The first round has continued at the Players Championship Finals with continued mixed fortunes for the big names with Danny Noppert, Dirk van Duijvenbode and Ryan Searle all through but Michael Smith is out in Minehead.
Smith said he wanted to be greedy after winning the Grand Slam of Darts this past weekend but will not be adding another major title to his collection before the World Championship after falling to Ritchie Edhouse 6-5.
'Madhouse' defied a 12-point gap in the averages to seal one of his best wins. To start the tie, he went 2-1 up with a 111 checkout and kept the lead going 3-2 up with a 62 checkout only to be broken at 4-3 down.
'Bully Boy' consolidated but missed multiple match darts which allowed Edhouse a chance at the decider and he sealed it on double 16.
While for Noppert, it was anything but tense in a Dutch Destruction job for the UK Open champion on his return to Minehead against Simon Whitlock.
A sensational 6-1 win for 'The Freeze' saw him produce a 106.49 average in victory with a high checkout of 164, four 180's and an almost flawless doubling display hitting 6/7 on the doubles. Ominous signs from the Dutchman.
He was joined by his World Cup partner Van Duijvenbode who in comparison had a tough route through against a player seen pre tournament as being a potential banana skin due to his slow pace being Mickey Mansell and it was a 6-5 win for 'The Titan' who escaped through.
Last year, Searle reached the final and he is through also after battling back from 3-1 down to see off Mervyn King in a 6-4 victory in a tournament just down the road from him and one where he emerged on TV last year.
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