Stephen Bunting captured the Swiss Darts Trophy in Basel, beating Luke Woodhouse 8–3 to claim his second European Tour title of the season. The win makes the Englishman only the third player this year to collect multiple European Tour victories.
Exciting Matches and Performances
A lively crowd of about 3,500 at St. Jakobshalle saw a tight start, with the first five legs shared. Bunting then surged ahead by stringing together three straight legs and kept control to close out the match.
The world number four has been one of the tour’s standout performers this season, reinforcing his status as both a leading contender and a crowd favorite. His path to the title ran through a 6–3 opener against Chris Landman, convincing wins over Krzysztof Ratajski (6–3) and Raymond van Barneveld (6–2), and a tense semifinal edge over Gian van Veen.
Woodhouse reached his first European Tour final after an excellent run that included victories against Lukas Wenig, Dave Chisnall, Jermaine Wattimena, Ryan Searle, and Cor Dekker. He left Basel encouraged by his performance across the weekend.
There were notable milestones beyond the final. Martin Schindler advanced to the last 16 and moved up to number 16 in the world rankings, the highest position ever held by a German player. Woodhouse set a tournament record and personal best with a 110.69 average in his second-round match. Norway’s Cor Dekker reached his first European Tour final session and became the first Norwegian to make a PDC European Tour semifinal. Across the event, roughly 20,000 fans attended at St. Jakobshalle.
The European Tour season now heads to its final stop in Hildesheim for the German Darts Championship, promising more thrilling matches and potential upsets as top players vie for the title.