Warwickshire’s Graham Hall claimed the prestigious ADC Winmau Championship Tour title, defeating Kurt Parry with a sublime ton-plus checkout in a dramatic last-leg decider.
The sole Welshman in the field – and in fact, the only non-English competitor – Parry agonisingly missed multiple match darts to win 5–3.
But that’s darts for you: the hardest one to land is always the winning one, and unfortunately for the 32-year-old, that proved to be the case.
Both finalists had to come through nervy openers, each surviving a deciding-leg shootout in the quarter-finals. Top seed Jack Tweddell fell at the first hurdle to former PDC Czech Darts Open champion Jamie Hughes, who averaged a healthy 92.36 and hit a trio of 180s to become the first man through to the semis.
Parry then got his campaign underway and, after taking a 3–1 lead against Chas Barstow, had to withstand a spirited comeback to edge through 5–4. Hall’s victory by the same scoreline over Robbie Martin was more nip and tuck, but crucially, he snatched the ninth and final leg.
Completing the semi-final lineup, Carl Wilson comfortably dispatched Shaun Fox.The Welshman was first to book his spot in the grand final, producing an excellent mid-90s average to end Yozza’s run.
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Soon after, Graham Hall found himself in another nail-biter, this time against Carl Wilson. G-Man led 2–0 and then 4–2 but squandered match darts, allowing Gok to claw back to force a decider. A relieved Hall held firm to take it.
In keeping with the theme of the day, the final was yet another thriller – and for the third consecutive time, Hall came out on top when it mattered most.
Congratulations to the Mission arrowsmith, who bags the title and £5,000. Not bad for an afternoon’s work.
Quarter-Finals
(1) Jack Tweddell 2-5 Jamie Hughes (8)
(4) Chas Barstow 4-5 Kurt Parry (5)
(3) Robbie Martin 4-5 Graham Hall (6)
(2) Carl Wilson 5-2 Shaun Fox (7)
Semi-Finals
Kurt Parry 5-2 Jamie Hughes
Graham Hall 5-4 Carl Wilson
Final
Graham Hall 5-4 Kurt Parry
—–Ends—–
Images: MODUS
