the Order of Merit.
Mardle also attempted to qualify for the 2012 PDC World Championship via the PDPA qualifier which was held in Wigan and was whitewashed 5-0 in the Preliminary Round by Ken Dobson giving us further evidence of his darting decline.
Mardle's slide down the world rankings meant he was no longer assure of a PDC tour card to play on the Pro Tour, and had to enter the Q School to try and earn one. However, on the eve of the first Q School qualifier, Mardle announced on his twitter page that he had decided not to go to Q School and instead focus on commentating for Sky Sports and playing in exhibitions.