Masters is Wide Open
Darts Premier League starts on February 3rd in Cardiff just days after the Ladbrokes Masters has concluded.
With a simple format that features the top-24 darts players in the PDC’s Order of Merit this field was automatically set once the World Darts Championship was complete. The Masters, staged at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes, was a 16-player event prior to 2021. The new format, in use again in 2022, allows the top-8 players in the Order of Merit to enter the competition at the second-round stage.
Ladbrokes Masters Darts Odds via bet365*
- 7/2 Gerwyn Price
- 4/1 Michael van Gerwen
- 9/2 Peter Wright
- 7/1 Jonny Clayton
- 9/1 Michael Smith
- 20/1 Gary Anderson
- 20/1 Dimitri van den Bergh
- 22/1 Rob Cross
- 25/1 Jose De Sousa
- 28/1 James Wade
- 33/1 Nathan Aspinall
- 33/1 Ryan Searle
- 40/1 Dave Chisnall
- 40/1 Luke Humphries
- 40/1 Krzysztof Ratajski
What happened last time?
Interestingly, last year’s winner, Jonny Clayton was only 18th in the Order of Merit meaning he would not have qualified for the event in previous years. The same can be said of Mervyn King who was the losing finalist. He was just 20th on the list.
12 months ago, reigning World Champion Gerwyn Price and former World Champion Peter Wright were both eliminated at the semi-final stages. They were both long odds-on and both beaten 11-legs-to-10.
Clayton’s Double Chances
Jonny Clayton went on a winning streak after taking last year’s Masters. He won an additional three tournaments and had a deep run in two others. It underlined his victory was no fluke.
So, who are the players to lookout for in 2022?
Unquestionably Jonny Clayton (7/1 bet365*) has to be the first of our Darts Masters betting tips. The Welshman is parachuted into the second round this year where he will meet either Dimitri Van den Bergh or Ian White.
Success there will see him most probably face-off against Gerwyn Price. The pair are friends and teammates and Clayton beat Price to win the World Grand Prix final in October. Vitally the player, nicknamed ‘the Ferret’, has maintained his form throughout the past 12 months and is a proven winner.
Smith a Disappointment
The same cannot be said of Michael Smith. The player may be ranked No-5 in the world but he has never won a ranking final – and he has played well over 60 of them. He may have made the final of the World Championship a few weeks ago, but until he wins a tournament of any kind, Michael Smith is not one to back in any ante-post darts betting market.
Michael van Gerwen has never suffered from stage fright and was a win-machine for years. But the Dutchman is now a shadow of his former self and ‘MVG’ is another to avoid. Similarly, Gary Anderson has failed to show his best in a few years. He remains supremely talented, but he is no longer a regular winner. The last ranking event he claimed was over 40 months ago.
The Wright Stuff
So the player to support alongside Clayton – vitally from the opposite end of the draw meaning they could meet only in the final – is Peter Wright.
Naturally, the recently crowned two-time World Champion Wright will be full of confidence just as he was in 2020 when he took his first world title. The history books show he won that year’s Masters four weeks later. Remarkably Peter Wright can backed at odds of 5/1 with Betfred for the competition, Jonny Clayton is 7/1 at bet365*. These tasty prices allow for a third candidate to be added to a portfolio.
James Wade fits the bill. At best odds of 28/1 with bet365* he can be backed each-way which means a place in the final would be a winning bet. Wade had a good World Championship – reaching the semi-finals. He also won the Masters competition in 2014. A finalist in 2019, Wade won the UK Open in March 2021 and has been amongst the world’s top-10 for 14 of the last 15 years.
Far from the highest scoring player on the tour, Wade does have a knack of winning matches he should not. That tenacity could serve him well in the 2022 Masters – it has done in the past.
2022 Darts Masters Betting Tips
MASTERS SCHEDULE
Friday January 28 (First Round Matches)
- Krzysztof Ratajski v Gabriel Clemens
- Dave Chisnall v Stephen Bunting
- Ryan Searle v Mervyn King
- Rob Cross v Brendan Dolan
- Dimitri Van den Bergh v Ian White
- Joe Cullen v Daryl Gurney
- Dirk van Duijvenbode v Simon Whitlock
- Nathan Aspinall v Luke Humphries
Saturday January 29 (Second Round Matches)
- Jose de Sousa v Cross/Dolan
- Gary Anderson v Cullen/Gurney
- Michael Smith v Ratajski/Clemens
- James Wade v Chisnall/Bunting
- Jonny Clayton v Van den Bergh/White
- Gerwyn Price v Searle/King
- Peter Wright v Van Duijvenbode/Whitlock
- Michael van Gerwen v Aspinall/Humphries
Sunday January 30
- Quarter-Finals
- Semi-Finals
- Final
The Darts Masters will be broadcast live on ITV4 in the UK & streamed live at the best UK bookmaker sites.
Premier League Darts Update
In a break from tradition the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) did not announce the lineup for the Premier League Darts in the immediate aftermath of the World Darts Championship. Keep reading for our 2022 Darts Masters betting tips and odds…
It’s possible the organisers are trying to devise a format where players can miss a week or two of action – because of Covid-19 – and not have their hopes dashed. Phase 1 of Premier League action consists of nine weeks of matches and maybe only the best seven results could be used?
Alternatively, cynics believe the PDC – particularly its chairman Eddie Hearn – are trying to find a way to get Fallon Sherrock into the competition. Even before Christmas Hearn told Sky Sports: “When she [Sherrock] broke through at the Worlds in 2019 you wondered whether it would be a one-off, but she’s proved it’s not. For me, with a commercial hat on, she has to be considered for the Premier League.”
But there was bad news for Sherrock fans on Sunday when she failed in the first round of Q School meaning she fell at the first flight in her attempt to win a tour card. It was something that kept her out of the Premier League in 2021.
Not all hope is lost, but Fallon Sherrock’s name being in the Cazoo Premier League starting lineup is looking increasingly unlikely.
* Ladbrokes Darts Masters odds correct at the time of writing. All odds are subject to changes. (obviously!)
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