Hungarian Darts Trophy - Finals Day
SMITH ROUTS ANDERSON TO WIN HUNGARIAN DARTS TROPHY
Ross Smith claimed his second European Tour title of 2026 after thrashing Gary Anderson 8-2 in the Hungarian Darts Trophy final in Budapest on Sunday.
Smith - who claimed his maiden title on the circuit at the International Darts Open in May - stormed to glory at the MVM Dome, which hosted a record-breaking European Tour crowd of almost 6,000 darts fans.
After an impressive 6-2 win over William O'Connor with a ton-plus average, Smith saw off Jonny Clayton on Sunday afternoon with a 6-4 win, aided by a percent success rate on the outer-ring. The former European Champion then eased past Dave Chisnall 6-2 to reach the semi-finals, where he dispatched Danny Noppert 7-3 with another clinical display to reach a third European Tour final of the year.
After taking a 2-1 lead courtesy of 103 and 124 checkouts, Smith strode into a five-leg lead over Anderson to go just two legs away from the title. The 37-year-old closed out the contest with an 11-dart break of throw, finishing the match with a 101 average and 73 percent checkout success-rate in a dominant performance worthy of lifting the Hungarian Darts Trophy.
"I feel a bit in disbelief in a way because I was coming here on the back of two losses in the World Series," reflected Smith, who moves up to world number 15 after pocketing the 35,00 pound0 top prize.
"Playing Gary - it's Gary Anderson isn't it, he's a legend. To be able to beat Gary, wow."
Smith's second title of the year sees him move top of the 2026 European Tour rankings, leapfrogging fellow two-time title winner Wessel Nijman.
"At the end of the day, I'm playing in front of thousands and thousands of people," continued Smith. "This is my job, wow! I'm so grateful, it's a pinch myself moment. "I absolutely love the European Tour. To travel the world and see everything and take my little lad with me, it's an absolute privilege."
Despite falling short in the showpiece, Anderson had a campaign to remember, bolstering his European Championship chances by picking up his first four European Tour wins in 2026. The two-time World Champion kicked off his quest for a fourth European Tour title with a sparkling 105.27 average in sweeping past Krzysztof Ratajski 6-2, before pipping Stephen Bunting in a last-leg decider to reach the last eight.
The darting drama continued for the Scottish icon, who needed another ton-plus average to edge past Gian van Veen in a last-leg shootout before surviving five match darts against Nathan Aspinall to creep into his first European Tour final since July last year, where he fell short to Smith.
"I ran out of steam a long time ago!" jibed Anderson, playing in just his third European Tour event of 2026.
"Making the final was sheer luck, it was a gift from the gods I got this far.
"Ross has been brilliant throughout the day. We watched him during the second game, he was fantastic.
"We've got a few tournaments left to get into the Finals, so I'm going to give it my damnedest."
Last year's runner-up Noppert had reached the semi-finals with wins over Ryan Searle and Dirk van Duijvenbode on Finals Day, while Aspinall reached the same stage following hard-fought victories over Michael van Gerwen and Chris Dobey.
In the afternoon session, Van Duijvenbode saw off Rob Cross 6-4, while Chisnall secured an emphatic 6-2 victory over Keane Barry to progress to his second European Tour Finals Day of the year. Van Veen recorded his fifth straight victory over Jermaine Wattimena, while Dobey capped off his 6-3 triumph over Josh Rock with a Big Fish finish.
The European Tour returns next weekend with the Czech Darts Open in Prague from September 4-6, as the race for European Championship qualification heats up.