Tomoya Goto will make his second Paddy Power World Darts Championship appearance in December, after defeating Kenichi Ajiki 5-2 to win the inaugural Japan Tour Finals in Shizuoka.
Goto stormed through Sunday’s 32-player field to confirm his Alexandra Palace return, conceding just seven legs in five matches on his way to victory on home soil.
The Japan Tour Finals featured the top 32 players from the final Japan Tour Order of Merit, after 154 players competed in the ten events held throughout 2024.
Goto opened his challenge with a convincing 4-1 victory over Junichi Maiyama, before winning through a last-leg decider against Hiroyuki Yoshino, in a contest which saw all nine legs go with throw.
The 28-year-old then breezed through to Sunday’s showpiece with successive whitewash wins against Shingo Enomata and Nobuhiro Yamamoto, which set up a winner-takes-all showdown against Ajiki.
Ajiki averaged 101.48 in his opening round win over Joji Kanuma, before following up wins over Shogo Fuse and Katsuya Aiba with a semi-final success against Japan Tour Order of Merit leader Seigo Asada.
The 51-year-old then drew first blood in the final with a sensational 157 checkout, although Goto proved too strong, winning five of the next six legs to clinch the coveted title.
Goto impressed on his World Championship debut in 2023/24, landing seven 180s on his way to a 3-1 victory over Ian White, before succumbing to Ryan Searle by the same scoreline in round two.
He has also represented Japan in each of the last three editions of the World Cup of Darts, while he made his World Series of Darts debut in January’s Bahrain Darts Masters.
2024 Japan Tour Finals
Sunday September 8
Quarter-Finals
Seigo Asada 5-2 Motomu Sakai
Kenichi Ajiki 5-2 Katsuya Aiba
Nobuhiro Yamamoto 5-2 Toyokazu Shibata
Tomoya Goto 5-0 Shingo Enomata
Semi-Finals
Kenichi Ajiki 5-4 Seigo Asada
Tomoya Goto 5-0 Nobuhiro Yamamoto
Final
Tomoya Goto 5-2 Kenichi Ajiki