Adam Sevada recorded the biggest victory of his darts career on Friday night. The American number one was crowned champion of the North American Darts Championship at the Infosys Theater in Madison Square Garden, convincingly defeating Jim Long 6-1 in the final. That not only earned him the top prize of $10,000, but also secured his places at the PDC World Darts Championship 2026/27 and the Grand Slam of Darts.
Emotions ran high for Sevada afterwards, who had felt all day that everything was falling into place. “I feel absolutely amazing. I’m really emotional,” the American said after his emphatic triumph. “Today I felt really relaxed and I’m glad to be able to prove what I can actually do on the stage.” His words were backed up by his performances. The 40-year-old from California put together an impressive run to the title, dropping just four legs in three matches. His tournament began in spectacular fashion with a 6-0 win over Alex Spellman, during which he averaged 102.48. That average is the second highest ever at the North American Darts Championship.
Sevada also impressed in the semi-finals. Against former UK Open finalist Gary Mawson, he looked to be cruising for long spells, but the experienced Canadian battled back into the match. Sevada kept his composure, though, and pulled away 6-3 to book a place in the final against top seed Jim Long. In the decider, Sevada flew out of the blocks again. He held throw in 14 darts and doubled his lead with a tidy 92 checkout in two darts. Long replied with a neat 98 checkout, but the Canadian Tour Card holder could never really get a foothold in the contest. Three consecutive legs saw Sevada open a decisive 5-1 gap. Although a touch of tension crept in towards the end, he sealed the match on double 2 and collected the biggest title of his career.
“My darts were on from the first match and I felt great all day,” Sevada reflected with satisfaction. The victory also hands him two coveted invitations. Later this year he will test himself against the world’s elite at the Grand Slam of Darts, while a return to Alexandra Palace for the World Championship is also confirmed. He made his debut there last year, and thanks to his title in New York he now gets another chance to prove himself on the sport’s biggest stage. According to Sevada, that opportunity is anything but guaranteed. "Whether it’s a turning point in my career or not I don’t think so, but everybody knows what I can do when I’m on my game, so we’ll see what happens."
Whether this title truly marks the start of a new phase in his career, the American cannot yet say. He is confident, however, that he can reproduce this level on the biggest stages. “To able to do this is a dream come true,” Sevada concluded.
