MENSUR SULJOVIC won his maiden ranking title with a brilliant weekend at the HappyBet International Darts Open, where he overcame Kim Huybrechts 6-5 in an enthralling final.
The Austrian ace followed up nine previous ranking semi-finals by reaching his first final with wins over Dutch pair Jelle Klaasen, Yordi Meeuwisse and England's James Wilson on Sunday.
There, he looked to have thrown away his chance for victory when he saw Huybrechts come from 4-2 down to lead 5-4, before levelling to force a decider.
While Huybrechts was first to a finish, the Belgian missed seven match darts to allow Suljovic back into the leg, and the 44-year-old landed double 16 before dropping to his knees in celebration of his first PDC triumph and a £25,000 prize.
"I'm overwhelmed," said Suljovic. "I can't believe what happened in the final and for Kim to miss so many match darts, but I'm over the moon to win my first event."
Huybrechts, who was bidding to win his third PDC European Tour title, landed a 180 as he took the opening leg before Suljovic took the next two to edge 2-1 up.
A brilliant 132 bull finish from Huybrechts saw him level, only for Suljovic to finish legs of 13 and 14 darts to move 4-2 up before the Belgian again nailed 132 for a 12-darter.
Huybrechts then finished a 13-darter and double 12 to move 5-4 up with three successive legs, but Suljovic levelled in leg ten before recovering from a shaky start to the deciding leg to snatch a dramatic triumph.
Huybrechts had lost only five legs in his previous three games on Sunday as he overcame Robbie Green, Dragutin Horvat and Benito van de Pas, but had to settle for the £10,000 runner-up prize.
Wilson knocked out Terry Jenkins and Andy Boulton on Sunday as he won through to the semi-finals of a third successive ranking event, and his first last four appearance on the European Tour stage.
Van de Pas, meanwhile, was bidding to go one better than in his previous visit to Riesa in 2015, when he was the runner-up to Michael Smith, only to lose out to Huybrechts in their repeat of last year's semi-final.
Host Nation Qualifier Horvat became only the second German player to reach a European Tour quarter-final - after Max Hopp in Hamburg earlier this year - as he overcame Ian White 6-4 in a third round with a brilliant display.
Scottish-based Boulton and Dutchman Meeuwisse also reached a European Tour quarter-final for the first time, while Australian ace Simon Whitlock joined them in the last eight with a superb 6-3 third round defeat of Peter Wright.
Wright's top ten rivals Robert Thornton, Dave Chisnall and Jelle Klaasen also lost out in the third round, alongside newcomer Ryan Meikle, Jenkins, White and Green.
Suljovic's victory also puts him in line to claim a place in November's SINGHA Beer Grand Slam of Darts in Wolverhampton, while he moves up to 14th on the PDC Order of Merit.
The weekend also saw a German record crowd for the European Tour of over 3,500 fans attend Saturday's evening session in the first of three successive events to be held this month.
Next weekend sees the HappyBet European Darts Trophy take place at the RWE Arena in Muelheim before the HappyBet European Darts Grand Prix is held from September 16-18 at the Glaspalast in Sindelfingen.
Online coverage of the PDC European Tour will be available through www.LIVEPDC.TV for all subscribers worldwide.
Live coverage with faster streams is also available at the following betting websites:
www.bet365.com - Worldwide
www.betfair.com - UK, Ireland, Spain & Denmark
www.tempobet700.com - Worldwide
www.fonbet.com/en/ - Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Armenia
Live Scores will be available at the new-look PDC Live Scores website, http://live.dartsdata.com .
