Chris Dobey denies Dirk van Duijvenbode in thrilling deciding leg to clinch title at Players Championship 17
PDC
Chris Dobey has taken the title at Players Championship 17 this Tuesday afternoon in Leicester, denying Dirk van Duijvenbode 8-7 in a thrilling final.
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Earlier in the day, Dobey had impressed throughout PC17. Dobey produced a string of high-quality performances en route to the final, hitting a high point when he ended Josh Rock’s impressive unbeaten streak, which had lasted since the European Darts Open. Despite Rock averaging a solid 98.10, Dobey outclassed him with a superb 103.21 average. Dobey then saw off an in-form Gian van Veen in a tightly contested 7-5 victory, with all but one of his winning legs taken out in five visits or fewer, before in the semi-finals, Dobey eased past James Wade 6-3 with a clinical display.
Van Duijvenbode meanwhile, produced a timely return to form at Players Championship 17, securing his first final appearance of the year with a series of composed and powerful performances. His quarter-final victory came in dominant fashion, as he brushed aside Michael Smith 6-1. In the semi-final, the Dutchman then came through a gripping last-leg decider against Damon Heta to book his place in the final.
Dobey wins!
The match began at a blistering pace, with both players trading early breaks of throw and showing clinical finishing. Van Duijvenbode missed the bull for a 170 in the opener but recovered to take the leg in 14 darts, before Dobey immediately broke back and edged into the lead.
The scoring power was relentless—van Duijvenbode produced back-to-back 180s in the sixth leg—but Dobey’s consistency on doubles kept him ahead. A 13-darter followed by a clinical two-dart 25 checkout gave the Englishman a commanding 6–3 lead, with both players averaging over 100.
Just when it looked like Dobey would coast to victory, nerves crept in. He missed two darts for the title at 7–5, and van Duijvenbode roared back, taking three consecutive legs to level at 7–7, including a superb 105 checkout under pressure.
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But Dobey steadied himself in the decider, finishing 70 with van Duijvenbode waiting to pounce. It capped off a thrilling contest that featured five maximums, three missed championship darts, and a combined average over 104.
A dramatic, high-quality final—and a well-earned title for ‘Hollywood’.
| Player 1 | Average | Score | VS | Score | Average | Player 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finals | ||||||
| Chris Dobey | (98.69) | 8 | VS | 7 | (102.40) | Dirk van Duijvenbode |
| Semi-Finals | ||||||
| Dirk van Duijvenbode | (98.62) | 7 | VS | 6 | (97.03) | Damon Heta |
| Chris Dobey | (97.26) | 7 | VS | 5 | (94.02) | Gian van Veen |
| Quarter-Finals | ||||||
| Dirk van Duijvenbode | (97.38) | 6 | VS | 1 | (93.77) | Michael Smith |
| Damon Heta | (108.94) | 6 | VS | 2 | (91.44) | Richard Veenstra |
