Wessel Nijman has emulated fellow Dutchman Michael van Gerwen by winning his fifth Players Championship title of the year, defeating Max Hopp 8-1 in a one-sided final at the event in Hildesheim, Germany. The 25-year-old, who currently occupies 16th place in the PDC world rankings, became the first player to achieve the feat since Van Gerwen in 2016.
"I don't really care about records, I care more about the form that I'm playing right now," Nijman told the PDC website. "I just want to be in the top 16 and make as many steps as close to number one as possible by the end of the year."
A number of the sport's top players, including Luke Littler and Luke Humphries, skipped the event. Van Gerwen was beaten 6-4 in the third round by Austria's Mensur Suljovic, while two-time world champion Gary Anderson was upset 6-5 by Lewis Pride in the first round.
There are 34 Players Championship events across the year, with the competition's finals held in Minehead in November.
