Mio Varila captured his very first title on the PDC Nordic & Baltic circuit on Sunday, while Darius Labanauskas underlined his class a day earlier with another tournament win. Varila impressed with powerful scoring and sealed the first Nordic & Baltic ProTour title of his career, defeating Cor Dekker 6-3 in the final.
Varila played at a high level throughout the tournament. In the last 64 he swept aside Niels Heinsøe 6-0, then defeated Valters Melderis and Petri Rasmus. In the quarterfinals he showcased his best game again by not allowing compatriot Jani Haavisto a single leg, winning 6-0. Varila stayed in control in the semifinals against Johan Engström, leading 3-1 and never relinquishing the advantage, winning 6-4. The final started superbly for Varila, who raced into a 2-0 lead. Dekker battled back impressively and turned it around to 3-2 after five legs. The Finn leveled at 3-3 and then found another gear, taking three legs on the spin to wrap up the match convincingly.
A day earlier, veteran Labanauskas claimed his first Nordic & Baltic title of the season, taking his tally to thirteen trophies on this circuit. Labanauskas reached the quarterfinals after three wins and faced Haavisto there. The Finn moved 1-0 ahead, but the experienced Lithuanian then took full control, winning 6-3. In the semifinals against fellow Tour Card holder Viktor Tingström, it finished 6-3 again. The final brought Andreas Toft Jørgensen, who put together a strong run with wins over Dekker, Teemu Harju, and Daniel Larsson. The final proved far tighter, forcing a deciding 11th leg. Labanauskas held firm and added another title to his résumé, winning 6-5.
After six of the twelve PDCNB tournaments, Cor Dekker still leads the Order of Merit with €4,700 in prize money. Jani Haavisto sits second on €3,200, followed by Daniel Larsson in third on €2,200. The top two players qualify for the World Darts Championship. Because Dekker is virtually qualified for the World Darts Championship via the Pro Tour, his World Championship spot via the PDCNB ranking currently passes down to number three Larsson.