| Chris Dobey | (98.93) | 6 | VS | 3 | (87.76) | James Wade |
| Gian van Veen | (90.52) | 6 | VS | 3 | (83.47) | Thibault Tricole |
| Top 16 | ||||||
| Dirk van Duijvenbode | (99.83) | 6 | VS | 4 | (103.28) | William O'Connor |
| Michael Smith | (87.45) | 6 | VS | 5 | (90.79) | Darius Labanauskas |
| Richard Veenstra | (96.44) | 6 | VS | 4 | (100.61) | Stephen Bunting |
| Damon Heta | (92.78) | 6 | VS | 1 | (86.86) | Wessel Nijman |
| James Wade | (100.03) | 6 | VS | 2 | (90.82) | Carl Sneyd |
| Chris Dobey | (103.21) | 6 | VS | 3 | (98.10) | Josh Rock |
| Thibault Tricole | (95.21) | 6 | VS | 3 | (95.18) | Darren Beveridge |
| Gian van Veen | (100.18) | 6 | VS | 4 | (89.34) | Dimitri Van den Bergh |
| Top 32 | ||||||
| William O'Connor | (90.46) | 6 | VS | 2 | (82.25) | Tom Bissell |
| Dirk van Duijvenbode | (102.75) | 6 | VS | 4 | (91.94) | Danny Noppert |
| Michael Smith | (93.13) | 6 | VS | 3 | (90.02) | Cameron Menzies |
| Darius Labanauskas | (95.88) | 6 | VS | 4 | (89.69) | Max Hopp |
| Stephen Bunting | (101.88) | 6 | VS | 1 | (96.35) | Rob Owen |
| Richard Veenstra | (90.66) | 6 | VS | 4 | (90.39) | Daryl Gurney |
| Damon Heta | (91.28) | 6 | VS | 1 | (81.29) | Mensur Suljovic |
| Wessel Nijman | (97.42) | 6 | VS | 4 | (98.38) | Kevin Doets |
| Carl Sneyd | (89.33) | 6 | VS | 3 | (87.56) | Mario Vandenbogaerde |
| James Wade | (92.09) | 6 | VS | 5 | (92.98) | Peter Wright |
| Josh Rock | (98.18) | 6 | VS | 3 | (100.46) | Brendan Dolan |
| Chris Dobey | (92.93) | 6 | VS | 2 | (86.95) | Jack Tweddell |
| Thibault Tricole | (96.51) | 6 | VS | 4 | (97.02) | Ross Smith |
| Darren Beveridge | (97.43) | 6 | VS | 4 | (105.11) | Mike De Decker |
| Dimitri Van den Bergh | (99.27) | 6 | VS | 5 | (92.83) | Karel Sedlacek |
| Gian van Veen | (100.33) | 6 | VS | 2 | (99.03) | Raymond van Barneveld |
| Top 64 | ||||||
| Tom Bissell | (100.62) | 6 | VS | 2 | (91.77) | Rusty-Jake Rodriguez |
| William O'Connor | (101.28) | 6 | VS | 5 | (94.42) | Niko Springer |
| Dirk van Duijvenbode | (92.08) | 6 | VS | 4 | (95.03) | Keane Barry |
| Danny Noppert | (85.26) | 6 | VS | 4 | (87.95) | Stefaan Henderyck |
| Cameron Menzies | (90.82) | 6 | VS | 2 | (82.97) | Danny Lauby |
| Michael Smith | (93.93) | 6 | VS | 4 | (91.14) | Ryan Meikle |
| Max Hopp | (90.44) | 6 | VS | 1 | (83.37) | Jose De Sousa |
| Darius Labanauskas | (86.22) | 6 | VS | 5 | (87.56) | Graham Hall |
| Stephen Bunting | (93.32) | 6 | VS | 4 | (98.13) | Matt Campbell |
| Rob Owen | (84.70) | 6 | VS | 3 | (82.24) | Andy Boulton |
| Richard Veenstra | (90.81) | 6 | VS | 5 | (90.34) | Justin Hood |
| Daryl Gurney | (94.52) | 6 | VS | 4 | (94.23) | Dominik Gruellich |
| Damon Heta | (91.93) | 6 | VS | 3 | (88.93) | Steve Lennon |
| Mensur Suljovic | (91.09) | 6 | VS | 0 | (83.61) | Florian Hempel |
| Wessel Nijman | (95.26) | 6 | VS | 4 | (82.16) | Nathan Rafferty |
| Kevin Doets | (94.69) | 6 | VS | 5 | (92.65) | Dom Taylor |
| Mario Vandenbogaerde | (100.39) | 6 | VS | 2 | (88.37) | Oskar Lukasiak |
