Jelle Klaasen took top spot in his PDC Home Tour group on Thursday night but had to defend himself against allegations of cheating after controversy surrounded his pivotal victory over Gabriel Clemens.
The 2006 BDO world champion was second favourite to progress on the seventh night of this inaugural groundbreaking tournament behind rising German star Clemens and the pair ensured their encounter would be even more crucial after they both won their opening matches.
The world number 38, playing in Saarwellingen, saw off Ryan Meikle 5-3 before Klaasen, ranked 48, before defeating Northern Ireland's Gavin Carlin 5-2.
After Meikle put himself in contention with a 5-1 triumph over Carlin, Klaasen took pole position by defeating Clemens 5-3 in a see-saw contest.
Both men enjoyed three-leg streaks, Klaasen roaring into a 3-0 lead only for the German to cancel it out with the help of a 132 checkout on the bullseye and a 12-dart break.
Klaasen bounced back to take the next two legs although his victory was debated on social media as some fans posted screenshots to allege that his winning double in the second leg may not have found the bed.
However, the 35-year-old later took to social media himself to defend himself, sharing a picture and a video of the dart nestling in the corner of double 20.
On Thursday night he tweeted: "First of all I would like to say I’m happy to win the group. But im a bit disappointed people would think i cheated on that 70 finish... my points are long and the image is blurry because of the livestream but I can guarantee you it was in the corner of tops!"
And on Friday he added: "I will be changing my setup next time I’m playing 1 extra camera so I can record everything myself and have some extra footage that will be extra sharp haha! maybe a good tip for everyone involved in playing darts online."
for FREE to ALL registered PDCTV users, regardless of whether you have a paid or free membershipPDC Home Tour Darts: Thursday results and Friday Fixtures
Play begins at 1930 BST each night
Best of nine legs
GROUP 7: Thursday April 23
- Gabriel Clemens 5-3 Ryan Meikle
- Jelle Klaasen 5-2 Gavin Carlin
- Ryan Meikle 5-1 Gavin Carlin
- Gabriel Clemens 3-5 Jelle Klaasen
- Jelle Klaasen 4-5 Ryan Meikle
- Gavin Carlin 5-4 Gabriel Clemens
GROUP STANDINGS
- Jelle Klaasen P 3 W 2 L 1 Leg Diff +4 Pts 4
- Ryan Meikle P 3 W 2 L 1 Leg Diff +3 Pts 4
- Gabriel Clemens P 3 W 1 L 1 Leg Diff -1 Pts 2
- Gavin Carlin P 3 W 1 L 2 Leg Diff -6 Pts 2
GROUP 8: Friday April 24
- Jonny Clayton v Adam Hunt
- Richard North v David Pallett
- Adam Hunt v David Pallett
- Jonny Clayton v Richard North
- Richard North v Adam Hunt
- David Pallett v Jonny Clayton
: Jonny Clayton 5/4, Adam Hunt 5/2, Richard North 7/2, David Pallett 4/1
GROUP STANDINGS
- Jonny Clayton P 0 W 0 L 0 Leg Diff +0 Pts 0
- Adam Hunt P 0 W 0 L 0 Leg Diff +0 Pts 0
- Richard North P 0 W 0 L 0 Leg Diff +0 Pts 0
- David Pallett P 0 W 0 L 0 Leg Diff +0 Pts 0
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