Woodhouse Secures Upset Victory Over De Decker at PDC World Championship

World Grand Prix champion Mike de Decker, representing Belgium and seeded 24th, experienced an unexpected loss to England’s Luke Woodhouse, ranked 35th globally, in the second round of the PDC World Championship. De Decker, who had been viewed as a potential dark horse for the championship, was defeated 3-1 by Woodhouse. This victory means Luke Woodhouse could potentially face Australian Damon Heta in the third round. In an earlier match, Kevin Doets overcame an initial challenge in the first round to secure a 3-1 victory over Noa-Lynn van Leuven. Her participation marked a significant moment as she became the first transgender player to compete in the event. The 36-year-old Woodhouse achieved his win at Alexandra Palace in London, recording an average of 88.38 and successfully converting nine out of 22 attempts on doubles. Speaking to Sky Sports, Woodhouse commented, “The performance wasn’t very good but the win is incredible. I felt really good to start with, I started off really well, then I went two sets up and I started to think about it a little bit.” He further added, “He didn’t play anywhere near where he can do so I’ll take the win all day long.” Woodhouse is scheduled to compete against either Australia’s Damon Heta or England’s Connor Scutt in the upcoming third round. De Decker’s elimination marks the departure of the second seeded player from the tournament, after 16th seed James Wade was defeated by Jermaine Wattimena earlier on Monday. Following his victory over his fellow Dutch player Van Leuven, Doets is set to face the 2023 champion, Michael Smith, in his next match. Doets remarked after recovering from a one-set deficit, “It was very tough, especially at the beginning. She played better than I did at the beginning. It was really hard.” Van Leuven demonstrated composure by winning the initial set, which included a 120 checkout. However, she conceded the second set after failing to convert multiple opportunities on doubles when the score was tied at 1-1. Doets subsequently concluded a remarkable leg on double one after throwing 33 darts. This moment proved pivotal, allowing Doets to gain control, despite Van Leuven hitting a total of six 180s, two of which occurred in the fourth leg of the second set before she missed treble 20 on what could have been a nine-dart finish. Doets secured his progression to the second round with an average of 88.13, compared to his opponent’s 87.02. Reflecting on the extended leg, Doets informed Sky Sports, “Every World Championship, there is a leg like that. I was unfortunate to have it today. It was tough. That leg and every single leg I was fighting, fighting, fighting.” Van Leuven qualified for the World Championship through the Women’s Series, alongside Fallon Sherrock, making her one of two participants from that circuit. Last month, the Dutch competitor made history as the first transgender woman to participate in a televised PDC tournament, where she was defeated 5-0 by Michael van Gerwen at the Grand Slam of Darts. Van Leuven has stated that her transition occurred approximately 10 years prior. She began playing darts at age 12, then took a hiatus from the sport before resuming about four years ago and subsequently joining the Women’s Series in 2022. According to Darts Regulation Authority regulations, transgender players are permitted to compete in women’s events if their testosterone levels remain below a specified threshold. However, some individuals on social media have expressed criticism regarding her securing a female qualification position. PDC president Barry Hearn has voiced support for these guidelines, telling BBC Sport, “If there are no obvious athletic advantages, I don’t see why they shouldn’t compete in these sports on level terms.” Van Leuven has urged individuals to “respect each other,” but she reported receiving death threats after Dutch players Anca Zijlstra and Aileen de Graf resigned from the Netherlands women’s team earlier this year, citing their unwillingness to play alongside her. First round results: * James Hurrell 3-0 Jim Long * Kevin Doets 3-1 Noa-Lynn van Leuven * Ryan Joyce 3-1 Darius Labanauskas Second round results: * Mike de Decker 1-3 Luke Woodhouse