Schedule Saturday evening session 2024 Masters including Van Gerwen-Dobey, Smith-Van den Bergh, Humphries and Aspinall
PDC
Saturday night sees a first this season at least for now as the whole Premier League Darts line-up will not be playing at the 2024 Masters unlike Bahrain and Den Bosch. Four of the stars of the weekly darting roadshow will be though.
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The on-running saga on social media has been fans not realising that Luke Littler isn't playing who brought new eyes aplenty onto the sport during the World Championship. But four of the top names including the World Champion are involved.
The World Champion too in Luke Humphries likely won't have to deal with whistling like he did against Littler, albeit he may not get the fans favourite reaction with him facing Stephen Bunting who came through a dramatic tie with Ross Smith on Friday night. The darling of the crowd at the Ally Pally after becoming a social media star, he will aim to stir up the crowd in Milton Keynes again.
While Michael van Gerwen will aim to reclaim a crown in his collection that he has won five times, but not since 2019 with a myriad of different winners sealing it since his dominance was broken during the COVID era. He won it five times on the spin, but not in five years. He starts his campaign though against a thorn in his side as of late in Chris Dobey. The defending champion may see a route through if he can dump out the Dutch Machine again.
While before the crowd go Bunting Mental, Nathan Aspinall as ever with his Mr Brightside walk-on will aim to act as a starter to the night. Not at his best himself, he faces Dirk van Duijvenbode though who exclaimed a roar after taking down Ryan Searle after really suffering with injury. Van Duijvenbode likely now sees it as a free hit and that could be dangerous for 'The Asp'. But as we know, never count him out.
Same can be said for Michael Smith who will be full of confidence after winning the night in Cardiff. He faces Dimitri van den Bergh who showed glimmers of form in Den Bosch and took that into Friday when he wiped the floor with James Wade. A shock incoming or can 'Bully Boy' continue his Premier League confidence boost into Milton Keynes.
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No longer the warm-up for the big roadshow, the season really begins here on Saturday night albeit for the big guns, it is already a third tournament. Darts eh? The shortest off season in sport strikes again.
Evening session (from 7 p.m.)
Second round
Nathan Aspinall v Dirk van Duijvenbode
Luke Humphries v Stephen Bunting
Michael van Gerwen v Chris Dobey
Michael Smith v Dimitri Van den Bergh
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Based in Leicester, Samuel has extensive experience in darts media and has been closely involved in coverage of the professional darts circuit for several years. Within the UK darts community, he is a recognised figure known for his consistent editorial output and ongoing reporting on major tournaments and developments across the PDC calendar.
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- Well,I suppose if you don't play the tournaments ,then why should any player qualify? There are players who enter every tournament,and if they don't win it,they carry on, spending money they haven't won,yet certain players seem to think they should qualify. Winners only I thinkrick6714-11-2026
- Everyone knows what a fantastic champion Taylor was,but his performances in the seniors were poor. He wouldn't throw littler off stage,as he'd miss these days!!rick6712-11-2026
- He produced some impressive numbers in that qualifying campaign. I'm excited to see him compete at the World Championship once again, even if it will be difficult to replicate last year's success even with an improved performance, with the draw playing a huge role in determining his fortunes.Deduce635811-11-2026
- I often think about this very question. I think they should revive the format. They could even invite representatives from MODUS Super Series, with four series winners from the past year, and the ADC, with finalists from the Global Championship and perhaps other events. Why not throw in eligible representatives from the JDC and even the soft-tip game too?Deduce635811-11-2026
- So what if littler missed out, he doesnt have to enter everythingant10-11-2026
- Good, absolutely no loss if we never see this dancing goof ever again......no that is not fair. He absolutely cannot and has never been remotely able to dance!richieburnettrocks10-11-2026
- Yes Phil,now the money in the game is bigger than ever,you'd play littler. Well so would I! Retire on your memory Phil,and your successful careerrick6709-11-2026
- And why should he listen to you?Deduce635807-11-2026
- Ultimately it is a bye for whoever draws Barney. It will be another stroppy and sulky performance once he goes behind. Barney was excellent but really must completely call it a day now.richieburnettrocks07-11-2026
- I'm disappointed he was not able to secure a spot at the Grand Slam. With Carl Sneyd taking care of Daryl Gurney, he would have had to beat Andy Boulton before facing the winner of Sneyd vs Mensur Suljović for a Grand Slam spot. Unfortunately, after beating Filip Bereza comfortably, he succumbed to Boulton, and the board would ultimately be won by the highly inconsistent Carl Sneyd. Since he could instead have been drawn against the likes of Cristo Reyes, Dirk van Duijvenbode and Stephen Bunting, I think once Gurney was out of the picture he would have been favourite to win his board, and it seems like a massive missed opportunity to put 5 grand on his ranking and seal another major TV appearance ahead of the Worlds. The highs and lows of following Raymond van Barneveld!Deduce635806-11-2026