Author: chrism
Simon Whitlock won through to the final of the PartyPoker.net European Darts Championship with a 11-9 triumph over Kim Huybrechts in Germany.
‘The Wizard’ held his nerve to take victory in a terrific battle and will now face Wez Newton for the £50,000 title. 
“That was an absolutley brilliant match,” said Whitlock, who moved a giant step closer to clinching his first PDC major.
“Kim played absolutely brilliantly and I had to sneak a bull in to beat him. I’m going to enjoy the final now and I’ll be going all out to win it.”
‘The Wizard’ hit a maximum in the opening leg, which he won against the throw before holding, hitting double top on both occasions.
He slotted in his second 180 on the way to another break, winning the third leg with a 92 checkout.
Huybrechts stopped the rot with back to back checkouts of 104 & 102, to pull the score back to 3-2 at the first break.
The Belgian hit double ten to break Whitlock’s throw and draw level, before taking out 86 to take the lead for the first time.
‘The Wizard’ ended a run of four consecutive legs for his opponent by taking out 58, but ‘The Hurricane’ took out 122 on the bull to restore his lead.
The players exchanged 180s in the tenth leg, which Whitlock won on double ten to make it five legs apiece.
Huybrechts held to regain the lead but ‘The Wizard’ responded with a 180 before hitting double eight to level.
Both players held their throw in the next three legs, meaning Whitlock went into the second break trailing his opponent by eight legs to seven.
The Australian star came back out fighting, opening the 16th leg with a 180, before hitting double ten to go level once more.
Whitlock also kicked off the next leg with a 180, and he grabbed a vital break of throw on double four.
The world number seven hit another 180 before hitting double four again to move just a leg away from the final.
Huybrechts kept himself in the match with a brilliant bull, bull, double 16 combination to finish 132.
But it was a Whitlock’s shot at the bull that won the match, as ‘The Wizard’ held his nerve to take out 95.
By Chris Murphy
Image courtesy of Lawrence Lustig/PDC
Simon Whitlock remains on course to win his first PDC major title, after defeating Colin Lloyd 10-7 in the quarter-finals of the European Darts Championship in Germany.
‘The Wizard’ hit five maximums in a high quality tussle with the former world number one, and will now face Kim Huybrechts this evening. 
“It was a very tough game,” admitted Whitlock, who is bidding to reach his third televised final of 2012.
“Colin played very well and I’m expecting the same from Kim tonight but I’m feeling good for this. I’m playing well and I believe I can go all the way.”
Whitlock won the opening leg with a neat 64 checkout and he quickly doubled his lead, following up a 171 with another tidy finish, this time 94.
The Australian ace continued his sharp finishing as he checked out 121 for a third leg on the spin.
Lloyd got off the mark by hitting double top, before a 105 checkout reduced Whitlock’s lead to a solitary leg.
‘Jaws’ levelled up with a brilliant 164 checkout, which ‘The Wizard’ responded to by hitting his first 180, before cleaning up 52 to edge back in front.
Lloyd took the eighth leg before Whitlock made the perfect start to the ninth, hitting a second maximum on the way to taking a 5-4 lead.
The pair went into the second break all square though, after Lloyd posted double four to hold his throw once more.
‘The Wizard’ retook the lead by hitting a 114 checkout with his opponent waiting on 25 to break.
The Australian then just missed double top for a 148 finish, before eventually finding the double ten bed to grab a break of his own.
And he increased his advantage to 8-5 by hitting tops, before Lloyd held despite a third 180 from ‘The Wizard’.
‘Jaws’ hit double top to reduce Whitlock’s lead to 8-7 but another maximum helped the Premier League finalist break straight back, to move within a leg of victory.
‘The Wizard’ kicked off the 17th leg with his fifth 180, before posting double top again, to book his place in the last four.
By Chris Murphy
Image courtesy of Lawrence Lustig/PDC
(Report from www.simonwhitlock.tv)
Simon Whitlock produced a strong performance to defeat Dave Chisnall for the first time, while Raymond van Barneveld also reached the quarter-finals of the PartyPoker.net European Championship after triumphing in a terrific match against Michael van Gerwen in Germany. 
