2025 WDF Lakeside World Championship – Preview

This Friday brings the start of the 2025 WDF World Championship, as the best the WDF has to offer return to the legendary Lakeside Country Club in leafy Surrey. This year’s tournament sees no fewer than SEVEN Americans treading the boards on the Lakeside stage, including three seeded players (two men, and one woman).

This is the fourth staging of the event since the WDF resurrected the World Championship after the demise of the previous organizers, the BDO. Since the tournament begin in 1978, the USA has largely been starved of success, with only three men reaching the semi-finals; Nicky Virachkul (1978), Rick Ney (1988), and of course, Jason Brandon’s epic journey to the Top 4 last year.

This year, Tennessee’s Brandon not only returns, but returns as the second seed. Phoenix’s David Fatum is making his debut here, but thanks to his superb performance in reaching the final of February’s Dutch Open, is also seeded (#6). The two men completing the quartet are near neighbors from the Pacific Northwest, Kevin Luke and Jeff Springer Jr. The latter is making his second appearance here, after debuting in 2024, while this is Luke’s third time.

Florida’s Paula Murphy has become a part of the furniture here in Frimley Green, and this will be her fourth consecutive appearance. World Cup Singles runner-up Murphy is accompanied by a brace of debutantes, Maine’s Aaja Jalbert and Tracy Feiertag (New York). Young Aaja is really making a name for herself after completing a successful youth career, while Feiertag’s impressive season on the American circuit has earned her the position of seed #7.

The Top Eight seeds for Open and Women are:
Open
1 – Jimmy van Schie (NED)
2 – Jason Brandon (USA)
3 – Neil Duff (NIR)
4 – James Beeton (ENG)
5 – Benjamin Pratnemer (SLO)
6 – David Fatum (USA)
7 – Matt Clark (ENG)
8 – Corne Groeneveld (NED)

Women
1 – Lerena Rietbergen (NED)
2 – Lorraine Hyde (SCO)
3 – Deta Hedman (ENG)
4 – Nicole Regnaud (NZL)
5 – Rhian O’Sullivan (WAL)
6 – Sophie McKinlay (SCO)
7 – Tracy Feiertag (USA)
8 – Aileen de Graaf (NED)

The full playing schedule has been released, and the first round draws for the American septet are as follows:

Friday, November 28 (6pm GMT)
Open Round 1 (5th match) – Kevin Luke v Sybren Gijbels (BEL)
Sunday, November 30 (12.30pm GMT)
Women Round 1 (4th match) – Paula Murphy v Emine Dursun (TUR)
Sunday, November 30 (6pm GMT)
Women Round 1 (2nd match) – Aaja Jalbert v Aletta Wajer (NED)
Open Round 1 (3rd match) – Jeff Springer Jr v Bradley Kirk (ENG)
Tuesday, December 2 (6pm GMT)
Women Round 2 (5th match) – Tracy Feiertag v Steenbergen/Ouchi/Lech-Musialska
Wednesday, December 3 (6pm GMT)
Open Round 2 (4th match) – David Fatum v Walker/Brejcha
Open Round 2 (6th match) – Jason Brandon v Lawrie/Maruyama

The tournament will be streamed live on the WDF’s YouTube Channel, and live scoring is available at DartConnect

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