SMITH TO OPEN TITLE DEFENCE AGAINST MENZIES OR DE DECKER IN MUNICH
Michael Smith will begin his defence of the NEO.bet German Darts Grand Prix against Cameron Menzies or Mike De Decker, with the draw and schedule for the Easter event confirmed.
Munich will play host to the second PDC European Tour event of 2024 over the Easter weekend, as 48 players battle it out for the £30,000 top prize from March 30-April 1.
This weekend’s action will see reigning champion Smith bidding to retain the title, with world number one Luke Humphries and Dutch superstar Michael van Gerwen among the other high-profile names in action.
Saturday’s first round – which will be broadcast through PDCTV, Viaplay and DAZN – will feature 16 matches across two sessions, as Germany’s number one Gabriel Clemens takes on newly crowned UK Open champion Dimitri Van den Bergh in a headline tie.
Clemens’ World Cup partner Martin Schindler will face Czech qualifier Vitezslav Sedlak, while Lukas Wenig will star on home soil against Ireland’s former World Cup finalist Steve Lennon.
European Champion Peter Wright plays former Grand Slam winner Jose de Sousa, as five-time World Champion Raymond van Barneveld goes head-to-head with World Youth Championship runner-up Gian van Veen in an all-Dutch affair.
Former Masters champions Joe Cullen and Chris Dobey will also feature in Saturday’s first round, with Cullen up against 2023 UK Open champion Andrew Gilding, while Dobey faces Sweden’s Viktor Tingstrom.
Host Nation Qualifiers Michael Unterbuchner, Franz Roetzsch, Oliver Mueller and Matthias Ehlers will also be in first round action, with Unterbuchner pitted against World Matchplay champion Nathan Aspinall – a runner-up at this event in 2023.
The 16 seeded players will then enter the fray in Sunday’s second round, as Smith begins his title defence against Scottish star Menzies or in-form De Decker.
Top seed Dave Chisnall – a winner of three European Tour titles in 2023 – will face either Van den Bergh or Clemens, before Niels Zonneveld or Luke Woodhouse await Humphries, who lifted the title in 2022.
Third seed Gerwyn Price will play his Premier League rival Wright or De Sousa for a place in the last 16, while Australia’s premier player Damon Heta has been handed a potential showdown against home hero Schindler.
Van Gerwen will also headline Sunday’s action in Munich, and the world number two will open his bid for a fourth German Darts Grand Prix crown against his countryman Jeffrey de Zwaan or German hopeful Ehlers.
Van Gerwen’s compatriot Dirk van Duijvenbode will kick off his campaign against Aspinall or Unterbuchner, with tenth seed Danny Noppert guaranteed a Dutch opponent in the shape of Van Barneveld or Van Veen.
James Wade and Daryl Gurney will battle it out for the right to play two-time European Champion Rob Cross, as Germany’s Ricardo Pietreczko prepares to take on either Ryan Joyce or Kevin Doets for a spot in Easter Monday’s Finals Day.
Two-time World Champion Gary Anderson has withdrawn from the event due to an ongoing shoulder injury, and has been replaced by Luke Woodhouse from the Reserve List.
As a result, reigning Masters champion Stephen Bunting becomes the 16th seed, and his reward is a second round assignment against Roetzsch or Jermaine Wattimena.
Following Sunday’s second round, the last 16 will take place on Monday afternoon, before the tournament concludes with the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final in a bumper evening session.
Live coverage of all 2024 European Tour events will be streamed through Viaplay, and through DAZN for viewers in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
Coverage will also be shown on PDCTV (excluding Germany, Austria and Switzerland) and through bookmakers’ worldwide.
2024 NEO.bet German Darts Grand Prix
Zenith, Munich, March 30-April 1
Tournament Draw Bracket (Second Round Onwards)
(6) Josh Rock v Oliver Mueller/Richard Veenstra
(11) Michael Smith v Cameron Menzies/Mike De Decker
(3) Gerwyn Price v Peter Wright/Jose de Sousa
(14) Ryan Searle v Lukas Wenig/Steve Lennon
(7) Rob Cross v James Wade/Daryl Gurney
(10) Danny Noppert v Raymond van Barneveld/Gian van Veen
(2) Luke Humphries v Niels Zonneveld/Luke Woodhouse
(15) Ricardo Pietreczko v Ryan Joyce/Kevin Doets
(5) Dirk van Duijvenbode v Nathan Aspinall/Michael Unterbuchner
(12) Ross Smith v Brendan Dolan/Alan Soutar
(4) Damon Heta v Martin Schindler/Vitezslav Sedlak
(13) Krzysztof Ratajski v Chris Dobey/Viktor Tingstrom
(8) Michael van Gerwen v Jeffrey De Zwaan/Matthias Ehlers
(9) Jonny Clayton v Andrew Gilding/Joe Cullen
(1) Dave Chisnall v Dimitri Van den Bergh/Gabriel Clemens
(16) Stephen Bunting v Franz Roetzsch/Jermaine Wattimena
Schedule of Play
Saturday March 30
First Round
Afternoon Session (1300 local time, 1200 GMT)
Ryan Joyce v Kevin Doets
Brendan Dolan v Alan Soutar
Franz Roetzsch v Jermaine Wattimena
Cameron Menzies v Mike De Decker
Chris Dobey v Viktor Tingstrom
Jeffrey De Zwaan v Matthias Ehlers
Oliver Mueller v Richard Veenstra
Niels Zonneveld v Luke Woodhouse
Evening Session (1900 local time, 1800 GMT)
Lukas Wenig v Steve Lennon
James Wade v Daryl Gurney
Andrew Gilding v Joe Cullen
Martin Schindler v Vitezslav Sedlak
Nathan Aspinall v Michael Unterbuchner
Raymond van Barneveld v Gian van Veen
Peter Wright v Jose de Sousa
Dimitri Van den Bergh v Gabriel Clemens
Sunday March 31
Second Round
Afternoon Session (1300 local time, 1200 BST)
Ross Smith v Dolan/Soutar
Josh Rock v Mueller/Veenstra
Krzysztof Ratajski v Dobey/Tingstrom
Ricardo Pietreczko v Joyce/Doets
Stephen Bunting v Roetzsch/Wattimena
Ryan Searle v Wenig/Lennon
Rob Cross v Wade/Gurney
Dirk van Duijvenbode v Aspinall/Unterbuchner
Evening Session (1900 local time, 1800 BST)
Michael Smith v Menzies/De Decker
Danny Noppert v Van Barneveld/Van Veen
Gerwyn Price v Wright/De Sousa
Luke Humphries v Zonneveld/Woodhouse
Damon Heta v Schindler/Sedlak
Michael van Gerwen v De Zwaan/Ehlers
Dave Chisnall v Van den Bergh/Clemens
Jonny Clayton v Gilding/Cullen
Monday April 1
Afternoon Session (1300 local time, 1200 BST)
Third Round
Evening Session (1900 local time, 1800 BST)
Quarter-Finals
Semi-Finals
Final
Monday’s games played in Draw Bracket order
—–ENDS—–
Images: Jonas Hunold/PDC Europe
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