Whitlock overcame the challenge of Chisnall, taking a 10-5 victory thanks to some clinical finishing.
‘The Wizard’ hit ten out of 13 double attempts to set up a last eight clash against Colin Lloyd.
“I played really well again,” said Whitlock. “I have struggled against Dave in the past so I’m thrilled to get that monkey off of my back.
“I’m feeling good, throwing well and I’m really confident. I can’t wait to be back on that stage tomorrow.”
van Barneveld came out on top in a sensational battle with fellow Dutchman van Gerwen, taking a 10-9 victory in the match of the tournament so far.
Both players averaged over 100 and produced some fabulous two and three dart finishes, before ‘Barney’ prevailed in the deciding leg.
“It was a fantastic match,” said van Barneveld, who faces Kim Huybrechts in Sunday’s quarter-finals.
“Michael played awesome but there can only be one winner and I’m happy that it was me.
“The confidence is coming back and I’m looking forward to tomorrow. I’m very happy with the way I’m playing.”
The PartyPoker.net European Championship concludes on Sunday with the quarter-finals taking place in the afternoon, before the semi-finals and final are played in the evening.
By Chris Murphy
Image courtesy of Lawrence Lustig/PDC
Raymond van Barneveld was the star performer in the first round of the PartyPoker.net European Championship, with Simon Whitlock and Michael van Gerwen also progressing in Germany. 
‘Barney’ demolished Terry Jenkins 6-1 with a sensational performance, in which the five-time World Champion recorded his highest ever televised average of 113.04 and a double success rate of 100%.
“Terry often beats me in knockout tournaments so my preparation had to be perfect,” said van Barneveld, who faces van Gerwen in the last 16 on Saturday night.
“I took my form from the practice board straight onto the stage and showed what I can do.
“It is a great feeling because Terry is an awesome player and now I will get ready to play Michael.”
Three 180s and a hundred average helped van Gerwen progress with a classy triumph over Andy Smith.
‘Mighty Mike’ took out shots of 84 and 111 as he raced into a three leg lead against ‘The Pieman’, before Smith battled back to force a decider.
Both players wired doubles in a dramatic final leg, before van Gerwen finished the job on double four.
Simon Whitlock also booked his place in the second round after defeating Mark Walsh 6-2.
‘The Wizard’ hit checkouts of 110 and 84 in a dominant display to set up a last 16 clash with Dave Chisnall.
By Chris Murphy
Kim Huybrechts will appear as part of a star-studded line-up at the Carlsberg Masters, which is being held in Birmingham in December.
‘The Hurricaine’, who has stormed onto the PDC scene over the last couple of years, has been added to the world class field for the event, which takes place at the Birmingham Ballroom on Friday 7 December.
The inaugural Carlsberg Masters boasts an incredible line-up of top PDC stars, as Belgian ace Huybrechts joins world number three James Wade and five-time World Champion Raymond van Barneveld.
They will appear alongside Australian star Simon Whitlock, former World Champion Mark Webster and the quick-fire Dutch duo of Vincent van der Voort and Michael van Gerwen.
Former PDC under-21 World Champion Arron Monk will also be on show, alongside two local qualifiers, who will be attempting to topple the professionals.
Lewis Jones of MODUS added: “It is almost like a Premier League night with the calibre of players in this event.
“It will be an amazing experience for the fans and would make for a very special Christmas party or just a brilliant night out. This is not to be missed.”
Tickets for this unique sporting spectacle start at £20 and are available by calling 0121 320 2820 or online via www.theticketsellers.co.uk or www.dartshop.tv
Simon Whitlock took victory in Sunday’s Players Championship 12 at Barnsley Metrodome, defeating Andy Hamilton 6-4 in the final.
‘The Wizard’ finally got rewarded for his solid form this year, as he claimed his first ranking title since 2010.
“I’m delighted to get the win,” said Whitlock, who will now turn his attention to the televised European Championships next week.
“It has been a while but I’ve been playing well. My form has been good so I always felt I would win one soon. 
“I’ve been putting the practise in and I’m looking forward to going to Germany now, with this win under my belt.”
The Australian star, who had reached the quarter-finals in Saturday’s event, began Sunday’s tournament with a 6-2 defeat of Tony Littleton.