HappyBet International Darts Open
Sunday September 4
Afternoon Session
Third Round
Ryan Meikle 2-6 Yordi Meeuwisse
Jelle Klaasen 5-6 Mensur Suljovic
James Wilson 6-4 Terry Jenkins
Dave Chisnall 5-6 Andy Boulton
Peter Wright 3-6 Simon Whitlock
Benito van de Pas 6-2 Robert Thornton
Ian White 4-6 Dragutin Horvat
Kim Huybrechts 6-2 Robbie Green
Evening Session
Quarter-Finals
Yordi Meeuwisse 1-6 Mensur Suljovic
James Wilson 6-1 Andy Boulton
Simon Whitlock 5-6 Benito van de Pas
Dragutin Horvat 1-6 Kim Huybrechts
Semi-Finals
Mensur Suljovic 6-1 James Wilson
Benito van de Pas 2-6 Kim Huybrechts
Final
Mensur Suljovic 6-5 Kim Huybrechts
All games are best of 11 legs. Sunday's games played in draw bracket order.
Third Round
Yordi Meeuwisse won the battle between European Tour debutants, defeating Ryan Meikle 6-2 with a strong display to reach the quarter-finals in Riesa.
The pair had both received a second round bye after the withdrawals of Daryl Gurney and Michael van Gerwen, with the Dutchman kicking off their third round tie by taking the opening two legs without reply.
Young left-hander Meikle took out an 11-darter he pulled back to 3-2, but Meeuwisse took out legs of 14 and 13 darts to move 5-2 up before sealing victory in style with a 180 and a 121 finish for a 12-dart leg.
Mensur Suljovic also finished 121 to secure victory as his third round tie with Jelle Klaasen went all the way to a deciding leg in a tight contest.
Suljovic's opening 13-darter was followed by a 12-darter from Klaasen to set the tone, with neither player unable to break throw before the Dutchman landed a 180 in the decider, only to see the Austrian follow two 140s and a ton with a 121 checkout.
James Wilson came from 3-0 down to reach his first European Tour quarter-final with a brilliant 6-4 comeback win over Terry Jenkins.
Jenkins raced into a 3-0 lead before two misses in leg four allowed Wilson in, and he hit back to level with further legs of 11 and 13 darts, and after the next two legs were shared it was the Yorkshireman who took out 117 and 140 to snatch victory.
Andy Boulton's best-ever weekend on the European Tour continued as he edged out Dave Chisnall in a brilliant clash which went the distance to 11 legs before the world number nine lost out with a 104.59 average.
Chisnall followed up winning the opening leg by missing double 12 for a nine-dart finish in the second, taking the leg in ten darts to move two legs up.
Boulton hit back and was in the hunt at 4-3 before he also missed double 12 for a perfect leg in the eighth, but he returned to take the leg in 11-darts to level before moving 5-4 up.
Chisnall produced a 13-darter to force a decider, but Boulton held the advantage of throw and took out a 14-dart finish to reach his first quarter-final in this format.
Simon Whitlock also emerged victorious in a game of outstanding quality as he averaged 103.30 in a 6-3 defeat of Peter Wright, for whom a 107 average was not enough.
Whitlock hit three 14-darters in the first four legs as he moved 4-0 up before Wright landed a pair of 11-dart legs as he pulled back to 4-3 - but he crucially missed his chance to level in the eight before the Australian hit legs of 12 and 13 darts to progress.
Whitlock now meets Benito van de Pas in the quarter-finals, after last year's Riesa finalist overcame Robert Thornton 6-2, taking five successive legs at one stage as he moved into the last eight.
Host Nation Qualifier Dragutin Horvat thrilled the home crowd with a stunning 6-4 defeat of Ian White to become only the second German player, behind Max Hopp, to reach a European Tour quarter-final.
Legs of 12 and 11 darts saw White race into a 2-0 lead before the Croatian-born ace levelled, and though the Stoke ace took the fifth leg, it was the home favourite who took four of the next five, including finishes of 116, 62 and 80, to claim the biggest win of his career.
Horvat now meets two-time European Tour winner Kim Huybrechts, who landed a tidy 122 bull finish in opening up a 3-0 lead against Robbie Green before going on to complete a 6-2 triumph.
