Darts May 12, 2026

Players Championship 13: Kevin Doets wins maiden PDC ranking title as Michael van Gerwen exits early in Hildesheim

👤
By Admin
Sports Journalist
Players Championship 13: Kevin Doets wins maiden PDC ranking title as Michael van Gerwen exits early in Hildesheim

Kevin Doets claimed his maiden PDC ranking title as he beat Luke Woodhouse 8-5 in the final of Players Championship 13 in Hildesheim.

The Dutchman featured in back-to-back semi-finals during last week's ProTour double-header, but he broke through that barrier at Halle 39 before denying Woodhouse in Monday's showpiece.

The pair were the two highest-ranked players without a PDC title to their name, and it looked like it would be Woodhouse to buck that trend after establishing a 4-2 lead.

However, Doets burst into life with a two-dart 100 checkout in leg seven - sparking a five-leg sequence which saw him take control of the contest.

The 27-year-old followed up his second 11-darter by converting consecutive 105 and 128 finishes to lead 7-4, before defying some late nerves to triumph with his ninth match dart.

"Finally! What a relief," said Doets, who averaged 100.61 to claim the £15,000 top prize.

"My confidence is growing. I have been playing pretty well lately, and I showed it again today.

"I was a bit nervous in the beginning of the final, but as soon as I got into it, I played great."

Doets added: "The next goal for me is to get into the top 16 of the world and win a major [title], because I have shown everyone that I have the game to do it."

Earlier in the day, Dirk van Duijvenbode added another nine-dart finish to his growing haul, producing perfection in his opening round tie against Madars Razma.

Michael van Gerwen - the solitary Premier League star in action - suffered a disappointingly early exit, being beaten by Krzysztof Ratajski in round three.

Last 16
Andrew Gilding 6-3 Viktor Tingstrom
Maik Kuivenhoven 6-4 Marvin van Velzen
Rob Owen 6-2 Tyler Thorpe
Kevin Doets 6-3 Jermaine Wattimena
Chris Dobey 6-1 Dave Chisnall
Luke Woodhouse 6-1 Krzysztof Ratajski
Darius Labanauskas 6-2 Derek Coulson
Mensur Suljovic 6-0 Ritchie Edhouse

Quarter-finals
Maik Kuivenhoven 6-4 Andrew Gilding
Kevin Doets 6-2 Rob Owen
Luke Woodhouse 6-4 Chris Dobey
Mensur Suljovic 6-4 Darius Labanauskas

Semi-finals
Kevin Doets 7-1 Maik Kuivenhoven
Luke Woodhouse 7-2 Mensur Suljovic

Final
Kevin Doets 8-5 Luke Woodhouse

Who will win this year's Premier League Darts? You can watch the action every single Thursday until May on Your Site. .

Tags:

darts news

Share this article

Related Posts

Austrian Darts Open results and schedule: Michael van Gerwen knocked out as Josh Rock takes title in Graz

Austrian Darts Open results and schedule: Michael van Gerwen knocked out as Josh Rock takes title in Graz

See all of the results from the Elten Safety Shoes Austrian Darts Open, the sixth European Tour event of the 2026 season. Players competed for a £35,0...

Austrian Darts Open: Gian van Veen suffers shock exit as Michael van Gerwen progresses and Cristo Reyes fires nine-darter

Austrian Darts Open: Gian van Veen suffers shock exit as Michael van Gerwen progresses and Cristo Reyes fires nine-darter

Cristo Reyes produced a magical nine-dart finish during the second round of the Elten Safety Shoes Austrian Darts Open, where Gian van Veen suffered a...

Mark Webster: Sky Sports Darts pundit diagnosed with rare form of blood cancer

Mark Webster: Sky Sports Darts pundit diagnosed with rare form of blood cancer

Former world darts champion and Your Site pundit Mark Webster has been diagnosed with a rare form of blood cancer.Webster, who claimed World Champions...

Premier League Darts permutations: Luke Humphries leapfrogs Michael van Gerwen into Play-Off spot

Premier League Darts permutations: Luke Humphries leapfrogs Michael van Gerwen into Play-Off spot

Luke Humphries moved one point ahead of Michael van Gerwen and into the fourth and final Premier League Darts Play-Off spot with only two weeks remain...

Austrian Darts Open: Mensur Suljovic into second round as Michael Smith and Raymond van Barneveld suffer early exits

Austrian Darts Open: Mensur Suljovic into second round as Michael Smith and Raymond van Barneveld suffer early exits

Mensur Suljovic progressed through to the second round on home soil as he dumped Cameron Menzies out of the Austrian Darts Open on Friday.The Austrian...

Premier League Darts in Aberdeen LIVE! Latest scores, results, highlights with Luke Littler, Luke Humphries in action

Premier League Darts in Aberdeen LIVE! Latest scores, results, highlights with Luke Littler, Luke Humphries in action

Palace not giving up hope of appointing IraolaLatest by Your Site News' Lyall Thomas:Crystal Palace are not giving up on appointing Andoni Iraola as t...