Photo courtesy of Lawrence Lustig/PDC.

JELLE KLAASEN defeated Kirk Shepherd 6-1 to win Group Seven of Championship League Darts.

In arguably the tournament’s most dramatic day yet, Klaasen came from fourth in the league table following the eight-man group stage to claim victory with play-off wins over Adrian Lewis and Shepherd.

Klaasen was one of five players to finish the group phase on eight league points, with Lewis top, Shepherd second and Wayne Jones finishing third – while Tony Eccles missed out on a semi-final place on a count-back of Legs Won Against Throw to the Dutch ace.

Klaasen then overcame Lewis 6-5 in the semis, holding off a fightback as the Stoke star came from 3-1 and 5-2 down to send their game into a decider.

He then overcame some nervous early doubling in the final to power past Shepherd, who shared the opening two legs but was punished for his own misses as Klaasen took a 3-1 lead.

Shepherd, the 2008 Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship runner-up, never recovered as Klaasen won the next three legs to claim his spot in Thursday’s big-money winners group – where a place in the PartyPoker.com Grand Slam of Darts next month is also on offer for the finalists.

“I’m very happy to have qualified,” said Klaasen. “It was very close today but I’m pleased with how I played.

“I think I learned a lot from playing in Group Six last month and that showed today, and I can look forward to the Winners Group on Thursday.

“There’s a lot of prize money on offer and I can also win a place in the Grand Slam of Darts, so it’s a big day for me.”

Shepherd earned £2,550 for his day’s work on his debut in this year’s event – his best pay-day since the 2009 World Championship – and returns on Wednesday to compete in Group Eight.

Lewis will also be back in action in Group Eight, giving him the distinction of having competed on all eight days of this year’s tournament without yet having won a group, with his prize money now totalling £13,550.

Wolverhampton’s Jones was a narrow 6-5 loser to Shepherd in the semi-final, allowing the youngster to come from 5-2 down to edge victory.

Jones had won a semi-final spot in a dramatic final round of matches – leaping from sixth to third with a 6-5 win over Shepherd.

Andy Smith was knocked out of the event on leg difference, with Terry Jenkins narrowly avoiding elimination, while wins in his final two games were not enough to save Co Stompe from being knocked out.

Dutch duo Roland Scholten and Michael van Gerwen come in for Group Eight, alongside Wales’ Barrie Bates.

The Group Eight winner will join James Wade, Phil Taylor, Mervyn King, Mark Walsh, Wayne Mardle, Colin Osborne and Klaasen in Thursday’s Winners Group.

Group Matches
Terry Jenkins 1-6 Adrian Lewis
Co Stompe 4-6 Tony Eccles
Andy Smith 3-6 Kirk Shepherd
Jelle Klaasen 6-4 Wayne Jones

Tony Eccles 2-6 Terry Jenkins
Kirk Shepherd 6-3 Jelle Klaasen
Wayne Jones 6-4 Andy Smith
Adrian Lewis 6-4 Co Stompe

Tony Eccles 3-6 Jelle Klaasen
Terry Jenkins 5-6 Kirk Shepherd
Wayne Jones 6-4 Co Stompe
Adrian Lewis 6-3 Andy Smith

Jelle Klaasen 2-6 Terry Jenkins
Tony Eccles 6-3 Kirk Shepherd
Adrian Lewis 6-4 Wayne Jones
Co Stompe 1-6 Andy Smith

Co Stompe 5-6 Jelle Klaasen
Andy Smith 6-5 Terry Jenkins
Kirk Shepherd 6-4 Adrian Lewis
Wayne Jones 6-4 Tony Eccles

Andy Smith 5-6 Tony Eccles
Adrian Lewis 5-6 Jelle Klaasen
Kirk Shepherd 5-6 Co Stompe
Terry Jenkins 6-2 Wayne Jones

Co Stompe 6-1 Terry Jenkins
Jelle Klaasen 4-6 Andy Smith
Wayne Jones 6-5 Kirk Shepherd
Tony Eccles 6-5 Adrian Lewis

Semi-Final 1
Adrian Lewis 5-6 Jelle Klaasen

Semi-Final 2
Kirk Shepherd 6-5 Wayne Jones

Final
Jelle Klaasen 6-1 Kirk Shepherd