| Carl Sneyd | (93.55) | 6 | VS | 4 | (89.86) | Radek Szaganski |
| Peter Wright | (99.94) | 6 | VS | 3 | (97.45) | Dylan Slevin |
| James Wade | (98.19) | 6 | VS | 2 | (81.28) | Adam Hunt |
| Josh Rock | (102.08) | 6 | VS | 2 | (83.63) | Alan Soutar |
| Brendan Dolan | (91.07) | 6 | VS | 4 | (91.75) | Jermaine Wattimena |
| Chris Dobey | (97.77) | 6 | VS | 1 | (80.11) | Adam Warner |
| Jack Tweddell | (83.38) | 6 | VS | 5 | (81.41) | Martijn Dragt |
| Ross Smith | (102.40) | 6 | VS | 2 | (87.24) | George Killington |
| Thibault Tricole | (92.54) | 6 | VS | 5 | (90.64) | William Borland |
| Mike De Decker | (93.77) | 6 | VS | 4 | (85.61) | Darryl Pilgrim |
| Darren Beveridge | (87.05) | 6 | VS | 2 | (85.64) | Jim Long |
| Karel Sedlacek | (97.96) | 6 | VS | 5 | (95.22) | Madars Razma |
| Dimitri Van den Bergh | (89.67) | 6 | VS | 4 | (98.07) | Ricardo Pietreczko |
| Gian van Veen | (99.23) | 6 | VS | 2 | (84.85) | Maximilian Czerwinski |
| Raymond van Barneveld | (94.81) | 6 | VS | 3 | (95.37) | Chris Landman |
| Top 128 | ||||||
| Rusty-Jake Rodriguez | (90.43) | 6 | VS | 5 | (94.13) | Dave Chisnall |
| Tom Bissell | (83.40) | 6 | VS | 1 | (70.95) | Stefan Bellmont |
| William O'Connor | (94.44) | 6 | VS | 2 | (85.20) | Mickey Mansell |
| Niko Springer | (92.02) | 6 | VS | 0 | (79.97) | Adam Paxton |
| Dirk van Duijvenbode | (100.64) | 6 | VS | 5 | (96.17) | Jitse Van der Wal |
| Keane Barry | (95.34) | 6 | VS | 2 | (96.08) | Maik Kuivenhoven |
| Danny Noppert | (91.27) | 6 | VS | 3 | (86.06) | Stephen Burton |
| Stefaan Henderyck | (92.69) | 6 | VS | 4 | (88.89) | Ricky Evans |
| Cameron Menzies | (92.20) | 6 | VS | 4 | (87.10) | Ted Evetts |
| Danny Lauby | (99.06) | 6 | VS | 1 | (82.90) | Kai Gotthardt |
| Michael Smith | (87.67) | 6 | VS | 5 | (90.58) | Dennie Olde Kalter |
| Ryan Meikle | (88.90) | 6 | VS | 1 | (79.96) | Connor Scutt |
| Max Hopp | (104.27) | 6 | VS | 2 | (91.89) | Ryan Searle |
| Jose De Sousa | (85.60) | 6 | VS | 1 | (78.05) | Tavis Dudeney |
| Graham Hall | (91.73) | 6 | VS | 4 | (90.24) | Joe Cullen |
| Darius Labanauskas | (82.88) | 6 | VS | 2 | (85.01) | Rhys Griffin |
| Stephen Bunting | (100.45) | 6 | VS | 2 | (90.82) | Robert Grundy |
| Matt Campbell | (90.65) | 6 | VS | 4 | (85.80) | Lukas Wenig |
| Rob Owen | (97.84) | 6 | VS | 4 | (94.58) | Ritchie Edhouse |
| Andy Boulton | (93.95) | 6 | VS | 3 | (85.94) | Marvin van Velzen |
| Justin Hood | (97.15) | 6 | VS | 2 | (105.14) | Gary Anderson |
| Richard Veenstra | (85.13) | 6 | VS | 5 | (74.98) | Berry van Peer |
| Daryl Gurney | (97.20) | 6 | VS | 3 | (89.44) | Cam Crabtree |
| Dominik Gruellich | (96.73) | 6 | VS | 2 | (91.94) | Scott Williams |
| Damon Heta | (100.47) | 6 | VS | 4 | (94.07) | Cor Dekker |
| Steve Lennon | (89.29) | 6 | VS | 0 | (78.30) | Benjamin Reus |
| Mensur Suljovic | (94.18) | 6 | VS | 3 | (92.47) | Krzysztof Ratajski |
| Florian Hempel | (81.90) | 6 | VS | 1 | (74.83) | Christian Kist |
| Wessel Nijman | (97.91) | 6 | VS | 1 | (85.44) | Bradley Brooks |
