Follow @SBTSportBetting [Get Exclusive Tips on our Patreon, Ad-Free]
Welcome to day 13 of the PDC World Championship and the free betting tips. We’ve reached the final eight, and we have, more or less, the line up we expected. The only real surprise in the final eight is Daryl Gurney, who got past Mark Webster to make it to the quarter-finals. We start with James Wade facing Peter Wright in the opening game of the afternoon session, which is a battle between two of the PDC’s big guns. The afternoon’s other game sees defending champion Gary Anderson taking on Dave Chisnall, which should be a high-scoring encounter.. The evening session starts with Michael van Gerwen taking on Daryl Gurney, and then old enemies Raymond van Barneveld and Phil Taylor close out the evening session and the last darting action of 2016.
James Wade vs Peter Wright
James Wade
First round: beat Ronny Huybrechts 3-0 (93.83)
Second round: beat Steve Beaton 4-1 (99.39)
Third round: beat Michael Smith 4-3 (94.01)
Total 180s: 12
Highest checkout: 141
Peter Wright
First round: beat Jerry Hendriks 3-0 (101.06)
Second round: beat Jamie Lewis 4-0 (103.53)
Third round: beat Ian White 4-1 (103.05)
Total 180s: 6
Highest checkout: 144
James Wade can think himself fortunate that Michael Smith was unable to close the match out from a 3-1 lead yesterday. Of course, we can’t take away from Wade, who won the last six legs without reply, because that’s just what he does. Wade is a grinder at the moment, and he’s shown no other gears, just pure grinding. Peter Wright, on the other hand, has looked fantastic. Sure, he’s had a relatively safe draw, but he’s just going about his business, putting in thee-figure averages and not getting into any trouble.
The difference between the pair is simple: Wright’s on the way up, while Wade is on the way down. Wright is looking like the second-best player in the world right now, while Wade is going to soon find himself in the mire of fighting for a place in the top ten. Wright will take this and I think the handicap is the value play, so take Peter Wright -1.5 sets for our first bed of the day.
Gary Anderson vs Dave Chisnall
Gary Anderson
First round: beat Mark Frost 3-0 (96.16)
Second round: beat Andrew Gilding 4-0 (102.58)
Third round: beat Benito van de Pas 4-2 (107.68)
Total 180s: 22
Highest checkout: 134
Dave Chisnall
First round: beat Rowby-John Rodriguez 3-2 (98.72)
Second round: beat Chris Dobey 4-2 (92.88)
Third round: beat Jelle Klaasen 4-2 (93.88)
Total 180s: 27
Highest checkout: 120
Like James Wade, Dave Chisnall was slightly fortunate to be here, as Jelle Klaasen blew chances to take it to 3-3 with the throw in the final set. Chisnall, again, put in some great flashes, but he struggled to find any consistency. The same really can’t be said for Gary Anderson, who put in the tournament’s best average in the previous round. Anderson has yet to be troubled and I think he’s going to be coming into this full of confidence.
I can’t find any real value in backing Gary Anderson outright or on the handicap, but I do think it will be comfortable for the Scotsman. However, I think there’s some value to be had in backing Gary Anderson to score most 180s at around 6/4, which looks good to me. Anderson has only hit 5 fewer maximums than Chisnall, but he’s played 53 legs to Chisnall’s 68, so it’s no wonder Chisnall is edging him on that stat. I think it will be close, as both men love a 180, but there’s value in Anderson as the outsider here.
Michael van Gerwen vs Daryl Gurney
Michael van Gerwen
First round: beat Kim Viljanen 3-0 (103.34)
Second round: beat Cristo Reyes 4-2 (105.24)
Third round: beat Darren Webster 4-1 (104.44)
Total 180s: 24
Highest checkout: 170
Daryl Gurney
First round: beat Jermaine Wattimena 3-1 (96.85)
Second round: beat Robert Thornton 4-3 (95.35)
Third round: beat Mark Webster 4-3 (92.33)
Total 180s: 7
Highest checkout: 161
Michael van Gerwen will be happy with this draw, but he’ll be even happier seeing the mental state of Daryl Gurney after the Northern Irishman’s win over Mark Webster. Gurney was poor on his doubling towards the end of the match and he let the crowd get to him, resulting in the Ally Pally turning on him. It was what I had thought might be the trouble with Gurney, and it almost cost him a place in the quarter-finals. Still, he made it through, but his opponent had a much easier time of it. Michael van Gerwen coolly took care of Darren Webster and will be well rested coming into this one.
A 5-0 win for Michael van Gerwen is at the head of the market, which is ridiculous, but then MvG -3.5 is still around 4/9, which is just a terrible price. Like last night and a lot of Michael van Gerwen matches, I can’t find an angle on this one, which is frustrating, but expected. So that means it’s no bet for me, which is disappointing.
Raymond van Barneveld vs Phil Taylor
Raymond van Barneveld
First round: beat Robbie Green 3-0 (98.84)
Second round: beat Alan Norris 4-0 (103.59)
Third round: beat Adrian Lewis 4-3 (95.00)
Total 180s: 13
Highest checkout: 156
Phil Taylor
First round: beat David Platt 3-0 (101.93)
Second round: beat Kevin Painter 4-0 (92.73)
Third round: beat Kim Huybrechts 4-2 (101.37)
Total 180s: 12
Highest checkout: 167
The greatest rivalry in darts sees perhaps one final chapter written in it, and instead of the final, it’s a quarter-final, but it doesn’t make it any less important. Barney played an absolute classic against Adrian Lewis, and showed great fight to come back from a slow start. His scoring let him down a bit, but he was fighting hard all the way and it was good to see from Barney, who has struggled in the past when things weren’t going his way. As for Phil Taylor, I won’t comment on his post-match interview, but let’s just say for the first three sets he was amazing against Kim Huybretchs, then he lost his way a bit. Still, Taylor’s performance was solid enough, and unlike Kevin Painter, Barney isn’t going to bring The Power down.
It’s a tough one, and I think that although Taylor should and will take this, it might be close. However, the handicap line is about right at -1.5 and Taylor outright isn’t any value at all. Instead, take Raymond van Barneveld to score the highest checkout as looking at the stats, it should be close between the two, and Taylor didn’t actually put in a big finish last night. These two bring out the best in each other, and I expect Barney to put up yet another big fight, so the big finishes are what matter for the Dutchman.
And that’s it for the free 20167 PDC World Championship betting tips until 2017, as the players and fans have the night off for New Year’s Eve, before resuming for the semi-finals on New Year’s Day, with the final on January 2nd. So, until then, all the best and see you in 2017!