Match Stats
Quarter-Finals
Mensur Suljovic booked his place in a 12th PDC semi-final with a dominant 6-1 win over Yordi Meeuwisse, ending the Dutchman's successful European Tour debut.
The Austrian ace took the opening three legs before Meeuwisse hit back with a fine 11-darter, but Suljovic proved too strong and hit a second 14-darter of the game in another three-leg burst to seal victory.
James Wilson won through to his first European Tour semi-final with a 6-1 win over Andy Boulton, who had progressed to the last eight in the format for the first time before running out of steam against the Yorkshireman.
Boulton landed a 180 in taking the game's opening leg, but key finishes of 61, 98 and 79 sealed six straight legs for Wilson as he moved through to meet Suljovic.
Benito van de Pas edged a gripping quarter-final with Simon Whitlock to continue his challenge for a first European Tour win.
Whitlock hit back from 2-0 down to level before van de Pas edged 4-2 up with a pair of 14-dart legs, but a stunning 152 checkout from the Australian looked to have turned the game as he sparked a run of three straight legs to move 5-4 up.
Van de Pas, though, punished a missed match dart from Whitlock to force a decider, where both players also saw one dart for victory go begging before the Dutchman returned to pin double five for the win.
Kim Huybrechts ended home hopes with a ruthless 6-1 win over Host Nation Qualifier Dragutin Horvat, who had reached the quarter-finals in his first European Tour appearance since 2013.
Huybrechts took the first five legs, including legs of 14 and 12 darts to break throw, before Horvat took out double 18 for a 13-darter to get off the mark in leg six, but that would be his only dart at a double as the Belgian sealed victory with a clinical 11-dart finish.
Match Stats
Semi-Finals
Mensur Suljovic won through to his first ranking final with a comprehensive 6-1 win over James Wilson, who saw his best-ever run on the European Tour stage come to an end in the last four.
The Austrian took the game's opening five legs without reply, including two 14-darters, before Wilson took out 96 for a 14-darter to hit back.
However, Suljovic replied with a 96 finish of his own in the seventh leg to secure victory, tasting glory in a semi-final for the first time in ten attempts on the PDC circuit.
Kim Huybrechts joined Suljovic in the final with a fine 6-2 semi-final win over Benito van de Pas - avenging his loss to the Dutchman at the same stage in this event a year ago.
After a 120 finish gave van de Pas the opener, Huybrechts levelled and then moved ahead with a superb 12-darter, with the Dutchman levelling but missing doubles in the next two legs as the Belgian moved 4-2 up.
A 13-darter gave Huybrechts a 5-2 lead, and he then landed a fifth 180 before sealing his spot in the final on double four to continue his bid for a third European Tour title.
Match Stats
Final
Match Stats
The Austrian ace followed up nine previous ranking semi-finals by reaching his first final with wins over Dutch pair Jelle Klaasen, Yordi Meeuwisse and England's James Wilson on Sunday.
There, he looked to have thrown away his chance for victory when he saw Huybrechts come from 4-2 down to lead 5-4, before levelling to force a decider.
While Huybrechts was first to a finish, the Belgian missed seven match darts to allow Suljovic back into the leg, and the 44-year-old landed double 16 before dropping to his knees in celebration of his first PDC triumph and a £25,000 prize.
"I'm overwhelmed," said Suljovic. "I can't believe what happened in the final and for Kim to miss so many match darts, but I'm over the moon to win my first event."
Huybrechts, who was bidding to win his third PDC European Tour title, landed a 180 as he took the opening leg before Suljovic took the next two to edge 2-1 up.
A brilliant 132 bull finish from Huybrechts saw him level, only for Suljovic to finish legs of 13 and 14 darts to move 4-2 up before the Belgian again nailed 132 for a 12-darter.
Huybrechts then finished a 13-darter and double 12 to move 5-4 up with three successive legs, but Suljovic levelled in leg ten before recovering from a shaky start to the deciding leg to snatch a dramatic triumph.
