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Grand Slam of Darts Day Eight Premium Picks
So, we’re eight men are left standing, and well done picking them all. I seriously doubt anyone did, as I definitely didn’t. We’ve got some great darts players left, with two 3 World Champions with 8 World Championships between them, as well as 3 men who have made World Championship finals. In fact, the two men who have been performing the best haven’t had a World Championship Final appearance… yet.
So, Brendan Dolan losing put us on the wrong foot, but then we had three nice wins, with Andy Hamilton and Gary Anderson going all the way, Raymond van Barneveld and Wesley Harms both firing in big finishes, and Wes Newton and Christian Kist doing the same to easily get us over the line for the highest checkout bet.
So, that puts us at 28-19 with a profit of 23.15 units after seven days of the Grand Slam of Darts.
Two sessions tonight, with the quarter-finals split over the afternoon session and the evening session. The afternoon session starts off with Dean Winstanley taking on Kevin Painter, and then John Part will attempt to continue his run at the Grand Slam of Darts against Andy Hamilton. The evening session starts with Christian Kist versus Raymond van Barneveld. And then we get the main event – Scott Waites versus Michael van Gerwen.
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Dean Winstanley Vs Kevin Painter.
A rematch from Group C, Kevin Painter winning a close match 5-4. Winstanley looked like the winner there, but Painter showed bottle to overcome Over The Pop and it was thanks to that win that he’s here – without it, he wouldn’t qualify.
Dean Winstanley comes into this quarter-final having developed a new sense of passion for the game. After his defeat to Kevin Painter, he swept past James Hubbard and Simon Whitlock, then done a number on Arron Monk, beating him 10-5. He’s got his tournament average up to a nice 93.65. He even did what he does best against Monk, hitting 6 maximums to bring his tournament total to 10. The fact he more than doubled his tournament 180 count in the space of 15 legs shows that his form is getting better and better as the tournament goes on. In fact, his 94.73 against Arron Monk was his second best average of the tournament, bettered only by his 100.63 in his 5-1 win over Simon Whitlock.
Kevin Painter caused a minor upset defeating the in-form Mervyn King in the second round. It was a solid performance from Painter, with 3 maximums helping his average up to 91.10. He was helped there by solid finishing, hitting 48% of his doubles in what ended up an easy win for him.
Going by the group match, you would think Painter would be a lock to win this. Howver, Winstanley missed a lot of chances in that game, chances that he doesn’t look like missing now. His win over Simon Whitlock seems to have given him this new-found confidence and aggression, which translated to power scoring and decent doubling in his second round match. Painter struggled to keep up with Winstanley when he wasn’t hitting his doubles, so if he’s now getting stronger on them, Painter will have to up his game a few points to keep in the game. The bet has to be Winstanley on the handicap, as the line is only -1.5 and there’s not enough value on the outright betting. I can see it being close, but Winstanley has enough in his locked to win by at least two legs.
Dean Winstanley -1.5 legs to beat Kevin Painter: 4/5 @ 888sport.
Recommend: 2.5 units.
John Part Vs Andy Hamilton.
The conquerors of Brendan Dolan and Gary Anderson face off in what’s going to be an ugly match. I’m not talking about looks, I’m talking about a scrap on the oche.
John Part has gone one stage better than last year and will be hoping to keep this dream-like run going. His 89.10 average against Brendan Dolan was well above his tournament average, which now sits at 83.36. He’s not scoring particularly well, but his finishing has been exceptional, and he’s not missing many doubles. In fact, his 50% doubling was a huge benefit against Dolan. But he’s going to have to really up his game here, as Andy Hamilton is going to score more than one maximum this afternoon!
Andy Hamilton, unlike Part, has been scoring heavily, and taking out the big finishes. His tournament average is 93.41, and he came in well above that with his 98.76 against Gary Anderson. In his performance, he took out 4 100+ finishes, and his 63% of his doubles. Anderson’s 101.9 average couldn’t help him.
