Ladbrokes Masters: tournament preview, where to watch and free tips

Where to watch

ITV4, 7pm Friday

Best bet

G Price
2pts each-way 13-2 general

M Suljovic
1pt each-way 50-1 Hills

Tournament preview

Gerwyn Price narrowly missed out on the fantasy finish to a dream year but the self-proclaimed best player on the planet can kick off 2020 by getting back in the winner’s enclosure at the Ladbrokes Masters.

Gezzy enjoyed a stellar 2019, picking up five titles including the Grand Slam and duly went to Alexandra Palace second favourite for the world title and identified as the man most likely to bring Michael van Gerwen to his knees.

In fact it was Peter Wright who wielded the axe, beating both the Iceman and the Green Machine, hence it’s the Scot who has leapfrogged the Welshman in the betting for this seasonal curtain-raiser in Milton Keynes.

It means there’s some 13-2 around for Price, who should be able to bully Simon Whitlock into submission in a real grudge match in round one before taking on either Gary Anderson or Ian White, neither of whom would fill Gezzy with dread.

But then no one bothers Price, not even Van Gerwen since their semi-final showdown at November’s Grand Slam, a match the Welshman won 16-12 to snap an 18-game winless run against the world number one.

So now Price and Wright have both banished demons regarding Van Gerwen, who will be desperately keen to hit straight back and put them in their place at the Marshall Arena in an event he has dominated.

Van Gerwen goes off at 6-5 to make it six Masters titles in a row and that’s massive compared to the 8-13 quotes which accompanied him on to the oche 12 months ago.

However, his efforts at Alexandra Palace weren’t the best and on that form alone it's hard to trust him, even at a shade of odds-against. It’s not as though it’s a weak field.

Van Gerwen is in the same half of the draw as Nathan Aspinall, Rob Cross and Michael Smith all of whom, given a good day, could take down the Dutch darting demigod.

In the top half Mensur Suljovic could be worth a chance at a big price, especially with Cross going through a seriously inconsistent patch and Smith struggling with a back problem.

Suljovic meets Bully Boy in round one and boasts a winning head-to-head record against a player who rarely seems to enjoy playing at the Austrian’s pace.

The Gentle, dumped out of the William Hill World Championship by Fallon Sherrock, was having a decent end to 2019 – two wins and a run to the last four of the World Series of Darts – before succumbing to girl power at the Palace.

But he hasn’t become a bad player overnight and looks overpriced at 50-1.

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