Ben Robb seals return to PDC World Darts Championship as Haupai Puha ends season with DPNZ Tour double
PDCWednesday, 09 September 2026 at 11:15
Haupai Puha closed the Dartplayers New Zealand ProTour season in emphatic style. The 41-year-old New Zealander won both Event 11 and Event 12 during the final weekend in Auckland and finished third on the Order of Merit. The biggest prize, however, went to Ben Robb, who topped the standings and secured his return to the World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace.
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Puha launched his winning weekend with a dominant group stage in Event 11. Across his four group matches he dropped just one leg combined. He was equally relentless early in the knockouts. After two successive whitewashes, he saw off Josh Walters 4-1.
Next he defeated Haunui Hira, before facing Josh Roberts in the semi-finals. There he produced one of his best displays of the weekend. Averaging 92, Puha cruised to a 6-0 win to book his place in the final.
Jonny Tata proved a far stiffer test there. Trailing 6-5, Puha still found a way to turn it around. He struck in the decider to claim his first DPNZ ProTour title of 2026.
Haupai Puha won the final two events of the DPNZ Tour
Comeback against Tata again
Puha wasn’t done a day later. In Event 12, the final DPNZ ProTour event of the year, he again went all the way. Once more, he opened with four group wins. In his first knockout match he dismantled Scott Wightman without dropping a leg, then added two more victories to reach the semi-finals.
Top seed Robb awaited there. He averaged 95 and, at 5-3 up, looked set for the final. Puha refused to yield. He erased the deficit, forced a decider, and completed the comeback.
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That set up another final against Tata. As in Event 11, it turned into a thriller, and again Puha had to chase. This time Tata led 6-3. Puha battled back and edged it 7-6. Within two days he lifted a second title, taking his career tally of DPNZ ProTour crowns to eight.
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Robb books Alexandra Palace return
Despite Puha’s double, Robb finished the weekend atop the year-long standings. He won five of the twelve DPNZ ProTour events in 2026 to lock up first place overall. That result earns Robb a berth at the World Darts Championship. The New Zealander will therefore return to Alexandra Palace later this year.
Tata could also be satisfied despite two final defeats. By reaching the final at both Event 11 and Event 12, he secured second place on the Order of Merit. That position hands Tata a return to the ANZ Premier League. Robb also qualifies again thanks to topping the standings.
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Results DPNZ Pro Tour 11
Quarter-finals
| Josh Roberts | 5-3 | Craig Pullen |
| Haupai Puha | 5-3 | Haunui Hira |
| Jonny Tata | 5-3 | Dean Reyland |
| Mark Cleaver | 5-0 | Jaymie Hilton-Jones |
Semi-finals
| Haupai Puha | 6-0 | Josh Roberts |
| Jonny Tata | 6-1 | Mark Cleaver |
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Final
| Haupai Puha | 7-6 | Jonny Tata |
| Josh Roberts | 5-3 | Craig Pullen |
| Haupai Puha | 5-3 | Haunui Hira |
| Jonny Tata | 5-3 | Dean Reyland |
| Mark Cleaver | 5-0 | Jaymie Hilton-Jones |
| Haupai Puha | 6-0 | Josh Roberts |
| Jonny Tata | 6-1 | Mark Cleaver |
| Haupai Puha | 7-6 | Jonny Tata |
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Results DPNZ Pro Tour 12
Quarter-finals
| Ben Robb | 5-0 | Josh Roberts |
| Haupai Puha | 5-3 | Clinton Julies |
| Jonny Tata | 5-1 | John Hurring |
| Mark Cleaver | 5-2 | Dean Reyland |
Semi-finals
| Haupai Puha | 6-5 | Ben Robb |
| Jonny Tata | 6-2 | Mark Cleaver |
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Final
| Haupai Puha | 7-6 | Jonny Tata |
Kieran WoodDarts Journalist
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He contributes to DartsNews.com, where he covers professional darts through news, match reports, analysis, and live coverage across the PDC calendar and major tournaments.
A key part of his work is on-site reporting from leading events. Kieran has covered the PDC World Darts Championship in person, reporting daily from the venue and providing first-hand insight from the tournament. During his coverage, he has conducted interviews with leading players including Luke Littler, Luke Humphries, and Gerwyn Price.
He is also one of the leading voices of the English-language Dartsnews Podcast, contributing regular analysis and discussion on developments across the professional darts circuit.
In his reporting, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles when new, verified information becomes available.
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- The two-point Lucky Loser qualifiers are Ross Smith, Robb, Whitlock, Sakai, Ilagan and Toylo. Jermaine is not on the entries list on Dartconnect for the TCH qualifier so the four from the main OoM are probably Searle, Nijman, Dobey, Wattimena.Scoobedybop24-08-2026
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