It’s fair to say that Hamilton is perhaps the surest thing here today. Part’s average of 89.10 is nowhere near Gary Anderson’s 101.9, and Hamilton had no problem beating a 101.9 average. So Part is going to have to put in a performance well beyond anything he’s managed during this tournament just to keep up with Hamilton. But Hamilton is a short, short price, which is no good to us. The handicap is -3.5, and I think Hamilton is playing well enough to get us over the line.
Andy Hamilton -3.5 legs to beat John Part: 4/5 @ 888sport.
Recommend: 2 units.
Raymond van Barneveld Vs Christian Kist.
3 Dutchmen left in the tournament and we’re definitely going to be losing on tonight. And what a way to start the evening session. We’ve got the current BDO World Champion taking on a man who basically owned that title not too long ago.
Raymond van Barneveld has come back to a bit of form this week. While he struggled a bit on his first match against Christian Kist, he put that behind him and easily got past Wayne Jones and Wesley Harms in the two matches that followed. In fact, Barney’s 104.56 was his best performance of the tournament so far, and he doubled his 180 count with 4 in last night’s match. More importantly, he hit 67% of his doubles, which was a point of concern in his earlier matches. But with the kind of performance he put in last night, Barney is going to be a hard man to beat.
Christian Kist has done what was expected of him, and the a bit more. Most people had written him off before his match with Wes Newton, but he dug deep, got into the lead and didn’t let go. Yes, he was helped by some loose doubling from Newton, but there’s no denying he deserved the win. His 87.98 average wasn’t earth shattering, and was actually lower than Newton’s, but his finishing got him through, and that’s the most important thing.
I’ll be honest, I do like Barney here. However, he’s a bit short for me, and I’d rather look at some other markets. The facet of both men’s games last night was the finishing. Kist hit a 128, while Barney was on target with a 156. The line is at 136.5, and I think both men have it in them to beat that comfortably.
Highest checkout in Raymond van Barneveld Vs Christian Kist match over 136.5: 5/6 @ 888sport.
Recommend: 2 units.
Scott Waites Vs Michael an Gerwen.
Last match of the quarter-finals, and I have to say that it’s going to be a belter. We’ve got two men playing amazing darts, they’ve got no fear, and they know that whoever wins this is looking good for the title.
Scott Waites over came both Robert Thornton and the “Taylor curse” int he second round, setting up this clash with Michael van Gerwen. Waites averaged 103.67 in that match, taking his tournament average to an outstanding 100.65. It’s a Scott Waites we missed last year, and he’s definitely showing how he won the 2010 title. The main reason for the great performances? It’s all in the 180s. Waites was always one for hitting 140s, so while still power scoring, he was missing out on a maximum. However, he’s hit 14 so far, more than anyone left in the tournament, and to beat Michael van Gerwen tonight, he’s going to have to keep that up.
What can I say about Michael van Gerwen that hasn’t been said over the last couple of months? He’s playing great darts, he’s beat Phil Taylor convincingly, and he’s averaging 98.46 for the tournament, including a 108.38 against Phil Taylor. He’s the World Grand Prix champion, and just looks formidable.
Looking at it, Michael van Gerwen seems to be the only play here. However, I don’t think that’s quite right. While there’s no denying MVG was exceptional against Phil Taylor, Scott Waites was also exceptional against a man averaging over 100, too. There’s also going to be no pressure on Waites – he’s been there, done that at the Grand Slam of Darts. All the pressure is going to be on the Dutchman to continue the form he showed against Taylor, and that might just get to him, as it does lots of players. Waites is ridiculously overpriced, and for the last bet of the night, we’re siding with the Englishman, as his scoring is heavy and his finishing is just as good, so we have to take the value.
Scott Waites to beat Michael van Gerwen: 7/4 @ 888sport.
Recommend: 1 unit.
And that’s it for the quarter-finals. One day left, with the semi-finals, then the final to come. It’s been a great tournament, so let’s hope we can increase our bank even more over the last few games.
