By Aidan Smyth
De Decker vs J Smith
Mike De Decker has been in decent form of late, his only 3 losses in his last 12 games coming against Price, Humphries & Beaton. In those games he has beaten big names such as Cross and Clayton as well. Jeff Smith has had a pretty torrid time since the summer, losing far more games then he’s won, and it looks to be an uphill task for the Canadian here too. De Decker is heavy odds on for the 180’s, so I’m taking him to win and hit most 180’s.
De decker to win with most 180’s - 1/1 De decker to win 3-1 - 3/1
Williams vs Joyce
My most highly anticipated game of the first round is Scott Williams vs Ryan Joyce and this could be a cracker. Williams was superb in the Grand Slam, really impressing despite being drawn in the group of death. He destroyed Ryan Searle with a 107.46 average, hitting 6 180’s in 8 legs. He once again showed his maximum hitting potential in the players championship where he smashed in 15 180’s in his 3 games. Joyce is also a dangerous player as he showed when he dumped out Gerwyn Price in the players championship. I’m expecting a classic here with Williams hitting a ton of 180’s.
Williams to win & hit most 180’s - 15/8 Williams to hit most 180’s & over 3.5 sets - 10/11 Williams to win 3-1 - 4/1
Campbell vs Baggish
This is another intriguing clash where Canada meets America and both will fancy their chances. Campbell was good at the players championship, winning his first 2 games before being pipped 10-9 by Noppert. Baggish hasn’t had the same success but he has taken some big scalps this year on the tour, including Van Duivenbode in the recent players championship event in early November. I expect Campbell to get over the line here but he isn’t a prolific 180 hitter so I’m backing him to win and hit less 180’s.
Campbell to win, Baggish most 180’s - 9/2 Campbell to win 3-1 or 3-2 - 11/10
Aspinall vs Krcmar
Aspinall has been in superb form of late, reaching the final of the last 2 Sky Sports majors, before being pipped in both of those finals. Krcmar won easily in Round 1 but he is certainly a much better player then that display suggested. The big Croatian failed to hit a single 180, so despite being a very short price, the Asp to win with most 180’s seems very likely. The Croat is a prolific bullseye hitter though, so the highest checkout market could be worth a small look.
Aspinall to win with most 180’s - 4/6 Aspinall to win 3-1 - 9/4 Aspinall to win with most 180’s, Krcmar highest checkout - 4/1
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