MIGHTY MIKE ENJOYS HOME WIN IN DUTCH DARTS MASTERS
MICHAEL VAN GERWEN delighted his home crowd with a brilliant performance to win the Dutch Darts Masters title with a 6-4 victory over Mervyn King as the European Tour event in Veldhoven concluded on Sunday evening.
The World Champion produced four ton-plus averages on the final day of the £100,000 tournament as he left Kevin Painter, Wes Newton, Brendan Dolan and Mervyn King defeated to claim the win.
His triumph, earning the 24-year-old a £20,000 first prize in the process, saw van Gerwen overcome King in yet another big final after defeating the same opponent in the 2012 World Grand Prix decider and in last year's Austrian Darts Open, as he picked up his first title since winning the World Championship on New Year's Day.
Van Gerwen had struggled with his finishing in the second round against Steve Maish on Saturday, but proved a different animal 24 hours later as he defeated Painter 6-2 in the last 16 and then overcame Newton 6-3 in the quarter-finals.
A 6-4 semi-final win over Dolan, who led 2-1 early on but fell victim to a burst of four 180s in three legs from the Dutchman, put him into the decider against King, who had defied a back problem to battle into the final.
King had whitewashed young Belgian Dimitri van den Bergh in the last 32, and saw off Welshman Kevin Thomas in the third round on Sunday afternoon before edging past both Dave Chisnall and Ian White in 11-leg thrillers to reach the decider.
A high-quality final saw van Gerwen open with a 14-darter and then take out 144 - with King waiting on 40 - for a 12-dart leg to double his lead.
Another 14-dart finish put van Gerwen 3-0 up before King traded 180s with the World Champion and took out 106 to get off the mark.
The pair again swapped maximums in the fifth leg as double 16, for a 13-dart finish, gave van Gerwen a 4-1 cushion - but King roared back by winning the next three legs, including back-to-back 13-darters, to level the game.
The ninth leg proved crucial as both players left two-dart finishes after only nine darts, with van Gerwen finishing a 12-dart leg to move 5-4 up before sealing victory in the next on double eight to complete a 64 finish.
Van Gerwen ended the final with a 108.80 average to King's 107.40, and added the Dutch Darts Masters title to two European Tour victories he picked up during 2013.
"This feels great," said van Gerwen, who lives only half an hour away from the NH Hotel Koningshof in Veldhoven which staged the event. "I've played so many tournaments in Holland over the last ten years but this is the biggest I've won here.
"The crowd were awesome and I loved the tournament, and it was a great final too. We both had to push ourselves to the limit and both Mervyn and myself were very good in the final, but that's what we had to do to win this tournament."
The Dutchman has won his opening two matches of the Betway Premier League Darts and now plays Dave Chisnall in Belfast on Thursday as he seeks to continue his winning run.
"I'll enjoy this win and have a couple of days of rest before I go to the Premier League in Belfast, and I'm really looking forward to it now," added van Gerwen.
"This win has given me even more confidence and I want to keep my good start to the Premier League going now."
King was forced to settle for the £8,000 runner-up prize as he lost in a third European Tour final inside 12 months, but was full of praise for his rival afterwards.
"Michael's a phenomenal player and he showed today why he deserves to be the World Champion and world number one," said King. "He's a great champion.
"I gave it everything I've got but he still made me look silly! He was too good today and he deserved to win."
Dolan had lost in last year's Dutch Darts Masters final to Kim Huybrechts in Veldhoven but was eliminated in the semi-finals this time around.
The Northern Irish ace saw off Jarkko Komula in Sunday afternoon's third round before then having to come from 3-1 down to win 6-3 against Michael Mansell, his PDC World Cup team-mate, in what he described as, emotionally, his hardest ever game.
Stoke star White also reached the last four in another strong run of form, which included wins over Darren Webster and resurgent Dutchman Vincent van der Voort on the final day.
