Van Veen Seals PC6 Title with Dominant Win Over Humphries After PC5 Heartbreak
- Darts Central
- Mar 13
- 6 min read
Following Joe Cullen’s victory in Players Championship 5 on Tuesday, attention quickly shifted to Players Championship 6, the second event of the double-header at the Mattioli Arena in Leicester.
The 128-player field returned with eyes on the Pro Tour title and the £15,000 top prize. With five different winners from the first five Players Championship events, it highlighted just how tough it is to claim victory in these tournaments.
The only change from Tuesday’s event was the inclusion of Nathan Aspinall, which meant Challenge Tour call-up Carl Sneyd had to drop out.
Early Rounds: Swede Shines, Nine-Darters, and Big Names Exit
The early rounds of Players Championship 6 were filled with explosive performances and high averages. World Number 1 Luke Humphries averaged 108.71 in his first-round win over Andy Boulton, including a spectacular nine-dart leg—his second in a week after hitting one during Premier League Night 5. Luke Littler also impressed, averaging 107.98 in a 6-5 win over Alan Soutar, who recorded his first-ever nine-darter in PDC action, though it ended in defeat.
Elsewhere, several notable players continued to deliver ton+ averages through the early rounds. Gerwyn Price and Gian van Veen both stood out with solid performances, progressing through the tournament early on with impressive numbers.
This season, players like Connor Scutt are on the rise, registering a 107.92 average to beat Kim Huybrechts. William O’Connor also impressed with a ton+ average yet again, while Dom Taylor stunned Luke Littler 6-5 in a thrilling match, averaging 105.69 to Littler’s solid 104.22.
One of the standout moments came from Viktor Tingstrom, the young Swede, who notched his first-ever win in a Players Championship event after securing his tour card. He dispatched two-time World Champion Peter Wright 6-2 with a 102.91 average, marking a landmark moment in his PDC career.
However, some big names were sent packing early. Jonny Clayton was knocked out in the opening round by new tour card holder Greg Ritchie, Chris Dobey fell to Sebastian Bialecki in round two, and Michael van Gerwen was eliminated by Ryan Meikle in round two.
Quarter-Finals: Humphries Survives Match Darts as Razma’s Dream Run Continues
The quarter-finals saw no ton+ averages from any of the players, but there were still some strong performances and closely contested battles. Gian van Veen impressed with a 6-2 win over James Wade, posting the highest average of the round at 99.87.
Ross Smith maintained control throughout his match against Kevin Doets, winning 6-3 to reach the semi-finals. For Doets, it was a positive couple of events, making back-to-back quarter-finals.
In another thrilling match, Luke Humphries produced a comeback against Damon Heta, winning 6-5. The World Number 1 capitalised after Heta spurned two missed match darts—one at the bullseye in the 10th leg and another on double 20 in the deciding leg.
The surprise run of the day came from Latvia’s Madars Razma, who advanced to the semi-finals with a 6-4 win over Premier League player Stephen Bunting. Razma controlled the match with an impressive 99.10 average.
Along the way, he defeated several high-profile names, including former World Champions Gary Anderson and Michael Smith, as well as a dominant 6-0 whitewash over Owen Bates and a win over Callan Rydz. This marked Razma’s best run since making the semi-finals of PC12 in Hildesheim in June 2024.
Semi-Finals: Humphries and Van Veen Dominate, Dutchman Reaches Back-to-Back Finals
In one semi-final, Luke Humphries and Ross Smith faced off in a high-stakes battle. The World Number 1 quickly stormed into a 4-1 lead, and Smith was unable to mount a comeback as Humphries maintained his composure and kept his opponent at arm’s length. The scoring gap was stark, with Humphries posting an impressive average of 107.39—nearly 11 points higher than Smith’s 96.75.
The other semi-final saw Gian van Veen aiming to bounce back from yesterday’s disappointment and reach back-to-back finals, facing Madars Razma, who was seeking his first PDC final since September 2020. While Razma secured the opening leg with a solid 17-dart hold, van Veen quickly took control, firing off seven consecutive legs to dominate Razma 7-1.
The Latvian was only afforded chances on massive three-dart checkouts. Van Veen’s strong performance included a 103.34 average, securing his place in his second consecutive final.
