Bookies unsure who will win PDC Premier League Darts in 2021

The PDC Premier League Darts begins soon, and the bookmakers' odds show that it will be an open tournament this time around. Michael van Gerwen is the current favourite but with Gerwyn Price close behind.

2021 has already seen a few shocks in the PDC with Gerwyn Price winning the world title. The biggest surprise in that event was the performance of Michael van Gerwen. The three-time world champion and number one seed lost 5-0 in the quarter-finals to Dave Chisnall.

The Dutch player has now lost his number one spot in the Order of Merit. He's been replaced at number one by Price, from Wales. The list is formed by calculating prize money earned in the past two years. Price leads the Dutchman by just £273,000 with 2020 World Champion Peter Wright the only other player to have earned over £1m.

Michael van Gerwen has an excellent record in the PDC Premier League Darts. He's won the title on five previous occasions. That includes being crowned Premier League Darts champion four years in a row between 2016 and 2019.

However, he was unable to complete a five-timer last year. His usual dominant form was missing as he failed to make it into the playoffs. His loss in the Premier League Darts was a surprising one. Of his 16 matches, he only won eight with one drawn and seven defeats. That included an 8-1 loss to the then world champion, Peter Wright.

That opened the door for a shock winner as former World BDO Champion Glen Durant beat Nathan Aspinall in the final. According to STS Bet, neither of those finalists are fancied to win the 2021 PDC Premier League Darts. They have odds of 16/1 and 20/1, respectively.

Van Gerwen still had a 2020 to remember with wins in the UK Open (where he beat Price 11-9 in the final) and several wins in the Players Championship. There were some notable losses as he bombed in big tournaments such as the Masters and World Matchplay.

2021 has already seen question marks raised over his form. He was knocked out by Johnny Claydon in the second round of the Ladbrokes Masters last month. "I could see Michael shaking his head early on," said Claydon after the match. With comments like that being made about the Dutchman, can he bounce back and win the 2021 PDC Premier League Darts?

Gerwyn Price is the second favourite to win the title. It wouldn't take much of a change in the odds for him to become an outright favourite. He's the new world number one and will be out to prove that he deserves that lofty position.

He also missed the playoffs in the 2020 PDC Premier League Darts. Price only won six of his 16 matches and lost five. He was the draw king last year with five of his matches ending level. All a bit costly since he only missed out on the playoffs by two points. He'll need to get more wins than that if he wants to win the title.

The former rugby union and league player had a great 2020 though. He had success in Players Championship tournaments, the Belgian Darts Championship, World Grand Prix, World Series of Darts and was one half of the Welsh team that won the World Cup.

Then on the first day of 2021, Price defeated former champion Gary Anderson to become the 2021 PDC World Darts Champion. The Ladbrokes Masters saw him do better than van Gerwen. He failed to make it to the final though, losing in the last four to Mervyn King.

The PDC Premier League Darts consists of ten players this year. The experiment with guest players taking part at each venue won't be carried on again in 2021. The line-up is, of course, an extremely strong one.

As well as van Gerwen and Price, there's former PDC World Champions Gary Anderson, Rob Cross and Peter Wright, defending champion Glen Durant. 2020 finalist Nathan Aspinall, and three debutants, Ladbrokes Masters champion Jonny Claydon, Dimitri van den Bergh and Jose de Sousa.

There are 17 venues being used with the final night taking place at the Mercedes Benz Arena in Berlin. The winner will take home £250,000 but just who will lift the trophy? The bookmakers aren't sure at the moment, and a lot can happen in this tournament.

The form has to be maintained over a number of weeks to ensure a place in the playoffs. Will van Gerwen return to his best, can Price show just why he's world champion and number one in the rankings? Only time will tell.