World Darts Championship: Michael van Gerwen, Luke Littler, Stephen Bunting shake-up outright market
Michael van Gerwen
The opening nine days at the PDC World Darts Championships have already produced unforgettable moments, but what is the state of play when it comes to the outright market?
Before the start of the tournament, it was Luke Humphries who topped the betting after claiming three consecutive TV titles.
The Englishman entered the Ally Pally stage on the third day of the event and secured his place in the third round with a 3-0 victory over Lee Evans. Despite this, Cool Hand Luke didn’t look as convincing as he would’ve hoped, pulling together an average of 93.
Two days later, Humphries was replaced as tournament-favourite by Michael van Gerwen who thumped Keane Barry 3-0 in his tournament opener.
The Dutchman averaged 98 and dropped just two legs against a game Irishman who himself boasted an average of just under 96.
Van Gerwen remains the tournament favourite as the event heads into the Christmas break, with bookmakers pricing the three-time world champion at 10/3. Humphries, on the other hand, is currently 7/2.
The biggest shock in the outright market was caused by 16-year-old sensation Luke Littler who saw his odds slashed from 66/1 to 9/1.
The teenager posted a 106 average in his 3-0 first-round victory over former BDO world champion Christian Kist. Littler came back the following day and dumped out UK Open champion Andrew Gilding in order to book his spot in the third round.
The Nuke, who is now fourth-favourite for the title, is priced ahead of defending champion Michael Smith (9/1) and former Ally Pally winners Gary Anderson (12/1) and Rob Cross (16/1).
Another noteworthy contender is Stephen Bunting. The Bullet was one of our dark horses in our pre-tournament preview and the Liverpool-native certainly delivered.
Bunting averaged 107 in his opening match – the highest at the tournament so far – as he demolished Ryan Joyce 3-0 on Saturday.
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His stunning display has seen the bookies slash his outright odds from 40/1 to 20/1.
The 38-year-old will be looking to continue his momentum when he returns to action against Florian Hempel on Thursday, December 28.
PDC World Darts Championship – Outright Betting
(Planet Sport Bet odds)
