Haupai Puha
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Gisborne, New Zealand
| Haupai Puha | |||||||||||||||||
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
| Nickname | "Hopes" | ||||||||||||||||
| Born | 12 February 1985[1] Gisborne, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||
| Home town | Wellington, New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||
| Darts information | |||||||||||||||||
| Playing darts since | 2017 | ||||||||||||||||
| Darts | 24g Shot Signature | ||||||||||||||||
| Laterality | Right-handed | ||||||||||||||||
| Walk-on music | "35" by Ka Hao ft. Rob Ruha | ||||||||||||||||
| Organisation (see split in darts) | |||||||||||||||||
| PDC | 2017–2025 (Tour Card: 2024–2025) | ||||||||||||||||
| WDF | 2021–2023 | ||||||||||||||||
| WDF major events – best performances | |||||||||||||||||
| World Championship | Last 48: 2022 | ||||||||||||||||
| PDC premier events – best performances | |||||||||||||||||
| World Championship | Last 96: 2021, 2024 | ||||||||||||||||
| UK Open | Last 64: 2025 | ||||||||||||||||
| World Series Finals | Last 16: 2023 | ||||||||||||||||
| Other tournament wins | |||||||||||||||||
PDC Affiliate tours
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Medal record
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Haupai Puha (born 12 February 1985) is a New Zealand professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events. Nicknamed "Hopes", Puha is the first player from New Zealand to have won a PDC Tour Card, having won one in 2024.[2]
He has won titles on both the affiliated Darts Players Australia and Darts Players New Zealand tours, and has represented New Zealand at both the PDC World Cup of Darts and the WDF World Cup.
Born on 12 February 1985 in Gisborne, Puha is Māori, of Ngāti Porou.[3] He grew up in Wellington and started playing golf at age 15,[3] going on to play for Wellington's men's team[4] and winning the New Zealand Māori Golf Match Play Championship in 2010 and 2012.[3] He started playing darts in 2015[3] and has credited his experience with golf in making the transition to darts.[5]
Prior to going professional as a darts player, Puha worked as a roofer. He and his wife Kawhena have three children.[3]
Darts career
In 2018, Puha qualified for two World Series events as the number two ranked player in the DPNZ rankings. He would lose in the first round of both events; to Kyle Anderson in Auckland and to Rob Cross in Melbourne.
In 2019, he made his first appearance at the World Cup of Darts, partnering Cody Harris. They beat Lithuania and South Africa to reach the quarter-finals, eventually losing to Japan.
Puha also qualified for all three World Series events in Australia and New Zealand in 2019. He lost to Raymond van Barneveld in the first round of both the Brisbane Masters and the Melbourne Masters, and to Gary Anderson in the first round of the New Zealand Masters.
Puha has played once in the WDF World Championship and twice in the PDC World Championship, losing in the first round on all three occasions.
Having won his PDC Tour Card in January 2024, Puha competed at the 2024 UK Open. He beat Jelle Klaasen in the first round before losing to Wesley Plaisier in the second round.[6] On 8 May 2024, Puha qualified for a European Tour event for the first time.[7] He lost to Niels Zonneveld in the opening round of the 2024 Dutch Darts Championship.[8]
World Championship results
PDC
- 2021: First round (lost to Mickey Mansell 0–3) (sets)
- 2024: First round (lost to Martin Lukeman 1–3)
- 2026: First round (lost to Niels Zonneveld 0–3)
WDF
- 2022: First round (lost to Ben Hazel 1–2)