Damon Heta doubles title tally for 2025 with Players Championship 20 triumph
Damon Heta sealed his second ranking title of 2025 with an 8-7 victory over Stephen Bunting in the Players Championship 20 final on Tuesday.
The Australian number one defied a stirring fightback from Bunting to pocket the £15,000 top prize at the Mattioli Arena, having led 7-4 at one stage.
Bunting followed up a clinical 130 checkout with legs of 11 and 15 darts to force a last-leg shoot-out, but Heta kept his cool in the decider to clinch his ninth Players Championship title.
“To get the win today is a massive confidence boost,” admitted Heta, who moves up to ninth on the Order of Merit as a result.
“Stephen showed his class there, but I knew I had the throw in the last leg, and I’m really excited that I got the win today.
“I know I’m hitting the heights, and that’s where I need to be. It’s just a matter of taking my opportunities, and I was able to do that today.”
Heta breezed through to the semi-finals in emphatic style, dropping just ten legs in wins over Patrick Geeraets, Ted Evetts, Bradley Brooks, Madars Razma and Daryl Gurney.
The former World Cup of Darts winner then powered in a sensational 109 average in a 7-5 semi-final success against Gerwyn Price, before edging out Bunting in a gripping final.
Bunting had earlier produced a magnificent comeback in his semi-final win over Rob Cross, overturning a 6-2 deficit with a brilliant five-leg spell, which also featured a nine-dart finish.
The world number four, runner-up at last weekend’s Poland Masters, also recorded averages of 103, 101 and 108 to defeat Cam Crabtree, Haupai Puha and Danny Noppert earlier in the day.
Cross, meanwhile, was left to rue missing four match darts for a 7-2 victory against Bunting, despite landing a quartet of ton-plus averages en route to the semi-finals.
This included a superb 109.8 in his quarter-final win over World Cup of Darts champion Josh Rock – who averaged 108.9 in defeat.
Cross later succumbed in the Last Four alongside newly crowned Poland Masters champion Price – who fell just short in his bid for back-to-back titles.
The Welshman saw off the likes of Dirk van Duijvenbode and Dom Taylor during his run to the semi-finals, before winning through a high-quality affair against his World Cup partner Clayton in the Last Eight.
Clayton was joined in the quarter-finals by former European Champion Ross Smith and Northern Ireland’s World Cup champions Daryl Gurney and Rock.
Rock continued his rich vein of form with a series of sparkling displays in Leicester, landing a nine-darter and averaging north of 109 in his opening round demolition of Sebastian Bialecki.
Bunting and Rock’s nine-dart exploits were matched by emerging German Leon Weber, who also achieved perfection in his first round victory over Poland’s Tytus Kanik.
However, former World Youth Champion Bradley Brooks produced the performance of the afternoon, averaging a staggering 117.5 to see off Callan Rydz in Round One.
This week’s ProTour double-header will conclude with Players Championship 21 on Wednesday, as the race for Betfred World Matchplay qualification reaches its climax.
Ryan Joyce currently occupies the final provisional place in the 32-player field, with 2023 World Champion Michael Smith facing a major fight to preserve his hopes of qualification.
Smith must reach at least the semi-finals of Wednesday’s event to keep his Blackpool hopes alive, with Krzysztof Ratajski and European Champion Ritchie Edhouse also among the chasing pack.
Players Championship 20 Results
Tuesday July 8
First Round
Dom Taylor 6-2 Martin Lukeman
Steve Lennon 6-3 Darryl Pilgrim
Adam Lipscombe 6-3 Martin Schindler
Andy Boulton 6-2 Oskar Lukasiak
Dirk van Duijvenbode 6-4 Max Hopp
Jeffrey De Graaf 6-5 Carl Sneyd
Gerwyn Price 6-4 Dominik Gruellich
Nick Kenny 6-3 Chris Landman
Raymond van Barneveld 6-3 William Borland
Karel Sedlacek 6-3 Gabriel Clemens
