2026 Baltic Sea Darts Open

First round

The first round (best of 11 legs) was played on 29 May.^[12] Cameron Menzies recorded the highest three-dart average of the opening round, averaging 108.41 as he defeated Rob Cross 6–4. "Rob [Cross] is coming back and he pushed me, but that's the best game I've played in a long time, and I needed that win," commented Menzies after the match.^[12] Menzies was one of three players to hit a 170 checkout during the first day of action; William O'Connor converted one during his 6–4 victory over Cristo Reyes, while Lukas Wenig landed finishes of 170 and 160 despite losing 6–3 to Kevin Doets.^[13] Niko Springer was the first round's only victorious German player of the nation's seven competitors, defeating Hungarian qualifier Nándor Major 6–2 to join seeded player Martin Schindler in the second round.^[14] Justin Hood averaged 103.38 during his 6–4 win against Max Hopp.^[15] All four host nation qualifiers were eliminated: debutant Jason Riedtke was beaten in a deciding leg to Karel Sedláček, Daniel Klose lost 6–3 to Krzysztof Ratajski, Paul Krohne was whitewashed by Dirk van Duijvenbode, and Marcel Hausotter lost 6–1 to Joe Cullen.^[13]

The 2020 World Matchplay champion Dimitri Van den Bergh competed on the European Tour for the first time in 420 days and defeated Alan Soutar 6–2, winning the last six legs of the match. Speaking afterwards, the Belgian insisted that he was "working so hard behind the scenes" and claimed that he can "do so much more".^[12] Jimmy van Schie made a successful European Tour debut, whitewashing Ian White while hitting 85 per cent of his attempts at double. Ryan Joyce converted a 150 finish with three bullseyes on his way to defeating Christian Kist 6–3. Sebastian Białecki won five legs in a row to beat James Hurrell 6–3. Niels Zonneveld and Andrew Gilding prevailed 6–4 in their respective victories over Richard Veenstra and Jeffrey de Zwaan, while Ricky Evans defeated Finnish qualifier Teemu Harju 6–1.^[12][13]

Second round

The second round (best of 11 legs) was played on 30 May.^[16] Number one seed Gian van Veen overturned a 5–2 deficit to produce a comeback victory in a deciding leg against Dimitri Van den Bergh. In his post-match interview, Van Veen said that Van den Bergh's finishing made up for his scoring as he raced into the lead. "It’s been difficult the last couple of months, I need to work hard for it, but, I’m still here and winning games and that’s what it’s all about," he added.^[16] Niko Springer averaged 102.21 in a 6–2 win over eighth seed Ross Smith, the previous week's champion at the International Darts Open. Springer's compatriot Martin Schindler, the ninth seed, was eliminated in a deciding-leg loss to Ryan Joyce.^[17] Jimmy van Schie continued his debut run by beating eleventh seed Mike De Decker 6–1, which was De Decker's seventh consecutive defeat on the European Tour. Justin Hood and Sebastian Białecki joined Van Schie in reaching the final day of a European Tour event for the first time; Hood averaged just under 100 in a 6–1 victory over tenth seed Jermaine Wattimena, while Białecki defeated sixth seed Chris Dobey 6–4 to advance to his first third-round appearance in his thirteenth event.^[18] The match between Luke Woodhouse and Andrew Gilding was interrupted by a false fire alarm that halted action for around thirty minutes; Woodhouse won the match 6–3 after play resumed.^[19]

Wessel Nijman earned a 6–1 win over Krzysztof Ratajski. "I'll take the 98 average, I'm feeling really confident and really relaxed to be honest," commented Nijman, who said "today was one of those days" where everything went his way.^[16] Nijman ended up being the only previous winner on the 2026 European Tour to progress to the third round after the eliminations of Smith and seventh seed Nathan Aspinall, the latter being beaten 6–3 by Kevin Doets.^[18] Dave Chisnall and Ricky Evans both reached the final day for the first time in 2026 with their respective victories over Joe Cullen and fifteenth seed Daryl Gurney. Cameron Menzies converted checkouts of 148 and 107 as he defeated third seed Stephen Bunting 6–2. James Wade and William O'Connor were 6–2 winners over Niels Zonneveld and fourth seed Danny Noppert, while Ryan Searle and Damon Heta claimed 6–4 victories against Dirk van Duijvenbode and Karel Sedláček.^[16][18]

Final day

The third round, quarter-finals, semi-finals and final were played on 31 May. The third round and quarter-finals were contested over the best of 11 legs, the semi-finals over the best of 13 legs, and the final over the best of 15 legs.^[20] The final day saw Ryan Joyce and Luke Woodhouse reach the final. Joyce began the day by defeating Niko Springer 6–4, eliminating the last German player left in the field after Joyce had already beaten Martin Schindler.^[21] He followed a 6–1 victory over Dave Chisnall by winning a deciding leg against Damon Heta, who missed a match dart at the bullseye in the penultimate leg.^[22] Woodhouse eliminated Cameron Menzies in a 6–1 win, then ended the run of Jimmy van Schie by defeating the Dutchman 6–3. In the semi-finals, he earned a 7–2 victory over Ricky Evans, who reached his first European Tour semi-final since 2019.^[20][23] English compatriots Joyce and Woodhouse both reached their second European Tour final and were looking for their first title, having finished as runner-up at the 2025 European Darts Trophy and the 2025 Swiss Darts Trophy, respectively.^[23]

Woodhouse won the opening leg of the final, and followed a break of throw by landing a 140 checkout to lead 3–0. Joyce won back-to-back legs to reduce his deficit to 3–2. They traded the throw as Woodhouse maintained his two-leg advantage at 5–3. Joyce registered another leg to make it 6–4 but Woodhouse won the next to go one away from victory. In the twelfth leg, Joyce missed double 16 for a 108 checkout, and Woodhouse capitalised by hitting a 160 finish to win the match 8–4. Woodhouse finished the final with a three-dart average of 98.61, while Joyce averaged 94.46.^[22][23][24]

Woodhouse won his first European Tour title and second PDC ranking title, having won his first ranking title twelve days earlier by defeating Andrew Gilding in the final of Players Championship 18.^[24] He became the third first-time champion on the 2026 European Tour, after Wessel Nijman and Ross Smith. He was also the 2026 season's eighth different European Tour champion in eight events, a feat that had only been achieved previously in 2014.^[20][23] "It's like buses. You wait for one for ages, then two come along at once," joked Woodhouse in his post-match interview. He believed that neither he nor Joyce played their best game but called the win "unbelievable", adding that he hoped to bring his confidence into the upcoming World Matchplay.^[24] "I tried my best, but it just didn't happen today," said Joyce in defeat, calling his opponent a "very solid" and "very dependable" player.^[20]