He followed that up with wins over Scott Rand and Kim Huybrechts, before seeing off the challenge of Steve Maish in the quarter-finals.
‘The Wizard’ halted the charge of former World Champion Dennis Priestley in the last four, triumphing 6-2 over the Yorkshire-man before beating Hamilton to clinch the £6,000 title.
Whitlock trailed ‘The Hammer’ by two legs in the final but hit back to tie the match at 2-2.
The next four legs all went with the throw before Whitlock grabbed a crucial break, hitting double eight to take the lead before posting double 16 to triumph.
Michael van Gerwen, who won Saturday’s event, was denied the chance to make it a double success.
The Dutchman was defeated by Hamilton in the semi-finals, with ‘Mighty Mike’ missing double twelve for a nine-darter.
van Gerwen defeated Kevin McDine, Jamie Caven, Terry Jenkins and Prakash Jiwa en route to the last four.
By Chris Murphy
Images courtesy of Lawrenc Lustig/PDC
Michael van Gerwen produced some fabulous performances as he stormed to his third ProTour title of 2012 in Barnsley on Saturday.
The 23-year-old Dutchman, who recently hit a nine-darter in the Betfair World Matchplay, continued his fantastic form to win Players Championship 11, beating Ian White 6-1 in the final. 
“I’m so happy to win because I’ve played really well all day,” said van Gerwen.
“I felt good and the further I went in the tournament I played better and better. That showed in the final and it gives me great confidence going forward.
“If I keep playing like this there is no reason I can’t that do really well in next week’s European Championships.”
‘Mighty Mike’ swept past William O’Connor and Mark Frost before triumphing 6-4 over Darren Webster in the last 16.
He then whitewashed Gary Anderson, with a 102.48 average, to set up a semi-final clash against World Championship runner-up Andy Hamilton.
Van Gerwen raised the bar again in the last four, defeating ‘The Hammer’ 6-2, before producing an even better performance to beat White.
The Dutch star won the first leg with a neat 78 finish, only for White to level up by taking out 148.
van Gerwen took the next leg in 13 darts and never looked back, hitting another 78 checkout to go 3-1 in front.
14 and 13 dart legs followed, giving ‘Mighty Mike’ a 5-1 advantage.
And he finished the job, hitting double eight to claim the £6,000 title.
Simon Whitlock reached the quarter-finals with some strong performances, most notably a 6-1 win over Dennis Smith, in which the Australian ace averaged over 112.
Mervyn King also reached the last eight after defeating Arron Monk, Denis Ovens and Paul Nicholson, who showed a return to form by winning his board.
‘The Asset’ saw off Gareth Pass, Kevin Dowling and Stuart Kellet on his way to the last 16.
Sunday sees the twelfth Players Championship take place, the last ProTour event to count towards qualification for next month’s PartyPoker.com World Grand Prix in Dublin.
By Chris Murphy
Images courtesy of Lawrence Lustig/PDC
Some of the world’s best professional darts players will be on show in The Money Shop Untouchables at Eastbourne Winter Garden on Friday 19 October.
The superstars participating in this world-class event include five-time world champion Raymond van Barneveld and seven-time major winner James Wade, the world number three. 
Terry ‘The Bull’ Jenkins, Vincent van der Voort, Tony O’Shea and former World Champion Dennis Priestley complete the incredible line-up of professional stars taking part in the event.
They will be joined by Eastbourne pair Jim Withers and Dave Creasy, who earned the chance to take on the elite after winning through local qualifiers.
Lewis Jones of MODUS said: “It is a fantastic line-up, fit for a major televised tournament. It is not every day that this calibre of sporting talent turns up on your doorstep and I expect the darts fans in and around Eastbourne will be excited for what will undoubtedly be a night to remember.”
The Money Shop Untouchables, supported by Red Dragon, takes place on Friday 19 October 2012 at the Winter Garden, Eastbourne (Doors open at 6pm, starts 7.30pm).
A range of tickets, starting at £25, are available to buy by calling 08450 180180 or online at www.dartshop.tv
Tickets can also be purchased via www.ticketmaster.co.uk or 0844 844 0444
By Chris Murphy
