Kevin Luke wins final event in Philadelphia, Lauby Claims World Championship Spot

The sixth and final event in the Championship Dart Circuit’s United States series took place in Philadelphia on Sunday. Kevin Luke emerged from a strong field to capture his maiden CDC title.

Luke took on Event #5 runner-up, Jules Van Dongen, in the finals. Both players scored well, but it was Van Dongen who got on the board first, establishing a 3-1 lead. Luke would rattle off the next five legs, and took out 130 in the ninth leg to seal a 6-3 victory. Sunday marked the third time in a row where the winner captured their first championship.

Despite a slow start in scoring, he got through the first two rounds with little resistance. He turned it on in the third round against Bruce Robbins, winning 5-2, and continued his strong form against PDC Tour Cardholder, Danny Baggish, with a 6-4 win in the quarter-finals. He fell behind 4-0 against Jeremiah Millar in the semi-finals but came back to win six of the next seven to seal a 6-5 win, and a spot in the final.

Jules Van Dongen played at a high level all day, and his path to the finals offered little resistance despite the quality of opponents he faced. He opened by defeating Jason Yoder (5-0) and Joe Beecroft (5-1) in the first two rounds before taking out North American legend, Larry Butler (5-1) to set up back-to-back matches against the two members of the US World Cup team; whitewashing Danny Lauby 6-0 in the quarters and dispatching Chuck Puleo 6-3 in the semis to book his final tie with Luke. He averaged 93.49 during the tournament.

Leonard Gates edged out Van Dongen again for top average on Sunday, with 93.83. Van Dongen once again hit the most 180s, with 11, while Alex Spellman led the way connecting on 53% of his checkout attempts.

Sunday’s event concluded the 2021 United States Championship Dart Circuit and Danny Lauby has secured his return to the Alexandra Palace for the second year running, claiming the top spot on the 2021 US Tour Points list – holding off a challenge from Leonard Gates as both players bowed out in the quarterfinals today.

Article by Brian Fraser
September 19, 2021