Sensational Stephen Bunting achieves feat only Luke Littler & Michael van Gerwen have ever managed in PDC history

This past weekend in Basel, the Swiss Darts Trophy reached its thrilling conclusion, with Stephen Bunting claiming the title after an emphatic 8-3 victory over fellow Englishman Luke Woodhouse. This marks Bunting’s second European Tour triumph of the year, following his earlier success at the International Darts Open.

Bunting is undoubtedly enjoying a remarkable year. In addition to his two European Tour titles, he has also secured victories in two Players Championships and two World Series of Darts events – the Bahrain Darts Masters and the Nordic Darts Masters.

‘The Bullet’ has climbed to fourth place in the world rankings, positioning himself as one of the leading contenders for the major tournaments still to come this autumn. Bunting has previously won a PDC major, lifting the Masters title last year. In his BDO career, he was World Champion in 2014 and won the World Masters in 2012 and 2013, as well as the Finder Masters in 2012.

Remarkably, Bunting becomes only the third player in PDC history to achieve at least two Players Championships, two European Tour titles, and two World Series of Darts victories in a single year. Only Michael van Gerwen (2016, 2017, 2019) and Luke Littler (2024) have managed the same feat before him.

The Swiss Darts Trophy was the penultimate event of the 2025 European Tour. The final tournament, the German Darts Championship, will take place from 17–19 October.

The top 32 players on the European Tour Order of Merit will then qualify for the European Championship, scheduled for 23–26 October in Dortmund. Ritchie Edhouse will not defend his title however, as despite having beaten Jermaine Wattimena 11-3 in last year’s final, 'Madhouse' is set to miss out on qualification for the showdown in Dortmund this time around.