Van der Velde and Neyens celebrate Winmau Challenge Tour titles

Jurjen van der Velde claimed his maiden Challenge Tour crown on Saturday

Jurjen van der Velde and Kenny Neyens claimed Winmau Challenge Tour titles on another bumper day of action in Hildesheim on Saturday.

Van der Velde secured his maiden Challenge Tour crown with an inspired comeback win over Robert Owen in the Event 13 final, before Neyens produced similar heroics to deny Michael Flynn in Event 14.

Rising star Van der Velde breezed through to the last 32 of Event 13 in dominant fashion, following up emphatic victories over Chris Hogg and Tonny Veenhof with a whitewash win over his compatriot Sven van Dun.

The 19-year-old then came through successive last-leg deciders against Neyens and Simeon Heinz, while 5-2 wins over Dan Read and Stephen Burton sealed his spot in the Event 13 finale.

Owen registered victories over former Lakeside Champion Jelle Klaasen and WDF Championship runner-up Thibault Tricole midway through the afternoon, before posting a 99 average to dispatch Darryl Pilgrim in the last four.

The Welshman stormed into a 3-0 lead against the young Dutchman in Saturday’s showpiece, but van der Velde produced a remarkable comeback, reeling off five consecutive legs in 14, 13, 17, 15 and 17 darts to clinch the £2,000 top prize.

Neyens then celebrated his second Challenge Tour triumph later in the day, recovering from 3-0 down to edge out Irish ace Flynn in a dramatic conclusion to Event 14.

Neyens produced a superb comeback to claim Event 14 glory

Neyens battled through to round four with wins over Jeroen Mioch, Philip Van Gasse and Daniel Vogt, before firing in a 13-darter to dump out Chas Barstow in a nine-leg contest.

The Belgian swept aside Graham Usher 5-2 in the last eight, which he followed with a comprehensive 5-1 win over Klaasen, averaging just under 98 in the process.

Flynn kicked off his campaign with victory over Dutch trio Patrick Peters, Leo Hendriks and Gillian Koehoorn, and having dumped out Owen in the quarter-finals, he also accounted for German duo Fabian Schmutzler and Lukas Wenig in the latter stages.

Flynn raced into a 3-0 lead as he enjoyed a dream start to the Event 14 final, but Neyens rattled off four straight legs - featuring a 119 checkout in leg seven - before sealing the deal with a 114 checkout in a deciding-leg shoot-out.

Despite his disappointing start to the weekend, Scott Williams retains a £1,400 lead over Danny van Trijp at the top of the Challenge Tour Order of Merit, with Neyens and Van der Velde rising to fourth and 11th respectively.

This weekend's Winmau Challenge Tour action concludes with Event 15 at Halle 39 on Sunday, with £10,000 in prize money up for grabs.

The top two players from the final 2022 Challenge Tour Order of Merit will secure a PDC Tour Card for 2023/24 and a place in the 2022/23 Cazoo World Darts Championship.

Click here to view draws and results.

Stats from all events can be found through DartConnect.

PDC Winmau Challenge Tour
Saturday July 16, Hildesheim
Event 13
Quarter-Finals

Jurjen van der Velde 5-2 Dan Read
Stephen Burton 5-2 Fabian Schmutzler
Robert Owen 5-1 Roemer Mooijman
Darryl Pilgrim 5-2 Davy Proosten

Semi-Finals
Jurjen van der Velde 5-2 Stephen Burton
Robert Owen 5-2 Darryl Pilgrim

Final
Jurjen van der Velde 5-3 Robert Owen

Event 14
Quarter-Finals

Kenny Neyens 5-2 Graham Usher
Jelle Klaasen 5-1 Franz Roetzsch
Michael Flynn 5-3 Robert Owen
Lukas Wenig 5-1 Kevin Garcia

Semi-Finals
Kenny Neyens 5-1 Jelle Klaasen
Michael Flynn 5-3 Lukas Wenig

Final
Kenny Neyens 5-4 Michael Flynn