The Grand Slam of Darts is one of the most exciting tournaments in the world of PDC darts and this year’s event did not disappoint. We saw the best run from a female competitor in the history of the event with Fallon Sherrock’s fairy-tale run, with some thrilling games along the way. There were also some fantastic runs from the likes of Michael Van Gerwen and Peter Wright.
Grand Slam of Darts Roundup
There were some twists and turns in the Grand Slam this year with some incredible matches in the group stages, here is a rundown of all of the results.
Group Stage (Best of 9 Legs)
Group A
- Gerwyn Price (1) – Last 16
- Nathan Rafferty – Last 16
- Krzysztof Ratajski
- Martin Schindler
The Red Dragon man, Gerwyn Price zoomed through the group stage, topping the group with Nathan Rafferty picking up second place, putting them both through to the last 16. Ratajski was unlucky not to get through, having double trouble towards the end of his matches. Schindler was just not able to get started quickly enough, landing him at the bottom of the group
Group B
- Jonny Clayton (8) – Last 16
- Bradley Brooks – Last 16
- Mervyn King
- Rusty-Jake Rodriguez
The Ferret had an outstanding being only one of three players to go unbeaten in the round robin stage. Bradley Brooks, a player that made his start in the JDC , took second spot to make his first Grand Slam last 16 appearance. The King was unlucky to miss out on a last 16 spot by missing crucial darts at key moments while Rusty-Jake Rodriguez had a tournament to forget, ending the group stage on 0 points, although the young player can take away from vital experience on the big stage.
Group C
- James Wade (4) – Last 16
- Rob Cross – Last 16
- Jim Williams
- Boris Krcmar
James Wade was once again in fine form, but not quite hitting the heights of some of his previous performances this year, still landing him a spot in the last 16. Rob Cross looked to be in fine form with some great matches sealing his place in the knockout stages. Jim Willians was extremely unfortunate to be out of the Grand Slam, with Rob Cross going through with +1 leg difference to Jim. Boris Krcmar couldn’t get going this year, leaving Wolverhampton on 0 points.
Group D
- Ryan Joyce – Last 16
- Rowby-John Rodriguez – Last 16
- Chris Dobey*
- Stephen Bunting
*Dobey stepped in for Dimitri Van den Bergh after Dimi tested positive for Covid-19.
Ryan Joyce proved once again why he is one of the best darts players on the big stage, with some great performances under pressure. Rowby-John Rodriguez, (Rusty-Jake’s older brother) showed some class, getting him into the last 16. Chris Dobey had some good opportunities but could not capitalise, ending his run in the Grand Slam. Most shockingly, the Target Darts man Stephen Bunting, World Championship Semi-Finalist, ended up at the bottom of Group D after a plethora of missed doubles.
Group E
- Peter Wright (2) – Last 16
- Fallon Sherrock – Last 16
- Gabriel Clemens
- Mike De Decker
Peter Wright came into this tournament saying he can win it and his group stage performances certainly looked the part, finishing the group stage top of the pile. Fallon Sherrock was the talk of the tournament after her outstanding performance against Gabriel Clemens, coming from 3-1 down to win the match 5-3 on a 170 finish, by far one of the best matches we’ve seen at the Grand Slam. Gabriel’s place in the last 16 was snatched away by Fallon after an inspired performance. Mike De Decker didn’t have the best of times in wolverhampton, leaving the Grand Slam on 0 points.
Group F
- Mensur Suljovic – Last 16
- Jose de Sousa (7) – Last 16
- Luke Humphries
- Matt Campbell
Mensur gave us a reminder of why he is still one of the most dangerous players on the circuit after clinical victories in the round robin stage. Defending champion Jose de Sousa ended up second putting him through to the last 16 after getting a vital leg against Luke Humpries. Matt Campbell was another player who couldn’t find joy after crashing out on 0pts.