Huybrechts had lost only five legs in his previous three games on Sunday as he overcame Robbie Green, Dragutin Horvat and Benito van de Pas, but had to settle for the £10,000 runner-up prize.
Wilson knocked out Terry Jenkins and Andy Boulton on Sunday as he won through to the semi-finals of a third successive ranking event, and his first last four appearance on the European Tour stage.
Van de Pas, meanwhile, was bidding to go one better than in his previous visit to Riesa in 2015, when he was the runner-up to Michael Smith, only to lose out to Huybrechts in their repeat of last year's semi-final.
Host Nation Qualifier Horvat became only the second German player to reach a European Tour quarter-final - after Max Hopp in Hamburg earlier this year - as he overcame Ian White 6-4 in a third round with a brilliant display.
Scottish-based Boulton and Dutchman Meeuwisse also reached a European Tour quarter-final for the first time, while Australian ace Simon Whitlock joined them in the last eight with a superb 6-3 third round defeat of Peter Wright.
Wright's top ten rivals Robert Thornton, Dave Chisnall and Jelle Klaasen also lost out in the third round, alongside newcomer Ryan Meikle, Jenkins, White and Green.
Suljovic's victory also puts him in line to claim a place in November's SINGHA Beer Grand Slam of Darts in Wolverhampton, while he moves up to 14th on the PDC Order of Merit.
The weekend also saw a German record crowd for the European Tour of over 3,500 fans attend Saturday's evening session in the first of three successive events to be held this month.
Next weekend sees the HappyBet European Darts Trophy take place at the RWE Arena in Muelheim before the HappyBet European Darts Grand Prix is held from September 16-18 at the Glaspalast in Sindelfingen.
Online coverage of the PDC European Tour will be available through www.LIVEPDC.TV for all subscribers worldwide.
Live coverage with faster streams is also available at the following betting websites:
www.bet365.com - Worldwide
www.betfair.com - UK, Ireland, Spain & Denmark
www.tempobet700.com - Worldwide
www.fonbet.com/en/ - Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Armenia
Live Scores will be available at the new-look PDC Live Scores website, http://live.dartsdata.com .
HappyBet International Darts Open
Sunday September 4
Afternoon Session
Third Round
Ryan Meikle 2-6 Yordi Meeuwisse
Jelle Klaasen 5-6 Mensur Suljovic
James Wilson 6-4 Terry Jenkins
Dave Chisnall 5-6 Andy Boulton
Peter Wright 3-6 Simon Whitlock
Benito van de Pas 6-2 Robert Thornton
Ian White 4-6 Dragutin Horvat
Kim Huybrechts 6-2 Robbie Green
Evening Session
Quarter-Finals
Yordi Meeuwisse 1-6 Mensur Suljovic
James Wilson 6-1 Andy Boulton
Simon Whitlock 5-6 Benito van de Pas
Dragutin Horvat 1-6 Kim Huybrechts
Semi-Finals
Mensur Suljovic 6-1 James Wilson
Benito van de Pas 2-6 Kim Huybrechts
Final
Mensur Suljovic 6-5 Kim Huybrechts
All games are best of 11 legs. Sunday's games played in draw bracket order.
Third Round
Yordi Meeuwisse won the battle between European Tour debutants, defeating Ryan Meikle 6-2 with a strong display to reach the quarter-finals in Riesa.
The pair had both received a second round bye after the withdrawals of Daryl Gurney and Michael van Gerwen, with the Dutchman kicking off their third round tie by taking the opening two legs without reply.
Young left-hander Meikle took out an 11-darter he pulled back to 3-2, but Meeuwisse took out legs of 14 and 13 darts to move 5-2 up before sealing victory in style with a 180 and a 121 finish for a 12-dart leg.
Mensur Suljovic also finished 121 to secure victory as his third round tie with Jelle Klaasen went all the way to a deciding leg in a tight contest.
