TUSOK BALITA ONLINE - A Publication of the National Darts Federation of the Philippines
   

PDC ASIAN TOUR MANILA 2018
A Summation

Updated October 17, 2018
 
 
The six cities with 12 stages of the PDC Asian Tour 2018 came to a spectacular close with the PDC Tour Manila held at the Ballroom of the Crowne Plaza Hotel last October 13th and 14th, 2018.

The PDC Tour Manila is the most impressive and inspiring among all the PDC Asian Tours.  In the midst of the two video walls was a grand stage seen only in the setup of the best international dart competitions. For the first time in the Asian Tour - 2 huge video walls were on display in a grand and spacious ballroom where players and guests are comfortably seated enjoying overflowing free coffee and snacks, with 32 official boards and 8 practice boards to the convenience of everyone.

The extravagance and magnificence of the PDC Tour Manila is through the leadership of Cong. Bem Noel and his moving spirit to set a high standard of excellence for an international dart competition and to uplift not only Philippine darts, but Asian darts as well.  To the men and women who made the PDC Tour Manila a resounding success, our Congratulations for a job well done.

PDC Tour Manila showcased the deep talent of Filipino dart players.  Stage 11 was won by Lourence Ilagan in an exciting decision match over Val Capuyan of Baguio City.  In the T4, Ilagan overpowered Paul Lim while Capuyan overcame a decisive match over Noel Malicdem.

The final match of the 2018 PDC Asian Tour - the Stage 12 championship,  was a fitting tribute to the Asian players who have attained perfection in darts with their 9-darts out.  Paul Lim, the first player to make a 9-darter in a live telecast and Noel Malicdem, the first player to make a 9-darter in the PDC Asian Tour, clashed in the finals.  Malicdem won his 2nd championship stage with a 5-3 win over Lim.  Enroute to the finals, Malicdem broke the Asian Tour record with the highest 3 dart average of 108.4 in the T4 match against Christian Perez, while Paul Lim avenged his loss to Lourence Ilagan with his 5-2 win in the T4.

Ultimately, the top 4 players in PDC Asian Tour Order of Merit based on money won, qualified for the World Dart Championship in London this December.  Lourence Ilagan of the Philippines topped the ranking followed by Seigo Asada of Japan, Royden Lam of Hongkong, and Noel Maclidem of the Philippines.  Asada having won the Japan WDC qualifier paved the way for 5th placer Paul Lim of Singapore to qualify as 4th player in the Order of Merit.

The PDC Asian Tour opened the floodgates for the expansion and growth of steel tip darts in Asia.  With the support of the PDC, the Asian countries are looking forward to a bigger 2019 as players begin to migrate to Steel Tip from Soft Tip competitions.  Truly, the unprecedented growth of darts in Asia is beaming in the horizon.

RTSoncuya

NDFP Affiliation Form