US Darts Masters 2023 | Day One Preview and Order of Play
The 2023 US Darts Masters commences in New York on Friday as the eight PDC representatives face off against North American opposition at Madison Square Garden.
A selection of the sport’s biggest names will battle it out at the Hulu Theater from June 2-3 in the fifth edition of the World Series event.
The PDC representatives will each take on a North American qualifier in Round One as they look to avoid an early exit.
World number one Michael Smith begins the defence of his title with a clash against Canada’s Jim Long.
Little over a week after being crowned World Champion at Alexandra Palace, Smith picked up his third World Series title in Bahrain and will be keen to add to that tally this weekend.
Smith was beaten in the Semi-Finals of the Premier League at The O2 last Thursday and starts his campaign here against 55-year-old Long – who finished runner-up in the recent CDC Cross Border Challenge.
Michael van Gerwen returns to action for the first time since securing a record seventh Premier League title as he takes on TV debutant Jake Macmillan.
Van Gerwen is the record 17-time World Series event winner and was US Masters champion when the event was held in Las Vegas in 2017.
Factory worker Macmillan is one of three CDC qualifiers in the line-up and will be out to make a name for himself on his first outing on a televised stage.
Reigning World Series Finals champion Gerwyn Price opens up with a tie against home favourite Jules van Dongen – one of three PDC Tour Card holders among the North American contingent.
Price was beaten in the final of the Premier League last Thursday and has reached the final in five of his last six World Series appearances, winning two.
Van Dongen gave a strong account of himself in last year’s US Masters, going down 6-4 to Van Gerwen, and will represent the USA in the upcoming World Cup of Darts.
Peter Wright, four times a World Series event winner, has been handed a tough opening test against 2016 Lakeside finalist Jeff Smith.
Wright claimed glory in the most recent World Series event – the Nordic Masters – in January and will be out to bounce back from a miserable Premier League campaign which saw him finish bottom of the table.
Canadian ace Smith stormed to the CDC Cross Border Challenge title last month, dropping just two legs in his four wins along the way.
Rob Cross aims to pick up from where he left off at last weekend’s European Grand Prix when he meets debutant Jason Brandon.
Cross claimed his first European Tour title in Sindelfingen last Sunday and will open up against Tennessee’s Brandon – who won a North American qualifier last month to secure his televised debut.
Arguably the stand-out tie of the First Round sees 2019 US Masters champion Nathan Aspinall take on North America’s top-ranked star – Matt Campbell.
Aspinall picked up his sole World Series title in Vegas four years ago and has enjoyed a strong season so far, narrowly missing out on a place in the Premier League play-offs and reaching a European Tour final.
Campbell, a ProTour event finalist last season, has featured in five Euro Tour events this term and notably defeated Callan Rydz and Joe Cullen route to the Last 16 of the recent Belgian Open.
Luke Humphries, four times a Euro Tour runner-up in 2023, faces a tricky opener against Alex Spellman – the 2022 CDC Continental Cup winner making his World Series debut.
Dimitri van den Bergh, one of only eight players to have won multiple World Series titles, meets 27-year-old Ohio thrower JT Davis.
The action gets under way from 7pm local time (12am BST), with First Round matches to be contested over the best of 11 legs.
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US Darts Masters 2023 Day One Schedule
All times BST (local time +5 hours)
Friday June 2
First Round
12am-4am
Rob Cross v Jason Brandon
Dimitri Van den Bergh v JT Davis
Luke Humphries v Alex Spellman
Nathan Aspinall v Matt Campbell
Gerwyn Price v Jules van Dongen
Peter Wright v Jeff Smith
Michael Smith v Jim Long
Michael van Gerwen v Jake Macmillan
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