Luke Woodhouse Wins First European Tour Title at Baltic Sea Darts Open “The World Matchplay is just around the corner”

Luke Woodhouse continued the most successful spell of his professional career by capturing his first European Tour title on Sunday evening, defeating Ryan Joyce 8-4 in the final of the Elten Safety Shoes Baltic Sea Darts Open in Kiel.

Less than a fortnight after finally breaking his PDC ranking title duck at Players Championship 18 in Leicester, Woodhouse added an even bigger milestone to his growing résumé, lifting the coveted European Tour trophy and collecting the £35,000 top prize.

The victory marked a remarkable rise for the former European Championship semi-finalist, who has transformed himself into one of the most consistent performers on the circuit over the last 18 months. Having long carried the tag of one of the best players without a ranking title, Woodhouse has now claimed two major career breakthroughs in the space of just 12 days.

His triumph in Kiel also saw him become the eighth different winner on the 2026 European Tour circuit, highlighting the fierce competitiveness of this year’s campaign.

Woodhouse’s path to glory featured a series of composed and clinical performances across the weekend.

The Englishman began his challenge with a comfortable 6-3 victory over recent Players Championship winner Andrew Gilding, producing a professional display to move into the last 16.

He then raised his level considerably against Cameron Menzies, one of the tournament’s standout performers during the opening rounds. Woodhouse restricted the Scot to just a single leg in a commanding 6-1 success, booking his place in the quarter-finals with authority.

Awaiting him in the last eight was European Tour debutant Jimmy van Schie, whose dream run had captured plenty of attention in Kiel. However, Woodhouse halted the Dutchman’s progress with another assured performance, averaging just over 93 as he completed a convincing victory to advance to the semi-finals.

The 37-year-old continued his charge later in the evening with a dominant display against Ricky Evans. Woodhouse controlled proceedings throughout the contest, defeating his fellow Englishman 7-2 to secure a place in his second ranking final in less than two weeks.

Standing between Woodhouse and European Tour glory was Ryan Joyce, who was competing in his first European Tour final since March 2025.

The final began in ideal fashion for Woodhouse, who immediately seized control of the contest.

A superb 140 checkout helped him break throw early on, and he quickly raced into a 3-0 lead as Joyce struggled to settle into the match.

To his credit, Joyce responded admirably. The Newcastle thrower won back-to-back legs to close the gap and briefly threatened to swing the momentum in his favour.

However, Woodhouse remained composed under pressure.

The pair traded legs through the middle stages of the contest, with Woodhouse maintaining a two-leg cushion at 5-3. From there, the Bewdley star produced the decisive burst.

Winning three of the next four legs, Woodhouse moved within touching distance of the title before producing a moment of brilliance to seal victory. After taking out 76 in the penultimate leg, he capped off the tournament in style with a magnificent 160 checkout to complete an 8-4 success and spark celebrations on the Kiel stage.

“It’s like buses. You wait for one for ages, then two come along at once!” Woodhouse explained after securing the biggest title of his career.

“That was such a tough game. I don’t think me and Ryan played our best darts, but I will take it 100%.

“I felt like this was a good chance for both of us and I didn’t want to let it pass me by, so I tried to be ultra-focused and luckily today I came out on top.”

The victory continues an extraordinary run of form that has propelled Woodhouse into the upper reaches of the ProTour rankings. Now sitting sixth on the ProTour Order of Merit, he believes there could be even more to come in the months ahead.

“I’m really enjoying my darts at the moment, and to win this is unbelievable. It’s absolutely massive,” he added.

“I’m hoping I can kick on now. The World Matchplay is just around the corner, so hopefully my confidence can carry into that.”

Despite falling short in the final, Joyce enjoyed one of his strongest runs on the European Tour in recent seasons.

The former World Grand Prix semi-finalist opened his campaign with a superb victory over Dutchman Christian Kist, producing a memorable three-bull 150 checkout during the contest.

Joyce then navigated a difficult route through the draw, eliminating home favourites Martin Schindler and Niko Springer to reach Finals Day.

The 40-year-old saved one of his best displays for the quarter-finals, where he swept aside eight-time European Tour winner Dave Chisnall in a convincing 6-1 victory.

He then edged out Australian star Damon Heta in one of the matches of the tournament, producing a strong finish to win a thrilling deciding-leg contest and book his place in the final.

“I tried my best, but it just didn’t happen today,” admitted Joyce after the defeat.

“I knew it was going to be a really tough final, and Luke was good early on.

“He’s a very solid player, very dependable, and it’s hard to play against him.”

Elsewhere in the latter stages of the tournament, Ricky Evans enjoyed an impressive run to the semi-finals, including a notable victory over the in-form Kevin Doets.

Heta also impressed on German soil, continuing his strong recent form by defeating rising Dutch star Wessel Nijman in the quarter-finals before eventually bowing out to Joyce in a dramatic last-four encounter.

Following another captivating European Tour weekend, attention now turns back to the PDC ProTour circuit. Players Championship events 19 and 20 will take place in Milton Keynes on June 2-3, before the European Tour resumes later this month with the Slovak Darts Open in Bratislava from June 19-21.

Luke Woodhouse Wins First European Tour Title at Baltic Sea Darts Open

2026 Elten Safety Shoes Baltic Sea Darts Open

Sunday May 31

Afternoon Session

Round Three

Jimmy van Schie 6-4 Sebastian Bialecki

Luke Woodhouse 6-1 Cameron Menzies

Kevin Doets 6-3 Justin Hood

Ricky Evans 6-4 James Wade

Wessel Nijman 6-3 Ryan Searle

Damon Heta 6-5 William O’Connor

Ryan Joyce 6-4 Niko Springer

Dave Chisnall 6-5 Gian van Veen

Evening Session

Quarter-Finals

Luke Woodhouse 6-3 Jimmy van Schie

Ricky Evans 6-3 Kevin Doets

Damon Heta 6-2 Wessel Nijman

Ryan Joyce 6-1 Dave Chisnall

Semi-Finals

Luke Woodhouse 7-2 Ricky Evans

Ryan Joyce 7-6 Damon Heta

Final

Luke Woodhouse 8-4 Ryan Joyce