Jonny Clayton
Jonny Clayton

Players Championship 22: Jonny Clayton wins his maiden PDC darts title


Jonny Clayton won his maiden PDC title as he clinched the Players Championship 22 tournament in Barnsley on Wednesday, defeating James Wilson 6-1 in the final.

Following Rob Cross' fourth triumph of the season on Tuesday, the double-header at the Barnsley Metrodome saw a field of PDC Tour Card Holders and PDPA Associate Members competing in the year's final Players Championship event.

Welsh ace Clayton battled through the field to reach his first PDC final, before seeing off Wilson with the aid of some classy finishing to pick up the £10,000 first prize and become the 15th different winner in 22 Players Championship events this year.

The top 64 players from the final Players Championship Order of Merit will now proceed to compete in the Players Championship Finals in Minehead next month.

Clayton began his day with a 6-3 win over Canada's John Norman Jnr before seeing off nine-time TV finalist Terry Jenkins, Tuesday's Players Championship winner Rob Cross and Darren Webster to reach the quarter-finals.

There, he claimed a third successive 6-5 win as he edged past Antonio Alcinas, while he saw off Dutch prospect Jeffrey de Zwaan 6-4 in the semi-finals after the youngster hit back from 5-1 down.

The final, though, proved to be Clayton's biggest win of the day as he raced past Wilson for the title.

The opening two legs were shared as Clayton's opening double eight, following an earlier maximum, was cancelled out by an 84 finish for an 11-darter by Wilson as the pair traded 180s.

However, the Welshman claimed leg three on tops, broke with a 120 finish in leg four and then took out 102 for a 4-1 lead as Wilson missed three darts to break back.

He then fired in a 180 to leave 84 as a two-dart finish left him 5-1 up, before checking out 121 on the bull in leg seven - after the pair again traded maximums - to complete a superb performance.

"It's fantastic," said Clayton. "I had nerves but I don't think I was as nervous in the final as I was in the semis because it was just one more step and you've got to try and relax in the final and let them go.

"Hopefully this is a step in the right direction. It's all down to practice and we all aim for the same thing, to be with the best and to try and beat the best.

"The World Championship is around the corner and I wouldn't mind winning that!"

Wilson was also seeking to claim his maiden PDC title and overcame Berry van Peer, Dirk van Duijvenbode, Andy Hamilton, Andy Jenkins, Ron Meulenkamp and Jamie Caven on the way to his second ProTour final.

Caven had needed to reach the semi-finals to force his way into the reckoning for a place in November's Players Championship Finals and did just that with his best run on the circuit for almost 18 months.

De Zwaan, a winner on the PDC Unicorn Development Tour this year, enjoyed his best finish on the ProTour, whitewashing John Bowles and then seeing off Stephen Bunting, Joe Murnan, Michael Smith and Richard North to reach the semi-finals as he also claimed a Players Championship Finals spot.

Last week's Unibet World Grand Prix semi-finalist John Henderson was joined in the last eight by Dutchman Ron Meulenkamp, emerging star Richard North and resurgent Spanish ace Antonio Alcinas, who reached a Players Championship semi-final recently.

Chris Dobey and Jan Dekker also secured Players Championship Finals spots on Wednesday as they reached the last 16 of the year's final Players Championship event.

Hamilton had earlier knocked out top seed Peter Wright - the new world number two - in the second round as he continued to show signs of a return to form, while World Grand Prix finalist Simon Whitlock and Premier League aces Jelle Klaasen and Kim Huybrechts were first round victims.

