The fairytale wasn't meant to be for the doyen of Dutch darts as he succumbed to 'The Heat' in a 6-4 defeat.
In which the Aussie ace produced a 99.7 average, three 180's and two ton plus checkouts including a superb 124 checkout which gave him an opening break.
But while Van Barneveld heads home, one of their own has headed through to join Martin Schindler in the final day as Max Hopp saw off Dimitri van den Bergh 6-3.
Hopp will be dreaming of his maiden success in Saarbrucken when he had the crowd in the palm of his hands and in this case, he punished an out of sorts display from 'The Dreammaker' who averaged just 86 and hit 3/8 on his doubles.
This compared to a 92 average, four 180's and 50% from Hopp in an accomplished display from the Maximiser.
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of DartsNews.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy across professional darts coverage. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces, playing a central role in the development and daily operation of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has extensive experience in darts media and has been closely involved in coverage of the professional darts circuit for several years. Within the UK darts community, he is a recognised figure known for his consistent editorial output and ongoing reporting on major tournaments and developments across the PDC calendar.
In his current role, Samuel works closely with editors and writers to ensure content meets clear journalistic standards, with a focus on source verification, editorial consistency, and timely updates when new, confirmed information becomes available.
𝗛𝗘𝗧𝗔 𝗧𝗢𝗢 𝗛𝗢𝗧 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗕𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗘𝗬!
Damon Heta comes through a BATTLE with Raymond van Barneveld, eventually completing a 6-4 success over the five-time World Champion!
𝙐𝙥 𝙣𝙚𝙭𝙩 👉 Gabriel Clemens v Martin Lukeman
𝙒𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝 👉 bit.ly/PDCTVLive