Night Two of the PDC Winmau World Masters brought a mix of intriguing action from start to finish as the round of 32 concluded in Milton Keynes.
Both the World no. 1 Luke Littler and the reigning World Masters champion Luke Humphries were in action as part of a star-studded night of darts.
MATCH 1: Luke Woodhouse vs Martin Schindler
Coming into this encounter, Luke Woodhouse was looking to make a strong impression on debut at the Masters, whereas Martin Schindler was in search of a first win in Milton Keynes after being denied by sensational showings in the two years prior.
Both men came close to a statement start, missing the bullseye for a 124 and 121 out respectively. Woodhouse took the leg from there and took out a sensational 136 finish to take the opening set.
The German started the second set well, hitting a maximum on his way to taking the opening leg. However, ‘Woody’ responded fantastically well, taking out consecutive 14-dart legs to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
The final set of the match saw more of the same brilliance from Luke. A 171 score laid the path for a 13-dart hold of throw, before a 180 did the same for a 14-dart break of throw to conclude a straight set win on debut for Woodhouse.
It was yet another showing of brilliance against Martin Schindler at the Masters with Woodhouse averaging over 108 in victory, and ‘The Wall’ will be forced to wait another year for his maiden victory in the competition.
Result: Luke Woodhouse 3-0 Martin Schindler
MATCH 2: Ross Smith vs Jimmy Van Schie
After claiming his tour card earlier this month, the current WDF world champion Jimmy Van Schie was eager to impress in this contest against Ross Smith.
The Dutchman got off to a perfect start, breaking Smith’s throw in 10 darts. Smith answered back with an immediate break and then took home the opening set with a 16-dart hold of throw, defying the 103 average of van Schie.
In set two, Van Schie took out double 18 for a second time to hold his throw. ‘Smudger’ levelled things with a messy 19 dart hold, before an equally messy last leg went the way of the Dutchman to level the match at 1-1.
The third set started similarly to the first for Jimmy, going out in 14 darts to break the throw in the opening leg. Smith responded just as well however, hitting a sensational 150 checkout to level things before closing out the set in the third leg.
The fourth set started quietly with back-to-back holds of throw before a final leg full of drama graced us. Both men hit maximums before an action-packed finishing sequence which saw a dart bounce out of the bullseye for Van Schie.
The Dutchman would then miss a further two darts for the set as Ross Smith crawled over the line to claim a 3-1 win and see himself through to round two.
Result: Ross Smith 3-1 Jimmy Van Schie
Match 3: Daryl Gurney vs Danny Noppert
Danny Noppert was looking for a strong start to his major campaign for 2026 after being controversially left out of the Premier League, and that was exactly what he got.
In fact, both Noppert and Daryl Gurney started well in leg one with a maximum each early on. Danny checked out 103 to take the first leg in 12 darts, then put the second leg away in 14 darts for a sensational opening average of over 115.
The power scoring continued for both men, who hit a 180 each in their first visit of set two. Both men would then miss a dart for a ton plus finish before Noppert stayed firm to break the throw in the opener of the set.
Gurney responded well, breaking straight back and then taking the set in a final leg in which both men missed the bullseye to win it previously.
‘Superchin’ missed a second chance at the bullseye for a 161 out in the opening leg of set three but won the leg regardless to break the throw. The bullseye was missed for a third time in as many legs for Gurney, who this time was punished as ‘The Freeze’ took the leg, then the set with a 105 checkout.
Danny Noppert closed out the match well, responding to an early hold of throw from Daryl with a 14-dart hold and a 13-dart break to take the set and match. Averaging just shy of a ton here, Danny will be keen to improve on his semi-final performance in the Masters as we go on.
Result: Daryl Gurney 3-1 Danny Noppert
MATCH 4: Ryan Searle vs Rob Cross
After a sensational World Championship campaign which saw Ryan Searle win 17 consecutive sets on the way to the semi-finals, the new world no. 8 came into this one with high hopes.
Things did not get off to a good start however. Rob Cross took the opening leg with a 13-dart break of throw, before closing set one out after Searle missed three darts at tops.
Set two started with a similar lack of quality to the first as the first two legs were won in 21 and 20 darts respectively. Things kicked into gear in the deciding leg, as ‘Voltage’ defied a 180 from Searle with a fantastic 113 checkout to go 2-0 up.
The pace increased another gear in the opener of set three with a nine-dart attempt. ‘Heavy Metal’ went seven darts into the nine, missing the treble 19 but securing a 10-dart leg regardless.
Cross took a sloppy second leg of the set, before Ryan held firm to secure a 15-dart hold of throw and get a first set on the board.
In a match of inconsistency, set four was pure class throughout. First, Searle hit two maximums on his way to an 11-dart leg. Cross responded in a near-identical fashion, picking up two maximums of his own for an 11-dart leg to break back.