Suljovic's opening 13-darter was followed by a 12-darter from Klaasen to set the tone, with neither player unable to break throw before the Dutchman landed a 180 in the decider, only to see the Austrian follow two 140s and a ton with a 121 checkout.
James Wilson came from 3-0 down to reach his first European Tour quarter-final with a brilliant 6-4 comeback win over Terry Jenkins.
Jenkins raced into a 3-0 lead before two misses in leg four allowed Wilson in, and he hit back to level with further legs of 11 and 13 darts, and after the next two legs were shared it was the Yorkshireman who took out 117 and 140 to snatch victory.
Andy Boulton's best-ever weekend on the European Tour continued as he edged out Dave Chisnall in a brilliant clash which went the distance to 11 legs before the world number nine lost out with a 104.59 average.
Chisnall followed up winning the opening leg by missing double 12 for a nine-dart finish in the second, taking the leg in ten darts to move two legs up.
Boulton hit back and was in the hunt at 4-3 before he also missed double 12 for a perfect leg in the eighth, but he returned to take the leg in 11-darts to level before moving 5-4 up.
Chisnall produced a 13-darter to force a decider, but Boulton held the advantage of throw and took out a 14-dart finish to reach his first quarter-final in this format.
Simon Whitlock also emerged victorious in a game of outstanding quality as he averaged 103.30 in a 6-3 defeat of Peter Wright, for whom a 107 average was not enough.
Whitlock hit three 14-darters in the first four legs as he moved 4-0 up before Wright landed a pair of 11-dart legs as he pulled back to 4-3 - but he crucially missed his chance to level in the eight before the Australian hit legs of 12 and 13 darts to progress.
Whitlock now meets Benito van de Pas in the quarter-finals, after last year's Riesa finalist overcame Robert Thornton 6-2, taking five successive legs at one stage as he moved into the last eight.
Host Nation Qualifier Dragutin Horvat thrilled the home crowd with a stunning 6-4 defeat of Ian White to become only the second German player, behind Max Hopp, to reach a European Tour quarter-final.
Legs of 12 and 11 darts saw White race into a 2-0 lead before the Croatian-born ace levelled, and though the Stoke ace took the fifth leg, it was the home favourite who took four of the next five, including finishes of 116, 62 and 80, to claim the biggest win of his career.
Horvat now meets two-time European Tour winner Kim Huybrechts, who landed a tidy 122 bull finish in opening up a 3-0 lead against Robbie Green before going on to complete a 6-2 triumph.
Match Stats
| Average | 180s | Finishing | Average | 180s | Finishing | |||
| 94.84 | 3 | 2/9 | Ryan Meikle | 2-6 | Yordi Meeuwisse | 100.49 | 4 | 6/9 |
| 90.41 | 3 | 5/6 | Jelle Klaasen | 5-6 | Mensur Suljovic | 98.14 | 1 | 6/12 |
| 93.58 | 5 | 6/15 | James Wilson | 6-4 | Terry Jenkins | 88.20 | 2 | 4/14 |
| 104.59 | 5 | 5/16 | Dave Chisnall | 5-6 | Andy Boulton | 98.15 | 4 | 6/19 |
| 107.19 | 5 | 3/7 | Peter Wright | 3-6 | Simon Whitlock | 103.30 | 4 | 6/13 |
| 90.66 | 1 | 6/14 | Benito van de Pas | 6-2 | Robert Thornton | 78.02 | 1 | 2/5 |
| 101.33 | 2 | 4/4 | Ian White | 4-6 | Dragutin Horvat | 99.41 | 4 | 6/12 |
| 93.12 | 2 | 6/10 | Kim Huybrechts | 6-2 | Robbie Green | 81.47 | 0 | 2/6 |
Quarter-Finals
Mensur Suljovic booked his place in a 12th PDC semi-final with a dominant 6-1 win over Yordi Meeuwisse, ending the Dutchman's successful European Tour debut.
