RAYMOND VAN BARNEVELD will compete in his first European Tour event for almost two years in March after being amongst the qualifiers for the year's opening two events.
Friday's qualifying double-header saw players battling for spots in Leverkusen and Hildesheim next month, where the year's first two European Tour events will be held.
Five-time World Champion Van Barneveld headlined the six European Qualifiers for the European Darts Open - a tournament the Dutchman won in 2012.
Van Barneveld's hopes of qualifying for the German Darts Championship, which will also be staged in March, were ended by Mario Robbe as the Dutchman secured his place in Hildesheim.
World Youth Champion Dimitri Van den Bergh enjoyed a qualifying double on the night as the only player to win through the European Qualifier.
Former European Tour winners Kim Huybrechts and Vincent van der Voort were joined by Jeffrey de Zwaan and Krzysztof Ratajski in qualifying for the European Darts Open.
Gabriel Clemens, Ron Meulenkamp, Madars Razma and Tytus Kanik joined Van den Bergh and Robbe in qualifying for the German Darts Championship.
Former European Tour winners Mervyn King and Steve Beaton enjoyed a qualifying double in the UK Qualifiers, and were joined by Josh Payne, Scott Taylor and Leeds' Martin Atkins in securing spots in both events.
Ted Evetts landed a nine-darter during his run to qualification for the European Darts Open, while Glen Durrant posted three ton-plus averages - including a huge 116 total - as he secured his European Tour debut.
Former Austrian Darts Open winner Justin Pipe was joined by Ricky Williams, Adam Hunt, William Borland, Ross Smith, Ritchie Edhouse, Jason Wilson, Wayne Jones, Matthew Dennant, Ryan Meikle and Matthew Edgar in sealing places in Leverkusen.
Durrant lost out to Mickey Mansell in their decider in the UK Qualifier for the German Darts Championship as the Northern Irish left-hander progressed.
Ricky Evans followed up a nine-darter with qualification for the event, alongside James Wilson, Dave Prins, Luke Humphries, Andrew Gilding, Jamie Hughes, Mark Dudbridge, Simon Stevenson, Nathan Aspinall, Andy Boulton, Keegan Brown and former European Tour winner Robert Thornton.
The European Darts Open will take place from March 22-24 in Leverkusen. The German Darts Championship will be held from March 29-31 in Hildesheim. For tickets, visit www.pdc-europe.tv/tickets.
PDC European Tour events will be broadcast through PDCTV-HD for all subscribers worldwide, and through a series of bookmakers' websites.
Nine-Darters!
Ted Evetts achieved a nine-dart finish during his 6-3 win over Patrick Lynskey in the ET1 UK Qualifier.
Ricky Evans sealed his 6-4 win over Justin Pipe in the ET2 UK Qualifier with a perfect leg to record the second nine-darter of the day!
FOLLOW LIVE STATS & RESULTS THROUGH DARTCONNECT AT THIS LINK.
ET1 UK Qualifier
Click here for full results
Final Matches (Last 36)
Mervyn King 6-3 Mark McGeeney
Justin Pipe 6-3 Stephen Bunting
Scott Taylor 6-4 Steve West
Ricky Williams 6-3 James Wilson
Adam Hunt 6-5 Andrew Gilding
Steve Beaton 6-0 Bradley Brooks
William Borland 6-1 Steve Lennon
Ross Smith 6-4 Chris Dobey
Glen Durrant 6-5 John Henderson
Ritchie Edhouse 6-0 Kyle Anderson
Josh Payne 6-3 Alan Norris
Jason Wilson 6-5 Kevin Garcia
Ted Evetts 6-3 Ryan Joyce
Wayne Jones 6-5 Kirk Shepherd
Matthew Dennant 6-5 Brendan Dolan
Ryan Meikle 6-5 Simon Stevenson
Mathew Edgar 6-5 Devon Petersen
Martin Atkins (Leeds) 6-5 Robert Thornton
Qualifiers: Mervyn King, Justin Pipe, Scott Taylor, Ricky Williams, Adam Hunt, Steve Beaton, William Borland, Ross Smith, Glen Durrant, Ritchie Edhouse, Josh Payne, Jason Wilson, Ted Evetts, Wayne Jones, Matthew Dennant, Ryan Meikle, Matthew Edgar, Martin Atkins (Leeds)
ET2 UK Qualifier
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Final Matches (Last 36)
Mervyn King 6-2 Harry Ward
Martin Atkins (Leeds) 6-1 Steve West
James Wilson 6-5 Luke Woodhouse
Ricky Evans 6-2 John Goldie
Steve Beaton 6-1 Kevin Burness
Dave Prins 6-4 Steve Lennon
Luke Humphries 6-4 Chris Dobey
Andrew Gilding 6-1 John Henderson
Jamie Hughes 6-3 Ryan Harrington
Josh Payne 6-4 Kevin Garcia
Mickey Mansell 6-5 Glen Durrant
Mark Dudbridge 6-4 Matthew Dennant
Scott Taylor 6-2 Richard North
Simon Stevenson 6-3 Brendan Dolan
Nathan Aspinall 6-3 Mark Barilli
Andy Boulton 6-5 William O'Connor
Robert Thornton 6-5 Nathan Rafferty
Keegan Brown 6-5 Bradley Brooks
Qualifiers: Mervyn King, Martin Atkins (Leeds), James Wilson, Ricky Evans, Steve Beaton, Dave Prins, Luke Humphries, Andrew Gilding, Jamie Hughes, Josh Payne, Mickey Mansell, Mark Dudbridge, Scott Taylor, Simon Stevenson, Nathan Aspinall, Andy Boulton, Robert Thornton, Keegan Brown
ET1 European Tour Card Holders' Qualifier
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Final Matches (Last 12)
Kim Huybrechts 6-2 Danny Noppert
Jeffrey de Zwaan 6-1 Maik Kuivenhoven
Krzysztof Ratajski 6-3 Jose Justicia
Dimitri Van den Bergh 6-3 Jan Dekker
Raymond van Barneveld 6-2 Tytus Kanik
Vincent van der Voort 6-3 Jelle Klaasen
Qualifiers: Kim Huybrechts, Jeffrey de Zwaan, Krzysztof Ratajski, Dimitri Van den Bergh, Raymond van Barneveld, Vincent van der Voort
ET2 European Tour Card Holders' Qualifier
Click here for full results
Final Matches (Last 12)
Tytus Kanik 6-5 Jose de Sousa
Mario Robbe 6-5 Jeffrey de Zwaan
Dimitri Van den Bergh 6-5 Krzysztof Ratajski
Ron Meulenkamp 6-1 Cristo Reyes
Gabriel Clemens 6-0 Christian Bunse
Madars Razma 6-5 Benito van de Pas
Qualifiers: Tytus Kanik, Mario Robbe, Dimitri Van den Bergh, Ron Meulenkamp, Gabriel Clemens, Madars Razma