Mansell and van der Voort were joined in the last eight by Premier League Darts stars Newton and Chisnall, who had knocked out world number four Adrian Lewis in the third round.
The next PDC European Tour event will be the German Darts Masters in Berlin from April 19-21, when 48 players will compete for a £100,000 prize fund. For tickets, visit www.pdc-europe.tv.
Dutch Darts Masters
European Tour Event Two
Sunday February 16
Evening Session
Quarter-Finals
Michael van Gerwen 6-3 Wes Newton
Michael Mansell 3-6 Brendan Dolan
Dave Chisnall 5-6 Mervyn King
Ian White 6-4 Vincent van der Voort
Semi-Finals
Michael van Gerwen 6-4 Brendan Dolan
Mervyn King 6-5 Ian White
Final
Michael van Gerwen 6-4 Mervyn King
All games are the best of 11 legs.
Match Information
Quarter-Finals
Michael van Gerwen roared into the Dutch Darts Masters semi-finals with a 6-3 win over Wes Newton, averaging 102.74 in a superb display. Newton was made to pay for missing darts to break throw in the first and third legs as van Gerwen led 2--1, with Newton levelling in the fourth with a 72 finish to follow his earlier 80 checkout. Newton then landed a 180 in the fifth, but van Gerwen posted a 177 before taking out 109 to edge back in front, before hitting a maximum and breaking throw on tops for a 4-2 lead. The pair traded 180s as Newton broke back immediately with a 12-darter, but van Gerwen replied in kind to move 5-3 up before hitting a second successive 12-dart leg to seal the win, scoring 180, 140 and 170 before finishing double four.
Brendan Dolan took victory in the all-Northern Irish battle with his PDC World Cup of Darts team-mate Michael Mansell 6-3, as he reached the Dutch Darts Masters semi-finals for a second successive year. Mansell made the brighter start despite Dolan opening the game with a 180, with the left-hander hitting tops to break in the opening leg and the same double to finish 79 for a two-leg lead. Dolan defied a 180 from his opponent to get off the mark in the third leg on double 16, with Mansell finishing 120 to move 3-1 up before the game turned in a remarkable fifth, as both players missed doubles in four visits before Dolan pinned double one to reply. Dolan then hit a 174 and double four to level, and finished double five to lead for the first time at 4-3. Mansell's three missed doubles in the next proved costly as Dolan took out 106 on double 16 to move a leg away from the win, and a further three missed doubles allowed Dolan to finally seal the win on double five.
Mervyn King continued to defy his bad back as he hit back from 3-1 down to win through to the Dutch Darts Masters semi-finals with a 6-4 win over Dave Chisnall, as the number two seed exited the tournament. King finished 86 to win the opening leg, only for Chisnall to land a second maximum of the game before levelling by taking out 100 with two double tops, and he then broke in leg three by punishing four missed doubles from King by hitting double 18. King also missed doubles in the fourth as Chisnall hit tops for a 3-1 cushion. King hit back on double four and opened leg six with scores of 180 and 140, but wired the bull for a 126 finish as Chisnall stepped in on double ten to lead 4-2. King, though, landed a 177 in taking the next, punished six missed doubles from Chisnall to level with double 16 and hit the same bed for a 5-4 lead. A missed match dart at double four in the next from King allowed Chisnall to take out 68 on tops to force a deciding leg, but King was first to a finish and took out 76 on double four to move into the semi-finals.
Ian White ended the hopes of resurgent Dutch ace Vincent van der Voort with a 6-4 quarter-final win in the Dutch Darts Masters. Van der Voort made the quicker start, finishing tops and double eight to win the opening two legs, only to see White roar back with three legs of his own, finishing 75 and 56 to level before punishing missed doubles in three visits from the Dutchman by stealing the fifth leg on tops. White wired three darts at double 12 in the sixth as van der Voort broke back on tops, before he took out 80 to move 4-3 up. The Dutch star, though, missed three more darts at doubles in the next as White hit double six to level once more, before double eight broke and put the Stoke ace 5-4 up, and despite a 180 from van der Voort in the next, he sealed victory with 82 finish of bullseye and double 16.
