Devon Petersen wins the German Darts Championship (Picture: PDC Europe)

Darts results: Devon Petersen wins a historic maiden PDC title at the German Darts Championship

By Chris Hammer

Darts

Sun September 27, 2020 · 4y ago

Devon Petersen's remarkable year finally got the crowning moment it deserved at the German Darts Championship as he defeated Jonny Clayton 8-3 to become the first African winner of a PDC ranking title.

Follow @ChrisHammer180 on Twitter

Petersen has predominantly been known by casual darts fans for his entertaining dance routines during his World Championship appearances down the years but we've seen a remarkable transformation from the history-making African Warrior over the past 12 months or so.

A combination of relentless hard work on the practice board - aided by the help of Wayne Mardle's coaching on his technique - and immense belief to finally fulfil his rich potential has now turned him from a player who has been embroiled in end-of-season battles to keep his Tour Card into one of the most feared on the circuit.

Having reached his maiden PDC semi-final at a Players Championship event back in February - where he narrowly lost to world champion Peter Wright - Petersen came roaring back into action at the Summer Series with a string of superb displays only to miss an agonising match dart against Gerwyn Price to reach his first final.

That also cost him a debut World Matchplay spot but the Bradford-based 34-year-old grew stronger from the experience and just 12 days ago he went one step further before spurning four gut-wrenching title darts in an epic Autumn Series encounter with Price yet again.

A nine-darter 24 hours later softened the pain a little but just over one week on, he finally has the crowning moment that his life-changing upward curve was destined to reach. Fittingly, this comes in front of a crowd at Halle 39 in Hildesheim that he could thrill with an incredible standard of darts - as well as his victory moves.

Petersen, who began the tournament with a hard-fought 6-3 victory over Jeffrey de Zwaan on Friday, heroically came from 5-1 down to beat Price 6-5 on Saturday night with an average of 102.6 and eight 180s as he gained a measure of revenge for those painful defeats in recent months.

He maintained the momentum in Sunday's third round with a 100.46 average against Rob Cross, although he had to hold his nerve to take a deciding leg with a 14-darter to reach the quarter-finals, where he'd brush the dangerous Krzysztof Ratajski aside 6-3 (99.79).

Playing in his first PDC semi-final on a stage, Petersen showed no signs of nerves whatsoever as he overcame Danny Noppert 7-4 with a 100.75 average and it was a similar story despite having the weight of an entire continent on his shoulders when the title - and a cheque for £25,000 - was on the line against Clayton.

He plundered in six maximums, averaged 102.75 and pinned eight of his 14 attempts at doubles in an imperious display that included an 11-darter.

Clayton, who averaged 91.43 and hit five 180s, missed 11 costly attempts at the outer ring after a day in which he defeated world number two Wright (6-3), Dave Chisnall (6-5) and Mervyn King (7-3) but overall he'll be more than happy with a run that seals his spot at the World Grand Prix.

Petersen's rapid ascent up the rankings this year - and this trophy - now means he can prepare for his debuts at the World Grand Prix and Grand Slam of Darts in the coming weeks while he'll also take some stopping at the European Championship, Players Championship Finals and, of course, the World Championship.

An emotional Petersen told www.pdc.tv: "I've been working hard for what feels like a lifetime, since I was 15-years-old. The last two to three years have felt like the hardest because of the level of players I've been competing against.

"Sometimes you just feel like you're never going to get there because the players out there are so good. Losing to Gerwyn Price at the Autumn Series spurred me on to win this title.

"It's an amazing feeling. To stand on this stage as a PDC champion in front of fans is just fantastic, it's a very special night for me."

Clayton added: "Devon is absolutely class and this is well deserved. He's been in tremendous form for months and he's proven to the darting world that he's on the map.

"For myself this weekend has been brilliant. I've enjoyed some good wins and the German crowd were great as always."

Earlier in the afternoon, there was a big shock when Michael van Gerwen crashed out after a 6-1 defeat to Mervyn King in the third round while arguably the match of the day was Clayton's triumph over Chisnall.

The pair both averaged 103 and hit three 180s apiece while Chizzy hit five of his six attempts at doubles and hit two 100+ checkouts. However, it wasn't to be as Clayton's finish from 156 and another of 80 in the decider helped him to a superb win.