THE JDC Foundation Tour lived up to its status as one of the most unpredictable sporting events around as 11 different players won the 12 events over the course of the weekend.
The only player to win more than one event was Ruben Baalmans of Netherlands, who won two events in Belgium, with Daan Toxopeus and Nigel Coudeville winning the other events.
After eight events, Baalmans leads the rankings by one point from Mattis Verschaeve, who was beaten by Coudeville in the Event 7 final.
In the England South competition, Jack Bellingham, Rory Pearce, Charlie Miller and Joshua Russell (pictured) won the four events, with Wales’ Russell building a five-point lead at the top of the rankings following his Event 8 win.
In England North, Dylan Cowley, Louis Jones, Jude Clarke and Mason Hale tasted victory, but none of them were able to knock Ozzy Ayers off the top of the rankings after he reached four quarter-finals.
JDC England South Foundation Tour
Joshua Russell won the final event of the weekend in Bristol to build a five-point lead at the top of the England South rankings, adding to the event win he secured on the opening weekend.
Russell beat Lewis Roberts 5-0 in an all-Welsh final to cap a series of consistent performances, in which his average did not drop below 72.68.
Arguably Russell’s finest performance of the event came in his 3-1 win over Keaton Ground in the last 16, in which he averaged 84 and kicked off with a 12-darter (180, 134, 139, 48).
Jack Bellingham won Event One and reached the final of Event Two as he powered up to fourth in the rankings. He beat Olly Garratt 5-2 in the final of the opening event of the weekend, producing a 15-dart break to go 3-2 up after Garratt had broken in 14 darts in the previous leg.
Bellingham came close to making it back-to-back event wins, playing some excellent darts on his way to a second final, only to lose 5-2 to Rory Pearce.
Bellingham won the opening leg in 15 darts after hitting 180 to leave 8, before Pearce held throw and then broke with a 72 checkout. Bellingham broke back but when Pearce took out 80 to break again, he was in control.
Event Seven was won by Charlie Miller, who beat Logan Neil Symonds in a deciding leg. The final went with throw for the first four legs, before Symonds broke and then held with a 120 checkout for a 4-2 lead. But Miller showed real character to reel off three legs in a row to claim the title.
The highest average of the event, though, belonged to Symonds, who recorded a 102.11 in his 3-1 quarter-final win over Hayden Wood, sealing the win with a 12-dart leg and then a 116 checkout.
RESULTS
EVENT 5
Final:
Jack Bellingham (Eng) 5-2 Olly Garratt (Eng)
Semi-finals:
Jack Bellingham (Eng) 4-1 Mason Dawer (Eng)
Olly Garratt (Eng) 4-3 Logan Neil Symonds (Eng)
EVENT 6
Final:
Rory Pearce (Eng) 5-2 Jack Bellingham (Eng)
Semi-finals:
Rory Pearce (Eng) 4-3 Harry Legg (Eng)
Jack Bellingham (Eng) 4-1 Joshua Russell (Wal)
EVENT 7
Final:
Charlie Miller (Eng) 5-4 Logan Neil Symonds (Eng)
Semi-finals:
Charlie Miller (Eng) 4-2 Olly Garratt (Eng)
Logan Neil Symonds (Eng) 4-1 CJ Ayres (Eng)
EVENT 8
Final:
Joshua Russell (Wal) 5-0 Lewis Roberts (Wal)
Semi-finals:
Joshua Russell (Wal) 4-1 George Humphreys (Wal)
Lewis Roberts (Wal) 4-3 Otto Hookham (Eng)
JDC England North Foundation Tour
Ozzy Ayers remains on top of the England North rankings, with his four quarter-final appearances keeping him in front as Dylan Cowley, Louis Jones, Jude Clarke and Mason Hale won the latest events.
Cowley won the opening event, producing two 90-plus averages on the way, with legs of 13 and 14 darts in his 3-0 quarter-final win over Jac Owen. In the final, he beat Thomas Williams 5-3, breaking throw in the fourth leg to assert his control. Williams later broke back with a 92 checkout to make it 4-3, before Cowley clinched the title with a break of his own.
In the last 64, Cowley came through arguably the highest-quality contest of the weekend, beating Louis Jones 3-2. Cowley averaged 91.09, with Jones averaging 95.08, as all five legs were won in six visits or fewer. Fittingly, Cowley sealed the win with a 13-dart leg.
