Momentum is a dangerous thing on the PDC Challenge Tour – and right now, Joe Hunt has it strapped to his back like a jet engine.
Less than 24 hours after lighting up Milton Keynes on Friday night, the Londoner was straight back at it on Saturday morning, doing what winners do when confidence is flowing – winning again. Another title. Another long day survived. Another reminder that form, when caught, is brutally hard to stop.
A roofer by trade, Hunt once more climbed above the competition, navigating a field stacked with experience, pedigree and plenty of sharp elbows. The last-16 clash was the first real test – a knife-edge duel with Chas Barstow that could have gone either way before Hunt edged clear.
From there, the tone shifted. The evergreen Steve Beaton was brushed aside 5-2, followed by another controlled semi-final win of the same scoreline against Alan Norris.
Then came the final – and with a third consecutive 5-2 victory, Hunt dismantled former World Youth Champion Arron Monk to go back-to-back and plant himself firmly at the top of the early Order of Merit. Stay anywhere near that summit and the reward is clear – a ProTour call-up when the season fires into life in Hildesheim.
Event two brought a change of accent and a change of narrative. Enter Martijn Dragt, the first non-Englishman to strike gold this season. Recently shorn of his tour card, the Dutchman arrived in Milton Keynes with a point to prove – and left with a trophy and a statement.
Dragt’s run was all about control. No dramatic last-leg shootouts. No chaos. Just repeated 5-3 wins through a quality field. His standout display came in the quarter-finals against Gary Jackson, where he flirted with a 95 average. He followed that by dismissing fellow former tour card holder Steve Lennon, before rounding off the evening by seeing off ex-Grand Slam champion Scott Waites.
Four events down, one to go. Hunt sits king of the hill. Dragt stalks just behind. The Tommy twins – Lishman and Morris – loom next, with Waites completing the top five.This tour doesn’t wait. It doesn’t forgive. And it’s already sorting contenders from survivors.
—–Ends—–
Inages: PDC
