BEN ROBB made a dream start to the 2023 DartPlayers New Zealand Winmau ProTour season at the weekend, producing an incredible 115 average en route to claiming back-to-back titles in Christchurch.
New Zealand’s number one Robb, who topped the 2022 DPNZ rankings, reaffirmed his domestic dominance by winning the year’s first two Winmau ProTour Events on February 25-26.
Robb’s is the latest eye-catching performance from PDC affiliate tours. The Australian, Asian and North American tours have produced more and more elite performances in recent years. The start of 2023 promises even further improvement in the coming months.
Robb celebrated Event One glory with a 7-3 victory over Warren Parry on Saturday, having won through the initial group phase with three wins from four round-robin fixtures.
The 34-year-old recovered from 3-2 down to deny Mike Keen in the last 32, before following up a whitewash win over Darren Dummigan with a 5-1 rout of John Hurring in the last eight.
He then sealed his spot in Saturday’s showpiece with a 6-3 success against Darren Herewini, before wrapping up an emphatic win over the veteran Parry with a clinical 110 checkout.
The three-time World Championship qualifier upped the ante in Event Two, producing a career-best average to cap off a perfect opening weekend.
After whitewashing Freddie Granada in the last 32, Robb avenged his group stage defeat to James Bailey with a dramatic comeback win, surviving match darts to triumph from 3-1 down.
New Zealand’s World Cup star then fired in a mesmerising 115.06 average to dispatch Hurring 5-1 in the quarter-finals, registering winning legs of 15, 14, 13, 13 and 11 darts in the process.
Robb posted another ton-plus average as he ran out a 6-3 winner against Mark Cleaver in the semi-finals, crashing in six 180s and wiring double 12 for a nine-darter in leg three of the contest.
This set up a showdown against former World Cup of Darts quarter-finalist Haupai Puha in the Event Two decider, where Robb produced another stirring fightback to claim the spoils.
Puha converted 108 and 167 finishes in consecutive legs to storm into a 4-1 lead, but a 126 checkout from Robb sparked a sequence of six straight legs, which catapulted him to the title.
The 2023 DPNZ ProTour season continues with Events 3-4 in Auckland on March 25-26, as Robb bids to extend his lead at the top of the Order of Merit.
The new-look DPNZ circuit, supported by the PDC, will feature six ProTour weekends over the next 12 months, with two events taking place on each weekend.
Following the culmination of the 2023 DPNZ ProTour season, the top 16 players on the DPNZ Order of Merit will compete in the Cazoo World Darts Championship qualifier on October 9 in Christchurch.
2023 DartPlayers New Zealand Winmau ProTour
Saturday February 25
Black Horse Hotel, Christchurch
Event One
Quarter-Finals
Ben Robb 5-1 John Hurring
Darren Herewini 5-3 Harrison Donegan
Warren Parry 5-0 Frank Bush
Haupai Puha 5-2 Graeme Ryder
Semi-Finals
Ben Robb 6-3 Darren Herewini
Warren Parry 6-2 Haupai Puha
Final
Ben Robb 7-3 Warren Parry
Sunday February 26
Event Two
Quarter-Finals
Ben Robb 5-1 John Hurring
Mark Cleaver 5-4 Darren Dummigan
Stu Irwin 5-3 Landon Gardiner
Haupai Puha 5-1 Kayden Milne
Semi-Finals
Ben Robb 6-3 Mark Cleaver
Haupai Puha 6-2 Stu Irwin
Final
Ben Robb 7-4 Haupai Puha
—–ENDS—–
Images: PDC
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