Dutch Darts Championship Friday Afternoon Round-up | Chisnall, Menzies and Gilding prevail, Sedlacek boosts European Championship hopes as Dutch stars dazzle on home soil

The 15th and final European Tour event of 2026 comes at the Dutch Darts Championship. There was set to be a lot of drama in the race to the European Championship while the Dutch players made their mark in front of a passionate crowd in Maastricht.

The race to Dortmund is going to the wire. Karel Sedlacek kept his composure after a very tight and tense contest against Callan Rydz. Despite missing 17 darts at a double, he found his clinical edge right at the end to win 6-4 and move him up to 30th in the European Tour Order of Merit.

The match began with four breaks of throw as Rydz failed to back up his slim advantage. Sedlacek could have been further ahead, but numerous doubles being missed were seemingly costly. A third break of throw for ‘The Riot’ could have been the defining blow.

That was not the case. The Czech took out 85 in two to break back before a 180 left double four, and that was found with no fuss. Left with 72 for the match, he found the treble 20 before composing himself. His attention was averted to the double six segment, and he found the green bit for a ginormous victory.

That triumph put him ahead of Kim Huybrechts, Martin Schindler and Stephen Bunting, who is now out of the provisional qualifying spots. Sedlacek is not totally out of the woods yet. He takes on Schindler in the second round in what is set up to be a blockbuster showdown.

Bunting is in action tomorrow and will have a tough test in a must-win match. Cameron Menzies had no problem in his opening match, fending off Nick Kenny 6-1. Both players previously represented their country at the World Cup of Darts in 2026, but it was the Scot who managed to prevail. A 112 checkout was the highlight on the way to a 4-0 lead. Kenny got on the board but was not able to muster up any comeback as Menzies found a lot of joy on double four, nailing it to almost guarantee him a spot in the European Championship.

Dave Chisnall was in a similar position to ‘Cammy.’ He abolished any doubt of his involvement in the European Championship for the 15th time, but a 6-4 win over the Nordic and Baltic qualifier Jonas Masalin was made hard work. 23 darts on the outer ring were missed by ‘Chizzy’. However, his Finnish opponent missed at crucial times to give himself a shot at glory. An eye-catching 142 was his finest moment, but a relieved Chisnall managed to get the win under his best thanks to decent scoring, but his woes on the oche seemingly continue.

Andrew Gilding was the highest ranked player on the European Tour Order of Merit to officially be qualified. This was a free hit for him in Maastricht, and he made full use of it with a 6-5 win over Max Hopp. While the German got 12 more attempts at doubles, he missed a lot more. With a 60% checkout rate, ‘Goldfinger’ proved to be tough to beat. He took a 3-1 lead, but Hopp fired back and had darts to make it 4-3. Another burst by Gilding got him 5-3 to the good, but an 11th leg was needed. Fortunately for the Englishman, he was able to win it rather easily. He had six darts for 121 but only needed four.

Ricardo Pietreczko was competing on the European Tour for the first time since the end of May. After his dartitis issues, he looked to be so much better on the oche, averaging 101.74 in a fine performance. However, he would not win. Host-nation qualifier Heine Uuldriks produced an outstanding upset, averaging 98 and missing just one dart at a double in a fine 6-5 triumph.

Pietreczko began with legs of 15, 12 and 14 to lead 3-0. He was averaging over 110, but back came Uuldriks. Checkouts of 80 and 90 for 14-darters got him back in the match. It was a high-quality affair as Pietreczko got himself that break lead back. However, it was soon extinguished once more as the crowd got into play. Uuldriks was strutting his stuff on stage, winning three legs in a row to lead 5-4. In the midst of this, the crowd were getting on Pietreczko’s nerves. He composed himself and left 50 after nine as his opponent tried to throw it out. He went for the bull for a 10-darter but ended on double 19 for a 12-darter. It was his turn to throw for the match, but he would be stunned. Uuldriks pinned the bull for an 81 checkout before running off jubilantly to complete the most incredible European Tour debut on home soil.

Dirk van Duijvenbode added to the Dutch delight. He had no problem seeing off James Hurrell, who barely had a sniff in a 6-1 trouncing. Van Duijvenbode got the crowd even more pumped, and it continued after an early break. ‘Hillbilly’ was producing a lot of stray darts and was not brewing a suitable challenge. It was soon 3-0 with more daylight for the ‘Aubergenius.’ Big roars were let out after checkouts of 40 and 65 pushed him 4-0 in front. Double 18 was utilised twice to take out 92, and a triple break lead was confirmed. Five match darts were missed, and Hurrell had a lifeline. It was brief as van Duijvenbode made it two from two for the home favourites.

It was also very simple for Ryan Joyce, who had no problem dispatching Owen Bates, who like Kenny missed a trick in the race to Ally Pally. The two-time European Tour finalist breezed to a 6-0 victory. Joyce took out 86 in two darts to double his lead after an early break. He secured a double break before Bates got his first darts at a double. Both were spurned, and Joyce was clinical on double 16. ‘Relentless’ found that target once more to move one away. Joyce finished it with a bang, taking out 161 to complete an easy win in tremendous fashion.

Jeffrey de Graaf was in a fourth consecutive European Tour event and impressed by averaging over a ton for the first time on this stage. He saw off a valiant Mickey Mansell 6-3. Both players were producing some brilliant scoring. De Graaf went 2-0 up before a 14-dart hold for Mansell on the board. He has recently come back from knee surgery but was not letting that affect him on the oche. A 106 checkout on double 14 got him level, but three legs later the match was done and dusted. A brilliant burst by the Swede ploughed him ahead, and he made the second round.