The World Darts Championship continues Monday night at the Alexandra Palace in London. Once again we get to see a Dutchman on stage, as well as a former world champion.
The first three matches of the evening involve duels from the first round. The evening session will conclude with a match from the second round. The winner of that match may return for the third round of the World Darts Championship after the Christmas break.
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Niels Zonneveld v Robert Owen (R1)
The evening opens with Niels Zonneveld against Welsh darter Robert Owen. For Zonneveld, this is his fourth participation in the World Cup. Last year he managed to win his first match at Alexandra Palace by beating Darren Webster, although he then fell in the second round against Ross Smith. This year he qualified comfortably through the Pro Tour rankings, where he finished seventh. Zonneveld's recent form has been promising. At the Players Championship Finals, he managed strong victories over William O'Connor and former UK Open champion Nathan Aspinall, advancing to the last sixteen.
His opponent Robert Owen had an unusual route toward this tournament. Originally he did not qualify, but the suspension of Dom Taylor due to a positive doping test gave Owen a spot at the World Darts Championship after all. It is his second participation; on his debut in 2023, he lost in the first round to Andrew Gilding. Owen has extra motivation: he must reach at least the third round to keep his Tour Card. The winner of this tie gets to face Gabriel Clemens, the 2023 semifinalist, in the second round.
Connor Scutt v Ben Robb (R1)
The second match of the evening brings Connor Scutt and Ben Robb together face each other. Scutt, 'The Sniper' is a marksman with a growing reputation, made his World Championship debut last year and reached the second round then. This season, he has impressed by dominating the Challenge Tour. Scutt also performed strongly at the regular Players Championship tournaments, culminating in a final spot. His recent quarterfinal finish at the Players Championship Finals shows he is ready to further establish his name on the big stage.
On the other side is Ben Robb, an experienced New Zealander making his fifth appearance at Alexandra Palace. So far he has had little success, with four consecutive defeats in the first round. Robb qualified through the regional tournament in New Zealand and hopes to finally break through. His physically imposing presence and calm style make him an interesting opponent, but he will have to show his best darts to beat Scutt. Whoever wins this match will have the challenging task of facing off with Damon Heta in the second round.
Cameron Menzies v Leonard Gates (R1)
The third match of the evening promises fireworks. Scot Cameron Menzies, a flamboyant and emotional player, will take on Leonard Gates, an American darter with flair. Menzies is enjoying his best year to date, with a Players Championship title to his name and a quarterfinal place at the prestigious Grand Slam of Darts. In this, he defeated such established names as Martin Schindler and James Wade, among others. Menzies has shown that he is a dangerous player, especially when he is able to control his emotions.
Leonard Gates, nicknamed "Soulger," is no stranger to the circuit. During his World Championship debut in 2023, he defeated Geert Nentjes and made it to the second round. This year, he earned his spot through his performance on the CDC, where he won three of 14 tournaments. Gates has been seen mostly on the senior circuit in recent years, where he managed to win three of four televised tournaments in 2023. The winner of this match will face two-time major winner Nathan Aspinall in the second round.
Gerwyn Price v Keane Barry (R2)
The final match of the evening marks the return of Gerwyn Price to Ally Pally. 'The Iceman' is the 2021 world champion, but his performance has been nowhere near what we have come to expect from him. Price has had a disappointing season. Whereas from 2020 to 2023 he reached at least the quarter-finals at the World Championship, last year he already fell in the third round. Moreover, the Welshman did not manage to reach the last eight at any major this year and remained barren on the Pro Tour, something that had not happened to him since 2017.
His opponent is young Irishman Keane Barry, who impressed in the first round by beating Kim Huybrechts 3-1. Barry's finishing percentage of 50% was particularly noteworthy in this regard and indicates that he is ready to battle his Welsh opponent. This is Barry's sixth participation in the World Championship, and although he has never advanced beyond the second round, he seems stronger than ever this year.
Price and Barry have a history: they met four times before and each time Price won through. Their most recent meeting was at the 2023 European Darts Championship, where Price won convincingly, 6-1.
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The 96 participants at the 2025 World Darts Championship may divide as much as 2.5 million pounds between them. That amount is almost forty times higher than at the very first edition of the PDC World Championship in 1994.
The 64 participants to start in the first round of the World Darts Championship will receive £7500 in prize money anyway. The top-32 of the placement list are guaranteed 15,000 pounds. These players enter the World Darts Championship from the second round. The amount then increases further each round. The new world champion will receive the top prize of 500,000 pounds.
First round: Best of 5 sets
Second round: Best of 5 sets
Third round: Best of 7 sets
Fourth round: Best of 7 sets
Quarterfinals: Best of 9 sets
Semifinals: Best of 11 sets
Final: Best of 13 sets
In the first round, there will be no tiebreak if it is 2-2 after four legs in the fifth set. In that case, the fifth leg will be sudden-death. Starting from the second round, a tie-break rule will be applied in all matches; a deciding set must be won with a difference of two legs. If the score in the final set becomes 5-5, a sudden-death leg will still be played.
Monday, Dec. 16
Evening session (from 7 p.m.)
Niels Zonneveld v Robert Owen (R1)
Connor Scutt v Ben Robb (R1)
Cameron Menzies v Leonard Gates (R1)
Gerwyn Price v Keane Barry (R2)