Ritchie Edhouse stormed to his maiden televised crown with a crushing 11-3 victory over Jermaine Wattimena in Sunday’s Machineseeker European Championship final.
Edhouse fulfilled his darting dreams on an extraordinary day of action in Dortmund, as the two lowest-ranked players in the tournament went head-to-head for the title in a remarkable turn of events.
Edhouse took centre stage in the first and last match of this year’s European Championship, after he kicked off the tournament with a stunning 109.48 average in his 6-1 demolition of Gian van Veen.
He also overturned a 4-1 deficit to stun world number two Michael Smith in Saturday’s second round, before averaging almost 104 to complete a famous 10-5 win over Gary Anderson in the last eight.
The 41-year-old continued his ground-breaking run with an 11-5 victory against Luke Woodhouse in the semi-finals, and he wasn’t to be denied against another surprise finalist in Wattimena.
“This is unbelievable,” reflected Edhouse, who had not progressed beyond the last 32 of a televised event prior to his arrival in Dortmund. “I think this could be a stepping stone for me because confidence breeds confidence, and now I am really confident and hungry for more!”
Edhouse now moves into the world’s top 32 for the first time, climbing ten places to a career-high of 29th on the PDC Order of Merit, while also securing qualification for November’s Mr Vegas Grand Slam of Darts in the process.
Wattimena also sealed his place in Wolverhampton with a sensational run to the final, having dumped out four TV title winners to pocket the £60,000 runner-up prize.
The 36-year-old had begun his campaign with a whitewash win over reigning champion Peter Wright on Friday, before accounting for 2018 winner James Wade in a deciding-leg thriller in round two.
“I’m really happy to reach the final,” said Wattimena, who was full of praise for Edhouse post-match. “I lost to the better player in Ritchie. On the stage we are enemies, but after the match we’re good friends. I’ve known him for a long time, so congratulations to Ritchie.
For the German participants, the tournament did not go as hoped. Martin Schindler and Gabriel Clemens lose their opening matches and are eliminated early. Only Ricardo Pietreczko survives the first round and advances to the quarterfinals, where he loses to Danny Noppert in the decider (9-10).
The 2024 European Tour season thus ends with another tournament for the history books. Tickets for the upcoming European Tour will go on sale at www.pdc-europe.tv in November.
