Lisa Ashton and Fallon Sherrock extended their respective title hauls on the opening day of the 2025 PDC Women's Series in Leicester on Saturday.
The year’s first Women’s Series double-header saw 100 players in action at the Mattioli Arena, as two of the sport’s most successful stars kicked off the new season in style.
Four-time Lakeside Champion Ashton came out on top in Event One, courtesy of an emphatic 5-2 victory against Gemma Hayter – a two-time winner on the Women’s Series circuit in 2024.
Following an opening round whitewash of Sarah Brown, Ashton backed up a deciding-leg win over Rhian O’Sullivan by seeing off Scandinavian duo Snezana Veljkovic and Kirsi Viinikainen.
The Lancashire veteran then closed out a hard-fought 5-3 victory against Aileen de Graaf in the semi-finals, before averaging 92 to sink Hayter and cap off the perfect start to 2025.
Hayter accounted for Noa-Lynn van Leuven and Lorraine Winstanley in her run to the Event One final, after Winstanley had dumped out Sherrock and Beau Greaves in successive last-leg shoot-outs.
Ashton’s latest triumph saw her draw level with Sherrock on 18 PDC Women’s Series titles, although the Milton Keynes trailblazer immediately rectified that with Event Two glory.
The 30-year-old defeated a host of big names on her way to claiming the £2,000 top prize, with a 4-3 victory over Robyn Byrne bookended by whitewash wins against Marlene Barcelos and Trina Gulliver.
Sherrock then denied Van Leuven and emerging talent Paige Pauling to set up a semi-final clash against Ashton, where she produced a 12-darter in the decider to thwart Ashton’s bid for back-to-back titles.
This set up a blockbuster tussle against Greaves for the Event Two title, in a repeat of last year’s Women’s World Matchplay showpiece.
Greaves had won each of the pair’s last seven meetings, although Sherrock halted that run at the Mattioli Arena, defying a mid-game fightback from the Doncaster darter to seal a battling 5-3 success.
Greaves – twice on a winner on the Winmau Challenge Tour last month – remarkably conceded just two legs in reaching the final, only to fall short in her pursuit of further silverware.
The two-time Women’s World Matchplay champion heads into Sunday’s play level with Hayter in third place on the embryonic Women’s Series Order of Merit, with Ashton £400 above Sherrock in top spot.
The top eight players on the rolling Women's Series Order of Merit after Event 12 will qualify for the 2025 Betfred Women's World Matchplay, which takes place on July 27 at the Winter Gardens.
Additionally, the top two players from the final PDC Women's Series Order of Merit will qualify to compete in the 2025/26 Paddy Power World Darts Championship, alongside the winner of the 2025 Women's World Matchplay.
The opening weekend of PDC Women's Series action draws to a close with Events 3-4 on Sunday, with live coverage getting underway from approximately 1000 GMT on PDCTV.
See full event draws and results in the Match Centre.
Click here for match stats through DartConnect.
2025 PDC Women's Series
Saturday February 15, Mattioli Arena, Leicester
Event One
Quarter-Finals
Lorraine Winstanley 5-1 Robyn Byrne
Gemma Hayter 5-3 Noa-Lynn van Leuven
Aileen de Graaf 5-4 Jo Locke
Lisa Ashton 5-1 Kirsi Viinikainen
Semi-Finals
Gemma Hayter 5-1 Lorraine Winstanley
Lisa Ashton 5-3 Aileen de Graaf
Final
Lisa Ashton 5-2 Gemma Hayter
Event Two
Quarter-Finals
Aurora Fochesato 5-3 Rhian O'Sullivan
Beau Greaves 5-0 Vicky Pruim
Fallon Sherrock 5-2 Paige Pauling
Lisa Ashton 5-1 Kyana Frauenfelder
Semi-Finals
Beau Greaves 5-0 Aurora Fochesato
Fallon Sherrock 5-4 Lisa Ashton
Final
Fallon Sherrock 5-3 Beau Greaves