The match was closed out in 16 darts by Cross, and the 2023 Masters finalist continued on to round two.
Result: Ryan Searle 3-1 Rob Cross
MATCH 5: Josh Rock vs Connor Scutt
After a 4-0 loss to the eventual champion Luke Humphries last year, Josh Rock was looking to make a greater impact on the World Masters this time around.
The first set of this contest was relatively standard. Three straight holds of throw saw Connor Scutt take the opening set over ‘Rocky’.
The second set of the contest went to Josh Rock, but not without concern. After missing six darts at the outer ring in the first set, the Northern Irishman missed a further five here as he nervily took the set.
Set three was much better all round for ‘Rocky’. The first leg went Rock’s way with a 15-dart break, before a comfortable 13-dart hold after a missed dart for a 170 saw Rock take a 2-1 lead over ‘The Sniper’.
The pressure continued to pile on Scutt with a 180 leading to a 16 dart hold from Josh Rock. The Englishman missed 3 darts in the second leg of this set to extend the match, and Rock confirmed his place in round two with a 3-1 win in sets.
Result: Josh Rock 3-1 Connor Scutt
MATCH 6: Luke Littler vs Mike De Decker
When factoring in their respective World Championship campaigns, most people thought that Luke Littler would cruise to victory over Mike De Decker, but things weren’t quite that easy.
Littler got off to a stormer in leg one, hitting two 180s as he took the leg and then the first set in confident fashion, averaging over 103 in the process.
The comfort ended there however, as Mike De Decker took the second set of the match. The first leg of that set was standard procedure, but a 12-dart break of throw with a 121 checkout on the bullseye set the standard well.
Littler really started to struggle at this point, missing the bullseye for a 130 and then a further two darts at double 10 as ‘The Real Deal’ took the first leg of set three with a break. Despite a maximum from Luke, he was unable to break back as De Decker took a 2-1 lead in sets.
Throwing for the match in set four, Mike got off to a perfect start as he held throw. In an astonishing change of pace, Luke Littler missed double 15 for a nine-dart leg before cleaning up in 10 to put the pressure back on.
Littler stormed ahead in the deciding leg of set four and looked to be well back in it. However, another huge scare came as Mike De Decker agonisingly missed double 11 to win the match with a 142. ‘The Nuke’ kept his cool and closed the set out to send us all the way.
Despite all the earlier drama, the final set was composed and confident from the world no. 1. Littler won the final set 2-0 to win the match after Mike missed the bullseye for a 161 to force a last leg decider.
The World Champion will undoubtedly be breathing a massive sigh of relief after this one and may consider himself lucky to be moving on to round two.
Result: Luke Littler 3-2 Mike De Decker
MATCH 7: Luke Humphries vs Dave Chisnall
Next up was the reigning World Masters champion Luke Humphries, who won the title last year in a dramatic final against Welshman Jonny Clayton. His opponent was Dave Chisnall as he looked to get his title defence off to a good start.
Early on things seemed to be getting away from ‘Chizzy’, as Humphries took the first leg and was well ahead in the second after a double bounce-out from Chisnall. However, after a host of missed doubles, Chisnall found a way back into the set and ended up taking it 2-1.
The former world champion was in no mood to give up any further liberties as he took the second set in style with consecutive 12-dart legs.
The third set began with a leg where Humphries hit two maximums as part of a 15-dart hold of throw. After being pegged back by Chisnall in the second leg, Humphries took the third emphatically with an 11-darter.
The fourth set started off with a second 11-dart leg for the world no. 2 as he went one leg away from victory. Some trouble on the outer ring gave ‘Chizzy’ some hope, but in the end, Humphries closed things out on double four to take home a 3-1 win.
With an average of over 104 and seven 180s hit, Luke Humphries cruised through to round two in a great contrast to his counterpart Luke Littler.
Result: Luke Humphries 3-1 Dave Chisnall
MATCH 8: Stephen Bunting vs Jeffrey de Graaf
To close the night out, 2024 Masters champion Stephen Bunting was in action against Jeffrey De Graaf.
The opening set of the contest was a tame one. Bunting broke the throw in the first leg and then held in 20 darts to take the first set as both players struggled to get going.
De Graaf answered back somewhat comfortably, taking the second set by the same scoreline to get the game back on throw.
The quality of the encounter picked up at this point. The Swede held his throw in the first leg with a maximum but was knocked back well as ‘The Bullet’ put away back-to-back 13-dart legs to take a 2-1 lead.
To close off a cagey encounter, Stephen Bunting brought some composure and excellence when it was needed. The world no. 7 held his throw after a shaky start in the first leg, before winning the best leg of the match in 12 darts to progress into the last 16.
Result: Stephen Bunting 3-1 Jeffrey de Graaf