Losper retains SA Open title

Charles Losper retained the Emperors Palace PDC South African Open title with a 4-1 win over Mark Jackson, a result that earns him a place in the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship.

Losper confirmed his status as the leading darts player in South Africa by claiming the title in the two-stage tournament, held at the Emperors Palace Casino in Johannesburg for a second successive year.

He was the leading player from the three-hour "Saturday Frenzy", where 156 players battled to score a leg of 501 in the fewest possible darts, hitting a 12 darter to head the field.

Losper, an armed response unit policeman from Cape Town, then won the knockout phase featuring the top 16 players, claiming a 3-1 win over Mike Ryder Snr, a 3-0 whitewash of Paul Bann in the quarter-finals and a 3-2 defeat of Shawn Hogan with a superb 14 darter in the deciding leg of their semi-final.

He produced a 103 finish to open the final against Durban's Mark Jackson, and moved 3-0 up before sealing a 4-1 victory.

Losper will now return to London's Alexandra Palace in December to compete in the World Darts Championship for a second time, guaranteeing him a minimum of £2,500 prize money.

Amazing

"This is amazing, I'm so happy," said Losper. "I was pleased with how I played throughout the day and I'm so honoured to have won this tournament again.

"I feel more confident than I did last year and the experience I have probably helped me at the crucial times."

Jackson overcame Les Francis 3-0 in the semi-finals, with finishes of 97, 79 and then 90, checking out on the bullseye, seeing him reach the final.

Hogan included a 110 finish in coming from 2-1 down to defeat Francois de Villiers 3-2 to reach the semi-finals - with the South African Open's last four facing Phil Taylor, James Wade, John Part and Wayne Mardle in Sunday's Emperors Palace South African Masters.

Losper will take on Mardle, while Hogan takes on Taylor, with Francis meeting James Wade and Jackson earning a clash with world champion John Part.

Emperors Palace PDC South African Open results

Quarter-finals
Charles Losper 3-0 Paul Bann
Shawn Hogan 3-2 Francois de Villiers
Mark Jackson 3-2 Mark McMahon
Les Francis 3-1 Johan Niemand

Semi-finals
Charles Losper 3-2 Shawn Hogan
Mark Jackson 3-0 Les Francis

Final
Charles Losper 4-1 Mark Jackson