Group G
- Michael van Gerwen (3) – Last 16
- Joe Cullen – Last 16
- John Henderson
- Lisa Ashton
In Group G, Michael Van Gerwen took the top spot, looking very much like the old MVG, winning 3 out of 3 with a leg difference of +12. Joe Cullen managed to land the second spot to secure his place in the knockout stages. John Henderson was unlucky, not being able to hit the ground running and Lisa Ashton once again had a Grand Slam to forget, crashing out of her 7th Grand Slam in the group stage once again.
Group H
- Michael Smith – Last 16
- Gary Anderson (6) – Last 16
- Raymond van Barneveld
- Joe Davis
Michael Smith looked on track to win his first major title after some excellent accounts of himself in Group H, ending the group with 3 wins. Gary Anderson once again showed his class ending up in second, sealing his place in the knockout stages. The Target Darts man, Raymond had a chance to get through, but Gary was too much for him to handle, although he will appreciate being on the big stage once again. Joe Davis was suffering with tennis elbow and could not play to the best of his ability, although he did take 3 legs from Michael Smith after some double trouble.
Last 16 (Best of 19 Legs)
- Ryan Joyce 4-10 Rob Cross
- James Wade 10-1 Rowby-John Rodriguez
- Gerwyn Price 10-8 Bradley Brooks
- Johnny Clayton 10-2 Nathan Rafferty
Rob Cross was just too much for Ryan Joyce to handle, seeming to be in the form of the past when he won his world title. James Wade demolished Rowby-John in impressive fashion, with RJR taking only one leg. Gerwyn Price showed everyone why he is world champion and world number 1 in an impressive victory over an inspired Bradley Brooks Finally, Johnny Clayton was too hot to handle for Nathan Rafferty, letting the young player have only 2 legs.
- Michael Smith 10-5 Joe Cullen
- Peter Wright 10-9 Jose de Sousa
- Fallon Sherrock 10-5 Mensur Suljovic
- Michael Van Gerwen 10-8 Gary Anderson
Michael Smith continued his hopes for a first major with a convincing victory over Joe Cullen. Peter Wright sent the defending champion crashing out after an outstanding performance under immense pressure. Once again though, the talk of the last 16 was Fallon Sherrock, once again knocking Mensur out of a major tournament with a history-making win. MVG v Gary Anderson was the spectacle we all hoped it would be with 14 180s and both players averaging over 100. MVG took the match after Anderson blinked, sealing his place in the Quarter finals.
Quarter Finals (Best of 31 Legs)
- James Wade 16-14 Rob Cross
- Gerwyn Price 16-12 Johnny Clayton
In the first quarter final James Wade sealed his spot in the semis after a classic against the Target Darts man Rob Cross. Voltage looked to be in fine form but couldn’t get the job done against the Machine. Price v Clayton has become a fan favourite matchup in recent months, after both players having outstanding performances throughout the PDC calendar. Price landed his place in the semi-finals in fine form, keeping his hopes of a third Grand Slam title alive.
- Peter Wright 16-13 Fallon Sherrock
- Michael Van Gerwen 13-16 Michael Smith
Peter Wright ended Fallon Sherrocks hopes of major victory in a stunning match that both players can be proud of. In the post match interview Peter Wright stated that Fallon deserves a place in the Premier League, which is a controversial topic in the darts world at the minute. Michael Smith beats the world number 3, MVG to seal his place in the 2021 Grand Slam of Darts semi finals. This was looking like the year that Michael Smith breaks his major curse and could go on to win the title.
Semi Finals (Best of 31 Legs)
- Gerwyn Price 16-9 James Wade
- Peter Wright 16-12 Michael Smith
Gerwyn Price breezed into the final in a walkover performance from Wade. The Machine just couldn’t get started and by the time he did the game was all over. Michael Smith’s place in the final looked all but sealed after he went 12-8 up against Peter Wright. Snakebite put in the performance of his career winning the next 8 legs to beat the Bully Boy 16-12, with Wright averaging around 107 for those 8 legs. These were some good matches in the darts betting world.