Road to the Final:
Both Gian van Veen and Luke Humphries had impressive runs to the final, defeating quality opponents along the way. Here’s a look at their paths to the showpiece match:
Round | Gian van Veen | Luke Humphries |
Last 128 | 6-2 vs Steve Lennon | 6-3 vs Andy Boulton |
Last 64 | 6-3 vs Krzysztof Ratajski | 6-5 vs Jitse Van der Wal |
Last 32 | 6-5 vs Connor Scutt | 6-5 vs Luke Woodhouse |
Last 16 | 6-1 vs Jermaine Wattimena | 6-3 vs William O'Connor |
Quarter-Finals | 6-2 vs James Wade | 6-5 vs Damon Heta |
Semi-Finals | 7-1 vs Madars Razma | 7-4 vs Ross Smith |
🏆 The Final: Gian van Veen wins PC6
The opening two legs of the final between World Number 1 Luke Humphries and young Dutch talent Gian van Veen began with some early nerves. Van Veen capitalised, taking both legs to lead 2-0. His 18-darter finish in each leg came in stark contrast to Humphries, who squandered missed darts at doubles in both.
Humphries quickly bounced back with a spectacular 10-dart break to claim his first leg. However, Van Veen responded immediately, firing off two 13-darters in a showcase of his quality to open up a 4-1 lead after five legs.
The pair exchanged routine holds of throw for the next three legs, with Humphries managing to win two of them, reducing the Dutchman’s lead to 5-3.
Needing something special to break Van Veen’s throw and get back into the match, Humphries’ chances were quickly dashed as Van Veen fired a timely 14-darter on double 12 to extend his lead to 6-3. The pressure mounted on Humphries as he missed multiple darts at double in the 10th leg, allowing Van Veen to capitalise with a neat 52 checkout, putting him just one leg away from the title.
In the 11th leg, Van Veen completed the job with a clinical 14-darter, sealing an 8-3 victory over the World Number 1 to claim his first PDC senior title.
This victory marked a significant milestone in Van Veen’s career, as he claimed his first-ever PDC title at Players Championship 6. With a tournament average of 99.77, he showcased remarkable consistency and resilience, particularly after coming so close the day before when he missed six darts for the title.
Van Veen had lost his first four Pro Tour finals, including the previous day’s, but it was fifth time lucky. Coming into the season as the highest-ranked PDC player without a title, he has now firmly removed that monkey from his back.
Talking Points & Highlights
🎯 Van Veen Bounces Back: Gian van Veen showed immense character in bouncing back from the heartbreak of losing in the PC5 final to claim his first senior PDC title at PC6. The young Dutchman’s resilience was evident as he dominated throughout the day and clinched the title in style.
🇱🇻 Razma Impresses: Madars Razma had an impressive run to the semi-finals, marking his first such appearance since June 2024 (PC12). Along the way, he defeated some high-calibre players, including Gary Anderson, Stephen Bunting, and Michael Smith, proving he’s a serious contender on the Pro Tour.
💥 Humphries Reaches 25th Pro Tour Final in 4 Years: Luke Humphries continued his incredible consistency by reaching his 25th Pro Tour final in just four years. This includes 12 PC finals (4 wins) and 13 ET finals (7 wins). He has five more finals compared to second-place Gerwyn Price in that time and nine more than Ryan Searle in third place highlighting his consistency at the highest level.
🔥 Two Nine-Darters Again!: Luke Humphries and Alan Soutar both recorded perfect legs in their opening-round matches. Humphries hit his second nine-darter in just six days during his 6-3 victory over Andy Boulton, while Soutar marked his first-ever nine-darter in PDC action during a 6-5 loss to World Champion Luke Littler. Littler also impressed with a sublime 107.98 average to edge out Soutar.
🎙️ Post-Final Interview: Gian van Veen’s Reaction
Following his stunning 8-3 victory over Luke Humphries in the Players Championship 6 final, Gian van Veen shared his emotions about his breakthrough win. After a heart-wrenching loss in yesterday’s final, the young Dutchman was determined to make things right, and he did so in impressive fashion.
[Gian van Veen to PDC.tv]:
"After what happened yesterday, this feels unbelievable," said the reigning World Youth Champion, Gian van Veen.
"I’ve had two incredible days here. I felt a bit hard done by yesterday, and I was heartbroken after losing the final. So, to come back and make up for that today is amazing."
Van Veen has been in excellent form throughout 2025, but this victory marked a special moment in his career.
"I’ve been playing well this year, and my goal was always to win a title. I knew I was the highest-ranked player without a ranking title, so it’s great to finally change that."
"This win gives me huge confidence going into the busy weeks ahead."
📅 What’s Next?
The action continues thick and fast with some exciting events on the horizon:
Premier League Night 6 — March 13th at the Motorpoint Arena, Nottingham (Live on Sky Sports)
Players Championships 7 & 8 — March 17th & March 18th at Halle 39, Hildesheim (Live on PDC.tv)
Premier League Night 7 — March 20th at the Utilita Arena, Cardiff (Live on Sky Sports)
Stay tuned to Darts Central for all the latest coverage and updates!
Comments