The Austrian ace took the opening three legs before Meeuwisse hit back with a fine 11-darter, but Suljovic proved too strong and hit a second 14-darter of the game in another three-leg burst to seal victory.
James Wilson won through to his first European Tour semi-final with a 6-1 win over Andy Boulton, who had progressed to the last eight in the format for the first time before running out of steam against the Yorkshireman.
Boulton landed a 180 in taking the game's opening leg, but key finishes of 61, 98 and 79 sealed six straight legs for Wilson as he moved through to meet Suljovic.
Benito van de Pas edged a gripping quarter-final with Simon Whitlock to continue his challenge for a first European Tour win.
Whitlock hit back from 2-0 down to level before van de Pas edged 4-2 up with a pair of 14-dart legs, but a stunning 152 checkout from the Australian looked to have turned the game as he sparked a run of three straight legs to move 5-4 up.
Van de Pas, though, punished a missed match dart from Whitlock to force a decider, where both players also saw one dart for victory go begging before the Dutchman returned to pin double five for the win.
Kim Huybrechts ended home hopes with a ruthless 6-1 win over Host Nation Qualifier Dragutin Horvat, who had reached the quarter-finals in his first European Tour appearance since 2013.
Huybrechts took the first five legs, including legs of 14 and 12 darts to break throw, before Horvat took out double 18 for a 13-darter to get off the mark in leg six, but that would be his only dart at a double as the Belgian sealed victory with a clinical 11-dart finish.
Match Stats
| Average | 180s | Finishing | Average | 180s | Finishing | |||
| 89.58 | 2 | 1/2 | Yordi Meeuwisse | 1-6 | Mensur Suljovic | 98.54 | 2 | 6/10 |
| 93.56 | 2 | 6/16 | James Wilson | 6-1 | Andy Boulton | 84.67 | 1 | 1/5 |
| 94.38 | 3 | 5/15 | Simon Whitlock | 5-6 | Benito van de Pas | 90.57 | 3 | 6/11 |
| 86.97 | 0 | 1/1 | Dragutin Horvat | 1-6 | Kim Huybrechts | 100.75 | 2 | 6/11 |
Semi-Finals
Mensur Suljovic won through to his first ranking final with a comprehensive 6-1 win over James Wilson, who saw his best-ever run on the European Tour stage come to an end in the last four.
The Austrian took the game's opening five legs without reply, including two 14-darters, before Wilson took out 96 for a 14-darter to hit back.
However, Suljovic replied with a 96 finish of his own in the seventh leg to secure victory, tasting glory in a semi-final for the first time in ten attempts on the PDC circuit.
Kim Huybrechts joined Suljovic in the final with a fine 6-2 semi-final win over Benito van de Pas - avenging his loss to the Dutchman at the same stage in this event a year ago.
After a 120 finish gave van de Pas the opener, Huybrechts levelled and then moved ahead with a superb 12-darter, with the Dutchman levelling but missing doubles in the next two legs as the Belgian moved 4-2 up.
A 13-darter gave Huybrechts a 5-2 lead, and he then landed a fifth 180 before sealing his spot in the final on double four to continue his bid for a third European Tour title.
Match Stats
| Average | 180s | Finishing | Average | 180s | Finishing | |||
| 96.87 | 1 | 6/12 | Mensur Suljovic | 6-1 | James Wilson | 86.48 | 0 | 1/4 |
| 94.96 | 2 | 2/13 | Benito van de Pas | 2-6 | Kim Huybrechts | 95.95 | 5 | 6/20 |
Final
Match Stats
| Mensur Suljovic | 6-5 | Kim Huybrechts |
| 19 | 100+ | 14 |
| 8 | 140+ | 8 |
| 0 | 170+ | 0 |
| 1 | 180 | 1 |
| 95.15 | Average | 93.89 |
| 96 | High Finish | 132 x2 |
| 3 | Breaks of Throw | 2 |
| 6/12 - 50% | Checkout % | 5/15 - 33% |