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Szaganski Wins First PDC Title

Szaganski Wins First PDC Title

Alex Moss |

A Week In Darts – October 23, 2023 – Surprise Package Szaganski Wins First PDC Title

There was a surprise winner on the PDC ProTour last week, whilst across the pond the top players from North America battled it out for the CDC Continental Cup. Here’s our look back at the last seven days in the world of darts…

SZAGANSKI WINS FIRST PDC TITLE

Radek Szaganski claimed his first PDC title with a surprise victory in Players Championship 27 on Friday.

Polish-born Szaganski, a bus driver now based in Ireland, beat Connor Scutt 8-5 in the final to become only the second player from Poland to win a PDC ranking event.

The 43-year-old got the better of Premier League duo Dimitri Van den Bergh and Jonny Clayton on his way to a memorable title win at the Barnsley Metrodome.

Szaganski was one of four winners during a block of four Players Championship events last week, with Gary Anderson, Ryan Joyce and Ross Smith also winning titles.

On Wednesday, Anderson continued his blistering form to secure Players Championship 25, beating Josh Rock 8-4 in the decider to win his third event of the year.

The Scot threw a nine-dart finish in his second-round win against Keane Barry and boasted a tournament average of 101.45.

The next day saw Joyce pick up his second career PDC ranking title as he battled back from 6-4 down to beat Gerwyn Price 8-7 and win Players Championship 26.

The Newcastle-upon-Tyne star had won his first event during the PDC Summer Series back in 2020, and doubled his tally with a 110 checkout securing a victory over the former world champion Price.

On Saturday, Smith threw a nine darter on his way to glory in Players Championship 28, sealing the title with an 8-6 triumph against Damon Heta in the final.

From 6-3 down the reigning European champion reeled off five straight legs to beat Heta and claim his second title of 2023.

The Players Championship season concludes with Players Championships 29-30 on November 1-2 next week.

CONTINENTAL CUP GLORY FOR BUNTZ

Stowe Buntz’s breakthrough 2023 continued at the weekend as he won the CDC Continental Cup to book his spot in next month’s Grand Slam of Darts.

The world’s top players from North America faced off over two days in New York City with Buntz beating Jake Macmillan, Larry Butler, Jacob Taylor and Jason Brandon to win the title.

The colourful American won three titles in a row on the CDC ProTour earlier this year to clinch a debut in the PDC World Championship in December.

And Buntz will now make his big-stage debut in the Grand Slam next month after winning the Continental Cup, edging past Brandon 8-6 in the decider.

After racing into a 3-0 lead in the final, Buntz was pegged back to 3-3 but then found another break of throw and was too strong from there, holding his throw four times to complete a memorable victory.

AROUND THE BOARD

New Zealand’s Haupai Puha will make his PDC World Championship return in December after winning the DPA Oceanic Masters on Sunday.

‘Hopes’ came through a 44-player field to triumph in Warilla, defeating reigning champion Mal Cuming 3-1 in the final to secure his spot at Alexandra Palace.

The New Zealander, who made his PDC World Championship debut in 2021, fought back from 2-0 down to claim the opening set of the final, with finishes of 102 and 121 helping him to take a 2-0 lead in sets.

Cuming responded with 134 and 101 checkouts to halve the deficit, but Puha produced a clinical 100 finish to triumph in the next set.

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Alex Moss is a content creator for Darts Corner and the co-host of the Weekly Dartscast podcast. Alex co-founded the Weekly Dartscast in 2017 and has helped produce 350+ episodes of the podcast, with their list of previous guests on the show a who’s who in the world of darts.

Alex also writes content for the Darts Corner blog, including the weekly darts news round-ups and how-to guides.

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