When the action starts at the Ally Pally it is a sure fire sign that Xmas is just around the corner. The PDC World Championship starts on Friday and it could be one of the best ones yet. Our darting expert James Punt has put up plenty of winners this season. He will be doing his best to finish the season by hitting the bullseye in the biggest one of all. Check out his free 2020 PDC World-Championship Tips and exhaustive pre-tournament preview below…

2020 PDC World-Championship Tips

Looking back at the last ten years of the World Championship and the outstanding feature is the lack of surprises. Yes, there are individual matches which can classed as a shock but the winner, the runners up and semi-finalists are usually not that surprising. Many people will say that Rob Cross winning the title in in 2018 was a shock. However, he was the 5th favourite if memory serves me well. Yes, he was unseeded, and it was his Ally pally debut, but such was his form throughout that year, he was well fancied by many to go far.

We will go through each quarter to try and narrow the field.

2020 PDC World-Championship Tips: First Quarter

The Michael van Gerwen quarter and it must be said, the draw has been kind to him. Of the seven other seeded players, none can be said to be in top form. Evans, Bunting, White and Clayton are in reasonable form, all winning six of their last ten matches, but Wade, Beaton and Hopp look vulnerable to early exits.

Van Gerwen has won fifteen of his last sixteen matches. He has won the World Grand Prix, Champions League of Darts, World Series of Darts and the Players Championship. Only the European Championship and the Grand Slam of Darts escaped his clutches in the last few months. He has lost just seven of his last fifty matches. Nobody in the entire field comes close to that win rate.

Of the non-seeded players only Gabriel Clemens can said to be in great form, winning eight of his last ten matches. However, he lacks experience of these big events and he is not the finished article just yet.

MVG is the 1.40 favourite to win the first quarter, something he has done in six of the last seven years. The odds are, if anything, slightly generous.

2020 PDC World-Championship Tips: 5 points Michael van Gerwen to win the first quarter @ 1.40 generally available

PDC World-Championship: Second Quarter

This quarter has two double world champions, last year’s runner up and semi-finalists amongst others. Gary Anderson is an Ally Pally specialist, winning two titles, two runners-up spots, a semi-finalist last year and two other quarter finals. His season has been badly affected by injury, and he missed most of the first half of the year. He came back in time for the World Cup of Darts and won it along with Peter Wright.

It wasn’t a sign of things to come. Despite saying  ‘I am getting there’ more than once, his recent form suggests otherwise. Just three wins from his last ten matches is poor. While he is still capable of scoring very well, the results just aren’t there. He is likely to face Brendan Dolan in the second round and their H2H record is 8-8.

Jackpot Scoring Well

Adrian Lewis is another double world champion and is still young enough to hope that he can get back into the big time. He had dropped out of the top 16 but a recent return to better form means he is back to number 13 in the rankings.  Lewis has won seven of his last ten matches with the three defeats all to Michael van Gerwen. He hasn’t won a title of any description for over two years, but he is working hard to put that right. His scoring has been good but that MVG block is still there.

Nathan Aspinall, a semi-finalist here last year, has had a good season, winning his first major title, the UK Open in March and a World Series event in July. His most recent form isn’t great with just one win from his last six matches. He has played well in defeat and will still be a contender for this quarter. However, his confidence might be on the low side.

Krzysztof Ratajski’s best from remains in floor tournaments but he won his first stage event at the Gibraltar Darts Trophy at the end of September and followed that up with two players championship finals. He reached the quarter final of the World Series finals but lost his second-round match in the players championship finals. Ratajski has won six of his last ten matches but has lost both his first round matches here. He is a very capable player, but his stage form still leaves something to be desired.

Bully Awaits First Big TV Title

Michael Smith, last year’s runner up, still hasn’t won a televised tournament and it continues to haunt him. Frustration is never far away and that tends to make playing his game difficult when his head drops. It was reported that he had to have a surgical procedure on his chest recently. It is unknown if this will have impacted much on his practice routines.

He is playing reasonably well with six wins from his last ten and his draw is reasonably good. He will face the winner of the Woodhouse vs. Lim tie which should be winnable as should his 3rd round against Payne, Portella or Van den Bergh, the later whom is very much out of form.

Darren Webster is another player whose season has been ruined by injury. He is back to fitness now but under pressure. He has dropped out of the top 16 and while this is a chance to pick up good ranking points, he is defending quarter finalist prize money from 2018. It is very possible that his slip down the rankings will accelerate.

