PDC Tour Card holder Adam Warner won the inaugural UDUK Summer Showdown on Friday evening. Warner, a Sheffield graduate who joined the PDC in January, defeated Hallam’s James Buckby 3-0 in the final. The 26-year-old’s appearance in the event, which included not just current but former university students, was a major coup. And he was always going to be hard to stop in a field which included well over sixty competitors. Buckby had overcome Morgan Shillito (also of Hallam) 3-1 in the semi-final, whilst Warner had defeated Ollie Burgess. Warner was nearly scalped at the last 16 stage by strong Scottish prospect Aidan Sutherland, one of many players in the field to have played at a top amateur level. For those who did not make it out of the group stage, there was also a consolation competition. It was won by Manchester’s John Lynch, who got the better of Notts alumni Adam Best by two legs to one in the final. The event began shortly after 6pm on Friday evening at Rotherham’s Magna Centre, which is also playing host to the UKDA National Finals this weekend. Proceedings were finely compered by Simon Rimington, with marking duties shared amongst players. UDUK Vice President Iwan Hughes said of the Showdown, “It was great to see University players coming together, especially outside of term time, to collaborate in ensuring a great event was held.” “Congratulations to Adam Warner, Aidan Sutherland, and James Buckby who excelled in the averages throughout.” He continued: “Mostly, a thanks goes to UKDA, Simon Rimington and Colin Savage for allowing us to host this event. It provides a great platform for continued UDUK development into the 23/24 Academic Year.” The tournament closes the curtain on a stellar 2022/23 UDUK campaign, which began with events in Liverpool and Scotland as well as the beginnings of the league season in October. Attention will now turn to UDUK and society preparations for the next academic year, as clubs gear to recruit new players and members. We wish all our universities the best in this endeavour and look forward to more fantastic events next year.

Thomas Bartley - 24/09/2023

Warner wins first Summer Showdown