Anderson makes return to European Tour in Netherlands after seven-year absence

Gary Anderson tentatively hinted at the end of last year at a return to the PDC European Tour but whether that happened was another matter.

The two-time world champion last played a Euro Tour tournament in 2016. After that, it simply didn't work out for 'The Flying Scotsman', partly because of the Premier League Darts and partly because he just didn't feel like travelling.

The surprise was therefore great when it became clear in February that Anderson was actually on the entry list for a Euro Tour qualifying tournament. After all, the Scot is no longer in the top-16 of the Pro Tour Order of Merit and therefore has to participate in the Tour Card Qualifier to qualify for a Euro Tour tournament.

Anderson is now more or less forced to play Euro Tour tournaments as well. He has now also fallen out of the top-16 of the world rankings and has to qualify for tournaments like the World Matchplay and World Grand Prix via the Pro Tour. By not participating in the Euro Tour tournaments, Anderson would miss out on a lot of prize money.

Participation in the qualifying tournament for the German Darts Grand Prix ended in failure, while Raymond van Barneveld proved too strong in the final round of the qualifier for the Austrian Darts Open.

Third time lucky, however; with wins over Tony Martinez and Devon Petersen, he did qualify for the Dutch Darts Championship. This means that the Euro Tour tournament in Leeuwarden (28-30 April) has an extra crowd-puller.