Of the non-seeded player in this quarter we have a resurgent Brendan Dolan and Czech Open winner Jamie Hughes. Dolan faces the Dubai based Indian qualifier Nitin Kumar in the first round. He then has a winnable second round match with an out of form Gary Anderson. Hughes has the harder task of getting through Zoran Lerchbacher and then Krzysztof Ratajski but is not a player anyone is going relish playing.

2020 PDC World-Championship Tips: 1 point Adrian Lewis to win the second quarter @ 13.00 with Betfred

2020 PDC World Championship tips: Third Quarter

The three most likely lads to come through this quarter must be Rob Cross, Peter Wright or Dave Chisnall. Cross famously won this on his debut back in 2018 and he has picked up two major titles this year (World Matchplay and European Championship) as well as reaching the final of the UK Open. Sometimes he hasn’t looked in great form however, he isn’t quite the player he was in 2018. However, he clearly likes the venue but he is defending the winners prize money and a lot of ranking points.

Dave Chisnall is right up there with Michael Smith as the best player never to have won a major. He has had a good season, winning three players championships and the Danish Open on the euro tour. He reached the quarter final of the European Championship and the semi-final of the World Series of Darts and the final of the World Grand Prix. Still that big TV title still eludes him, and you can pretty much see his throw deteriorating the closer he gets to a title.

Snakebite Has Had A Solid Season

Peter Wright has had a frustrating season but certainly not a bad one. He has won three players championships, a world series title and the World Cup of Darts. Most recently he was runner up in both the Champions League of Darts and the Grand Slam of Darts. With the spotlight very much on MVG, Gerwyn Price and even Rob Cross, Wright is flying a bit under the radar coming into this.

He has reached a final here before, a semi-final and two other quarter finals. Wright certainly ticks a lot of boxes, but the fact remains that he has only the one major title to his credit. He may not go all the way, but he should have a good run.

The non-seeded players in the quarter include Raymond van Barneveld. He may be retiring after this is over, but he is actually playing better now than he has for a couple of years. This is the final push; one more go at hitting the heights on a stage that he knows so well. He won the title back in 2007, was runner up in 2009 and has reached five other semi-finals, the latest in 2017. He has a decent draw, facing Darin Young in the first round and Jeffery de Zwann in the second.

Humphries An Interesting Outsider

De Zwann is something of a protégé of Barney’s and is yet to beat him. The fact that the world championship format means that he is playing just one match in a day, with plenty of days off, helps him. His health isn’t he best and he finds it hard to keep his energy levels and concentration up for long periods of time. That will ultimately be his downfall, but he should be able to reach the third round and a probable clash with Dave Chisnall.

Luke Humphries reached the quarter finals here last year and he comes back in fine fettle having just won the World Youth Championship. He has won eight of his last ten matches albeit that six of those wins were on the Development tour. I do like his draw as he faces Devon Petersen in the first round, a tough match but winnable. Then it would be Jermaine Wattimena, again a tough but winnable match. He would then get in amongst the Kurz, Wilson, Cullen group and again, very winnable. He could eventually meet Rob Cross in the fourth round, a repeat of their match at the same stage last year, which Humphries won.

2020 PDC World-Championship Tips: 1 point Peter Wright to win the third quarter @ 4.00 with Black Type

PDC World-Championship Tips: 0.5 point Luke Humphries to win the third quarter @ 34.00 generally available.

2020 World-Championship Tips: Fourth Quarter

The big favourite to win this quarter is Gerwyn Price. On his form this year, he is the second-best player in the world and will likely be ranked as such after this is over. He has won twelve of his last thirteen matches and has enjoyed a lot of good runs in the big events in recent months. There was a semi-final in the Champions League, runner up in the European Championship, winner of the Grand Slam of Darts and most recently, runner up in the Players Championship.

The big TV events have become something of a MVG vs. Price affair and while MVG still has a fantastic record vs. Price, the Welshman finally got his first win over MVG when beating him in the Grand Slam of Darts semi-final. MVG knows that Price is a serious threat every time they play, and Price is finally getting the respect he deserves from the crowds.

The only obvious downside for Price at Ally Pally is his track record. He has only won three matches in five years and while he is a much better player now than even 12 months ago, he doesn’t have many positive memories to draw on. He is the 2.25 favourite to win the quarter and while it is hard to argue a case against him, there is little value in those odds. His draw is very good. He is likely to face an in-form William O’Connor in the second round and that is no gimme, but if gets through that, there is no one that looks like a serious threat until he gets to the quarter final.

