PDC

Gates and Buntz take CDC titles at season opener in Niagara Falls

Originally posted on Dartsnews.com | Last updated May 12, 2025 1:30 PM ET

The Championship Darts Circuit (CDC) started the new season in style in Canada's Niagara Falls. During the opening weekend of the CDC ProTour, Leonard Gates and Stowe Buntz immediately seized their chance to start the year off right.

It was the experienced Leonard Gates who won the first tournament. The 54-year-old American defeated Canadian veteran David Cameron 7-4 in the final and crowned his victory with a brilliant 170-finish.

Gates began his campaign with a narrow victory in the deciding leg against Ram Guevara Jr. his most exciting match of the day. That was followed by wins over Jeremiah Millar and Hossey Hicks, before he swept former World Matchplay winner Larry Butler off the board with a 6-0 whitewash in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, Adam Sevada was swept aside 7-2, and a strong run of three legs in a row in the final eventually proved decisive against Cameron.

Stowe Buntz won the second event on Saturday. In the final, he was 5-3 too strong for former UK Open finalist Gary Mawson. Buntz, who made it to the quarterfinals of the Grand Slam of Darts in 2023, had a tougher road to the final match. In round two he needed five sets to beat Rory Hansen, but then followed up with convincing wins in straight sets over Mike Walterman, Jay Waugh and again Larry Butler.

In the semifinals, Buntz impressed with a 4-1 victory over Sevada, in which he produced finishes of 100, 115, 127 and 130, among others. In the final, he withstood a comeback from Mawson by throwing two consecutive 15-darters and securing his sixth CDC ProTour title.

Saturday also saw the completion of the first of two qualifying tournaments for the US Darts Masters and the North American Championship, which take place in New York at the end of June. Adam Sevada secured participation by defeating David Cameron in a nerve-wracking final. After falling behind 4-3, Sevada turned the match around with legs of 12 and 14 darts and an average of 97. On his way to the final match, he eliminated Doug Boehm and Gary Mawson, among others.