Final (Best of 31 Legs)
Gerwyn Price 16-8 Peter Wright
It was truly the final that all darts fans were looking for, the number 1 seed against the number 2 seed, the cream had truly risen to the top, and we were in for a fantastic final, or so we thought. Gerwyn took the early lead with heavy scoring and a high checkout percentage, and Snakebite could not get started. Loose darts all over the board gave him a mountain to climb, giving the Iceman a relatively simple victory, landing him his third Grand Slam of Darts title.
Grand Slam of Darts Prize Money
Here is a rundown of the prize money on offer in the Grand Slam of Darts:
- Winner = £125,000 (1)
- Runner Up = £65,000 (1)
- Semi-finalists = £40,000 (2)
- Quarter-finalists = £20,000 (4)
- Last 16 = £10,000 (8)
- 3rd in Group = £7,500 (8)
- 4th in Group = £4,000 (8)
- Group Winner Bonus = £3,500 (8)
PDC Order of Merit
Here’s how the PDC Darts order of merit is looking after the Grand Slam of Darts:
1 Gerwyn Price £1,246,750
2 Peter Wright £1,091,500
3 Michael van Gerwen £816,750
4 James Wade £479,750
5 Dimitri Van den Bergh £438,750
6 Gary Anderson £412,500
7 Jose de Sousa £397,250
8 Jonny Clayton £380,250
9 Michael Smith £350,750
10 Nathan Aspinall £345,000
11 Rob Cross £327,000
12 Krzysztof Ratajski £315,250
13 Joe Cullen £301,250
14 Dave Chisnall £285,500
15 Stephen Bunting £241,750
16 Dirk van Duijvenbode £234,250
17 Danny Noppert £223,750
18 Simon Whitlock £217,250
19 Luke Humphries £214,500
20 Mervyn King £213,750
21 Glen Durrant £204,500
22 Ryan Searle £201,250
23 Daryl Gurney £198,250
24 Gabriel Clemens £195,750
25 Mensur Suljovic £189,500
26 Ian White £187,500
27 Devon Petersen £185,500
28 Brendan Dolan £181,000
29 Chris Dobey £154,000
30 Vincent van der Voort £153,000
31 Damon Heta £142,250
32 Kim Huybrechts £130,500
33 Darius Labanauskas £123,500
34 Ross Smith £121,750
34 Adrian Lewis £121,750
36 Jermaine Wattimena £121,250
37 Callan Rydz £120,250
38 Jeffrey De Zwaan £117,750
39 Ryan Joyce £115,500
40 Jamie Hughes £111,250
41 Ricky Evans £110,500
42 William O’Connor £91,250
43 Steve Beaton £87,500
44 Luke Woodhouse £78,750
45 John Henderson £73,750
46 Steve West £73,500
47 Max Hopp £73,000
48 Adam Hunt £72,500
49 Keegan Brown £70,000
50 Madars Razma £68,250
51 Martijn Kleermaker £68,000
52 Steve Lennon £65,000
53 Jason Lowe £63,000
54 Ron Meulenkamp £61,500
55 Andy Boulton £59,000
56 Maik Kuivenhoven £53,250
57 Mickey Mansell £52,000
58 Jeff Smith £49,000
59 Jelle Klaasen £48,500
60 Darren Webster £48,000
61 Scott Waites £46,500
62 Matthew Edgar £44,750
63 Justin Pipe £44,000
64 Boris Krcmar £42,500
65 Karel Sedlacek £40,500
66 Ryan Murray £40,250
67 William Borland £39,500
68 Mike De Decker £38,000
69 Bradley Brooks £36,000
70 Wayne Jones £35,500
71 Josh Payne £35,000
72 Ted Evetts £34,750
73 Andy Hamilton £34,000
74 Raymond van Barneveld £33,500
75 Martin Schindler £33,000
76 Ryan Meikle £32,750
77 Nick Kenny £32,000
78 Derk Telnekes £30,000
79 Alan Soutar £29,500
