Michael Smith to begin US Darts Masters defence against Jim Long
- Planet Sport writer
- 1 June 2023
The draw for the US Darts Masters has pitted Michael Smith against Jim Long in the opening round on Friday.
World Champion Michael Smith will begin his defence of the bet365 US Darts Masters against Jim Long on Friday, as the countdown continues ahead of this year's World Series of Darts event in New York.
The World Series will make its New York return on June 2-3 in The Theater at Madison Square Garden, as 16 players battle it out for the £20,000 top prize in the Big Apple.
Friday's first round at the iconic venue will see the eight PDC superstars take on eight North American representatives for a place in Saturday's final stages, with world number one Smith headlining the action.
Smith - who defeated Michael van Gerwen to triumph in last year's showpiece - will open his challenge against Canadian qualifier Long, a World Championship qualifier back in 2019 and the recent CDC Cross-Border Challenge runner-up.
Newly crowned Premier League champion Van Gerwen has been pitted against Canadian debutant Jake MacMillan, with the winner set to take on Smith or Long in Saturday's quarter-finals.
The draw - which was made at Edge at Hudson Yards, New York's highest outdoor skydeck on Thursday - will also see World Series of Darts Finals champion Gerwyn Price meet American number one Jules van Dongen.
Peter Wright begins his bid for a second World Series title of 2023 against former World Cup quarter-finalist Jeff Smith - the Cross-Border Challenge winner in April - while 2019 US Darts Masters champion Nathan Aspinall faces Canadian number one Matt Campbell in another stand-out tie.
Luke Humphries will make his New York debut against CDC Continental Cup winner Alex Spellman, with Rob Cross and Dimitri Van den Bergh set to take on World Series debutants Jason Brandon and JT Davis respectively.
The World Series of Darts event will conclude on Saturday evening with the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final during a bumper session of action in The Theater at MSG.
Meanwhile, Saturday's afternoon session will feature the bet365 North American Championship, as the eight US and Canadian stars battle for that title and a place in the 2023/24 World Darts Championship.
