Mike De Decker secured his maiden senior PDC title with a brilliant success in Players Championship 16 on Thursday, which culminated in a stunning 8-2 defeat of Ricky Evans in the final.
The 28-year-old from Mechelen has made steady progress on the PDC circuit over the past decade, winning four Development Tour events during his emergence.
De Decker had reached a second quarter-final of 2024 on Wednesday, but went all the way to the £15,000 title 24 hours later as he scooped a first ProTour victory.
Admitting that the win was the highlight of his career to date, De Decker added: “I’m over the moon to win this.
“I’ve been in a final of a Players Championship before and lost to Rob Cross, and it’s taken a while for me to get over the winning line.
“There was an article this week that came out with the top players from Belgium in history and I was tenth – it didn’t feel good being tenth!
“I came here this week – yesterday I had a quarter-final and now I won a tournament – hopefully they change the list now!”
De Decker performed superbly throughout Thursday’s event in Milton Keynes, with a 93.45 average in his opening round win over fellow countryman Robbie Knops being his lowest average of the day.
He averaged over 105 in a second round win over Jose de Sousa, then saw off top seed Dave Chisnall, Danny Van Trijp, Brendan Dolan – in a decider – and Karel Sedlacek as he secured a spot in the final.
There, he denied England’s Evans a first senior title with a stunning performance, hitting six 180s and finishing eight doubles from 14 attempts, ending the tie with a 104.87 average.
De Decker fired in back-to-back 13-darters as he opened up a 3-0 lead, with Evans responding in the fourth only for another trio of legs – including finishes of 13 and 12 darts – to create a 6-1 cushion.
Evans hit back again in leg eight, but missed the bull in the next as De Decker finished 80 on tops to move to the brink of a win he sealed on the same bed for a 14-darter.
“Finally I can say I won something!” he added. “I’ve grown up, taken the game more seriously [and] started to practice more, taken it more professionally and finally it pays off.
“Hopefully the next step is [to win] a European Tour.”
Evans’ display was his best since reaching the semi-finals of March’s Ladbrokes UK Open, as he won through to a first ProTour final for over two years.
The Kettering ace also produced a consistently high standard of darts throughout Thursday’s event, which began with a narrow win over Rob Cross.
He also saw off former European Champion Ross Smith in the last 16 and claimed a win over World Champion Luke Humphries with a 7-4 semi-final success.
Humphries showed his quality in winning five matches on his way to the last four, where he was joined by Czech star Karel Sedlacek.
Sedlacek enjoyed his best-ever run on the ProTour as he defeated John Henderson, Graham Usher, Adam Warner, Ryan Joyce and Gabriel Clemens.
Premier League champion Luke Littler saw his bid to win back-to-back Players Championship titles ended in the last 32 by Cameron Menzies, who then produced the day’s highest average of 108.86 in defeating Josh Rock on his way to the quarter-finals.
German ace Clemens and Connor Scutt reached their second ProTour quarter-finals of 2024, while Dolan’s bid to win a second Players Championship of the year was ended by De Decker.
Friday sees the Players Championship treble-header conclude, before Saturday features the Tour Card Holder Qualifiers for European Tour Events 11 and 12.
Coverage from Players Championship 17 will be broadcast live through PDCTV and bookmakers’ websites worldwide.
2024 Players Championship 16
Thursday August 1, Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes
Last 16
Mike De Decker 6-4 Danny Van Trijp
Brendan Dolan 6-4 Stephen Bunting
Gabriel Clemens 6-4 Dirk van Duijvenbode
Karel Sedlacek 6-4 Ryan Joyce
Luke Humphries 6-3 Kim Huybrechts
Cameron Menzies 6-3 Josh Rock
Ricky Evans 6-4 Ross Smith
Connor Scutt 6-4 Wesley Plaisier
Quarter-Finals
Mike De Decker 6-5 Brendan Dolan
Karel Sedlacek 6-4 Gabriel Clemens
Luke Humphries 6-3 Cameron Menzies
Ricky Evans 6-5 Connor Scutt
Semi-Finals
Mike De Decker 7-5 Karel Sedlacek
Ricky Evans 7-4 Luke Humphries
Final
Mike De Decker 8-2 Ricky Evans
—–ENDS—–
Images: PDC
