PDC World Darts Championship 2017: Saturday Scores, Results and Updated Schedule
All eyes were focused on the evening session, with world No. 1 Michael van Gerwen making his opening bow at this year's competition in the first round of the PDC World Darts Championship at the Alexandra Place, London.
Mighty Mike defeated qualifier Kim Viljanen with ease, strutting to a 3-0 win with speed and accuracy.
Two-time BDO world champion Stephen Bunting was the biggest scalp on Saturday, crashing out to the impressive Darren Webster in a titanic battle. The Demolition Man was a popular winner with the crowd as he prevailed 3-2 against The Bullet.
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Veteran Terry Jenkins booked his place in the second round in the afternoon session, defeating Josh Payne 3-1.
Seeded John Henderson crashed out at the first-round stage, defeated 3-2 by Andrew Gilding in the afternoon.
Dutch talent Benito van de Pas completed the early matches, beating Tengku Shah 3-1 in the opening round.
Here are the confirmed scores from Saturday's action:
| Tengku Shah | 2-1 (P) | Masumi Chino |
| Terry Jenkins (18) | 3-1 | Josh Payne |
| John Henderson (31) | 2-3 | Andrew Gilding |
| Benito van de Pas (15) | 3-1 | Masumi Shah |
| Ross Snook | 2-0 (P) | Kim Viljanen |
| Cristo Reyes (32) | 3-2 | Dimitri Van den Bergh |
| Stephen Bunting (16) | 2-3 | Darren Webster |
| Michael van Gerwen (1) | 3-0 | Snook/Viljanen |
Preliminary Round is the best of three sets; First Round is the best of five sets.
Here are the upcoming matches for Sunday:
| Sunday, Dec. 18 | Kevin Simm v Gilbert Ulang (P) |
| Justin Pipe (26) v Chris Dobey | |
| Mark Webster (25) v Joe Murnan | |
| Ian White (14) v Simm/Ulang | |
| John Bowles v David Platt (P) | |
| Daryl Gurney (24) v Jermaine Wattimena | |
| Alan Norris (21) v John Michael | |
| Phil Taylor (4) v Bowles/Platt |
The Mirror's Joe Mewis provided a full schedule for the opening rounds.
Saturday Recap
Van Gerwen clearly meant business from the opening darts, winning the first set in only five minutes, as the Ally Pally crowd sang his name.
The superstar of the sport won six of of the opening seven legs, but he played well within his capabilities, and wasn't at his explosive best.
However, his averages were still world-class, as Viljanen struggled just to keep pace, with MVG claiming the second set without shifting gear.
The belief was evident as the Dutchman hit the maximums, and the world No. 1 wrestled the third set to complete a whitewash.
PDC Darts provide footage of Van Gerwen's deadly finish:
Jenkins rolled back the years as he contemplates retirement from the sport, comfortably making it through the first round to eliminate Payne.
The Bull is now 53 but is continuing to produce a high level of darts against credible opposition.
Jenkins was a semi-finalist at the PDC World Championship in 2011 and has witnessed a surge of young talent leapfrog him in the rankings.
The Ledbury, England-born player lost the opening set to The Maximum after Jenkins conceded a two-leg lead to the 23-year-old.
It was to be the younger man's last contribution, as the veteran streaked three sets in a row to extinguish any threat.
PDC Darts provided full stats after the match:
The shock of the evening came as former BDO world champion Bunting crashed out against unseeded Webster.
The 16th seed had plenty of opportunity to demolish his opponent, but he was short of his best as he crumbled and failed.
The match was tied at 2-2, as the pair stayed neck and neck until the finish line.
The contest went into sudden death as the legs were tied at 3-3 in the final set, and a late drive by Webster earned him the win.
PDC Darts provided footage of the final darts:
Van Gerwen is the overwhelming favourite to wrestle the world title away from Gary Anderson, but the Flying Scotsman appeared in excellent shape in the first round.
Anderson is attempting to win his third world championship in a row, but the Dutchman has been this year's exceptional darts player, thrashing everyone in his path.
Mighty Mike was cool and calm on Saturday night, and confidence is oozing from every dart that he throws this season.
All stats via PDC.tv.
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