2021 Hungarian Darts Trophy preview and schedule: Friday evening session including Van der Voort versus Gurney
PDC
After the starter of the first session of Hungarian Darts Trophy action comes the main course with multiple European Tour winners involved on Friday evening in the final action before the seeded names come in on Saturday afternoon.
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Starting proceedings off is who will face Peter Wright in his return to European Tour action which is usually a happy hunting ground. Florian Hempel, the rising German player will face Jake Jones.
Ross Smith has been seen winning open tournaments as preparation for the return of the European Tour and will look to take that form into his tie against Peter Strbik. He will have Rob Cross waiting for him who was in that same MAD-affiliated event he played in if he comes through.
The most intriguing of the Host Nation Qualifiers follows on as Jozsef Rucska is set for his European Tour debut. Intriguing as he has gained fan fare for wearing sunglasses on his head when he plays.
Telling the Weekly Dartscast this past week that he doesn't think they are allowed due to PDC rules but that he will try to wear them on the walk-on as a nod.
It is also a meeting he has had before back in 2013 in the BDO/WDF system against Scottish ace Alan Soutar so it is a tie with multiple facets none more so than his sunglasses.
Following that are multiple potentially quality ties as Luke Humphries aims to continue his brilliant 2021 against Madars Razma who always comes good around this time of year.
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He has a busy month with Nordic Darts Masters and World Cup of Darts (if he is picked as current first reserve) so will aim to start that off with a win over 'Cool Hand Luke'.
It is a two time World Champion against the current World Youth Champion following that as Adrian Lewis aims to get his season on track as he faces Bradley Brooks in a tie which could catch light.
As could Steve Beaton facing John Michael. A usual face not only in darts but mostly on the European Tour with a mostly immaculate qualification record, he similar to Lewis has some ground to make up with his darting future in the higher echelons of the game potentially in doubt, could the greatest player from Greece dump out 'The Bronzed Adonis'?
Simon Whitlock had the disappointment of not playing at the World Matchplay recently but like Smith and Cross has stuck to what he knows best to get form back and that is local opens.
As they say the proof is in the pudding and he is set to face 'The Demolition Man' first with a tie against his World Cup partner, Damon Heta potentially waiting. They may be partners in Jena later this month but it will be all business if he can see off Webster.
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Before Vincent van der Voort and Daryl Gurney - two former European Tour winners face off in a match that could have graced the later rounds previously - they will meet to end the first day of action with a tie against Michael van Gerwen awaiting.
A familiar rival for Gurney and a best friend for the Dutch Destroyer, who sets up a tricky tie for the Green Machine who is still without a title this year.
Action begins at 18:00 and it is all viewable all weekend on PDCTV with details below on how you can tune in wherever you are.
Hungarian Darts Trophy - Schedule of Play
Friday September 3
First Round
Evening Session (1900 local time, 1800 BST)
Florian Hempel v Jake Jones
Peter Strbik v Ross Smith
Alan Soutar v Jozsef Rucska
Luke Humphries v Madars Razma
Adrian Lewis v Bradley Brooks
Steve Beaton v John Michael
Simon Whitlock v Darren Webster
Vincent van der Voort v Daryl Gurney
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- Such a shame that lakeside has been reduced to this. Fantastic venue,and previously a great tournament. Not any morerick6703-11-2026
- Seems to me that the top 16 players pick and choose whatever they want to play. Good,all the money will get spread out more. They get more money from exhibitions than tournaments so let them all withdrawrick6703-11-2026
- Play all legs and the winners split the pot. Luke gets the lot of he wins them all. If your occupation is darts player you can't enter, regardless of ability.BandB01-11-2026
- I'm quite a jaded person all things considered, but to be honest I found Beat Luke Littler to be pretty entertaining. It certainly wasn't seamless, which is to be expected given the lack of precedence, but I actually think the pacing was pretty good, the production was impressive, and there was a good sense of humour and levity to it. I think it was a very ambitious undertaking but one that, for the most part, paid off. I liked the system with the four pots and I think it added to the drama and intrigue. I enjoyed seeing the diverse range of entrants and learning about their backstories. I think the interactivity was pretty clever and well-integrated. The panel was a little incoherent at times; Lee Mack shone however, and his improvisational skills were appreciated during some more awkward interstitial moments. As far as the darts is concerned, it was a shame that the format didn't allow Littler to get into full flow. You obviously don't want him to steamroll everyone but you want to feel like you're getting the full Littler package rather than seeing him