Premier League stars Rob Cross, Michael Smith and Gerwyn Price all progressed through to the UK Open quarter-finals on a dramatic day of action at Butlin’s Minehead Resort, as James Wade, Daryl Gurney and Mensur Suljovic became the latest big names to exit the tournament.
Continue reading “2019 UK Open – Day Two Report!”
Raymond van Barneveld will compete in his first European Tour event for almost two years in March after being amongst the qualifiers for the year’s opening two events, as three-time BDO world champion Glen Durrant produced a series of stunning displays in the first qualifier to seal his European Tour debut.
Continue reading “Van Barneveld secures European Tour return!”
Third seed Peter Wright was sent crashing out of the William Hill World Darts Championship after suffering a shock 3-1 defeat against Spanish star Toni Alcinas on a dramatic double-session on Sunday at the Alexandra Palace. Continue reading “Santa Snakebite suffers shock Ally Pally exit!”
Michael van Gerwen kicked off his bid for a third World Championship title with an impressive 3-1 victory over Alan Tabern, but only after recovering from a spectator throwing beer over him ahead of his walk-on at the Alexandra Palace on Saturday evening. Continue reading “Emotional Van Gerwen showered in beer at World Championship!”
Robert Thornton, Mervyn King and Paul Nicholson were three of the high-profile names to secure qualification through to the HappyBet German Darts Open on Friday evening, as Steve Beaton landed a spectacular nine-dart finish on a dramatic night of action in Barnsley. Continue reading “European Tour 3- UK Qualifier Report!”
Newcastle ace Adam Hunt tops the Development Tour Order of Merit after reaching three of the four finals hosted on the second weekend of Development Tour action at the Robin Park Tennis Centre in Wigan. Continue reading “2017 PDC Development Tour: Order of Merit Update!”
Nine-time major finalist Terry Jenkins rolled back the years as he produced four ton-plus checkouts to edge out impressive youngster Josh Payne, as Benito van de Pas and Andrew Gilding also tasted victory on day three at the Alexandra Palace on Saturday afternoon.
Jenkins produced a vintage display to book his spot in the second-round after a hard-fought victory over 2016 Pro Tour winner Josh Payne. ‘The Raging Bull’ averaged 93.66, landed four maximums and converted 38% of his double attempts to prevail, despite Payne firing in seven maximums.
Missed doubles plagued the nine-time major finalist in a hard-fought first set. Jenkins opened his account with a fine 13-darter but Payne drew level with a 75 finish, before Jenkins defied a second maximum from the youngster to hold throw with a fine 106 outshot.
Payne stayed alive in the set by pinning D9, but Jenkins had the advantage of throw in the set decider.’The Raging Bull’ seemed destined to clinch the set but spurned six darts at double as the 22-year-old pounced on tops to secure the lead.
However, the former Ally Pally semi-finalist bounced back in set two. Jenkins pinned tops to break after the interval, before hitting the same target to extend his lead after Payne wired the bull for an 81 kill. Payne nailed D10 to heap the pressure on Jenkins, but the Ledbury ace defied a fourth maximum from the Gravesend ace to level on D10.
The pair traded maximums in the first-leg of set three, but Jenkins clinically converted a 100 outshot to hold. The 53-year-old then hit D10 to break, before clinching the third set without reply on D6, with Payne struggling to match Terry’s consistent scoring power.
Payne stopped the rot on D16 after Jenkins spurned three darts at D18 and D9 respectively to win his fifth consecutive leg, before a dramatic second leg ensued. ‘The Maximum’ posted successive maximums to set up a potential 9-darter, but after leaving 90 after 9 darts he wasn’t afforded a shot as Jenkins converted a majestic 140 finish to hold.
Jenkins’ magnificent finishing continued as he produced a brilliant 121 checkout (T20, T15, D8) to record his fourth ton-plus checkout to move within a leg of victory, but Payne broke back to keep his hopes alive. However, ‘The Maximum’ then spurned two darts at D8 to force a fifth and deciding set, which allowed Jenkins to finally close out victory on D16.
Jenkins was understandably thrilled with both the performance and result.“I was nice and relaxed; I felt comfortable. I haven’t put a lot of practice in just lately because every time I step up to the board I keep hitting 180’s, so I think why do you need to put the practice in, just leave them alone and that’s what I’ve done.
