Over 16,000 fans turned the Messe Congress Graz into a madhouse last weekend and witnessed a premiere winner. Josh Rock was crowned champion of the ELTEN Safety Shoes Austrian Darts Open for the first time, celebrating his second title on the PDC European Tour following his success at the 2024 Dutch Darts Championship. In a high-class final, “Rocky” kept the upper hand and defeated Kevin Doets 8-6.
In the final, Josh Rock and Kevin Doets fought a duel at the absolute top level. Both players averaged over 100 points, providing a final that the enthusiastic fans in Graz will likely remember for a long time.
The match began furiously with four breaks in the first four legs. At a score of 3-3, Rock then produced the major highlight: with a sensational 170 finish, “Rocky” set the course for the title. It was the third “Big Fish” of the final day, after Kevin Doets and Cristo Reyes had also hooked the 170 points earlier. Ultimately, Rock kept his nerves, secured his first title in Austria with a deserved final victory, and made amends for his 2023 final defeat (6-8 against Jonny Clayton).
I’m very relieved. I made my first final against Jonny Clayton here and when he got the jacket I was kind of jealos. Titles are very hard nowaday to win because the standard is that good now.
Six Tournaments – Six Champions
With the Northern Irishman’s triumph, a trend on this year’s European Tour continues: after the first six European Tour events of 2026, there have been six different tournament winners.
For Kevin Doets, however, the dream of a first European Tour triumph fell just short. Only six days after his first-ever PDC title at Players Championship 13, the Dutchman impressively confirmed his strong form and reached a European Tour final for the first time.
I just felt like Josh wouldn’t stop. Whatever I thew at him, he did better. He was the deserved winner today. Although I felt like I had my chances, it was a great final. Let’s hope for more.
Reyes Makes History with First TV 9-Darter
Cristo Reyes provided the most spectacular moment of the weekend on Saturday. The Spaniard played his first TV 9-darter in Graz and wrote history in several ways.
It was the 25th 9-darter in the history of the European Tour – and at the same time, the first perfect leg in Austria since 2012. Back then, the very first 9-darter in European Tour history was achieved at the Arena Nova in Wiener Neustadt.
Reyes also showed strong form competitively and reached a European Tour quarter-final for the first time since 2017. There, however, he had to admit defeat to the eventual tournament winner Josh Rock with a score of 4-6.
Gurney Stops Defending Champion
Defending champion Martin Schindler continued his strong European Tour form of recent weeks in Graz and reached the quarter-finals once again – as he did at the ELTEN Safety Shoes European Darts Grand Prix. However, that was the end of the road against Daryl Gurney. The Northern Irishman won clearly with 6-2, preventing the German from a successful title defense, but was himself defeated 3-7 by his compatriot Josh Rock in the semi-finals.
Suljovic Provides Austrian Bright Spot
From the perspective of the home fans, Mensur Suljovic provided the only victory for a Host Nation Qualifier. The Viennese was the only Austrian to survive the first round, giving the crowd at least one victory on home soil.
Nick Zwittnigg, Aaron Hardy, and Zoran Lerchbacher, on the other hand, each suffered defeat in their opening matches.
Next Stop: Riesa
After the spectacular weekend in Graz, the Winamax PDC European Tour now returns to Germany. From May 22 to 24, the ELTEN Safety Shoes International Darts Open will take place at the WT Energiesysteme Arena in Riesa. Fans can once again look forward to world-class darts and the next big party on the European Tour. Tickets for this traditional tournament are available on the official PDC Europe ticket website.