struggling to get out of first gear. I will say that his leg against Jayden Walker was very impressive, but it was mostly downhill from there. The attraction revolves around Littler being this untouchable, indomitable force, yet the format doesn't really allow him to fulfil that characterisation. As for Fallon Sherrock, she was mightily impressive and deserved the victory. It is a testament to her unshakeable character that she was able to bang in a 14-darter under such mind-bending pressure. Everything that has been said about the misleading marketing is valid, though they were clear about their eligibility criteria and were able to offload the responsibility somewhat by bringing the viewers into the decision-making process in real time. What is clear though, is that Fallon played the game according to the rules, and she should not be criticised for that, much less abused. I will admit though that it is a kick in the teeth for those true amateurs who committed time and money to the course, and I would also question those who think pub players would have no chance, given that some of Littler's winning legs were dispatched in 7 visits to the board! The great thing about darts is that it isn't so much that amateurs cannot replicate the feats of brilliance pulled off by professionals of the sport, than it is that they simply cannot replicate the consistency of their output, something that this format almost entirely removes from the equation. It should also be noted that, financially, Fallon certainly stands to benefit much less in relative terms from the paycheque than would your average pub thrower, as I'm sure she nets a fair income from the lucrative exhibition circuit alone. What I do hope is that she might use this as an opportunity to really build up a head of steam heading into the new season, as it seems long overdue that she come through Q-School and really take it to the pros on a week-in week-out basis, but whatever she chooses to do, she has certainly achieved enough already for one if not several lifetimes, so who am I to dictate terms? To conclude though, I will state once again that I found Beat Luke Littler to be a pretty enjoyable evening of entertainment. I do feel for the contestants who never actually had the chance to try their luck against the world #1, although I suppose it comes with the format, but all which inevitably raises the question: will Netflix be tempted to do it all again next year? It's hard to say. Whether it would be financially viable, I can't weigh in there. One point I have been making though, and which I touched on earlier, is that the entire concept relies on a public perception that Littler is more or less unbeatable, and that certainly hasn't been the case of late. If the execs had been trying to pitch the show in recent months while Littler has seemed vulnerable, rather than when he was mopping up almost every major title on the calendar, it would certainly be a tougher sell. We will have to see in about 6 months' time whether Littler can still reliably command perception as a near-unstoppable force in darts, and then we'll have a clearer idea about whether we should expect a second helping. Even as a one-off experiment though, and with all the controversy taken into account, I still don't think they disgraced themselves by any means, and that will probably be my lingering assessment of the event when all is said and done.Deduce635801-11-2026
- Fair play to Fallon. But...shows the mockery when a professional players wins what was meant to be an amateur v Pro event, Littlers performance was poor, and what about the players who didn't get a game? Would have been better if the pot was split amoungst all the winners and they all got a leg.BandB31-10-2026
- Not even slightly interestedrick6730-10-2026
- And yet the PDC has decided to aggravate this problem by doubling the Players Championship Finals field from 2027. I can't imagine there will be fewer withdrawals next year with even less reason to turn up. I can only hope that a whole slew of Challenge Tour top-up players receive enough prize money in the absence of much of the elite, that some of the more complacent among them struggle to scrape into even a heavily diluted field! More semi-pro players will get to test their mettle, but the standard of competition will be much inferior. It could hardly be said that the Players Championship series will provide an opportunity for darts' second string to test their Tour Card credentials anymore, but at least it will underscore the achievements of those Challenge Tour players of current and previous years, who were able to prove themselves as more than capable of competing with, and beating, the elite of the sport on a consistent basis, and reaping the due rewards.Deduce635828-10-2026
- No point in being there? Champions want to win.Deduce635828-10-2026
- Littler lost to crabtree in the youth/junior/whatever you call it. He had no point in being there. He's unfortunately now got to the stage,he feels all he has to do is get on the stage to win. Well,I hope he realises part of his fear factor has gone. Happened to Taylor,then van gerwen,and it's causing him to realise pretty sharp,he isn't unstoppable. It's good for the sport,not 1 single player in my 60 years has ever,or will ever be, unbeatable.rick6725-10-2026
- I think it's great to see Mark Webster looking good,good ladrick6725-10-2026