Luke Humphries began his bid for a second BOYLE Sports World Grand Prix title with victory over Nathan Aspinall on Monday’s opening night, as Gary Anderson edged out Raymond van Barneveld in a battle of the darting icons.
Humphries won through a blockbuster clash against 2022 runner-up Aspinall on Day One of the double-start showpiece, as three seeded stars suffered early exits at Leicester’s Mattioli Arena.
The world number one defied a spectacular 170 checkout from Aspinall to win a hard-fought opening set, before powering in a magnificent 156 of his own en route to a straight-sets success.
“It was a big game tonight,” reflected 2023 champion Humphries, also the runner-up 12 months ago.
“Nathan is a fantastic player, but he let me in a couple of times, and that 156 was massive for myself.
“My starting doubles were good and they usually are here. My scoring wasn’t as strong, but hopefully I can come back on Wednesday and be better.”
Humphries will be joined in round two by 2016 runner-up Anderson, who edged out his old adversary Van Barneveld in a last-leg thriller to book his place in round two.
Van Barneveld withstood an early barrage from Anderson to force a deciding set, only for the Scot to produce a late flurry to create a showdown against 2023 semi-finalist Joe Cullen.
Cullen returned to winning ways on the big stage with a clinical 2-0 win against James Wade, pinning six of his 11 darts at a finishing double to dump out the two-time champion.
Stephen Bunting produced the performance of Monday’s opening night, however, averaging 97, landing five 180s and converting 116 and 130 finishes in his straight-sets win over Niko Springer.
Bunting will now play Danny Noppert in round two, after the Dutch number two landed a 158 checkout to complete a terrific comeback against his fellow countryman Jermaine Wattimena.
Earlier in the night, Rob Cross edged out debutant Wessel Nijman in a dramatic start to this year’s tournament, surviving a match dart at the bull in the decider to complete a hard-fought victory.
Nijman outscored Cross for large periods of the contest, but the 2017/18 World Champion delivered on the outer ring, pinning eight of his 16 attempts at a finishing double to progress.
Cameron Menzies awaits Cross in round two, after the Scottish star registered his first victory on the World Grand Prix stage with an impressive straight-sets win against 2019 semi-finalist Chris Dobey.
Elsewhere, Krzysztof Ratajski raced through to round two with a dominant victory against German number one Martin Schindler.
Ratajski conceded a solitary leg to triumph with an impressive 95.94 average, although he now faces an ominous assignment against Humphries for a place in the quarter-finals.
Round One will conclude on Tuesday, as Mike De Decker opens his title defence against two-time World Champion Peter Wright.
Luke Littler and Gian van Veen will lock horns in a blockbuster clash, while Michael van Gerwen begins his bid for a seventh double-start crown against his fellow countryman Dirk van Duijvenbode.
Former champions Gerwyn Price, Jonny Clayton and Daryl Gurney also enter the fray, as they take on Ryan Searle, Andrew Gilding and Ross Smith respectively.
The BOYLE Sports World Grand Prix is being broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK, through the PDC's worldwide broadcast partners including DAZN and Viaplay, and on PDCTV (excluding UK, Germany, Austria & Switzerland based subscribers).
Click here for match stats & results.
2025 BOYLE Sports World Grand Prix
Schedule of Play
Monday October 6
8x Round One matches
Rob Cross 2-1 Wessel Nijman
Krzysztof Ratajski 2-0 Martin Schindler
Cameron Menzies 2-0 Chris Dobey
Joe Cullen 2-0 James Wade
Danny Noppert 2-1 Jermaine Wattimena
Luke Humphries 2-0 Nathan Aspinall
Gary Anderson 2-1 Raymond van Barneveld
Stephen Bunting 2-0 Niko Springer
Tuesday October 7 (1800 BST)
8x Round One matches
Damon Heta v Luke Woodhouse
Ross Smith v Daryl Gurney
Jonny Clayton v Andrew Gilding
Gerwyn Price v Ryan Searle
Luke Littler v Gian van Veen
Michael van Gerwen v Dirk van Duijvenbode
Peter Wright v Mike De Decker
Josh Rock v Ryan Joyce