Darts Betting Tips & Predictions

You have to feel for Gerwyn Price.

He’s got to the final of the last two major competitions, losing on both occasions to Ross Smith and Luke Humphries.

Ross Smith was just in special form that weekend at the World Series, but Price will feel as though the final of the World Grand Prix got away from him against Humphries - he won the first three sets before letting Cool Hand back into the contest.

Despite those disappointments, Price reaching back to back finals shows the level he is playing at. 

He beat James Wade and Jonny Clayton, two of the best performers this year, on the way to the World Series Finals and also had a tough run to the finals of the World Grand Prix, which is slightly different as I think the format suits Price with how good he is on tops. 

Price has avoided a first round exit in each of his last eight competitions, and has probably been the third best player overall behind Humphries and Littler without having the success to show for it.

Rob Cross threatened a comeback earlier this year, but hasn’t really maintained those levels throughout the year. Price won the only meeting between the pair this year 11-5, Cross only averaged 93.82.

Gian van Veen set a new record on the European Tour over the weekend, averaging 120.24 as he dispatched Sebastien Bialecki in Maastricht in the first round.

He played pretty well in the next two games too, before losing to fellow Dutchman Danny Noppert in the semi finals.

I’ve long felt as though Gian van Veen has been playing within himself a bit this year, which may be linked to an illness he had back in February - but he has steadily improved as the season has progressed. 

There is always the slight jeopardy of an upset in these early rounds with the short format, but Van Veen has outperformed Andrew Gilding in nearly every single metric this season. 

The scoring phase of the game is a particular concern for Gilding here, his average sits around 92.68 for the season and he has failed to average above 90 in each of his last five games.

Gian van Veen should have more than enough quality to see off Gilding here, especially seeing as Gilding has gone out in the first round in three of his last four events - while van Veen attempts to defend his title in Dortmund.

This is the tightest game of the night for me on paper, and the odds agree with Noppert only being a marginal favourite (1.80) to come through against the Bullet.

I’ve been really disappointed with Stephen Bunting this year. He did really well to build back his mental game last year, but hasn’t managed to kick on from that and is falling far shorter in major tournaments than he should be.

That said, Bunting did manage to battle to the semi finals of the Dutch Championship over the weekend, losing to eventual winner Niels Zonneveld in the semi finals. Noppert also did well in that competition, losing in the final to the same opponent.

The pair have faced off twice this year, with their most recent meeting being in this format and seeing this selection land as Bunting came away a 6-4 winner in a Players Championship event. 

I can see this game staying with throw in the early stages, neither player is really operating at a level to run away with the game and this part of our acca needs Noppert to win at least four legs, if he holds his throw early on - only one break should be required.

You have to feel for Gerwyn Price.

He’s got to the final of the last two major competitions, losing on both occasions to Ross Smith and Luke Humphries.

Ross Smith was just in special form that weekend at the World Series, but Price will feel as though the final of the World Grand Prix got away from him against Humphries - he won the first three sets before letting Cool Hand back into the contest.

Despite those disappointments, Price reaching back to back finals shows the level he is playing at. 

He beat James Wade and Jonny Clayton, two of the best performers this year, on the way to the World Series Finals and also had a tough run to the finals of the World Grand Prix, which is slightly different as I think the format suits Price with how good he is on tops. 

Price has avoided a first round exit in each of his last eight competitions, and has probably been the third best player overall behind Humphries and Littler without having the success to show for it.

Rob Cross threatened a comeback earlier this year, but hasn’t really maintained those levels throughout the year. Price won the only meeting between the pair this year 11-5, Cross only averaged 93.82.

James Wade is still playing to a really high standard, which is a credit to his focus and ability to adapt his game to compete with the new wave of power scorers.

Wade has been really consistent this year, only going out in the first round twice across his last 10 competitions. The shorter format does carry more jeopardy for the favourites, so we’ve got a slight insurance with taking Wade on the handicap in the event this game goes to a last leg decider and the Machine just misses out. 

I was impressed with Damon Heta in Maastricht over the weekend, he won his first three games before losing to Bunting in the quarter finals - which included a win over Jonny Clayton, in which he averaged 103.57.

You never quite know which version of Heta will turn up, especially in major TV tournaments where he has struggled over the last few years. Wade is much more comfortable on the TV stage, and that could be his edge here even if a good version of Heta steps on stage.

Gian van Veen set a new record on the European Tour over the weekend, averaging 120.24 as he dispatched Sebastien Bialecki in Maastricht in the first round.

He played pretty well in the next two games too, before losing to fellow Dutchman Danny Noppert in the semi finals.

I’ve long felt as though Gian van Veen has been playing within himself a bit this year, which may be linked to an illness he had back in February - but he has steadily improved as the season has progressed. 

There is always the slight jeopardy of an upset in these early rounds with the short format, but Van Veen has outperformed Andrew Gilding in nearly every single metric this season. 

The scoring phase of the game is a particular concern for Gilding here, his average sits around 92.68 for the season and he has failed to average above 90 in each of his last five games.

Gian van Veen should have more than enough quality to see off Gilding here, especially seeing as Gilding has gone out in the first round in three of his last four events - while van Veen attempts to defend his title in Dortmund.

Ross Smith has had a really strong year, and will see this as another really decent opportunity at a decent run at a major title having picked up the World Series Finals trophy a few weeks ago.

Smith hit more 180s than any other player during the tournament as he reached the final, notably notching 11 maximums in the final. 

He’s so good at getting the first dart in the treble bed, and not many players have a better guide when the first dart is in than Smith with his darts tending to stick up slightly in the board. 

Furthermore, I think Sedlacek can make this a competitive game. He’s been one of the most improved players on the tour this year but has notably lost each of his last five head to head meetings against Smith - he hit 3+ 180s in all five of those games, with four of those being the same format and length as this one.