Luke Woodhouse and Dimitri Van den Bergh will contest the second match of the evening on Tuesday night. Van den Bergh is the 1.8 favourite and his experience and pedigree should see him get over the line against ‘Woody’. The Belgian number one has already bagged a major title this year, having triumphed at the 2024 UK Open. The ‘Dream Maker’ also impressed at this year’s World Matchplay, producing a sensational nine-dart finish on route to the quarter-final stage, where he came up short against eventual tournament winner Luke Humphries.

Woodhouse will be a tough opponent for Van den Bergh though. The English thrower delivered a stunning performance when defeating Dave Chisnall on his World Grand Prix debut 12 months ago. He has also performed well on the Pro Tour this season, so he can certainly push van den Bergh close.

Nevertheless, van den Berg should have enough about him to justify favouritism and get the job done. The ‘Dream Maker’ has emerged victorious from four of the overall five meetings between the pair, and he is expected to take top honours again on Tuesday night.

Damon Heta can hit the ground running at this year’s World Grand Prix with a win over Mike de Decker. ‘The Heat’ has had an up and down 2024 thus far, but he has been consistently averaging in the mid-90s over the past 12 months. He is also one of the PDC’s most lethal 180 hitters over the last year, landing 527 maximums, a tally topped by only five other players.

Heta offered a timely reminder of just how formidable an opponent he can be by averaging 106 to eliminate Luke Littler from this year’s UK Open. He also performed well when making it to the final of August’s New Zealand Darts Masters, where he fell at the last hurdle against Luke Humphries.

While de Decker is a dangerous opponent for Heta to open up against, the Belgian has seldom appeared on a televised stage since exiting last year’s World Grand Prix in the first round. In fact, the ‘Real Deal’ was eliminated relatively early from both this year’s World Darts Championship and UK Open respectively. Thus, at 1.73 Heta looks like a solid selection to inflict a round one defeat on de Decker.

Gerwyn Price gets his World Grand Prix campaign up and running against Danny Noppert on Tuesday evening. ‘The Iceman’ lifted the trophy back in 2020 and he came close to clinching the title for second time when finishing as runner-up to Luke Humphries last year.

Price has since moved from peaks to troughs during 2024, but his seasonal figures would certainly suggest that he warrants the tag of favouritism against Dutchman Noppert. The Welshman boasts one of the highest averages on the PDC circuit this calendar year, with his 97.46 tally bettered by only three other players. Admittedly, Price can’t afford to be complacent here, but if his high-scoring game clicks into gear then he should prove too hot to handle for ‘the Freeze’.

Noppert has failed to make a splash on a big stage in 2024, having been sent packing fairly promptly from the majority of the major televised events he has featured in this year. On top of this, his head-to-head record with Price doesn’t make for great reading. The Iceman has prevailed in eight of the previous 10 meetings between the pair, and his scoring prowess should see him triumph again on Tuesday evening.

Michael van Gerwen will be looking to rekindle his love affair with the World Grand Prix in Leicester this week. The ‘Green Machine’ has reigned supreme in this event on no fewer than six occasions. He begins his latest pursuit of glory against Daryl Gurney on Tuesday evening.

The Dutchman is the 6.5 third favourite in the outright betting and he should make a winning start against Gurney. Van Gerwen will roll into this year’s World Grand Prix feeling good about himself following his exploits at the recent Hungarian Darts trophy. Not only did ‘Mighty Mike’ lift that title, but he also delivered a stunning nine-dart finish on his way to the final. He can also draw confidence from his strong showing at this year’s World Matchplay, dispatching both Luke Littler and Michael Smith on route to the Blackpool finale.

While Gurney has also been ticking along nicely this season, he was put to the sword 10-4 by Peter Wright during last month’s World Series of Darts Finals in Amsterdam. ‘Superchin’ also failed to plot his way past round one at this year’s Matchplay, and that was also the case for him at the 2023 World Grand Prix.

The final first-round match to be played in this year’s World Grand Prix sees Chris Dobey come up against Joe Cullen. Dobey has quietly positioned himself as a potential dark horse to upset the established powers at the head of the outright market.

‘Hollywood’ has averaged a mighty impressive 97:43 since the turn of the year, a figure that puts him behind only Gary Anderson, Luke Humphries, Luke Littler and Gerwyn Price. He also sits in the top-eight for 180s scored in 2024, further suggesting that there is plenty of scope for him to cause a real stir in Leicester this week. The Bedlington-born ace will also be brimming with confidence after bagging another Pro Tour title following his 8-3 win over Stephen Bunting last Wednesday.

In contrast, Joe Cullen has endured a difficult time in front of the oche in 2024. ‘The Rockstar’ has posted an average of just 91.35 since the turn of the year, and he’s also failing to hit 180s with the same regularity that we’ve become accustomed to. Consequently, Cullen has really struggled to maintain any level of consistency this season, making him an obvious option to oppose in his opener with Hollywood.