From 20 to 24 September, the twentieth edition of the WDF Europe Cup was held in the Dutch seaside town of Egmond aan Zee. In the men’s event 32 different countries toe the oche, which is a new record for the WDF Europe Cup. Six countries leave their ladies at home, but this still means a very strong field of 26 countries in the ladies. In hotel Zuiderduin, for years the setting for the Zuiderduin/Finder Masters the NDB and WDF put together a fantastic tournament, which runs very smoothly.
From the 2015 WDF World Cup Nick Rolls joined the WDF team as one of the officials on stage alongside “Little” Richard Ashdown and Jacques Nieuwlaat, so 2016 is his first WDF Europe Cup. The Dutch Darts Association NDB is hosting this tournament for the third time, they also organized the WDF Europe Cup in The Hague in 1984 and Veldhoven in 2000. Welshman Martin Phillips participates for the thirteenth and last time in this event and is the record holder. Malta is returning to the WDF Europe Cup family for their first Cup since 2000. There are no debutants this year.
Sharon Prins crowns herself the new singles champion in 2016. She thus becomes the second Dutch who takes this title after Francis Hoenselaar has done this three times before. Prins has certainly not got an easy route to the title, in addition to victories over Anne Wilkomm from Germany, Maud Jansson from Sweden, Djurdjina Miscevic from Serbia and Kate Smith from Scotland she also beats no less than three English ladies.
In her second match she beats the world’s number one Deta Hedman. She is too strong in the semi-finals for ten times world champion Trina Gulliver and in the final she faces Fallon Sherrock, who a round earlier beat her compatriot Lorraine Winstanley.