18/03/2024

Sensational Raymond van Barneveld wins Players Championship 5 and takes his 30th PDC title

Raymond van Barneveld took the title at the fifth Players Championship tournament of the season. Out of all 128 participants in Hildesheim, 'Barney' was the best, beating Stephen Bunting in the final.

For Van Barneveld, it is his first ranking title since 2021. Then the Hagenaar won a floor tournament in sensational fashion within a month of his comeback. Now the tally stands at thirty PDC titles for Van Barneveld.

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The five-time world champion managed to play smoothly through the first few rounds. He defeated Oskar Lukasiak (6-1), Jermaine Wattimena (6-3) and Graham Hall (6-2) to qualify for the last sixteen. There he faced Michael Smith, who even threw a nine darter against the Dutchman, but the win went 6-3 to Van Barneveld. The Dutch darts pioneer then also settled with James Hurrell (6-3) for a spot in the semifinals. After a thriller, he got past Gary Anderson 7-6 to reach the final.

In the final, Van Barneveld was brilliant on the doubles. By throwing out 86, 71, 61 and 86 in a row, he quickly gained a comfortable 4-0 lead. Bunting took the fifth leg with a 15-darter, but then Van Barneveld threw out 68 and 59 to make it 6-1. The double 16 then put 'Barney' on match point. With a 14-darter in the ninth leg, Van Barneveld was able to decide the match.

With this title, Van Barneveld collects the top prize of 15,000 pounds. The prize money won also counts toward the world ranking and various qualification races. This immediately puts Van Barneveld in an excellent position to qualify for major tournaments such as the World Matchplay and World Grand Prix.