Grand Prix Darts Tips
The short format in this event always leads to some surprise runs from lesser known players in the tournament but Phil “The Power” Taylor continues his dominance of the game and has won this tournament eight times out of the last eleven years. He is probably the most dominant participant of any sport in history. If he was a footballer he would be Pele, George Best & Diego Maradona all rolled into one devastating force on the field. Taylor is the best, and his bwin.com darts betting odds to beat his second round opponent Wayne Jones is 1.06, rarely is a match bet so one sided against a fellow professional player. Jones is a good player, but he is facing Phil Taylor.
Colin Lloyd is a talented darts player. He held the spot of World Number 1 for a time in 2006 and 2007 and was a legitimate contender for major titles before tapering off. As many Darts players do, including Taylor, Colin lost a lot of weight adopting a healthier lifestyle and his results improved. He scored a good win against John Part in round one with Part a regular feature in the last stages of most major tournaments and Colin now faces Andy Smith in round two. He looks a good bet at odds of 1.45 to progress in that match.
Gary Anderson against Adrian Lewis is a fantastic match up so early in the tournament. Gary recently transferred from the BDO organisation and looks right at home. He has a solid throwing action that always seems to hit it’s target, he regularly averages around 100 and has the potential to match the 107 averages Taylor often achieves in his matches. Gary has odds of 1.55 for this match but I think Adrian Lewis with odds of 2.40 is definitely value. The short races at this stage of the tournament mean anything can happen and Adrian has been ranked higher than Gary with more PDC experience. He also won the players championship in Dublin last week and that was his second Players championship title in September.
The Grand Prix tournament always has excellent match-ups with the top players assembled. Mark “Flash” Dudbridge versus “The Bull” Terry Jenkins is another good match although The Bull is a big favourite. He is an unspectacular player but he always produces the goods and regularly makes tournament finals and is genuinely thought of as a challenger to any title. Unfortunately for Mark whilst he looked to be a future champion he has not yet fulfilled the promise of earlier in his career and you would back Jenkins to progress. Terry has odds of 1.45 while those loyal to Dudbridge can back him at odds of 2.70. I would favour a Trixie bet of Lewis, Lloyd and Jenkins for Wednesday’s matches.
In terms of the outright market, Phil Taylor is the man to beat. Raymond Van Barneveld is returning after a two and a half month break from the game and will be fresh and raring to go. All of the following players have chances to win; Mervyn King is a fierce competitor who beat Taylor in the Premier League semi finals this year, James Wade is world number 2 with numerous major titles, Adrian Lewis is playing excellently and Van Barneveld generally makes a fool out of anyone who says he cannot win.
The matches are live on Sky all this week and Darts really is good to watch. Do not listen to those who mock Darts as a pub game, it is true entertainment and the razzmatazz of the live event and the lively crowds makes for a superb atmosphere, even when you watch from home. Get your bets on with bwin.com and settle down in front of the box for a night of superb arrows entertainment.
By Malcolm Clarke