“I used to practice a lot when I was a youngster, but I think 90% of it is in your head and down to experience. ” Jenkins will face fifteenth seed Benito van de Pas in round-two, but Terry is relishing the prospect. Benito’s playing well, he’s another youngster that’s on form at the moment, but he’s got to play well to beat me.”
Van de Pas overcome dogged qualifier Tengku Shah to scramble through to round-two. The Dutchman averaged 91.18 as he prevailed 3-1, but his finishing was the decisive factor; Benito converted 61% of his double attempts compared to Shah’s 22% ratio, but the Malaysian acquitted himself extremely well, averaging 87.86 and landing four maximums.
Shah overcame Japanese star Masumi Chino in Saturday’s preliminary qualifier to book a showdown with ‘Big Ben’. The Malaysian won a nerve-jangling first set dominated by missed doubles, but Chino drew level with 117 and 106 finishes. Despite this, Shah held his nerve and won the final set without reply to progress to round-one with an 83.44 average.
However, the soft-tip ace was unable to dump out the Dutch star. Van de Pas performed an act of darting burglary in the opening set, winning it despite Shah being first to the double in all five legs. The Malaysian converted just two of his thirteen double attempts and the world number fifteen capitalised with clinical finishes of 72 and 78.
The pair exchanged breaks in the early stages of set two, before Van de Pas seized command with a stylish 125 finish (25, T20, D20). Shah then missed three darts to force a set decider and Van de Pas continued his clinical run of finishing to extend his lead.
Shah kicked off the third set with an exhibition 99 finish (S19, D20, D20). However Van de Pas fired back impressively, moving to the cusp of victory after reeling off successive legs in 14 and 12 darts respectively. Nevertheless, Shah fought valiantly and broke back on D10, before clinching the third set with a 13-darter to spark jubilant celebrations.
Any hopes of an incredible turnaround were quickly extinguished however. Van de Pas kicked off set four with a solid 16-dart hold, before hitting his second maximum and firing in a 13-dart leg to move to within a leg of round-two. This time ‘Big Ben’ made no mistake, sealing his progression with a classy 108 kill culminating on D18.
In his post-match press conference, Van de Pas admitted he was simply relieved to have secured the win, admitting: “The draw came out two weeks ago and from then I was so nervous because everybody expects you to win this game. I didn’t have a lot of confidence today; I was practicing really bad, but the win is there.
“I’m taking it game by game; the next one is Terry Jenkins, he is a good player. I played Terry at the World Grand Prix and it was a really nice game, and hopefully we have another nice game. I’m looking forward to it,” the 23-year-old added.
Finally, Andrew Gilding produced an inspired comeback from 2-0 down to edge out John Henderson in a pulsating sudden-death battle. ‘Big John’ appeared in cruise control but Gilding fought back superbly, averaging 90.94 and registering eight maximums to set up a second-round meeting with world champion Gary Anderson.
Gilding fired in three maximums in the opening set, but Henderson claimed the spoils in a hard-fought affair. The Scotsman squandered two set darts in the fourth leg but was afforded another opportunity moments later, which he duly took by pinning D16.
Gilding emerged from the interval with a 14-darter, but Henderson delivered an instant riposte with 121 finish on the bull. ‘Big John’ then seized command with an impressive 14-dart to break throw, before clinching the second set with a 15-dart hold on tops after Gilding had wired the bull for a 164 finish in the preceding visit.
Henderson won his fourth straight leg with a regulation 54 checkout, but out of nowhere ‘The Highlander’ lost his focus and Gilding pounced, winning three successive legs and reducing the arrears to 2-1 in sets by eventually pinning D1.
The momentum had shifted completely as Gilding registered his fourth straight leg via D19. Henderson arrested his slump by hitting his second maximum followed by a 98 finish for a 12-darter, but Gilding regained control of the set with a 15-dart hold, before converting a clean 80 kill to force a fifth and deciding set.
Henderson secured first blood in the decider with a quality two-dart 85 finish, but ‘Goldfinger’ fired straight back on D10. The Scot then regained the lead on tops with his last dart in hand after Gilding wired bull for a 94 finish and a break, but the Englishman forced a tiebreak after converting a clinical 101 kill on D12.
