Five-time Masters Champion Michael van Gerwen was the highest-ranked casualty on opening night in Milton Keynes, bowing out 3-1 to Australia’s Damon Heta.
Given the calibre of The Heat, this was not a seismic shock in pure results terms. But such is the weight of reputation van Gerwen has constructed over the past decade that any first-hurdle exit still lands with a thud. When Mighty Mike falls early, it is never just another result.
The season had begun brightly for MVG with victory at the Bahrain Darts Masters, yet this Masters meeting with Heta was a contest low on fluency and high on frustration. Neither player truly sparkled, but the decisive difference was unmistakable – doubles. Van Gerwen laboured, Heta did not. The Australian pinned when it mattered and marched on with quiet efficiency.
Awaiting Heta in round two is Chris Dobey, who produced one of the most authoritative performances of the night against an underpowered Jermaine Wattimena. After a breakthrough season, The Machine Gun arrived with momentum but never truly ignited. Dobey did, sweeping aside the Dutchman with ruthless control.
Experience also had its say. The old guard reminded everyone they are not yet done, with Unicorn duo James Wade and Gary Anderson both digging deep to survive last-set deciders against Madars Razma and Niels Zonneveld respectively. Between them, Wade and Anderson own enough silverware to fill a small museum, and they are now on a tantalising collision course.
New Dutch number one Gian van Veen began his campaign with purpose, navigating the ever-dangerous threat of Ryan Joyce to secure a composed 3-1 victory. He will next face Nathan Aspinall, who delivered another commanding display to dismiss former Lakeside champion Shane McGuirk by the same scoreline.
To complete the evening’s narrative, Wales supplied its own emphatic punctuation. The Red Dragon pairing of Jonny Clayton and Gerwyn Price both advanced, setting up an all-Welsh second-round collision by markedly different routes. The Ferret was forced to work hard to subdue Wessel Nijman, while Price dispatched James Hurrell with a 3-0 scoreline that flattered its simplicity. The quality was higher than the whitewash result suggests. But that is darts – ruthless, unforgiving, and utterly indifferent to effort.
In summary, it was a bruising night for the qualifiers, whose smiles on Wednesday evening had vanished within 24 hours. It was also a difficult outing for the Dutch contingent. Five players took to the stage, and only van Veen emerged victorious. The other half of round one gets underway this evening.
Results
Chris Dobey 3-0 Jermaine Wattimena (2-1, 2-0, 2-1)
Gary Anderson 3-2 Niels Zonneveld (0-2, 2-0, 2-1, 1-2, 2-0)
James Wade 3-2 Madars Razma (1-2, 2-0, 2-0, 1-2, 2-0)
Nathan Aspinall 3-1 Shane McGuirk (1-2, 2-0, 2-0, 2-0)
Jonny Clayton 3-1 Wessel Nijman (1-2, 2-1, 2-0, 2-1)
Gerwyn Price 3-0 James Hurrell (2-1, 2-1, 2-0)
Damon Heta 3-1 Michael van Gerwen (2-0, 1-2, 2-1, 2-1)
Gian van Veen 3-1 Ryan Joyce (1-2, 2-0 2-0, 2-1)
Friday January 30 (1900 GMT)
Round One
Martin Schindler v Luke Woodhouse
Ross Smith v Jimmy van Schie
Danny Noppert v Daryl Gurney
Ryan Searle v Rob Cross
Josh Rock v Connor Scutt
Luke Littler v Mike De Decker
Luke Humphries v Dave Chisnall
Stephen Bunting v Jeffrey de Graaf
—–ENDS—–
Images: PDC
