SIMON WHITLOCK 5-2 Ross Smith
Simon Whitlock defeated Grand Slam of Darts debutant Ross Smith in his opening Group G game on Saturday afternoon.
The Australian, who was cruelly denied a place in the knockout stages of last year’s tournament on leg difference, enhanced his prospects of progressing with a comfortable victory in Wolverhampton.
“It’s a great result for me and I played really solid darts there,” said Whitlock, who is still to face Mark Webster and Wes Newton in the round robin.
“I got on top of Ross early on and held that advantage. It could have been a little bit better – leg difference cost me last year and I don’t want that to happen again. I need to continue my good form and concentrate on my next two games.”
Whitlock took out 68, 90 and 72 to race into a three-leg lead before Smith pulled one back.
The world number four moved further ahead with the help of a maximum but his opponent bedded double 16 to keep his hopes alive.
Whitlock, though, finished the job with a 56 finish to complete a 5-2 success.
By Chris Murphy