BASINGSTOKE darts ace Paul Hogan believes that he would have reached the fifth round of the Coral UK Open had he come up against anybody other than world number one Michael van Gerwen.

Hogan, who reached the event after winning seven matches at a qualifying tournament in Southampton, won a further four matches last Friday to reach the last 32 for the second year in a row.

His reward was a match against former world champion and current world number one van Gerwen on the main stage at Butlins, in Minehead, with the game also shown live on ITV4.

The Dutchman was in top form, winning the first four legs, but Hogan played some of the best darts of his career to win the next three, reducing the deficit to a single leg.

The 51-year-old had the chance to level the match in the eighth leg, but he was unable to hit double 20. His opponent made no mistake, taking that leg and four of the next five to claim a 9-4 victory on his way to winning the tournament, but Hogan was pleased with the way he played.

“I think it’s the best I have ever played in a televised match, so I came away without any regrets,” he said. “I averaged 108 and if I had played against anyone else, I think I’d have beaten them.

“He’s just like a machine and it’s easy to see why he’s a former world champion and the world number one. I always seem to get beaten by the eventual winner, which is nice in a way, but he does it for a living, while I’m only part time.

“It was a great experience. Just walking out and going on stage was something completely different to what I am used to, even at Lakeside.

“There was a great atmosphere and it was probably the biggest crowd I have ever played in front of. The place was rocking.”

To get to the last 32, Hogan beat Lee Russell 5-1 in a preliminary round match, before seeing off Derek Brand (5-3), Darren Johnson (5-3) and Benito van de Pas (9-5) to set up his big match against van Gerwen.

Hogan’s next big event is the British Internationals, which will take place in Merthyr Tydfil, in Wales, next month. The Buckskin resident has been selected in England’s 12-man squad for the event, where they will take on Scotland and Wales.

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