Semi-Finals
Michael van Gerwen's bid to enjoy glory on home soil in the Dutch Darts Masters continued as he enjoyed a 6-4 semi-final win over Brendan Dolan, whose hopes of reaching a second successive Veldhoven final were ended in the last four. Van Gerwen opened superbly as he broke by finishing 91 for an 11-darter in the opening leg, only for Dolan to break back on double nine before taking out 116 to lead 2-1. Tops saw van Gerwen level before he opened the fifth leg with two 180s to set up a possible nine-darter, eventually winning the leg in 15 darts on double seven after Dolan wasted one dart at double 16. The World Champion added another maximum and a 116 finish in a 12-darter to lead 4-2 and landed a fourth 180 in three legs in the seventh, only for Dolan to hit two 140s and a 96 finish for a 12-darter to hit back. The Northern Irish ace, though, paid the price for another miss at double 16 for a 64 finish - the second time in the game - as van Gerwen hit double ten for a 5-3 lead, and though Dolan responded on double nine, another 180 pushed the Dutchman clear in the next before he hit tops for a 13-darter to seal his place in the final.
Mervyn King edged out Ian White in a dramatic 11-leg semi-final thriller to reach the Dutch Darts Masters final in Veldhoven - where he will play Michael van Gerwen in a repeat of last year's Austrian Darts Open decider. King opened the match superbly with scores of 180 and 177, missing out on a nine-darter but winning the opening leg and adding another 180 in moving 2-0 up. White hit back strongly, landing double ten and double eight to level before posting a maximum and a 116 finish to move 3-2 up. However, he would wire the bull for a 121 finish in the next and missed two further darts to win the leg as King took out double 16 before breaking with a 96 finish to put himself back ahead at 4-3. White landed a 180 and tops to level in the eighth, and took out a brilliant 136 checkout to lead 5-4, only to miss double 12 for the match in the next as King hit the same bed to force a decider. White, with the advantage of throw, missed double 16 to claim the win in the final leg, for a 62 finish, to allow King in on the same bed as he moved into the decider.
Final - Leg-by-leg
Michael van Gerwen v Mervyn King
0-0 - Michael van Gerwen wins the bull and throws first.
1-0 - van Gerwen posts double eight for a 14-darter to open the game.
2-0 - King leaves 40 after 12 darts, but can only watch as van Gerwen powers in a 144 finish to break in 12 darts.
3-0 - van Gerwen misses the bull to finish 121, but when King is unable to take out the same checkout, van Gerwen posts double 16 for another 14-darter.
3-1 - King opens the leg with a 180, and though van Gerwen replies with a maximum, he finishes 106 on double 16 to get back into the game with a 12-dart leg of his own.
4-1 - The pair again trade 180s, with van Gerwen taking out double 16 for a 13-darter as he wins a fourth leg.
4-2 - King misses double top to finish 72, but returns to land double ten after the Dutchman misses a dart at tops to take out 116.
4-3 - van Gerwen opens with a maximum, with King replying in kind - and when van Gerwen misses five darts at tops, the English ace lands double 13 for a 13-darter to break back.
4-4 - King scores three 140s before finishing tops for a 13-darter to level the game.
5-4 - The ding-dong battle continues, with the pair leaving two-dart finishes after nine darts, with van Gerwen posting a 180 before taking out a 12-darter on double eight to move a leg away from the title.
6-4 - van Gerwen is first to a finish, against the throw, and takes out 64 on double eight to claim the title.
Match Stats
| Michael v Gerwen | 6-4 | Mervyn King |
| 13 | 100+ | 12 |
| 9 | 140+ | 11 |
| 0 | 170+ | 0 |
| 4 | 180 | 3 |
| 108.80 | Average | 107.40 |
| 144 | High Finish | 106 |
| 2 | Breaks of Throw | 1 |