Dimitri van den Bergh was booed by the Minehead crowd on Sunday night, during a dramatic UK Open final after the Belgian took an age to settle himself before starting a crucial leg.
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Van den Bergh eventually won his second major title after missing six match darts and fending off a comeback from world champion Luke Humphries. 'Cool Hand Luke' made up an 8-4 and 10-8 deficit, but could not crown his comeback with the title.
After Humphries cut the score to 8-8, the Belgian managed to win the next two legs, leaving him just one leg away from victory. However, 'The Dreammaker' drew the ire of fans at the Butlin's Resort in Minehead when he took what felt like forever to calm his nerves prior to the nineteenth leg.
Since van den Bergh had to start the leg, Humphries could do nothing but wait patiently for his opponent to take his turn, while annoyance dripped off his face. The crowd was even less polite and the methodical nature van den Bergh was using soon saw the crowd completely turn against him.
That booing continued when the leg finally began, with Humphries even gesturing to the fans in an attempt to silence the boos, having recently been on the receiving end himself. Van den Bergh seemed momentarily upset and saw Humphries come back to 10-10. After the Englishman missed two match darts of his own, van den Bergh finally secured the title on double top.
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He contributes to DartsNews.com, where he covers professional darts through news, match reports, analysis, and live coverage across the PDC calendar and major tournaments.
A key part of his work is on-site reporting from leading events. Kieran has covered the PDC World Darts Championship in person, reporting daily from the venue and providing first-hand insight from the tournament. During his coverage, he has conducted interviews with leading players including Luke Littler, Luke Humphries, and Gerwyn Price.
He is also one of the leading voices of the English-language Dartsnews Podcast, contributing regular analysis and discussion on developments across the professional darts circuit.
In his reporting, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles when new, verified information becomes available.