This has been a very busy period in the World of Darts.
There has been the PDC World Series in Bahrain, the WDF Las Vegas Open, JDC Q School, PDC Challenge Tour, Modus Legends Series and Arab Federations Cup.
It's great to see such a variation areas and levels of darts. We can see those who may be successful in the future, who has early season form, and spotting any interesting results.
PDC Bahrain Masters (World Series)
The first of the PDC World Series events began in Bahrain, which seems to becoming a permanent feature in the darts calendar. Bahrain are still finding their feet with the game, but the enthusiasm they are showing cannot be denied. The game continues to grow here.
The qualifiers were a mix of Bahrain and Asian players, with Pablo Nebrida the only to get past Round One, by beating Rob Cross. Nebrida had a good World Championship and will be keen to watch him on the PDC Asian Tour.
Second Round saw Gerwyn Price back to his best as he beat Luke Littler 6-2 with an average of 115. He seems to be having a revival, so will be interesting to follow him this year. Stephen Bunting was also dominant, beating Chris Dobey 6-0.
Bunting and Price then both won their semi-finals to set up a mouth watering final. After Luke Littler, these players seem to be the next best in form. Bunting went 4-1 up in quick fashion, but Price pulled it back to 5-3 and 6-4. However Bunting was too strong, particularly on his own throw and ran away an 8-4 winner.
This was a great start to the season for both players, who will soon begin their Premier League campaign. Definitely something for Lukes Littler and Humphries to think about.
WDF Las Vegas Open
A large line-up for the first major WDF event of the year. Predominately North American, there were also players from around the world in attendance. The winner of both the Men's and Women's single titles would receive a place at the 2025 WDF World Championships, so all to play for.
In the Women's events, it was the British contingent that won through. Deta Hedman won the Main LVO Open event, beating her Welsh counterpart, Rhian O'Sullivan 5-4. Jessica Melton was the best of the American challenge, making the semi final. Hedman has now booked her spot in the WDF World Championship in November.
The second main event saw Rhian O'Sullivan go one better and grab the title. She beat Japanese player Sayuri Nishiguchi 5-4 . Good to see a new name appear in the final and will be keeping an eye Nishiguchi. Maybe she can follow in Mikuru Suzuki's footsteps??
The Men's LVO Open was won by a North American, in Canadian player, David Cameron. He was one of the favourites for the title, and didn't disappoint, beating American player Jeff Springer Jr 6-3. Cameron, like Hedman, now gets a place at the WDF World Championships.
The Mens LVC event was an all-American affair, with Chris Lim taking the title beating David Fatum. Both players will now be looking to put in strong performances on the CDC Tour, which is looking evermore competitive.
JDC Q School
As mentioned in a previous post, this is the start of many players' careers. Players aged under 18 competing to play on the top level JDC Tour, known as the Advanced Tour.
The standard was very high, considering this is basically entry level. But nothing entry level about the qualifiers.
Ben Townley was particularly impressive in Event one. Not only did he win it, but he had the highest average, best 180%, best 140% and best checkout %. This done in a very competitive field. He could be a player to keep an eye on.
Jack Courtney won through in Event Two, beating Kaya Basal 4-3. Basal would go on to also get a Advanced Tour card, by finishing second on the Order of Merit.
Pre-tournament favourite, Lex Paeshuysen, from Belgium, had two very good events, but didn't quite make the final. This changed in Event 3, where he won through against another favoured contender, Jayden Walker 4-3. Walker would later qualify via the Order of Merit.
The final event saw the Slovenian youngster, Dominik Kocik win in the final, beating Lee Bradshaw 4-2. Kocik had been playing consistently well over the previous events, so was no surprise that he came through to win.
A very interesting weekend containing maybe the stars of tomorrow. I will be looking to see how these players, amongst other fare over the year, and who may be able to breakthrough.
PDC Challenge Tour 1-5
The headlines of this set of events goes to Beau Greaves. She won two of the five events in emphatic style, showing she has the capability to match the men, and potentially challenge on the Pro Tour.
The first event, saw a packed line up, full of experience and talent. The quarter finals saw appearances from Mervyn King and Simon Whitlock, who were aiming to bounce straight back to the Pro Tour. However both lost and it was another star of the game, Beau Greaves that came to the fore. After a 106+ average in her semi-final, Greaves went on to beat Stefan Bellmont 5-4 in a closely fought final. Greaves showed no nerves and that she belongs in this company.
The second event was a little worse for Greaves, but not for trying. She lost 5-4 to Daniel Ayres, despite hitting a 97 average. Just one of those games. For some, a surprising quarter final line up, but all deserved. Tommy Lishman, in particular, making his second semi final out of two event.He beat Kevin Burness 5-1 to progress to the final, where he was joined by Carl Sneyd, who beat Jeffrey Sparidaans 5-3. In the final, Sneyd had too much for Lishman and raced to a 5-1 victory. Both players picking up valuable Order of Merit points, and a possible shot in the Pro Tour.
The third event, saw Beau Greaves refreshed as she progressed through the rounds. Jimmy van Schie and John Henderson also found some form, as they made the semi finals. Kevin Burness was also carrying his form from the previous event to join them. The final saw Greaves in full control as she whitewashed John Henderson 5-0, with a 101 average. Greaves looked particularly strong all day, but was good to see John Henderson back climb the Order of Merit.
The fourth event saw some former Pro Tour regulars make the latter stages, Simon Whitlock made the quarter final, before losing out to Joe Hunt, who was having a great day. The other semi finalists were Mervyn King, Ted Evetts and Darius Labanauskas, so a lot of experience here.
King progressed to the final in a tight tussle with Hunt, winning 5-4, but Hunt will gain a lot of confidence from that. He faced Labanauskas, who dispatched Evetts 5-2. In the final, it was Labanauskas who won through, winning 5-3. King had the higher average, but was unable to displace the Lithuanian.
The fifth and final event of the weekend saw a resurgence by Stefan Bellmont, who had been runner-up to Beau Greaves in event one. He navigated his way to the semi finals and was joined by another player that had just lost his Tour card, in Danny Jansen. Michael Flynn was on fire, defeating Andreas Harrysson 5-0, with a 102+ average and they were joined by Aden Kirk. Jansen got the better of Flynn in the semi final, despite Flynn averaging 98+ and Bellmont defeated Kirk. Jansen got off to a flying start on the 2024 Challenge Tour and was looking to do the same here, however Bellmont had other ideas and deservedly claimed the win with a 5-1 victory.
So an exciting first weekend of the Challenge Tour. Things went particularly well for Beau Greaves and Stefan Bellmont, but were some encouraging performances from the like of Tommy Lishman, Carl Sneyd and Joe Hunt, (to name but a few). This promises to be a very tight year on the Challenge Tour and we may see it go down to the wire in November.
