Austrian Darts Open: Draw and details of PDC latest European Tour leg
Austrian Darts Open: Draw and details of PDC latest European Tour leg originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here . The draw for the upcoming PDC Austrian Darts Open has been announced – the twelfth staging of the event and, for the first time, the Stadthalle Graz is set to play host.
As is par for the course on Euro Tour events, the PDC have utilised the reserve list. Following Jonny Clayton’s decision to withdraw, Madars Razma was first in line and will now face Dirk van Duijvenbode on Friday evening. Prior to the draw, a number of would-be seeds opted not to compete.
Therefore, a plethora of star players will be absent: Luke Littler, Luke Humphries, Stephen Bunting, Gerwyn Price, Gary Anderson and Nathan Aspinall. Including The Ferret, that means seven arrow-smiths have been bumped up, subsequently picking up an additional £1,500 and beginning their campaigns on Saturday. MORE ELITE DARTS COVERAGE: Check Out Our Devoted PDC Area Dutch youngster Gian van Veen is the highest-ranked player in the field.
With the pair of Lukes skipping this trip to Austria, the reigning European Champion takes the top seed spot and awaits either compatriot Van Duijvenbode or call-up man Razma. With Clayton not taking part, that leaves just two competitors in the field who have previously claimed this crown. Unsurprisingly, Michael van Gerwen is one of them, having lifted the title on five occasions.
The other is Martin Schindler, who arrives in Graz as the tournament’s defending champion. MVG faces the prospect of a dangerous opener against the in-form Krzysztof Ratajski, assuming The Polish Eagle gets past whichever Host Nation Qualifier is thrown his way. For Schindi, it is a similar scenario – either Peter Wright or Snakebite’s local opponent, who will be determined on Thursday.
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