Nathan Aspinall has achieved some impressive feats in the game since breaking into the PDC elite six years ago, but he’s got a bizarrely wretched record in the Players Championship Finals.
The two-time major winner has appeared at the Minehead event five times since 2018 and only managed to win three matches.
| Nathan Aspinall in the Players Championship Finals | When did he get knocked out? |
| 2023 | Didn’t play |
| 2022 | First round (6-4 loss to Martijn Kleermaker) |
| 2021 | Second round (6-4 loss to Rob Cross) |
| 2020 | Second round (6-3 loss to Ross Smith) |
| 2019 | First round (6-2 loss to Raymond van Barneveld) |
| 2018 | Second round (6-4 loss to James Wade) |
Nathan Aspinall has never made it past the second round of the penultimate major of the year, losing to the likes of Ross Smith and Rob Cross.
The World No. 14 has dubbed the Minehead even his bogey tournament and shed light on why that might be.
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Nathan Aspinall explains Players Championship Finals ‘struggle’
Aspinall opens his Players Championship Finals campaign against one of his best mates on the tour, Chris Dobey, and he’ll be hoping to break the bad habits he’s picked up in Minehead.
Speaking to Weekly DartsCast, the World Matchplay winner called the event “a hazy tournament” for him.
He said: “I don’t know what it is. I think every player has that one tournament.
“I think most of the time it’s your Grand Prix that people don’t like, but for some reason, I don’t know what it is. I do really struggle in this event.”
The 33-year-old believes the reason for his misfortune in Minehead could be due to the events positioning on the darts calendar.
Aspinall said: “I don’t know if it’s because I’m more focused on the World Championship. That could be it. I don’t know.”
The Stockport thrower has suffered an inconsistent 2024, dealing with an elbow injury that kept him out for a couple of months.
Aspinall faces tough Dobey test
Aspinall’s difficulties at the Players Championship Finals won’t get any easier against his good friend Dobey.
He squeezed into the event, ranked 64th in the Pro Tour this year, and as a result, he plays the Pro Tour number one.
However, Aspinall has a terrific record against Dobey with all three of their last meetings going the way of The Asp.
They last met in the World Matchplay in 2023 where Aspinall prevailed 16-12 to reach the semi-finals of the event.
Should Aspinall get the better of Dobey yet again, he arguably faces his best chance ever to break his second-round duck at the tournament.
The winner of Aspinall and Dobey will play either Willie O’Connor or Niels Zonneveld.