RAYMOND VAN BARNEVELD was a 6-3 winner over Germany's Martin Schindler as the European Darts Open kicked off on Friday afternoon, with Mark Dudbridge, Stephen Bunting, Michael Smith, Kevin Painter and James Wade amongst the winners in Dusseldorf.
The £100,000 European Tour event's first round saw play split across two stages at the Maritim Hotel as the tournament's 32 qualifiers competed for spots alongside the seeded stars in round two.
Five-time World Champion van Barneveld - the 2012 winner in Dusseldorf - enjoyed a 6-3 win over German qualifier Schindler as he progressed to a tasty tie with Simon Whitlock.
James Wade, the Gibraltar Darts Trophy champion a fortnight ago, battled past Christian Kist in an 11-leg battle which went with throw throughout, as the Dutchman hit an 11-dart finish to force a decider, only for the left-hander to post a maximum before finishing 80 for the win.
Kevin Painter averaged 100.20 in a fine whitewash of PDC Unicorn World Youth Champion Keegan Brown as he moved through to meet Steve Beaton, the Gibraltar Darts Trophy runner-up.
Former World Youth Champion Michael Smith saw off Dean Winstanley 6-2 and now takes on Peter Wright in the last 32, while Stephen Bunting's reward for winning against Germany's Michael Hurtz by the same scoreline is a second round tie with Jamie Caven.
Darren Webster now faces Andy Hamilton after he edged out Ronnie Baxter in a deciding leg, while Andy Smith swept past Johnny Haines 6-1 to set up a clash with Robert Thornton.
Former World Championship finalist and World Masters winner Mark Dudbridge hit a ten-darter and averaged 101 in a fine 6-4 win over Jay Foreman, as he moves through to play reigning champion Michael van Gerwen in round two.
Germany's Michael Rosenauer ensured that home hopes were kept alive going into the second round with a 6-5 win over Austrian qualifier Mensur Suljovic, who had come from 5-3 down to force a decider.
Another Host Nation Qualifier, debutant Arman Ertur, was defeated in a deciding leg as World Youth Championship finalist Rowby-John Rodriguez came from 4-1 down to edge through to a clash with Justin Pipe.
Benito van de Past - who knocked out van Gerwen in the Gibraltar Darts Trophy - again impressed as he whitewashed Belgian ace Ronny Huybrechts in under 13 minutes to move through to face reigning Coral UK Open champion Adrian Lewis.
Another Dutch youngster, Ryan De Vreede, moved through to play Ronny Huybrechts after enjoying a 6-4 win over Scotland's Gary Stone, while Jamie Lewis' 6-1 defeat of Chris Aubrey means that he now faces Brendan Dolan.
Darren Johnson will take on Mervyn King in the second round after defeating Jelle Klaasen 6-2, while Dennis Smith's 6-4 win over William O'Connor means that he now takes on Wes Newton.
Welshman Gerwyn Price enjoyed a winning debut on the European Tour as he defeated Colin Lloyd 6-2, meaning that he now meets January's German Darts Championship winner Gary Anderson in round two.
The tournament continues with the third round being held on Saturday night, before Sunday afternoon's decisive final session features the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final.
The European Darts Open will be streamed live online worldwide through the websites listed below.
Live Coverage
Bet365 - www.bet365.com
Coral - www.coral.co.uk
Ladbrokes - www.ladbrokes.com
Unibet - www.unibet.com
William Hill - www.williamhill.com
To view live coverage, fans must be registered with the respective website listed above
LIVEPDC.TV - www.LIVEPDC.TV for all subscribers outside of the UK & Ireland.
Live Scores will be available through the PDC Live Scores Website, http://live.dartsdata.com .
European Darts Open
European Tour Event Six
Maritim Hotel, Dusseldorf
Friday July 11
Afternoon Session
First Round
Main Stage
Martin Schindler 3-6 Raymond van Barneveld
Jay Foreman 4-6 Mark Dudbridge
Michael Hurtz 2-6 Stephen Bunting
Dean Winstanley 2-6 Michael Smith
Ronnie Baxter 5-6 Darren Webster
Kevin Painter 6-0 Keegan Brown
Christian Kist 5-6 James Wade
Johnny Haines 1-6 Andy Smith
Stage Two
Ronny Huybrechts 0-6 Benito van de Pas
Ryan de Vreede 6-4 Gary Stone
Jamie Lewis 6-1 Chris Aubrey
Michael Rosenauer 6-5 Mensur Suljovic
Darren Johnson 6-2 Jelle Klaasen
Dennis Smith 6-4 William O'Connor
Gerwyn Price 6-2 Colin Lloyd
Arman Ertur 5-6 Rowby-John Rodriguez
Click here for Second Round Results & Round-Up