‘Goldfinger’ then hit his seventh maximum and nailed a spectacular 143 checkout to complete a 12-darter to break and lead for the first time since the opening leg. However, the former UK Open semi-finalist endured a torrid leg at the most inopportune moment by leaving 104 after 18 darts, as Henderson capitalised to hit D16 and stay afloat.
‘Big John’ made it back-to-back legs by pinning D20 at the first attempt, but the Scot missed one match dart at the bull before Gilding posted D2 to prolong the drama. The next two legs were shared as the contest went to a sudden-death leg and Gilding prevailed after winning the bullseye and converting a nerveless 75 finish on tops.
Gilding admitted to Josh’s Dartistry: “At 2-0, if John had hit a couple of 12-darters which he’s capable of, there would have been nothing I could do. But I just kept plugging away. There’s been little bits in my technique I’ve been working on. Maybe I slacked a little bit and relaxed after that UK Open success and took things for granted. But I’m really working on my technique now.”
Photo Credit: Lawrence Lustig/PDC
William Hill World Darts Championship
Saturday December 17
Afternoon Session (1pm)
Tengku Shah 2-1 Masumi Chino (P)
Terry Jenkins (18) 3-1 Josh Payne
John Henderson (31) 2-3 Andrew Gilding
Benito van de Pas (15) 3-1 Tengku Shah
Michael van Gerwen will begin the defence of his World Series of Darts Finals title against either Gerwyn Price or Steve Beaton when the £155,000 tournament gets underway at Glasgow’s Braehead Arena this coming Saturday.
‘The Green Machine’ edged out Peter Wright 11-10 to win the tournament’s inaugural staging last year, which was the culmination of the annual worldwide tour. There were six World Series events held this year, in Dubai, Auckland, Shanghai, Tokyo, Sydney and Perth.
Van Gerwen will be top seed in Glasgow this weekend after topping the World Series of Darts rankings for the second year in succession. MvG won both the Shanghai and Perth Darts Masters, whilst he was also a runner-up in Dubai, Tokyo and Sydney.
The world number one will begin his campaign against either Gerwyn Price or Steve Beaton. Van Gerwen demolished Price 10-2 in the second-round of last week’s European Championship, whilst he also defeated Steve Beaton in the first-round of last month’s World Grand Prix. Continue reading “2016 World Series of Darts Finals Draw & Schedule!”
The eight global invitations for next month’s World Series of Darts Finals have been confirmed and Kim Huybrechts heads the list of global prospects, along with the likes of Benito van de Pas, Gerwyn Price and Daryl Gurney.
The World Series of Darts Finals features the eight players who competed in the World Series events hosted across the globe this year, with 16 other competitors accompanying them at the Braehead Arena, Glasgow, on November 5th and 6th.
The 16 other participants are made up of four wildcards, eight global prospects, and four further qualifiers. The four wildcards via the PDC Order of Merit were Robert Thornton, Michael Smith, Jelle Klaasen and Mensur Suljovic.
Elsewhere, Simon Whitlock, Steve Beaton, Brendan Dolan & Joe Murnan were the quartet who came through the World Series of Darts Finals qualifier at the Barnsley Metrodome last Sunday.
However, the field of eight global prospects is headed by former Premier League star Kim Huybrechts. The Belgian, currently ranked 15th on the PDC Order of Merit, has enjoyed a strong year in both floor and televised tournaments, reaching the World Grand Prix quarter-finals earlier this month. Continue reading “World Series of Darts Finals: Eight Global Invitations Confirmed!”
Michael van Gerwen began the defence of his World Matchplay title with a thumping whitewash victory over Jamie Caven, whilst Dave Chisnall, Robert Thornton and Kyle Anderson all won through on the opening night at the Winter Gardens.
Van Gerwen was in magnificent form as he despatched Jamie Caven 10-0. Jabba didn’t perform anywhere near to his potential, averaging a miserly 79. He only had four attempts at double in the entire contest; all of which came in the second leg.
However, ‘The Green Machine’ was in merciless form. He averaged 105.85, hitting four maximums and converting 50% of his attempts at double. The world number one will face Kyle Anderson in the last 16, after ‘The Original’ eased past 16th seed Vincent van der Voort 10-4.
It was a relatively scrappy affair, with van der Voort averaging 89.99 compared to Anderson’s 92.34. The encounter was evenly poised at 5-4, as Van der Voort reeled off successive legs to close in on the Australian. However, Anderson won five straight legs to secure his first ever victory at the World Matchplay.
