The 16 week exhibition event that is Premier League darts returns for another season on Thursday night as many of the top players in the world get set to tour the UK and Europe promoting the game with some high quality darts in what will hopefully be a competitive tournament.
Michael van Gerwen is looking for a hat trick of titles in this campaign but he has a decent field opposing him in what has all the makings of a high class and intriguing event.
Recent Winners
2017 – Michael van Gerwen
2016 – Michael van Gerwen
2015 – Gary Anderson
2014 – Raymond Barneveld
2013 – Michael van Gerwen
2012 – Phil Taylor
2011 – Gary Anderson
2010 – Phil Taylor
2009 – James Wade
2008 – Phil Taylor
The Format
We have kept the same format as last year so 10 of the leading players in the world compete against each other over best of 14 leg matches with everyone playing everyone else once in the first nine weeks of the event. At the end of week nine which is dubbed ‘Judgement Night’ the bottom two are relegated and everyone left plays each other again. You get two points for a win and one for a draw.
Once that is all completed the top four players in the league table will head to the o2 for finals night where the semi-finals and final are all played out on what is always a dramatic night of darts.
The Field
Michael van Gerwen – Defending champion and world number one
Peter Wright – UK Open champion and world number two
Rob Cross – World champion and world number three
Gary Anderson – Former winner and world number four
Daryl Gurney – World Grand Prix winner and world number five
Mensur Suljovic – Champions League winner and world number six
Simon Whitlock – World Grand Prix runner up and world number eight
Raymond Barneveld – The Masters finalist and world number 10
Michael Smith – Returning competitor and world number 11
Gerwyn Price – Debutant, UK Open finalist and world number 12
Market Leaders
The market has this all about four men with Michael van Gerwen the 10/11 favourite. He has won this event twice and won nearly everything there is in the game multiple times but he should have lost in the final last year which acts as a reminder that there is little value in him. He should be a shoe in for finals night though.
Rob Cross is the second favourite at 4/1. He is making his debut in this tournament which is significant because this tournament goes to some huge arenas in front of massive crowds and we shouldn’t forget he has only been a professional for little over a year so it will be interesting to see if that gets to him. If it doesn’t it would be a surprise if he isn’t at the o2 in May.
Gary Anderson is 6/1 to reclaim the crown but the big issue with him is whether he can remain fit enough to compete over the 15 weeks to make it to the o2. He has been struggling for a while and I wouldn’t be surprised if the week in week out grind catches up with him.
Peter Wright hasn’t been the same player since his illness prior to the World Championship but over the course of the distance of this competition he should have time to find his form and he ready for the o2 assuming he makes it which looks likely. He could be a danger come May at 9/1. It is 33/1 bar.
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Outright Betting
I’m always a sucker for Raymond Barneveld in this tournament but I think there is significant value on him at 33/1 this year. We’ve just seen him make the final of The Masters which contained much of this field and with doubts over two of three of the market leaders there could be a place high up in the league table for him if he wants it. I fancy Barneveld will get to the o2 and once he’s there we would only need one win for the place money and there is nobody in the field he can’t be were he to make the final. He looks a huge value alternative to van Gerwen to me.
Elimination
One of the markets which I always enjoy playing is the elimination one. One of the reasons for that is we can get paid out halfway through the competition and the other is that with two places up for grabs we can attack the market a little.
The market suggests that the lower ranked players will be the ones in danger and I would not necessarily disagree with that but there is always someone sucked in and I wonder if that might be Gary Anderson this year. It is pretty well known that Anderson is having fitness issues and over the course of three months that might get worse. If he stays fit he will be fine but if he catches MVG, Cross, Wright and Barney on weeks he struggles and fails to win he would only need a couple more indifferent results to be in trouble. I’ll take a chance at a massive price.
Finish Bottom
Another market that I like to have a look at is the one about finishing bottom and this time I will look at the lower ranked players in the field with the one I’m backing being Simon Whitlock. Whitlock had a good year in 2017 but his board management continues to frustrate and in this company there is no wriggle room for making a mess of things. He doesn’t have the scoring power than some of those expected to be in the mix for the wooden spoon have and were he to miss doubles on top of that he could really struggle. This looks a tough ask for the Aussie and he could be the one bringing up the rear.
Most 180s
There are some really heavy scorers in this tournament but with Michael van Gerwen potentially having a few comfortable wins and switching more than we would like there could be value in opposing him here.
The market this year is for the first nine weeks so we don’t need to worry about a player being eliminated or anything which makes me think that the serial 180 hitter Michael Smith could be the value at 8/1. We saw in the World Championship that he can pepper the 60 and he will need to score well to stay alive in the competition. With doubts over a couple of the bigger scorers Smith looks a decent bet.
Tips
Back R.Barneveld to win Premier League Darts (e/w) for a 1/10 stake at 34.00 with Bet365 (1/2 1-2)
Back M.Smith Most 180s (First nine weeks) for a 2/10 stake at 9.00 with Betfred
Back him here:
Back G.Anderson to be relegated for a 1/10 stake at 26.00 with William Hill
Back S.Whitlock to finish bottom for a 3/10 stake at 2.75 with William Hill
Back them here:
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