Wizard Wins Germany Darts Trophy

COLIN OSBORNE claimed his first Players Championship title of 2008 with a final-leg win over Carlos Rodriguez in the PartyPoker.net German Darts Trophy final.

Osborne has twice been a runner-up so far in 2008 in Players Championships, although he did win the Blue Square UK Open North-East Regional Final in January.

He added another £5,000 to his earnings in an impressive day of darts at the Stadthalle in Dinslaken.

He claimed 3-0 wins over Ben Burton and Michael Rosenauer and a 3-1 win over Peter Wright to reach the quarter-finals, where he dropped just one leg in seeing off Robert Thornton.

The Derby man then held off Mark Dudbridge's fight-back from 2-0 down in the semi-finals to reach the final, where he also went all the way against Spaniard Rodriguez.

Rodriguez came from a leg down to win the first set with a 110 checkout, only for Osborne to take the next two sets in a deciding leg.

Rodriguez won the fourth without reply and came from a leg down to level in the decider, only for Osborne to land a maximum on his way to a 12-darter in sealing the win.

His win takes him up two places to a career-high 12th in the PDC Order of Merit.

Rodriguez secured his place in the European Championship in Frankfurt next weekend and a spot in the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship with his first run to a PDC Pro Tour final.

Having reached the last eight of the Scottish Players Championship last Sunday, he defeated John Jenkinson, Karsten Koch, Andy Jenkins and Steve Maish to reach the quarter-finals.

He then defeated Peter Manley and Kevin Painter 3-0 to reach the final, dropping just two legs in the process.

Osborne's final-leg win over Dudbridge meant the Bristolian finished one game short of claiming a qualification place in the European Championship by just one game.

He enjoyed last-gasp wins over Mensur Suljovic and Alan Tabern and also overcame Colin Lloyd in reaching the last four, but fell two sets down to Osborne and then missed three darts for victory in the deciding leg after drawing level.

Painter's display sees him move closer to the PDC's top 16, and was his first semi-final appearance since June.

Tabern and Mark Walsh joined Manley and Thornton as losing quarter-finalists, while Tomas Seyler represented Germany in the last 16.

While Dudbridge missed out on a Players Championship qualification spot for the European Championship, he will be joined in Sunday's knockout qualifier by Michael van Gerwen.

The Dutch youngster was denied one of the four places for players from the Continental Europe Order of Merit on a count-back after being tied with Jan van der Rassel, who joins Rodriguez, Mensur Suljovic and Jelle Klaasen in Frankfurt next weekend.

European Championship Qualification
PDC Top 16 (After Sky Poker World Grand Prix)

Phil Taylor, Raymond van Barneveld, James Wade, John Part, Terry Jenkins, Colin Lloyd, Andy Hamilton, Wayne Mardle, Adrian Lewis, Alan Tabern, Dennis Priestley, Roland Scholten, Mervyn King, Colin Osborne, Ronnie Baxter, Peter Manley.
Players Championship Order of Merit Qualifiers (after German Darts Trophy)
Denis Ovens, Robert Thornton, Mark Walsh, Chris Mason, Kevin Painter, Vincent van der Voort, Alex Roy, Wayne Jones.
Continental Europe Order of Merit Qualifiers (after German Darts Trophy)
Carlos Rodriguez, Mensur Suljovic, Jelle Klaasen, Jan van der Rassel.
Leading Two Non-Qualified Players from GDC Order of Merit
Andree Welge, Hannes Schnier.
Plus two qualifiers from Sunday's European Championship Qualifier