Michael van Gerwen will begin the defence of his World Matchplay title against Jamie Caven, whilst world champion Gary Anderson takes on former Lakeside world finalist Alan Norris, after the draw was made live on Sky Sports News on Thursday morning.
The prestigious 32-player event, televised by Sky Sports, will be held at Blackpool’s Winter Gardens from July 16-24. Van Gerwen, who defeated James Wade in last year’s final, is faced with a tough assignment against Caven, a winner of seven Pro Tour titles.
Arguably the tie of the round sees world champion Gary Anderson take on Alan Norris. Norris has been in tremendous form over the last twelve months, which saw him reach the quarter-finals of the PDC World Championship on debut. Anderson has never gone beyond the last four in Blackpool, and this promises to be a quick-fire contest.
Phil Taylor will begin his bid for an unprecedented 16th World Matchplay title against Robbie Green, who just managed to secure his spot on the final day of qualifying.’Kong’ is making his first Matchplay appearance since 2004, but Taylor will be hoping to win his eighth Blackpool title in just nine years.
The field for the 2016 World Matchplay was confirmed after the conclusion of the Players Championship double-header in Barnsley. Robbie Green secured a last-gasp qualification with a fine run to the quarter-finals at the Metrodome on Sunday afternoon.
A 32-player field will compete in the BetVictor World Matchplay from July 16-24 at Blackpool’s Winter Gardens, as the top 16 players from the PDC Order of Merit will be joined by 16 qualifiers from the rolling one-year ProTour Order of Merit.
Green will be making his long-awaited Blackpool return, having lost 10-7 to Bob Anderson in round-one of the World Matchplay twelve years ago, back in 2004. Green’s run to the last eight in Players Championship 11 saw him pip Rowby-John Rodriguez for the final qualification spot, which will be a bitter pill to swallow for the Austrian.
There will also be three debutants in this year’s competition. Former World Championship finalist Alan Norris has been rewarded for his remarkable Pro Tour consistency, having finished 4th on the Pro Tour Order of Merit.
Josh Payne won his first senior PDC title at Players Championship six, as he came through an enthralling last-leg decider to edge out eight-time major winner James Wade at the Barnsley Metrodome on Saturday afternoon.
Payne, 22, has won three Development Tour titles, but this is without doubt the finest moment of his career, as he scooped the £10,000 winner’s cheque by beating ‘The Machine’ in an epic curtain-raiser.
Payne saw off the established trio of Gerwyn Price, Ronny Huybrechts and Wes Newton, before he secured his quarter-final berth with a 6-4 victory over former world finalist Kevin Painter. Payne then edged out Mensur Suljovic 6-5 in the last eight, before overcoming Steve Brown 6-3 to reach his maiden Pro Tour final.
It was a fantastic day for Brown however, as he reached his first PDC ranking semi-final for over 5 years, beating the likes of Joe Cullen, James Richardson, Antonio Alcinas, James Wilson and Simon Whitlock.
Payne faced James Wade in the final, as ‘The Machine’ set his sights on his first Pro Tour victory since July 2015. The left-hander dropped just three legs in dispatching Dave Ladley and Dean Winstanley, before coming through a deciding-leg against Devon Petersen to reach the last 16.
Continue reading “Josh Payne is the shock Players Championship 6 winner!”
1. Phil Taylor will drop out of the World’s Top 2
This would be unprecedented in PDC folk law! Since the current ranking system was implemented, Taylor has never been ranked lower than 2nd. However, I cannot envisage Taylor retaining his number two spot, with Gary Anderson trailing him by just a meagre £12,000. Now I am certainly not forecasting a Taylor decline; he is still performing at the peak of his powers, illustrated by his 116 average against Raymond van Barneveld, albeit in defeat, last week.
Yet unfortunately for Taylor, there are so many top players performing to their maximum, and with the Power having to defend the World Matchplay and World Grand Prix titles, along with a Players Championship final appearance on the rolling two-year order of merit, he will have to enjoy a dominant year to stave off the threat of a resurgent Anderson, who is defending very little after having a particularly ordinary 2013. I think Taylor will win at least one major title this year, although it’s unlikely to be sufficient to preserve his current ranking.