| Nathan Rafferty | (84.13) | 6 | VS | 5 | (84.58) | Thomas Lovely |
| Dom Taylor | (96.91) | 6 | VS | 4 | (93.51) | Luke Woodhouse |
| Kevin Doets | (93.53) | 6 | VS | 3 | (94.11) | Nick Kenny |
| Oskar Lukasiak | (85.40) | 6 | VS | 5 | (94.61) | Martin Schindler |
| Mario Vandenbogaerde | (94.95) | 6 | VS | 3 | (84.13) | Pero Ljubic |
| Radek Szaganski | (83.05) | 6 | VS | 4 | (84.68) | Martin Lukeman |
| Carl Sneyd | (91.82) | 6 | VS | 3 | (92.51) | Ian White |
| Peter Wright | (101.68) | 6 | VS | 4 | (91.12) | Scott Campbell |
| Dylan Slevin | (94.36) | 6 | VS | 5 | (86.30) | Jelle Klaasen |
| James Wade | (92.29) | 6 | VS | 2 | (86.03) | Gabriel Clemens |
| Adam Hunt | (86.59) | 6 | VS | 3 | (79.85) | Viktor Tingstrom |
| Josh Rock | (98.79) | 6 | VS | 3 | (97.28) | Owen Bates |
| Alan Soutar | (99.66) | 6 | VS | 3 | (92.44) | Haupai Puha |
| Jermaine Wattimena | (94.51) | 6 | VS | 5 | (96.33) | Kim Huybrechts |
| Brendan Dolan | (91.41) | 6 | VS | 4 | (85.85) | Jim Williams |
| Chris Dobey | (91.30) | 6 | VS | 3 | (86.76) | Adam Mould |
| Adam Warner | (84.79) | 6 | VS | 3 | (85.31) | Tytus Kanik |
| Jack Tweddell | (91.25) | 6 | VS | 2 | (82.86) | Ryan Joyce |
| Martijn Dragt | (96.08) | 6 | VS | 2 | (89.56) | Matthew Dennant |
| Ross Smith | (101.95) | 6 | VS | 2 | (97.62) | Andy Baetens |
| George Killington | (86.19) | 6 | VS | 4 | (84.70) | Danny van Trijp |
| William Borland | (91.78) | 6 | VS | 5 | (84.33) | Niels Zonneveld |
| Thibault Tricole | (96.78) | 6 | VS | 1 | (86.36) | Brett Claydon |
| Mike De Decker | (97.55) | 6 | VS | 4 | (91.83) | James Hurrell |
| Darryl Pilgrim | (92.93) | 6 | VS | 5 | (88.89) | Sebastian Bialecki |
| Darren Beveridge | (99.26) | 6 | VS | 4 | (92.91) | Andrew Gilding |
| Jim Long | (83.44) | 6 | VS | 5 | (77.65) | Joshua Richardson |
| Karel Sedlacek | (90.54) | 6 | VS | 4 | (87.63) | Jonny Clayton |
| Madars Razma | (85.42) | 6 | VS | 5 | (83.25) | Leon Weber |
| Ricardo Pietreczko | (92.08) | 6 | VS | 3 | (101.02) | Callan Rydz |
| Dimitri Van den Bergh | (99.10) | 6 | VS | 0 | (88.90) | Greg Ritchie |
| Gian van Veen | (99.62) | 6 | VS | 5 | (96.34) | Mervyn King |
| Maximilian Czerwinski | (77.41) | 6 | VS | 5 | (75.51) | Jeffrey De Graaf |
| Raymond van Barneveld | (94.18) | 6 | VS | 3 | (91.17) | Wesley Plaisier |
| Chris Landman | (94.93) | 6 | VS | 3 | (85.77) | Adam Lipscombe |
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Finlay Williams is currently completing his final year of secondary education and already demonstrates the ambition, curiosity, and dedication we value in emerging sports journalists. With a clear goal to pursue full-time work in sports media, Finlay brings a particular depth of knowledge in darts—his standout area of expertise—but also shows strong insight across football (as a lifelong Aberdeen FC supporter), motorsports, cricket, and curling, a sport in which he competed at a high level during his junior years.
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