PDC World Darts Championship: Day 5 Betting Tips - Evening Session

• Stowe Buntz to win: 11/10 at Ladbrokes
• Stowe Buntz Most 180s and Win: 4/1 at BoyleSports

Nick Kenny comes to Ally Pally this year for his 3rd appearance after a 2-year absence. He’s under enormous pressure to have a run at the World Championship because he's in immediate danger of losing his Tour Card for a second time.

Unfortunately for the Welshman, he has a torrid record at the World Championship across both Systems in Darts. He lost in the first round in all three of his appearances at Lakeside and has only managed one win in his previous two appearances at Ally Pally against Derk Telnekes in 2021.

He has reached a quarter-final in both a Players Championship floor event and on the European Tour this season but will need to improve on his seasonal average of 89.85 to progress here.

The American Stowe Buntz qualified for his second appearance at the PDC World Championships by finishing 3rd on the CDC Order of Merit. Buntz has won two events this season and reached the Semi-Finals of the Continental Cup. He’s in good form and won the Gibraltar Open just last month.

A previous Grand Slam Quarter Finalist, he’s certainly proved he can mix it with the elite on TV. He lost in the first round last year 3-0 to Kevin Doets but he's a much better player than what he showed in that game and I expect him to be much improved this evening.

Nick Kenny will be under so much pressure to win here because of his tour card situation and the last time he came to Ally Pally in this position he was whitewashed 3-0 by Rowby John Rodriguez in the first round. I expect a much stronger performance this time around from Stowe Buntz and he looks like the player in form of the two of them.

• Total 180s in the Match - Under 5.5: 1/1 at BetMGM
• Mensur Suljovic to win 3-2: 4/1 BetMGM

Mensur Suljovic has been a wonderful player over the years but I think it's clear that his best days are behind him. I’m also not sure he enjoys the sport as much as he used to and has regularly skipped events over the last few seasons.

It will be the Austrian’s 16th appearance here at Ally Pally and he's made it to the last 16 on three occasions. His form has not been the best the last few months, he lost all 3 group games at the Grand Slam and lost in the first round in the recent Players Championship Finals to Wesley Plaisier. He has had two Quarter Finals in the Players Championship floor events this season which is something to remain positive about. 

Matt Campbell had a dreadful start to his 2024 season, losing his first twelve matches on tour and didn't manage a win until May. He qualified for this by beating Mervyn King 7-6 in the Tour Card qualifier and arguably became a surprise qualifier through that event.

He did have a run to the final of Players Championship 12 which still shows he has the ability to compete. The Canadian could really do with a run here to get his career back on track but will need to improve on his 89.39 running average for the season.

The value for me in this game is all about the 180s. Both haven't hit many this year with Suljovic only running at 0.18 180s per leg and Campbell at just 0.16 per leg.

Rather than try and predict a winner between two pretty out-of-form players I think it's best to stay clear but if I was pushed I’d back Mensur Suljovic to come through a tight contest.

• Scott Williams to have 2+ 100+ finishes: 11/8 at BetMGM
• Total 180s - Over 9.5: 1/1 BetMGM

Scott Williams reached the World Championship Semi-Final last year, beating Michael Van Gerwen en route, before being whitewashed 6-0 by Luke Humphries. He’s failed to back that up this season though and only managed to qualify for three European Tour events.

He did make a decent start on the floor in the Players Championship events, reaching two Quarter finals but has failed to get past round 4 in his last 19 appearances.

I think it's quite clear that Williams prefers playing on the big stage and he proved that in the Players Championship last month reaching the Quarter Finals and had 9 100+ checkouts including a 170. ‘Shaggy’ is certainly a showman but he could really do with a run at this event to continue moving up the rankings but faces a very stern first-round test.

Niko Springer qualified for his debut here by finishing second in the Development Tour rankings. He has won 3 events this year on that tour and has a seasonal high average of 111.33. He comes to Ally Pally with a big reputation and it looks as though he has a very bright future ahead of him.

We’ve also seen him qualify for two European Tour events this season but he lost in the first round of both. Springer certainly has a chance here and it wouldn't be too much of a surprise if he came through this game but on debut that may be difficult. 

If Niko Springer relaxes here on debut then this will be a very tight game to call. Scott Williams has been playing better the last few months and his finishing stats are very impressive.

His 100+ checkout conversion is 11.4% and his percentage of legs won with a 100+ checkout is 15.2% so this makes it obvious to look at 100+ checkout odds. They both also hit a lot of 180s, Williams in particular.

• Michael Smith Most 180s and Win The Match: 11/10 at BoyleSports
• Over 10.5 180s at 13/10 with BoyleSports

2023 World Champion Michael Smith returns to the Palace this year as number 2 seed but in reality, he's in a very precarious position.

He’s defending the £500,000 he won 2 years ago and without a good run in this tournament, he faces the real possibility of plummeting out of the top 16 in the World. It's been a strange season for ‘Bully Boy’ but there has certainly been signs on TV of him finding his form.

He was a Semifinalist in both the Premier League and the World Matchplay this year and also runner-up in the World Series Finals. He has won a Players Championship floor event this year and had a semi-final on the European Tour, but that's not enough for a player of his calibre.

His lack of consistency on tour this year has led to him currently being out of the qualifications spots for the World Matchplay next year so he's in desperate need of a good World Championship campaign. 

Kevin Doets came through a pretty tough test 3-1 against Noa-Lynn van Leuven in the opening round, averaging 88.13 and hitting 3 180s. His checkout percentage was only 29.41% something which of course affected his average but he’ll know himself he will need to sharpen up in that department to trouble Smith.

As much as Doets has had an inconsistent season, he clearly has huge potential and I don't think he's too far away from it clicking properly in a big tournament. 

This match is a repeat of last year's second round where Michael Smith came through a tight contest 3-2. Doets missed a few big opportunities at double in that match and Smith was probably a little fortunate to get through.

Both these players hit a lot of 180s so I'd expect that to continue here especially if it turns into a 5 set match like last year. ‘Bully Boy’ is coming into this tournament with a point to prove and usually when he feels like that he produces magic so I think he’ll come through this tough contest.