/180/: UNIBET MASTERS DAY 1

The 2017 PDC season kicks off tonight with the Unibet Masters from the soulless "new town" of Milton Keynes. As ITV picked up horse racing from Channel 4 this year, this means the top 16 players in the world of darts play over three days instead of two as it was previously. The bottom half of the draw plays today and the top half plays tomorrow.

Last year's runner-up to Michael van Gerwen - simple Dave Chisnall - starts the tournament alongside Dutch veteran Raymond van Barneveld. Assuming Barney actually follows up his promise of taking the year seriously after a largely disappointing 2016, the high-scoring Chizzy could be in trouble. The first Masters champion Phil Taylor is up next against petulant strop thrower Michael Smith; the Philth is out of the top 4 in the world for the first time in over 20 years and has hinted at retirement in a couple of years, so a swift exit to the still unfit for TV Blubby Boy would be handy. Two last 16 rematches from this year's Worlds end the evening as dethroned champion Gary Anderson faces young Benito van de Pas and "Scottish" clown Peter Wright plays Stoke dabber Ian White. Gando and Big Ben produced the highest quality round 3 match with a combined 211 average (Anderson reaching 108) while Diamond's sorry recent decline continued with a pathetic surrender to Wright.

Coverage starts at 7:00pm UK time on ITV4, although the brand new "The Darts Show" is on now.

>Tonight's matches (best of 19 legs)
Chizzy (7) v Barney (10)
Taylel (6) v Michael "Snackpot 2.0" Smith (11)
Gary "Big Game Counter" Anderson (2) v Benito van de Pas "the Dutchie on the left hand side" (15)
Snakeshite (3) v Ian "Three litres of Diamond" White (14)

After Glen Durrant hit D16 to win the Lakeside Worlds 12 days ago, over 450 players rocked up to Wigan's Robin Park Leisure Centre last weekend to qualify for the PDC ProTour at Q-School.

It was a "comeback" Q-School as a number of big names from years gone by reclaimed their Tour Card, including three time world champion John Part who qualified with a 2008 Worlds Final rematch against Kirk Shepherd (who himself qualified), Cwmparc coke boy Richie Burnett, paranoid delusional CIA agent Paul Nicholson and King of the Jobbers Ronnie Baxter.

The full list is in pic related. Most of these guys won't achieve much over the next 2 years.

>no new knob of the week

Has corey cadby retired?

Too many mushrooms to choose from.

>That OP thumnail looks like MVG is huffing a fucking massive bong.

Based Richie

Anyone watching "the darts show" on itv4?

Cadby's spending one more year in Australia before coming across to the UK.

Yeah. It's pretty good.

>mfw /180/ is back

Aww yiss Richie is back

I believe the arrogant sob, Cadby will be in the thick of the top 32 in a few years I dont have too many doubts. Probably the top 15.

Is he the eric bristow that darts is missing right now?

Yeah its kind of better than I expected, hopefully they dont overcook it as theres only so much you can talk about at the end of the day.

He's the bastard love child of Manley and Poois

And we're on now!

>A major announcment before that match

Could it be? Is Feel retiring?

>was feeling sad about /147/ ending
>/180/ is back outta nowhere

>Barry Hearn announces he will kill Taylor at the end of the match regardless of the result

>waiting to become FUTURE GOAT

I just hope its not Barney going to announce something like that, sounded like he might not be here after he got knocked out at the Worlds. Suicidal interview.

B A R N E Y

Daniella just gave me a stroke

Pls no

>that massive spot on Chizzy's forehead

DAT BULL 122

DAT CHIZZY 122!

Chizzy top 3 scorer on the planet

>dim dave
Nothing's changed then.

THAT BARNEY 10 DARTER!

>that chizzy doubling

>unicorn boards

>24
chizzy_throws_his_IQ.webm

>Jizzy

>Jizzy
>dizzy
Pick both

>chokenall in charge of doubles

>le lose 7 legs in a row man

Is jiz taking the piss?

>implying he has the intelligence to do that

>pissy jizzy does another missy

>no more "7"s

I miss the scoring power of the BDO already

>miss 15 darts at double
>still average 96
Sums up Chizzy really.

>taylor having a mic bit
>itv teasing it constantly
What is this wrestling?