80 Rowby-John Rodriguez £29,000
81 Lisa Ashton £28,000
82 James Wilson £25,500
83 Ritchie Edhouse £25,250
84 Scott Mitchell £25,000
85 Florian Hempel £24,000
86 Alan Tabern £22,750
86 Keane Barry £22,750
88 Mark McGeeney £22,500
89 Peter Jacques £21,500
89 Ciaran Teehan £21,500
91 Kai Fan Leung £20,500
92 Lewis Williams £20,250
93 Fallon Sherrock £20,000
93 Joe Murnan £20,000
95 Krzysztof Kciuk £19,250
96 Rusty-Jake Rodriguez £18,500
97 Steve Brown £18,250
98 Adam Gawlas £17,500
98 Cristo Reyes £17,500
100 Jesus Noguera £16,750
101 Jason Heaver £15,000
101 Martin Atkins £15,000
103 Chas Barstow £14,500
104 Kevin Doets £13,500
105 Daniel Larsson £12,500
106 Eddie Lovely £11,500
107 Niels Zonneveld £10,750
108 Aaron Beeney £10,500
108 Gordon Mathers £10,500
110 Nathan Rafferty £10,000
110 Geert De Vos £10,000
112 Martin Lukeman £9,500
113 Robert Thornton £9,000
113 Gary Blades £9,000
113 Adam Smith-Neale £9,000
116 Jim Williams £8,500
117 Danny Baggish £8,000
117 Andrew Gilding £8,000
117 Boris Koltsov £8,000
117 Geert Nentjes £8,000
117 Luc Peters £8,000
117 John Brown £8,000
123 Martin Thomas £7,500
124 Jack Main £7,000
125 John Michael £6,750
126 Jon Worsley £6,500
127 Jim McEwan £6,000
127 Peter Hudson £6,000
127 David Evans £6,000
127 Berry van Peer £6,000
127 Zoran Lerchbacher £6,000
132 Steffen Siepmann £5,500
133 Brett Claydon £5,000
133 Jose Justicia £5,000
133 Harald Leitinger £5,000
136 Kirk Shepherd £4,500
137 Matt Campbell £4,000
137 Joe Davis £4,000
137 Michael Rasztovits £4,000
137 Gino Vos £4,000
137 Darren Penhall £4,000
137 Wesley Harms £4,000
143 Gavin Carlin £3,500
143 Jake Jones £3,500
145 Sean Fisher £3,000
145 Christian Kist £3,000
147 Ryan De Vreede £2,500
147 Kevin McDine £2,500
147 Lukas Wenig £2,500
147 Sebastian Bialecki £2,500
151 Andreas Harrysson £2,000
151 Kenny Neyens £2,000
151 Richard Veenstra £2,000
151 Benito van de Pas £2,000
151 Vincent Van der Meer £2,000
156 Carl Wilkinson £1,500
156 Michael Unterbuchner £1,500
158 Scott Williams £1,000
158 Davy Proosten £1,000
158 Justin Broton £1,000
158 Justin Hewitt £1,000
158 Patrik Kovacs £1,000
158 Dyson Parody £1,000
158 Craig Galliano £1,000
158 Jozsef Rucska £1,000
158 Peter Strbik £1,000
158 Janos Vegso £1,000
158 Gabor Jagicza £1,000
158 Johan Engstrom £1,000
158 Thomas Lovely £1,000
158 Shane McGuirk £1,000
158 Lorenzo Pronk £1,000
158 Pero Ljubic £1,000
158 Robert Marijanovic £1,000
158 Mike Warburton £1,000
158 Scott Taylor £1,000
158 Rhys Griffin £1,000
178 Patrick van den Boogaard £500
178 Michal Smejda £500
Summary
The 2021 Grand Slam of darts was an outstanding tournament and did not disappoint. With Gerwyn Price taking home his third Grand Slam title, he will be looking to add to his collection in the upcoming Players Championship Finals in Minehead, and the crown jewel, the World Darts Championships at the Alexandra Palace. Make sure to check back for a preview of both tournaments and some darts betting tips along the way.
