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Chris Dobey delivered a darting masterclass to capture his third ranking title of the season with victory at Players Championship 32 on Thursday.
The former Masters champion defeated surprise package Tommy Morris 8-4 to secure the £15,000 top prize, on a day which also featured a hat-trick of nine-dart finishes in Den Bosch.
However, Dobey stole the headlines with a series of impregnable displays on Dutch soil, registering the three highest averages of the afternoon en route to glory.
The 36-year-old boasted a tournament average of 103.15 across his seven matches, with the only blemish coming in a scrappy opening round tie against Marvin Kraft.
Dobey followed this up with a 108.65 average in a six-leg drubbing of Owen Bates, before recording successive 6-2 wins against Mickey Mansell and Bradley Brooks to race into the quarter-finals.
The Bedlington star then averaged 111.12 in a 6-1 demolition of Krzysztof Ratajski, before averaging 109.68 to progress through a captivating semi-final showdown against William O’Connor.
Dobey’s performance in Thursday’s showpiece wasn’t quite as spectacular, although he inflicted the damage in the early exchanges, reeling off three straight legs in just 41 darts to establish a 3-0 cushion.
Morris soon settled and reduced the deficit to 5-3, but Dobey regained control with back-to-back 14-darters to lead 7-3, before firing in a brilliant 12-darter in leg 12 to prevail with a 103 average.
“I was saying yesterday that I just need a bit of consistency back,” admitted Dobey, who joins Wessel Nijman and Luke Humphries in claiming a trio of Players Championship titles in 2026.
“I’ve changed darts. I’ve gone to a brand new barrel this week.
“I took them out of the wrapper at home the day before I travelled, and I’ve felt great and produced some good stuff.
“I’m just delighted to get another win after my recent performances on TV. I’ve had a few struggles, but my doubles were brilliant today and you can tell I’ve been working at home.
"I’m knuckling down and I’ll be working hard for the back end of the year. I know what I’ve got to defend at the World Championship, so I’m looking to dig deep and hopefully get up those rankings again.”
Despite Dobey’s heroics, Challenge Tour star Morris refused to be overshadowed in Den Bosch, claiming a host of major scalps to secure a spot in his maiden PDC ranking final.
The 34-year-old was aiming to become only the sixth player without a Tour Card to win a ProTour crown, following in the footsteps of Joe Murnan, Ratajski, Scott Williams, Wesley Plaisier and Henry Coates.
Morris dumped out Dutch icon Michael van Gerwen and Wednesday’s champion Charlie Manby on his way to the quarter-finals, where he later swept aside Michael Smith.
The quick-fire Englishman then averaged almost 107 to win through a high-quality semi-final clash against Williams, which all but confirms his qualification for next month’s Players Championship Finals.
Williams – a runner-up at Players Championship 30 last month – maintained his impressive revival on Dutch soil, registering three whitewash wins and defeating Wednesday’s finalist Maik Kuivenhoven during his run to the last four.
Irish star O’Connor completed the semi-final line-up, posting ton-plus averages to sink Martin Schindler and Niels Zonneveld, while converting a sublime 148 finish to edge past Karel Sedlacek in the last eight.
Sedlacek saw off Dutch duo Raymond van Barneveld and Kevin Doets in reaching the quarter-finals, where he was joined by a resurgent Ricardo Pietreczko.
2022/23 World Champion Smith also succumbed at the same stage, with Ratajski landing a brace of ton-topping averages prior to his defeat against an irrepressible Dobey.
Elsewhere, Cor Dekker was on the receiving end of a nine-darter for the second straight day, as Tom Sykes achieved perfection during their opening round encounter.
Brooks also nailed the nine in his round one victory against Adam Gawlas, while Plaisier produced a perfect leg en route to a 6-4 success against Damon Heta in round two, which could prove invaluable in his hopes of World Championship qualification.
Plaisier enjoyed a timely run to the last 16 on home soil to move into the provisional qualification places, with five-time World Champion Van Barneveld currently occupying the final spot.
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