PartyPoker.net German Darts Trophy Results
Preliminary Round

Sladan Nedic Bye (Wayne Atwood)
Miloslav Navratil Bye (Holger Kauf)
Karsten Koch 3-2 Chris Mason
Carlos Rodriguez 3-0 John Jenkinson
Michael Wolf 3-0 Rolf Kaiser
Peter Manley 3-0 Stephan Wusch
Kevin Munch 3-0 Sebastian Rehmann
Johann Honner 3-0 Thomas Gerock
Ronnie Baxter 3-0 Mike Herold
Jamie Caven 3-0 Mirko Stute
Guido Kammerer 3-1 Alexander Glatthorn
Colin Monk 3-0 Bernhard Kraus
Tomas Seyler 3-0 Jacko Barry
Kevin Painter 3-0 Kai Hohenberger
Peter Aleman 3-2 Heiko Gallinat
Thorsten Wefers 3-1 Sven Breitfeld
Lionel Sams Bye (Ian Jopling)
Andrew Davies 3-0 Erwin Extercatte
Denis Ovens 3-0 Mario Hermann
Hannes Schnier Bye (Fabian Mergens)
Olaf Fiss 3-0 John Lokken
Chris Kotal 3-0 Ralf Schmelz
Andree Welge 3-1 Robert Watson-Lang
Vincent van der Voort 3-0 Detlef Bietz
Jan van der Rassel 3-0 Carlo Sessini
Robert Thornton 3-1 Stephan Schneider
Mario Masurka 3-0 Rolf Sagenschneider
Peter Wright 3-0 Rene Hogrebe
Colin Osborne Bye (Andreas Muller)
Ben Burton 3-2 Jorg Fassbender
Michael Rosenauer 3-0 Tobias Roth
Matheus Ziolkowski Bye (Johannes Koch)
Steve Cusick 3-1 Karsten Kornath
Mervyn King 3-0 Manuel Muller
Olaf Tupuschis 3-1 Andy Wilden
Co Stompe 3-0 Rolf Kahran
Leroy Kwadijk 3-1 Bernd Roith
Rainer Haass 3-2 Jon Archer
Mark Dudbridge 3-0 Huseyin Zengin
Maik Langendorf 3-2 Colin Rice
Mensur Suljovic 3-0 Andy Krokel

First Round
Terry Jenkins 3-0 Sladan Nedic
Steve Maish 3-0 Miloslav Navratil
Carlos Rodriguez 3-0 Karsten Koch
Andy Jenkins 3-0 Michael Wolf
Peter Manley 3-0 Kevin Munch
Steve Beaton 3-1 Johann Honner
Jamie Caven 3-2 Ronnie Baxter
Wes Newton 3-0 Guido Kammerer
Adrian Lewis 3-1 Colin Monk
Tomas Seyler Bye (Tony Eccles
Kevin Painter 3-0 Peter Aleman
Adrian Gray 3-2 Thorsten Wefers
Andy Hamilton 3-0 Lionel Sams
Matt Clark 3-0 Andrew Davies
Denis Ovens 3-2 Hannes Schnier
Mark Walsh 3-1 Olaf Fiss
Wayne Mardle 3-0 Chris Kotal
Jelle Klaasen 3-1 Andree Welge
Vincent van der Voort 3-1 Jan van der Rassel
Robert Thornton 3-0 Barrie Bates
Mario Masurka Bye (Roland Scholten)
Peter Wright 3-1 Mick McGowan
Colin Osborne 3-0 Ben Burton
Michael Rosenauer 3-2 Alex Roy
Alan Tabern 3-0 Matheus Ziolkowski
Michael van Gerwen 3-1 Steve Cusick
Mervyn King 3-0 Olaf Tupuschis
Co Stompe Bye (Wayne Jones)
Colin Lloyd 3-0 Leroy Kwadijk
Rainer Haass 3-2 Kevin McDine
Mark Dudbridge 3-2 Maik Langendorf
Mensur Suljovic 3-0 Andy Smith
Losers £75

Second Round
Steve Maish 3-2 Terry Jenkins
Carlos Rodriguez 3-1 Andy Jenkins
Peter Manley 3-1 Steve Beaton
Wes Newton 3-1 Jamie Caven
Tomas Seyler 3-2 Adrian Lewis
Kevin Painter 3-2 Adrian Gray
Andy Hamilton 3-0 Matt Clark
Mark Walsh 3-1 Denis Ovens
Jelle Klaasen 3-2 Wayne Mardle
Robert Thornton 3-0 Vincent van der Voort
Peter Wright 3-0 Mario Masurka
Colin Osborne 3-0 Michael Rosenauer
Alan Tabern 3-0 Michael van Gerwen
Mervyn King 3-2 Co Stompe
Colin Lloyd 3-1 Rainer Haass
Mark Dudbridge 3-2 Mensur Suljovic
Losers £150

