Simon Whitlock recaptured some of his Alexandra Palace sparkle but was edged out 3-2 by Connor Scutt in a first-round World Darts Championship thriller. The 2010 runner-up, a three-time semi-finalist, trailed 2-0 before producing a stunning 167 bull finish to take the third set; Scutt missed four match darts in the deciding leg.
Whitlock came close to sealing the fourth with a Big Fish finish but missed the bull, though he soon levelled the match. He broke first in the deciding set, only for Scutt to find top form and take the next three legs. Scutt’s run included a 127 finish in the third leg and he began the fourth with seven perfect darts, sitting on a potential nine-darter. He missed the eighth dart at treble 20 and spurned three further match darts—seven in total—before landing double four to win and set up a second-round tie with two-time champion Gary Anderson.
Jonny Clayton survived a shaky start to beat Ally Pally debutant Adam Lipscombe 3-1. The fifth seed missed 21 darts at double but finished strongly, averaging 92.53 in the late stages and producing three ton-plus checkouts in the fourth set, including 145 and 135 bull finishes and a closing 100. Lipscombe showed promise on debut, edging the second set before Clayton turned the match.
Dirk van Duijvenbode rallied from 2-1 down to beat Belgium’s Andy Baetens 3-2, winning six of the final seven legs. The Dutchman hit three consecutive ton-plus checkouts—including a Big Fish—levelled the match with 109 and 106 finishes, and then produced a 170 (the tournament’s fourth) to secure an early break in the decider. Van Duijvenbode finished with eight maximums and a 98.54 average.
Max Hopp defeated Martin Lukeman 3-1 on his first Alexandra Palace appearance in five years, hitting seven maximums. Hopp dominated the opening set without giving Lukeman a dart at double, fought back to claim the second after trailing, and closed out the match in the fourth to earn a second-round meeting with Luke Woodhouse.
Twenty-year-old debutant Charlie Manby produced one of the day’s standout results, fighting back from 1-0 and 2-1 down to beat 26th seed Cameron Menzies 3-2 in a match featuring 14 maximums between them. Manby averaged 90.62 with five 180s. Menzies missed 31 darts at double, later punching the drinks table in frustration and receiving hospital treatment for cuts to his knuckles; he subsequently apologised for his reaction.
Two-time world champion Peter Wright advanced to the last 64 with a 3-0 whitewash of Noa-Lynn van Leuven despite averaging just 83.5. Brendan Dolan beat debutant Tavis Dudeney 3-1, overcoming Dudeney’s nine 180s and sealing victory with three ton-plus checkouts, including a 170 Big Fish. Dolan will face 20th seed Ryan Searle in round two.
Mensur Suljovic returned to winning ways, producing a composed display to beat David Cameron 3-1 and set up a tie with Joe Cullen.
Day Six at Ally Pally features another double session on Sky Sports Darts. The afternoon (from 12.30pm) starts with Alan Soutar v Teemu Harju, followed by Nick Kenny v Justin Hood, Scott Williams v Paolo Nebrida, and eighth seed Chris Dobey v Xiaochen Zong. The evening session (from 7pm) includes Ricardo Pietreczko v Jose de Sousa, Danny Noppert v Jurjen van der Velde, Gerwyn Price v Adam Gawlas, and Niko Springer v Joe Comito.
Watch every match of the Paddy Power World Darts Championship live on Sky Sports’ dedicated darts channel through January 3; stream via NOW.