Players Championship 22 results

Last 128

Peter Wright BYE

Andy Hamilton 6-3 Mark Barilli

James Wilson 6-3 Berry van Peer

Dirk van Duijvenbode 6-2 Ted Evetts

Jim Brown 6-4 Steve Beaton

Devon Petersen 6-3 Kirk Shepherd

Cristo Reyes 6-4 Ross Twell

Andy Jenkins 6-4 Alan Tabern

Ron Meulenkamp 6-3 Alan Norris

Mike De Decker 6-5 Rowby-John Rodriguez

Justin Pipe 6-3 Robbie Green

Steve Lennon 6-2 Warrick Scheffer

Diogo Portela 6-3 Jelle Klaasen

Aden Kirk 6-2 Chris Quantock

Vincent van der Voort 6-0 Harry Robinson

Peter Hudson 6-5 Zoran Lerchbacher

Matt Clark 6-5 Simon Whitlock

Paul Rowley 6-5 Kevin Painter

Chris Dobey 6-3 Ronny Huybrechts

Brendan Dolan 6-5 Dimitri Van den Bergh

Mervyn King 6-1 Robert Owen

Harry Ward 6-4 Steve Hine

John Henderson 6-2 Ritchie Edhouse

Wayne Jones 6-4 Ryan Palmer

Daryl Gurney 6-2 Ricky Evans

Jamie Caven 6-3 Callum Loose

Steve West 6-5 Terry Temple

Jimmy Hendriks 6-4 Adam Hunt

Jermaine Wattimena 6-5 Gerwyn Price

Andy Boulton 6-2 Simon Stevenson

Adrian Lewis 6-1 William O'Connor

Ryan Searle 6-1 Mickey Mansell

Michael Smith 6-3 Matthew Dennant

Madars Razma 6-4 David Pallett

Mark Webster 6-5 Andrew Gilding

Jeffrey de Graaf 6-3 Mick McGowan

Kyle Anderson 6-3 Paul Nicholson

Joe Murnan 6-4 Terry Roach

Stephen Bunting 6-2 Stuart Kellett

Jeffrey de Zwaan 6-0 John Bowles

Wes Newton 6-5 Joe Cullen

James Richardson 6-5 Josh Payne

Richard North 6-4 Bernd Roith

Sven Groen 6-1 Jim Walker

Ian White 6-1 Martin Schindler

Darren Johnson 6-3 Barrie Bates

Peter Jacques 6-5 Christian Kist

Vincent Kamphuis 6-4 Jamie Bain

Dave Chisnall 6-4 John Michael

Max Hopp 6-5 Scott Taylor

Robert Thornton 6-4 Jamie Lewis

Jan Dekker 6-5 Tony Newell

Benito van de Pas 6-5 Stephen Burton

Craig Gilchrist 6-1 Ryan Meikle

Richie Burnett 6-1 James Wade

Antonio Alcinas 6-4 Richie Corner

Rob Cross 6-1 Brian Woods

Nathan Aspinall 6-3 Jonathan Worsley

Jonny Clayton 6-3 John Norman Jnr

Terry Jenkins 6-5 Keegan Brown

Mick Todd 6-4 Kim Huybrechts

Ryan Harrington 6-4 Michael Barnard

Darren Webster 6-0 John Part

Callan Rydz 6-2 Yordi Meeuwisse

Last 64

Andy Hamilton 6-5 Peter Wright

James Wilson 6-3 Dirk van Duijvenbode

Devon Petersen 6-1 Jim Brown

Andy Jenkins 6-1 Cristo Reyes

Ron Meulenkamp 6-1 Mike De Decker

Justin Pipe 6-5 Steve Lennon

Diogo Portela 6-1 Aden Kirk

Vincent van der Voort 6-0 Peter Hudson

Matt Clark 6-4 Paul Rowley

Chris Dobey 6-3 Brendan Dolan

Mervyn King 6-3 Harry Ward

John Henderson 6-4 Wayne Jones

Jamie Caven 6-3 Daryl Gurney

Jimmy Hendriks 6-3 Steve West

Jermaine Wattimena 6-2 Andy Boulton

Adrian Lewis 6-5 Ryan Searle

Michael Smith 6-1 Madars Razma

Jeffrey de Graaf 6-5 Mark Webster

Joe Murnan 6-3 Kyle Anderson

Jeffrey de Zwaan 6-2 Stephen Bunting

Wes Newton 6-2 James Richardson

Richard North 6-2 Sven Groen

Ian White 6-4 Darren Johnson

Peter Jacques 6-2 Vincent Kamphuis

Max Hopp 6-4 Dave Chisnall

Jan Dekker 6-5 Robert Thornton

Benito van de Pas 6-1 Craig Gilchrist

Antonio Alcinas 6-3 Richie Burnett

Rob Cross 6-2 Nathan Aspinall

Jonny Clayton 6-4 Terry Jenkins

Ryan Harrington 6-3 Mick Todd

Darren Webster 6-3 Callan Rydz

Last 32

James Wilson 6-3 Andy Hamilton

Andy Jenkins 6-4 Devon Petersen

Ron Meulenkamp 6-3 Justin Pipe

Diogo Portela 6-5 Vincent van der Voort

Chris Dobey 6-4 Matt Clark

John Henderson 6-5 Mervyn King

Jamie Caven 6-3 Jimmy Hendriks

Adrian Lewis 6-4 Jermaine Wattimena

Michael Smith 6-5 Jeffrey de Graaf

Jeffrey de Zwaan 6-3 Joe Murnan

Richard North 6-3 Wes Newton

Ian White 6-0 Peter Jacques

Jan Dekker 6-5 Max Hopp

Antonio Alcinas 6-2 Benito van de Pas

Jonny Clayton 6-5 Rob Cross

Darren Webster 6-2 Ryan Harrington

Last 16

James Wilson 6-2 Andy Jenkins

Ron Meulenkamp 6-3 Diogo Portela

John Henderson 6-4 Chris Dobey

Jamie Caven 6-3 Adrian Lewis

Jeffrey de Zwaan 6-5 Michael Smith

Richard North 6-2 Ian White

Antonio Alcinas 6-4 Jan Dekker

Jonny Clayton 6-5 Darren Webster

Last Eight

James Wilson 6-5 Ron Meulenkamp

Jamie Caven 6-5 John Henderson

Jeffrey de Zwaan 6-1 Richard North

Jonny Clayton 6-5 Antonio Alcinas

Last Four

James Wilson 6-3 Jamie Caven

Jonny Clayton 6-4 Jeffrey de Zwaan

Final

Jonny Clayton 6-1 James Wilson

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