Third Round
Carlos Rodriguez 3-1 Steve Maish
Peter Manley 3-1 Wes Newton
Kevin Painter 3-1 Tomas Seyler
Mark Walsh 3-2 Andy Hamilton
Robert Thornton 3-1 Jelle Klaasen
Colin Osborne 3-1 Peter Wright
Alan Tabern 3-2 Mervyn King
Mark Dudbridge 3-0 Colin Lloyd
Losers £300

Quarter-Finals
Carlos Rodriguez 3-0 Peter Manley (2-1, 2-0, 2-0)
Kevin Painter 3-2 Mark Walsh (1-2, 0-2, 2-1, 2-1, 2-0)
Colin Osborne 3-0 Robert Thornton (2-0, 2-0, 2-1)
Mark Dudbridge 3-2 Alan Tabern (2-1, 2-0, 0-2, 1-2, 2-1)
Losers £600

Semi-Finals
Carlos Rodriguez 3-0 Kevin Painter (2-0, 2-1, 2-0)
Colin Osborne 3-2 Mark Dudbridge (2-0, 2-0, 1-2, 1-2, 2-1)
Losers £1,250

Final
Colin Osborne 3-2 Carlos Rodriguez (1-2, 2-1, 2-1, 0-2, 2-1)
Winner £5,000
Runner-Up £2,500


News Updates
Preliminary Round
Jamie Caven wins opening game on stage with whitewash of Mirko Stute.
Colin Monk, Jan van der Rassel and Chris Kotal also record 3-0 wins.
Carlos Rodriguez - a quarter-finalist in the Scottish Players Championship last Sunday - defeats John Jenkinson 3-0.
Tomas Seyler defeats Jacko Barry 3-0 in second stage game.
Qualifier Guido Kammerer moves into last 64 with 3-1 win over Alexander Glatthorn.
Steve Cusick sets up clash with Michael van Gerwen after 3-1 win over Karsten Kornath.
Andrew Davies' win over former World Championship qualifier Erwin Extercatte means he will meet Matt Clark in last 64.
German star Andree Welge defeats Robert Watson-Lang 3-1.
Germany's Michael Rosenauer sets up meeting with last Saturday's Scottish Players Championship winner Alex Roy.
Robert Thornton defeats Stephan Schneider to set up round one contest with Barrie Bates.
Austrian star Mensur Suljovic - the GDC number one - defeats Andy Krockel 3-0 and now meets Andy Smith in round one.
Karsten Koch knocks out Chris Mason with a deciding set victory.

First Round
Terry Jenkins defeats Sladan Nedic in straight sets.
Steve Maish earns board one final against Jenkins with 3-0 win over Czech number one Miloslav Navratil.
Alan Tabern sees off Matheus Ziolkowski 3-0.
Wayne Mardle races past Chris Kotal 3-0 in his opening contest.
Andy Hamilton defeats Lionel Sams 3-0, and Matt Clark overcomes Andrew Davies in straight sets.
Adrian Lewis' 3-1 win over Colin Monk sets up last 32 clash with Tomas Seyler.
Steve Beaton and Wes Newton progress with 3-0 wins over Johann Honner and Guido Kammerer respectively.
Michael van Gerwen earns meeting with Tabern thanks to 3-1 win over Steve Cusick.
Colin Lloyd defeats Holland's Leroy Kwadijk in straight sets, and Robert Thornton wins by the same scoreline against Barrie Bates.
Jamie Caven defeats Ronnie Baxter in five sets and now meets Wes Newton in last 32.
Carlos Rodriguez takes 3-0 win over Karsten Koch and now meets Andy Jenkins in round two, after the Portsmouth man's 3-0 win over Michael Wolf.
Adrian Gray is taken to five sets by Thorsten Wefers, and now meets Kevin Painter, who defeated Peter Aleman 3-0.
Qualifier Reiner Haass knocks out Kevin McDine 3-2 and now meets Colin Lloyd on stage at the Stadthalle in the second round.
Denis Ovens and Mark Walsh set up last 32 meeting with wins over Hannes Schnier and Olaf Fiβ.
Mensur Suljovic defeats Andy Smith 3-0, ending the Englishman's hopes of a late run putting him into the eight European Championship qualification places from the Players Championship Order of Merit.
Mark Dudbridge edges past Maik Langendorf in five sets and now meets Suljovic.

