Once again it was a Final featuring Littler and Luke Humphries and that has led to new calls for the Premier League format to be changed.
The criticism is that we are seeing the top players face one another far too often in the current format and that is something that will lose the uniqueness of those battles- we all want to see the best face off, but they become special battles when they are not occurring every other week and that is something the PDC should be noting.
The Premier League is over, but the next several weeks are pretty busy on the PDC Tour.
Another European Tour event begins on Friday with the First Round played over two Sessions and this tournament will be competed on Sunday.
Before the next big Ranking event- the World Matchplay in July- there are a number of events taking place that will feature some big names.
The World Cup of Darts is played on the opening weekend of the 2026 Football World Cup, but there are also three European Tour events, two Masters tournaments, and six Players Championship events scheduled to be played.
The cutoff point for entry into the World Matchplay tournament is early July and that means there are plenty of players competing at events to build up their Ranking Points so they can compete.
And that means we are in for another important weekend for those competing, especially as the Baltic Sea Darts Open is missing big names that were involved in Premier League action on Thursday.
Ross Smith took advantage of that last weekend with his first European Tour title and there will be plenty of players involved this weekend who will certainly believe they can pick up the trophy when all is said and done.
Ryan Joyce & Krzysztof Ratajski double: For the second week in a row, Ryan Joyce and Christian Kist meet in a European Tour event, although this time it is a First Round match.
Last week Kist was a late entry into the International Darts Open as he took the place of a Seeded player withdrawing, but he was well beaten by Ryan Joyce.
Relentless is expected to have enough to get the better of Christian Kist again, especially if he can build on last weekend when reaching the Quarter Final.
In the Afternoon Session, Joyce can be doubled up with Krzysztof Ratajski who has plenty of European Tour experience and can edge out Daniel Klose.
The World Number 143 has been playing pretty well, but Ratajski should have a couple of gears to go through and he should be able to reach the Second Round after a bit of a battle.
Niels Zonneveld to win & most 180s v Richard Veenstra: An all-Dutch First Round match should be a decent watch, but the edge has to be with Niels Zonneveld, even if he has not been at his best over the last few weeks.
He is still playing well enough to beat Richard Veenstra, who has lost four matches in a row, and Niels Zonneveld should have the edge in the maximum hitting.
Kevin Doets to win & most 180s v Lukas Wenig: The recent form produced by Lukas Wenig is going to have to be improved significantly if he is going to win this First Round match at the latest European Tour event.
He is a capable player when putting his best foot forward, but the consistency has been lacking and that leaves Wenig vulnerable when coming up against Kevin Doets.
This may be one of the last few occasions when Kevin Doets is asked to play on the opening day of an European Tour event and he is definitely going to be targeting a place at the World Matchplay.
Kevin Doets will be disappointed to have been beaten in the Third Round last week at the International Darts Open, but he has the scoring power to make sure he begins another positive run at the Baltic Sea Darts Open.
Dirk van Duijvenbode to win & most 180s v Paul Krohne: Doubling is always going to be the key to winning any Darts match and it was the finishing that let Dirk van Duijvenbode down last week in his defeat to Rob Cross.
His scoring remains an important part of his game and the Dutchman should have enough of that to create more chances to win Legs and then Matches.
Paul Krohne has flashed his ability on European Tour events in 2026, but this is another level compared with his usual competition.
That has meant losing three in a row and Dirk van Duijvenbode can complete the Match Double within this First Round contest.
MY PICKS: Ryan Joyce & Krzysztof Ratajski Double @ 2.09 Bet365 (1 Unit)
Niels Zonneveld to Win & Most 180s @ 2.20 Bet365 (1 Unit)
Kevin Doets to Win & Most 180s @ 2.00 Bet365 (1 Unit)
Dirk van Duijvenbode to Win & Most 180s @ 2.20 Sky Bet (1 Unit)
Darts 2026: 74-102, - 14.85 Units (173 Units Staked, - 8.58% Yield)
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