Keelan Hills, Patrick Loveard. Jack Payne and Billy Maple all shone bright on Friday as The University of Gloucestershire Darts World Championships got underway.
Hills topped Group A as he overcame the number one seed, and tournament favourite, Alfie Element 3-1. Element boasted a 20-dart leg to take the lead before ‘The Monster’ rallied back to win three legs in a row and top the group.
This was Element’s only slip-up, and he finished second in Group A. Tom Purnell produced good performances versus the top two, however, it was versus Ethan Price where Purnell got the two points needed to make it through.
Group B saw the number two seed, Payne, go straight through to the quarter finals, followed in second by ADC regular Alfie Ryan.
Fan favourite, Jack Beard, claimed his spot in third, after taking both Payne and Ryan to deciding legs and dispatching Alex Gidney, who rounded up the group.
Group C was the highlight of the stage, branded as ‘The Group of Death’ pre-tournament and it certainly did not disappoint. Recent Winter Open champion, Patrick Loveard, topped the group, producing a strong level of darts throughout.
Oscar ‘Heg-Dog’ Hegarty came through in second place, after strong showings versus James Pryer and Matt Sutcliffe.
The final group game came down to Pryer and Sutcliffe, with the winner taking a spot in the second round. ‘On Fire’ made a strong start, with a 24-dart leg; however, missed chances at doubles meant the match went down to a last-leg decider.
After strong scoring power from both, it was Sutcliffe who took care of the leg and advanced through to the second round.
Group D featured a strong title contender, Maple, who made no mistake in topping the group. Felix Anderson followed up in second place, after taking care of third-placed Jack Mason and crowd favourite Charlie Lockley.
These results cause some big matchups in the first knockout round. Anderson faces tournament longshot Purnell, with the winner playing Hills.
Also on that side of the bracket are the favourite Element versus Mason. The winner there faces Maple, which is sure to be a blockbuster game.
On the other side of the draw are two grudge matches as Sutcliffe faces Ryan and Beard faces Hegarty. Winners of those two ties will face Loveard and Payne, respectively.
The action gets underway at 7 pm sharp on Monday evening and is sure to be enthralling.
