Season opener on the Pro Tour

The first two Players Championship tournaments took place in Hildesheim on 9–10 February. I arrived well prepared and immediately faced an old acquaintance in the first round: Jermaine Wattimena. But this time I came out on top and managed to win. I also played well in the second round, beating Cor Dekker in the decider. Next up was Mickey Mansell, who had thrown a 9-darter in the second round. However, I played my best game of the day and won 6-1. I then faced Jack Tweddell in the round of 16, whom I had played several times before. These games were always on a knife edge – and this time was no different. Unfortunately, I had to give him the nod – but I was still very happy with qualifying for the round of 16 and my performance.

On the second day, I faced Danny Noppert in the first round. I was looking forward to the match, but he got off to a flying start and quickly took a 3-0 lead. After that, however, I was able to catch up with him and the match went to a decider – unfortunately with the better end for the Dutchman. It was a match that could have gone either way, which Danny Noppert confirmed when he said that we could have decided it with a coin toss.

On 11 February, the qualifiers for the first two European Tour tournaments (Krakow and Göttingen) also took place in Hildesheim. In the first qualifier, I was able to defeat Adam Warner with ease before losing to Ritchie Edhouse in the decider.

In the second qualifier, Belgian Stefaan Henderyck ended my run in the first round.

All in all, I can look back on a successful start to the season. The fact that I was able to play an average of 90+ in every game makes me very confident. Next week, the Players Championships 3 and 4 will continue in Wigan.