It's time for the Evening Session on Day 5 of the World Darts Championship and tonight is headlined by the 2023 World Champion Michael Smith. ‘Bully Boy’ is under pressure this year as he’s defending £500,000 on his rankings from winning this event 2 years ago and he faces a repeat of last year's 2nd round match against Kevin Doets.
Nick Kenny, who is fighting to retain his tour card, faces the colourful American Stowe Buntz in the first round. The experienced Mensur Suljovic returns to the Palace and plays ‘Ginga Ninja’ Matt Campbell in the opening round and finally a Semi Finalist in last years World Championships, Scott Williams will play the up and coming German star, Niko Springer.
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.
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| Min. Deposit | £5 |
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| Max. Amount | £30 |
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| Max. Amount | £40 |
| Turnover | No wagering |
| Expiration | 7 days |
| Min. Deposit | £10 |
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| Max. Amount | £30 |
| Turnover | No wagering |
| Expiration | 7 days |
| Min. Deposit | £10 |
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| Max. Amount | £40 |
| Turnover | No wagering |
| Expiration | 7 days |
| Min. Deposit | £10 |
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| Max. Amount | £20 |
| Turnover | No wagering |
| Expiration | 7 days |

James is a former professional dart player who enjoys writing about darts, golf and football. In 2012, he was crowned the PDC World Youth Champion and these days, he puts his expertise to use with betting tips for BettingLounge readers.