Jonny Clayton 6-1 Robert Grundy
Adam Paxton 6-3 George Killington
Luke Woodhouse 6-5 William O’Connor
Jamai van den Herik 6-2 Sam Spivey
Gian van Veen 6-0 Pero Ljubic
Niko Springer 6-4 Stephen Burton
James Hurrell 6-4 Ritchie Edhouse
Bradley Brooks 6-3 Callan Rydz
Damon Heta 6-1 Patrick Geeraets
Ted Evetts 6-1 Henry Coates
Andrew Gilding 6-2 Jelle Klaasen
Viktor Tingstrom 6-2 Ryan Meikle
Mike De Decker 6-5 Dylan Slevin
Madars Razma 6-3 Jim Long
Mario Vandenbogaerde 6-2 Krzysztof Ratajski
Matthew Dennant 6-3 Berry van Peer
Chris Dobey 6-0 Rob Owen
Ian White 6-5 Martijn Dragt
Daryl Gurney 6-5 Tom Bissell
Kevin Doets 6-3 Brett Claydon
Ryan Searle 6-1 Stefan Bellmont
Mickey Mansell 6-2 Connor Scutt
Haupai Puha 6-5 Niels Zonneveld
Ricky Evans 6-5 Darius Labanauskas
Stephen Bunting 6-4 Richard Veenstra
Cam Crabtree 6-5 Wesley Plaisier
Danny Noppert 6-4 Jim Williams
Stefaan Henderyck 6-3 Rhys Griffin
Adam Warner 6-3 James Wade
Joshua Richardson 6-5 Radek Szaganski
Graham Hall 6-3 Ryan Joyce
Maik Kuivenhoven 6-3 Danny Lauby
Ross Smith 6-4 Kai Gotthardt
Darren Beveridge 6-2 Kevin Burness
Joe Cullen 6-4 Benjamin Reus
Owen Bates 6-0 Dennie Olde Kalter
Cameron Menzies 6-4 Jack Tweddell
Michele Turetta 6-5 Dimitri Van den Bergh
Rob Cross 6-1 Thibault Tricole
Thomas Lovely 6-4 Christian Kist
Dave Chisnall 6-5 Justin Hood
Brendan Dolan 6-3 Lukas Wenig
Jermaine Wattimena 6-5 Scott Williams
Maximilian Czerwinski 6-5 Tavis Dudeney
Gary Anderson 6-2 Rusty-Jake Rodriguez
Leon Weber 6-3 Tytus Kanik – *Weber hits a nine-darter*
Kim Huybrechts 6-4 Michael Smith
Jose De Sousa 6-5 Andy Baetens
Josh Rock 6-1 Sebastian Bialecki – *Rock hits a nine-darter*
Jitse Van der Wal 6-4 Nathan Rafferty
Ricardo Pietreczko 6-2 Marvin van Velzen
Adam Hunt 6-4 Alan Soutar
Wessel Nijman 6-5 Greg Ritchie
Keane Barry 6-4 Mervyn King
Second Round
Dom Taylor 6-5 Steve Lennon
Andy Boulton 6-4 Adam Lipscombe
Dirk van Duijvenbode 6-3 Jeffrey De Graaf
Gerwyn Price 6-3 Nick Kenny
Karel Sedlacek 6-3 Raymond van Barneveld
Jonny Clayton 6-0 Adam Paxton
Luke Woodhouse 6-5 Jamai van den Herik
Gian van Veen 6-1 Niko Springer
Bradley Brooks 6-3 James Hurrell
Damon Heta 6-2 Ted Evetts
Andrew Gilding 6-3 Viktor Tingstrom
Madars Razma 6-5 Mike De Decker
Mario Vandenbogaerde 6-3 Matthew Dennant
Chris Dobey 6-4 Ian White
Daryl Gurney 6-5 Kevin Doets
Ryan Searle 6-2 Mickey Mansell
Haupai Puha 6-2 Ricky Evans
Stephen Bunting 6-3 Cam Crabtree
Danny Noppert 6-0 Stefaan Henderyck
Adam Warner 6-5 Joshua Richardson
Graham Hall 6-4 Maik Kuivenhoven
Ross Smith 6-4 Darren Beveridge
Owen Bates 6-3 Joe Cullen
Cameron Menzies 6-1 Michele Turetta
Rob Cross 6-2 Thomas Lovely
Dave Chisnall 6-3 Brendan Dolan
Jermaine Wattimena 6-1 Maximilian Czerwinski
Leon Weber 6-2 Gary Anderson
Kim Huybrechts 6-3 Jose De Sousa
Josh Rock 6-0 Jitse Van der Wal
Ricardo Pietreczko 6-4 Adam Hunt
Keane Barry 6-1 Wessel Nijman
Last 32
Dom Taylor 6-3 Andy Boulton
Gerwyn Price 6-4 Dirk van Duijvenbode
Jonny Clayton 6-3 Karel Sedlacek
Luke Woodhouse 6-5 Gian van Veen
Damon Heta 6-3 Bradley Brooks
Madars Razma 6-5 Andrew Gilding
Chris Dobey 6-1 Mario Vandenbogaerde
Daryl Gurney 6-2 Ryan Searle
Stephen Bunting 6-2 Haupai Puha
Danny Noppert 6-1 Adam Warner
Ross Smith 6-2 Graham Hall
Owen Bates 6-1 Cameron Menzies
Rob Cross 6-5 Dave Chisnall
Jermaine Wattimena 6-2 Leon Weber
Josh Rock 6-2 Kim Huybrechts
Keane Barry 6-2 Ricardo Pietreczko
Last 16
Gerwyn Price 6-5 Dom Taylor
Jonny Clayton 6-2 Luke Woodhouse
Damon Heta 6-3 Madars Razma
Daryl Gurney 6-4 Chris Dobey
Stephen Bunting 6-3 Danny Noppert
Ross Smith 6-4 Owen Bates
Rob Cross 6-5 Jermaine Wattimena
Josh Rock 6-3 Keane Barry
Quarter-Finals
Gerwyn Price 6-4 Jonny Clayton
Damon Heta 6-1 Daryl Gurney
Stephen Bunting 6-1 Ross Smith
Rob Cross 6-5 Josh Rock
Semi-Finals
Damon Heta 7-5 Gerwyn Price
Stephen Bunting 7-6 Rob Cross – *Bunting hits a nine-darter*
Final
Damon Heta 8-7 Stephen Bunting
