2025 Players Championship Finals: Day 1 Evening Betting Tips

• Michael Smith To Win: 13/10 at Ladbrokes

Martin Schindler made it through his group for the first time on his 6th attempt at last week's Grand Slam, before losing 10-6 to Gerwyn Price. The German remains in the top 16 in the world without doing anything in TV majors, and he needs to address that quickly if he's to be looked at as one of the world's elite.

Michael Smith made a welcome return to the TV stage at the Grand Slam, reaching the quarter-finals. He got away with it at times and looked a little unsettled, but that's no surprise after a long stretch of poor form.

The big stage exposure at the Grand Slam should give Bully Boy some well-needed confidence coming into this tournament, especially as he made it to the quarter-final of the UK Open early in the year at Minehead.

• Under 9.5 Legs: 3/4 at Virgin Bet

Ryan Searle has started to find a little bit of form after a tough season and comes into this event seeded 11th. The main issue has been his lack of consistency, but he's been handed a favourable draw here.

Darren Beveridge has done well to qualify for this event and may settle better as this match is on stage two, but I can only see one outcome, though, and that's a comfortable win for Searle.

• Under 8.5 Legs: 13/8 at Virgin Bet

Wessel Nijman comes into this year's Players Championship as the number 2 seed, after winning two Players Championship events this season. Nijman has certainly broken through to the big time now and is starting to establish himself as one of the game's elite and a player to avoid in the draw.

The young Dutchman should have far too much quality in this contest and will come through this very comfortably.

• Gerwyn Price Most 180s & Win: 19/20 at Spreadex

Gerwyn Price had another fabulous run in the Grand Slam, losing in an epic semi-final 16-13 to Luke Humphries. I've said it a lot in my tips lately, but I really do believe he's getting back to his very best, and that's dangerous for everyone. When The Iceman is scoring, he's a joy to watch, and he should have a comfortable evening against the returning Max Hopp.

• Stephen Bunting Most 180s, Highest Checkout & Win: 6/4 at BoyleSports

Stephen Bunting lost all three of his group games at the Grand Slam 5-4. The Bullet will be disappointed with that, but he didn't play badly and continued to score well throughout. The world number four needs a good tournament here to keep himself in Premier League contention, and he has been handed a nice draw against the out-of-form Ritchie Edhouse.

• Joe Cullen To Win: 11/10 at bet365

Joe Cullen and Peter Wright are two massive names in the world of darts, but both have had terrible seasons. The fact that this match has been put on stage two tells you everything you need to know about how tough it's been for them both.

Peter Wright has still had some success this season, but it's just so hard to predict how he will play or what darts he's using. Snakebite has only played this tournament once in the last 3 years and lost in the first round in 2024.

Joe Cullen has fallen to 32 in the world rankings after a dismal few years on tour. It's been another frustrating season, but he has still found success, winning two Players Championship events in 2025. For that reason, I think Cullen will have enough to scrape past the Scotsman and book his place in round two.