Duzza Has Fared Well On The Big Stage

Glen Durrant is the second favourite to win the quarter. He has fared well in the major events so far reaching the semi-final of the World Matchplay, World Grand Prix and the Grand Slam of Darts. It hasn’t been pretty at times but he has shown the ability to grind out wins when not at his best. He has the opportunity to be the first ever player to hold the BDO and PDC world championship titles.

Winning the tournament might be asking too much and winning this quarter is a big ask. He will face the winner of the Heta vs. De Sousa match and that will not be easy. If he gets through that, a match vs. Pipe or Gurney is the reward, another tough one. He has a tough draw and even if he gets to the quarters, it is likely that he would face Price in that match.

Superchin Has A Tough Draw

Daryl Gurney is the third favourite in the quarter and like Durrant, he has a hard draw. He looks a near certainty to face Justin Pipe in the second round and that is not a nice opener. Glen Durrant is in the same side of the draw and that’s another toughie. Gurney has reached two major semi-finals this year, blowing a big lead vs. Rob Cross in the World Matchplay and again lost to Cross the European Championship semi-final. He will have been very disappointed to have gone out in the first stage of the World Grand Prix, the World Series of Darts finals and the Players Championship finals and he will be looking to turn that form around.

His record here isn’t great with just a quarter final in 2017 standing out. He has looked very nervous here in recent years, perhaps wanting it too much and just not playing his usual game. He has kept a low profile since losing that Players Championship match to Luke Woodhouse. Lots of practice is on the menu rather than running around playing exhibitions and if he can relax and get a couple of wins under his belt, he is one of the players who can have a big run. Five wins from his last ten matches isn’t great however and those opening matches are the key.

The Gentle Needs To Improve Ally Pally Record

Mensur Suljovic has had a fairly quiet year but he was finding his form in the last few players championship events, winning PC 26 and reaching the semi-final of PC 27 and 28. He reached the semi-final of the World Series of Darts, losing heavily to MVG. His record here is poor and he has never gone beyond the third round in eleven attempts. He has won five of his last ten matches and he doesn’t inspire much confidence.

Chris Dobey has been making some inroads to finally winning a tournament. He reached the semi-final of the World Grand Prix and the Players Championship finals. He has a decent draw in that he should face Suljovic or Evetts in the third round and that is a reasonable route to the 4th round where things get tougher.

Evetts Worth A Punt At Huge Odds

Of the non-seeds, Jose De Sousa could be anything. He lacks big stage experience but is a very heavy scorer and a danger to anyone. He faces Damon Heta in the first round and he another dangerman with little experience. Ted Evetts has the talent to do what Humphries did last year and come from the Development Tour to go all the way to the quarter finals.

He is a great player and he is going to make an impact sooner or later. Evetts won eight Development tour titles this year and while this is a step up in class, he has picked up a lot of big stage experience in the last few years, despite being just 22. He needs Price to trip up obviously, but his odds look too big and maybe we can trade him out later.

2020 PDC World-Championship Tips: 0.5 point Ted Evetts to win the fourth quarter @ 67.00 with Ladbrokes, Coral

2020 PDC World-Championship Outright Tips

As usual Van Gerwen dominates the outright betting. He is the 2.25 favourite and given his current form and the fact that he has won three of the last six World Championships, those odds are about right. He has to win seven matches to justify them however and when you look at from that point of view, the odds are hardly any great value.

Gerwyn Price is the 6.50 second favourite. His tournament record isn’t good but he is a different animal to what he was even 12 months ago. The draw looks to have been kind to him and if he can get through the banana skin that is Willie O’Connor, he has a decent path to the quarter finals.

As I said at the start, we really don’t get shock results in terms of who wins the World Championship and this year we have two clear favourites in terms of recent form, MVG and Price.

Gurney Could Be Best Of Rest

Rob Cross has picked up two majors and can’t be dismissed lightly but his win rate isn’t in the same post code as Van Gerwen and Price. Durrant has a shot at history but a hard draw. Peter Wright is playing well but he isn’t converting that into major wins. Chisnall doesn’t thrive in front of the TV cameras. Aspinall has had a good year but he has been losing too many matches lately. Daryl Gurney is never out of contention in the majors and has won the two finals he has reached.

His recent form isn’t his best, but he often turns it on out of the blue and if his intensive practice works out, he could have a good run, but again, his draw is hard. Adrian Lewis has a good tournament record, twice a winner, once a runner up and a semi-finalist. His recent form is showing signs of improvement, but could he beat MVG if he had too? I doubt it.

Rather than picking the winner, why not name the finalists?

2020 PDC World-Championship Tips: 2 points Michael van Gerwen vs. Gerwyn Price @ 5.00 generally available

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-JamesPunt