HOLY SHIT

>wrestling
Nobody post THAT walk-on.

You know which one.

>this is Taylor's last year
I won't believe this until I see it.

Well...bye.

>Ive spoke to Barry
>Lets see what happens

FINALLY

>tfw you remember /180/ during the TWL year
>tfw we managed to survive long enough to hear him announcing he'll be gone soon

>You know which one.
No :^)

Muh trebles

Fatpot 2 to utterly smash the sex offender

Whats wrong with his face

16 TIMES
THE CHAMPION
OF THE
WOOOOOOOOORLD

>all those bazza plants wearing taylor shirts

[blubby implosion intensifies]

DAT OUTER INNER 91

BLUBBY ON TANTRUM WATCH

>taylor bull finish

the cruellest

>Taylol
Is this first round just going to have one player win the first two legs and then collapse?

>you are now aware this year's Premier League will be pushed as the Taylor Retirement League

>state of these cunts

Taylor/Smith or Rawling/Mason?

Everyone, players, crowd, comms, advert cunts the lot

It will be nice to see him get battered and drop out with the bottom pair.

>you now remember when Taylor was genuinely in with a chance of being eliminated in 2014

>last dart finish
classic taylor

TaylorWinsLOL

Retirement?

What retirement?

>Prakash Jiwa

legend

>gary plummer name drop
>name dropping shops
I won't miss these

>yfw he does the name drops while on comms

>taylor doing mid-match ads

>You are now imagining Taylor and Mardle on commentary at the same time

Much rather have Rod "Mr Charisma" Harrington on the comms than Philth

>that scenario

>Unicorn boards

Wonderful 130.

Benito getting banged.

Nice 128.

>gary manletson

DAT 142 TO WIN IT

lyl

*dabs*

WHAT THE FUCK IS IAN WHITE DOING THE ABSOLUTE MADMAN

>the state of this walk on

>unironically eating 8 burgers in a sitting

And then they dabbed

>hitting fat 1 twice
>Snakeshite

>more 100 averages in 4 matches of an unranked PDC event than in the entirety of Lakeside 2017

Fuck off justin

sorry, I couldn't resist

Its like we get it, the pdc has better players, obviously

>Ian Shite

DAT 116. WICKES ON SUICIDE WATCH

Wright having a nightmare on his setup shots.

>this picture of Taylor

Are we on in the afteroon tomorrow?

Evening session only again.

Has Wright been inhaling hairspray again?

And that D8 ends a fairly standard session of good action with only one upset in the seeding.

That upset came in the first match of the tournament as Dave Chisnall's continued inability to combine his high scoring with good finishing saw him exit The Masters three rounds earlier than last year as Raymond van Barneveld brought his Worlds form to Milton Keynes, checking out at 56%. Although Chizzy took the first two legs, opening the match with a wonderful 122 bull out, he missed six darts to go 3-1 ahead and eventually lost seven straight legs. Despite Chizzy getting back in the match after that, the ruthless seven leg streak from RVB had already killed him.

Phil Taylor's announcement to retire after the 2018 Worlds overshadowed a typical Taylor performance where he was tested by a for once resilient Michael Smith: the Groper kicked it off with a 133 finish and then a 91 bull out but Blubby won 4 straight legs (including a 2 dart 100). The match went back and forth before the key moment: a single dart at tops missed by Smith for 6-6 saw Taylor hit D7 and the Philth only dropped one more leg.

Gary Anderson put in the performance of the evening as he showed no mercy in a 10-3 pummelling of Benito van de Pas - a five leg streak from 3-2 up that included a 130 out all but decided the match and despite Big Ben hitting a 128 finish to win his third leg, Gando bettered it with a 142 to win, ending with a 110 average and 56% finishing rate.

Peter Wright had a very scrappy match against Ian White that saw both men play at their best and worst: a noticeably off-form Snakebite was just too much for the very inconsistent Diamond, but if Wright plays like that against Philth on Sunday, he's not winning.

We return tomorrow at 7:00pm with these matches:

>Mensur Suljovic (8) v Jelle Klaasen (9)
>James Wade (5) v Robert Thornton (12)
>Michael van Gerwen (1) v Simon Whitlock (16)
>Adrian Lewis (4) v Kim Huybrechts (13)

See you then.