Jones showed his class to bounce back by winning the Event Six title, beating Alfie Newbolt 5-3 in the final. He did not drop a leg in his opening four matches, averaging 102.48 in his 3-0 last-32 win over Mattie Ambage.
When it came to the final, Jones built a 4-0 lead over Newbolt, before Newbolt rallied to make it 4-3, moving to within one leg with a 128 checkout, only for Jones to clinch the title in the next leg.
Jude Clarke is second the rankings after winning Event Seven for his second event win of the series. He beat Max Daly 5-2 in the final, bursting into a 4-0 lead and eventually getting the job done in a messy seventh leg.
Mason Hale, playing his first weekend of Foundation Tour this season, won Event Eight, averaging 87.13 as he beat Ben Lundstrom 5-2 in the final. Hale opened with a 14-dart leg, before Lundstrom levelled in 15 and then broke with a 136 checkout. But Hale won four legs on the spin to seal the title.
RESULTS
EVENT 5
Final:
Dylan Cowley (Eng) 5-3 Thomas Williams (Eng)
Semi-finals:
Dylan Cowley (Eng) 4-2 Oliver Meikle (Eng)
Thomas Williams (Eng) 4-2 Louie Hopewell (Eng)
EVENT 6
Final:
Louis Jones (Eng) 5-3 Alfie Newbolt (Eng)
Semi-finals:
Louis Jones (Eng) 4-2 Daniel Halliday (Eng)
Alfie Newbolt (Eng) 4-3 Dylan Cowley (Eng)
EVENT 7
Final:
Jude Clarke (Eng) 5-2 Max Daly (Eng)
Semi-finals:
Jude Clarke (Eng) 4-3 Thomas Burns (Eng)
Max Daly (Eng) 4-3 Louis Jones (Eng)
EVENT 8
Final:
Mason Hale (Eng) 5-2 Ben Lundstrom (Eng)
Semi-finals:
Mason Hale (Eng) 4-2 Kye Courtney (Eng)
Ben Lundstrom (Eng) 4-3 Jay Cottier (Eng)
JDC Belgium Foundation Tour
Ruben Baalmans was the only player to win more than one event over the weekend, as he picked up wins in Events Six and Eight in Belgium to move top of the rankings.
He beat Jules Van De Poel 5-0 in the Event Six final, averaging 82.58 and hitting a 110 checkout, before beating Nigel Coudeville 5-2 in the Event Eight showpiece to end the weekend on a high.
His best performance in Event Eight came in a 4-0 win over Michael Descheemaker in the semis, averaging 82.36.
Event Five was won by Daan Toxopeus, who defeated Oden Ollevier 5-3 in the final, opening with an 86 checkout as the first four legs went with throw. Ollevier broke to go 3-2 up, but Toxopeus won three legs in a row including a 92 checkout to take the title.
Nigel Coudeville signed off from the Foundation Tour shortly before his 18th birthday by winning Event Seven, beating fellow Belgian Mattis Verschaeve 5-1 in the final.
RESULTS
EVENT 5
Final:
Daan Toxopeus (Ned) 5-3 Oden Ollevier (Bel)
Semi-finals:
Daan Toxopeus (Ned) 4-3 Ruben Baalmans (Ned)
Oden Ollevier (Bel) 4-0 Jules Van De Poel (Bel)
EVENT 6
Final:
Ruben Baalmans (Ned) 5-0 Jules Van De Poel (Bel)
Semi-finals:
Ruben Baalmans (Ned) 4-1 Mattis Verschaeve (Bel)
Jules Van De Poel (Bel) 4-3 Lennert Van De Beek (Bel)
EVENT 7
Final:
Nigel Coudeville (Bel) 5-1 Mattis Verschaeve (Bel)
Semi-finals:
Nigel Coudeville (Bel) 4-1 Wannes Van Heck (Bel)
Mattis Verschaeve (Bel) 4-0 Lennert Van De Beek (Bel)
EVENT 8
Final:
Ruben Baalmans (Ned) 5-2 Nigel Coudeville (Bel)
Semi-finals:
Ruben Baalmans (Ned) 4-0 Michael Descheemaker (Bel)
Nigel Coudeville (Bel) 4-3 Lennert Van De Beek (Bel)
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