Second Round
Tomas Seyler follows up win over Jacko Barry with 3-2 defeat of Adrian Lewis.
Alan Tabern sees off Michael van Gerwen in straight sets.
Wes Newton moves into last 16 with 3-1 defeat of Jamie Caven.
Andy Hamilton reaches round three with 3-0 defeat of Matt Clark.
Mervyn King comes from two sets down to defeat Co Stompe 3-2.
Steve Maish edges a five-set thriller on stage against Terry Jenkins, coming from two sets down to claim victory in the deciding leg, after Jenkins missed one dart for victory in set four.
Peter Wright reaches last 16 with 3-0 win over Mario Masurka.
Jelle Klaasen overcomes Wayne Mardle in five sets to reach third round.
Colin Lloyd defeats Reiner Haass 3-1 to move into last 16.
Peter Manley sees off Steve Beaton 3-1, while Kevin Painter defeats Adrian Gray in a deciding set.
Robert Thornton takes straight sets win over Vincent van der Voort.
Mark Dudbridge edged an exciting final-leg battle with Mensur Suljovic. The Austrian came from 2-1 down to level with a 167 checkout, and led in the deciding set, only for Dudbridge to level and then punish a missed bullseye and two darts at double 12 to claim the win on double top at the final time of asking.

Third Round
Peter Manley is first name into quarter-finals with 3-1 win over Wes Newton.
Carlos Rodriguez seals place in European Championship with 3-1 win over Steve Maish, putting him into a second successive quarter-final.
Robert Thornton claims a second successive Dutch victim by defeating Jelle Klaasen 3-1 - but the former Lakeside Champion will remain in the four Contintental Europe Order of Merit places for the European Championship.
Kevin Painter progresses to quarter-finals with 3-1 defeat of Tomas Seyler - ending the German's feint hopes of claiming a European Championship qualifying place through the Contintental Europe Order of Merit.
Colin Osborne booked his quarter-final place against Thornton with a 3-1 win over Peter Wright.
Alan Tabern moves into last eight with five-set win over Championship League Darts runner-up Mervyn King.
Mark Walsh edges out Andy Hamilton in five sets to set up quarter-final with Painter.
Mark Dudbridge defeats Colin Lloyd 3-0 to move into last eight - the Bristolian needs to reach the final to jump above Wayne Jones in the Players Championship Order of Merit and qualify for the European Championship.

Quarter-Finals
Carlos Rodriguez wins through to his first PDC Pro Tour semi-final with a superb 3-0 win over Peter Manley, dropping just one leg and taking out 135 to win the match.
Colin Osborne also powered through to the semi-finals, losing only one leg in a 3-0 defeat of Robert Thornton.
Kevin Painter came from two sets down to defeat Mark Walsh and move into his first semi-final since June. Walsh won four of the opening five legs to put himself in command, but Painter edged the next two to level the game. He then took out 157 in the fifth set's opener, and a two-dart 96 finish sealed the win.
Mark Dudbridge held off Alan Tabern's fightback to claim victory in a final-leg quarter-final battle. Dudbridge took a two-set lead before Tabern, buoyed by an 11-darter to win set three, pulled level. The duo traded double top finishes to send the match into a sudden-death leg, but Dudbridge triumphed on tops.

Semi-Final
Carlos Rodriguez defeated Kevin Painter in straight sets to reach his maiden professional final. The Spaniard won the opening leg despite a maximum from Painter, and hit two 180s of his own in the second to take the set. He edged the second set in a deciding third leg on double 11, and finishes of double 16 and double four earned him a spot in the final.
Colin Osborne dramatically claimed victory in the second semi-final, defeating Mark Dudbridge in a sudden-death final leg of their contest. Osborne sailed into a two-set lead and led in the third thanks to a 111 finish, but missed one dart for the game in the next two legs as Dudbridge took the set. Double eight put the Bristol man in front in the next, before Osborne levelled with a 156 finish for a 12-darter and Dudbridge then won leg three with a 119 finish. Osborne set up a 36 finish with a key 165 score in the fifth set's opener, before Dudbridge landed double ten to square matters and send the match into a decider. Three ton-plus scores edged Osborne clear, but misses at double top and double ten gave Dudbridge a reprieve, only for two misses at double top and one at double ten to give the Derby man one more chance, which he took with his third dart at double ten.
The result now means Dudbridge misses out on a Players Championship Order of Merit place for the European Championship - and he will have to take part in Sunday's qualifier in an attempt to win one of the final two places.