Luke Woodhouse stole the headlines with a sensational nine-darter on Day One of the Machineseeker European Championship to set up a tantalising clash with reigning champion Gian van Veen in Dortmund.
Woodhouse raised the roof on a thrilling night of action at the Westfalenhalle, achieving perfection during his 6-3 win against Dirk van Duijvenbode in the opening match of the tournament.
“That felt really good,” admitted 2024 semi-finalist Woodhouse, who also averaged north of 99 to book his place in the last 16. “I had a chance for a nine-darter at the World Championship and that didn’t go very well!
“I know it’s a cliche but the most important thing is the win, so I tried to get myself nice and calm and just crack on with the game. I’m feeling really good at the moment. I’ve probably had the best 12 months of my life darts-wise, so let’s hope it’s my weekend!”
Van Veen, meanwhile, became the first defending European Champion to register victory at this event since 2018, courtesy of a spirited 6-4 success against Andrew Gilding.
Gilding started strongly to establish a 3-2 cushion, but the Dutch number one bounced back strongly, winning four of the last five legs to kick off his bid for back-to-back titles on German soil.
“Andrew put me under pressure every leg, but I took my chances and the defence is up and running,” reflected world number three Van Veen.
“After the game I was told about the previous champions losing in the first round and luckily I didn’t know that before the game, because that would have been extra pressure for myself!
“It’s going to be a tricky game against Luke, but it’s a match I’m looking forward to and thankfully I got this one out of the way.”
2026 Machineseeker European Championship, Dortmund.
22/10/26: Round One. Gerwyn Price v Rob Cross. Picture: Michael Cooper/PDC
Gerwyn Price also impressed on Thursday’s opening night, landing a brace of ton-plus checkouts during his 6-2 demolition of two-time champion Rob Cross. The Welsh number one kicked off proceedings with a superb 127 on the bull, before capping off a stellar display with a 135 combination to progress with a 99.26 average.
2018 winner James Wade was another high-profile casualty in Dortmund, squandering four match darts against Damon Heta, who fought back from 5-3 adrift to triumph.
However, 2022 champion and top seed Ross Smith avoided a similar fate, defeating a spirited Karel Sedlacek 6-4 to create a round two tussle against Australian number one Heta.
Stephen Bunting also came out on top in a dramatic affair against Danny Noppert, conjuring a spectacular 160 checkout to eliminate the fifth seed in a breathless decider.
Bunting’s reward will be a meeting with Kim Huybrechts, after the Belgian capitalised on his late call-up for the event with a remarkable 6-1 demolition of Ryan Searle.
Huybrechts – drafted in as a replacement after Luke Humphries withdrew from the tournament through illness – averaged 103.81 to celebrate his first win at the European Championship since 2015.
Elsewhere, Scotland’s number two Cameron Menzies accounted for newly-crowned Dutch Darts Champion Niels Zonneveld, running out a 6-3 winner to set up a showdown against Price.
The 2026 Machineseeker European Championship continues on Friday, with world number one Luke Littler and four-time champion Michael van Gerwen amongst the stars in action. Coverage will be broadcast live on ITV4 in the UK.
2026 Machineseeker European Championship
Thursday October 22
Round One x8
Luke Woodhouse 6-3 Dirk van Duijvenbode (Luke Woodhouse hit a nine-dart finish)
Stephen Bunting 6-5 Danny Noppert
Cameron Menzies 6-3 Niels Zonneveld
Gerwyn Price 6-2 Rob Cross
Damon Heta 6-5 James Wade
Kim Huybrechts 6-1 Ryan Searle
Gian van Veen 6-4 Andrew Gilding
Ross Smith 6-4 Karel Sedlacek
Friday October 23 (1900-2300 CEST, 1800-2200 BST)
Round One x8
Ryan Joyce v Jermaine Wattimena
Krzysztof Ratajski v Dave Chisnall
Nathan Aspinall v Cristo Reyes
Jonny Clayton v Niko Springer
Luke Littler v William O’Connor
Wessel Nijman v Martin Schindler
Kevin Doets v Michael van Gerwen
Josh Rock v Chris Dobey
