Wade downs Van Gerwen & Aspinall to win Players Championship 1, Van Veen thrashed

[p]'The Machine' battled through several nail-biting contests, including a 7-6 semi-final triumph over [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/van-gerwen-michael/SU4UkKsm/"]Michael van Gerwen[/a], before showing a touch of class to see off [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/aspinall-nathan/KURJJrU5/"]Aspinall[/a] in the final. [/p][embed guid="2fac5d99-d630-4fc4-8abb-a3bb90744d75" url="https://x.com/livedarts/status/2020922554089865665" social-type="twitter" /][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/wade-james/MRrXjBAB/"]Wade[/a] is battling to have his best year in the PDC after demonstrating immense improvements in 2025, and the 42-year-old can use the Players Championship to gain ranking points and prize money to qualify for the sport’s biggest events. [/p][p][i][b]Flashscore[/b][/i] rounds up the major talking points from Hildesheim. [/p][h2]Tweddell reaches quarter-final[/h2][p]The Players Championship gives the lesser-ranked players a chance to upset the biggest names, with the top 128 competing across 34 series of dart tournaments. [/p][p]In the first competition of the year, world No. 98 [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/tweddell-jack/nwayChR1/"]Jack Tweddell[/a] produced some stunning displays enroute to a quarter-final showdown with Van Gerwen. [/p][p]Tweddell overcame [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/paxton-adam/jNnRQvFt/"]Adam Paxton[/a], [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/van-den-bergh-dimitri/6ia7nHlh/"]Dimitri Van den Bergh[/a], [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/ritchie-greg/rJsIBNj6/"]Greg Ritchie[/a], and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/bellmont-stefan/Ua5fj0od/"]Stefan Bellmont[/a] before losing 3-1 against Van Gerwen in the last eight. [/p][p]It was only in January when Tweddell secured his second Winmau Challenge Tour title with a 5-1 victory over [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/lennon-steve/0UK62X04/"]Steve Lennon[/a], and now the 30-year-old is testing himself against some of the PDC’s most iconic names. [/p][h2]Hood thrashes Van Veen[/h2][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/hood-justin/MRZVHFYR/"]Justin Hood[/a] surged up to No. 51 in the world rankings following his sensational run to the quarter-finals on his World Championship debut. [/p][p]Combining incredible maximum hitting with clinical finishing, Hood proved he can mix it with the world’s best after beating the likes of [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/noppert-danny/YmMfGEz0/"]Danny Noppert[/a] and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/rock-josh/xKxxNY1P/"]Josh Rock[/a] before losing to [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/anderson-gary/MyKZZS6r/"]Gary Anderson[/a] in the last eight. [/p][p]Now a major player in some of the PDC’s biggest tournaments, 'Happy Feet' produced an eye-catching performance against [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/van-veen-gian/jgT1AT29/"]Gian van Veen[/a] in the second round. [/p][embed guid="80535594-a316-42ad-b6c2-74372e751f0b" url="https://x.com/livedarts/status/2020862194770964842" social-type="twitter" /][p]The 32-year-old averaged a phenomenal 108.50 in a 6-1 demolition to prove world-class performances are in his nature before dropping his levels in a 6-4 defeat to [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/suljovic-mensur/Y73gOXrH/"]Mensur Suljovic[/a]. [/p][h2]Wright endures nightmare start[/h2][p]After spending years dominating in the PDC, [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/wright-peter/C4FCwGRt/"]Peter Wright[/a]’s decline is sad to watch. [/p][p]From being ranked world No. 1 in 2022 after winning his second World Championship, Snakebite hasn’t made it past the quarter-finals of any televised ranking tournament in over two years. [/p][p]Van Gerwen even urged Wright to retire after he lost to [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/merk-arno/63U1Q3oH/"]Arno Merk[/a] in the second round of the 2026 World Championship, and that demand has since grown even louder. [/p][embed guid="e8210aad-0eaa-4725-bed5-09c8df583af4" url="https://x.com/livedarts/status/2020850661089271939" social-type="twitter" /][p]In the Players Championship first round on Monday, the Scot averaged just 77.6 in a dismal 6-1 defeat against Suljovic. [/p][p]It’s worrying times for the 55-year-old, who could soon face a big decision over his future in the sport.[/p][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/darts/world/players-championship-1/"]Follow the Players Championship 1 with Flashscore[/a][/b][/p]