Wessel Nijman maintained his astonishing start to 2026 by securing his fourth Players Championship title of the year in Tuesday’s Players Championship Twelve in Milton Keynes.
Nijman – also the winner of March’s European Darts Trophy – prevailed in an all-Dutch affair against Jermaine Wattimena to pocket the £15,000 top prize at Arena MK.
Wattimena established an early 4-2 cushion as he sought to claim his first ranking title since October, only for Nijman to win six of the next seven legs to wrap up an impressive 8-5 victory.
“It was kind of a nervy final. I went behind after missing some doubles,” reflected Nijman, who has made five finals in just ten Players Championship appearances this year.
“I’m so happy I kept it together. There were some finishes I hit with the last dart, the 57 [to go 6-5 up] was important.
“When it clicks together and you play those finals, and you’ve been playing those games all day long, the next time you come, you remember that.
“Me and Jermaine will be close in the next few months, but this is a big step into the top 16 and hopefully there will be many more steps made.
“Top 16 was one of the goals I had at the start of the year, to get that privilege of starting on the Saturday [in Euro Tours] and starting on the left side of the draw in big majors.”
Having opened his challenge with a comprehensive 6-2 win over Scott Williams, Nijman survived a match dart against Tom Sykes in round two, overturning a 5-4 deficit in the process.
The Dutchman continued his charge with a 6-3 victory over Sebastian Bialecki, before sweeping aside Ryan Searle by the same scoreline - his sixth straight win over the World Championship semi-finalist.
Following a routine 6-2 success against Nathan Potter, Nijman produced his best performance of the day in his semi-final clash against Tom Bissell, averaging 103.41 to seal a 7-4 victory.
This set up a decisive showdown with his fellow countryman Wattimena, who enjoyed the better of the early exchanges, courtesy of some clinical combination finishing.
However, Nijman responded with a three-leg flurry – including an 11-dart break – to lead 5-4, before defying an 80 checkout from Wattimena to regain the initiative at 6-5.
Wattimena then squandered six darts at double to restore parity in a pivotal twelfth leg, and Nijman duly capitalised, before firing in a 14-dart hold to seal his eighth PDC ranking title.
Despite missing out on a third Players Championship crown, Wattimena made a timely return to form in Milton Keynes, having failed to progress beyond the last 16 of a ranking event in 2026 prior to Tuesday’s action.
The 2024 European Championship runner-up overcame his compatriots Martijn Dragt and Sietse Lap to kick off proceedings, which he backed up with battling wins over Joe Hunt and Tommy Lishman.
Wattimena then averaged 104.43 in a sparkling quarter-final victory over Chris Dobey, before delivering a doubling masterclass in his 7-3 success against fellow Dutch star Kevin Doets.
Doets was featuring in back-to-back semi-finals following another strong showing at Arena MK, which included wins over Gabriel Clemens, Mike De Decker and a 6-1 drubbing of Gary Anderson.
The 27-year-old was joined in the last four by Bissell, who produced arguably the most impressive campaign of his PDC career to progress to a second Players Championship semi-final.
Bissell averaged 100.42 across six matches, accounting for Ross Smith and Max Hopp, while also whitewashing Monday’s champion Beau Greaves in the last 16.
Anderson – a semi-finalist on Monday – produced more stratospheric numbers in his run to the quarter-finals, averaging 107 and 105 in victories over Yorick Hofkens and Krzysztof Ratajski respectively.
Meanwhile, Dobey - a winner of two Players Championship titles in 2026 – also advanced to the last eight alongside a revitalised Hopp.
Potter completed the quarter-final line-up, dumping out Dimitri Van den Bergh, Daryl Gurney and James Wade in just his second Players Championship appearance.
2026 Players Championship 12 results
Last 16
- Wessel Nijman 6-3 Ryan Searle
- Nathan Potter 6-2 James Wade
- Tom Bissell 6-0 Beau Greaves
- Max Hopp 6-5 Darryl Pilgrim
- Chris Dobey 6-1 Chris Landman
- Jermaine Wattimena 6-2 Tommy Lishman
- Kevin Doets 6-5 Mike De Decker
- Gary Anderson 6-3 Alexander Merkx
Quarter-Finals
- Wessel Nijman 6-2 Nathan Potter
- Tom Bissell 6-3 Max Hopp
- Jermaine Wattimena 6-3 Chris Dobey
- Kevin Doets 6-1 Gary Anderson
Semi-Finals
- Wessel Nijman 7-4 Tom Bissell
- Jermaine Wattimena 7-3 Kevin Doets
Final
- Wessel Nijman 8-5 Jermaine Wattimena