It’s all Dutch as Masters ends with double vans
Michael van Gerwen has stormed home to collect his maiden Auckland Darts Masters title.
The world No 1 left a trail of carnage in his wake throughout the three-day event, which culminated in a 11-4 win in the final over fellow Dutchman Raymond van Barneveld.
“I didn’t even play my best game but I still won,” van Gerwen said.
“I did the right things at the right moments, had a couple of good finishes and it made me win this game.
“I can still do a lot better, everybody knows that.”
With a three-dart average of a shade over 103 heading into the final, van Gerwen didn’t miss a beat on his way to the title.
It was one-way traffic in the match, with van Gerwen taking a 3-0 lead in the race to 11 legs.
Van Barneveld got on the board in the fourth leg, then made ground in the ninth and 10th legs to draw within two games. However that was as close he he would get, with van Gerwen closing out a strong tournament with ease.
It’s the second time van Barneveld has finished runner-up in the tournament; he also finished one win short of the title in 2015.
Van Gerwen had solidified himself as the event favourite earlier in the night, when he dispatched Scotsman Peter Wright 10-3 in their semifinal. On back-to-back legs, van Gerwen had a 164 and 170 check out as he pushed to a 7-0 advantage before coasting to the win.
Van Barneveld also showed his mettle in his semifinal against Australian Simon Whitlock.
The 51-year-old checked out at 118 and 121 on the 13th and 14th legs, which pushed his advantage over the Australian to 8-5, and he closed it out two legs later – with a 12-dart leg to finish.