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2025 Grand Slam of Darts round of 16/second round predictions, betting odds: Premier League players sent packing?

Senior Editor

After four thrilling days of group stage action at the 2025 Grand Slam of Darts, the knockout rounds begin on Wednesday.

Eight games will be played across Wednesday and Thursday, with quarterfinal spots on the line.

2025 Grand Slam of Darts round of 16 predictions

Here are my predictions for the round of 16.

MORE: 2025 Grand Slam of Darts: Draw, schedule, groups, prize money and format explained

Luke Woodhouse vs. Ricky Evans

Winner: Ricky Evans, 10-8

These are two players who weren't really viewed as favorites to advance from their groups, but made it to the knockout stage anyway.

Evans seems to have reached some of the best form we've seen from him in quite some time.

Woodhouse should give Evans a close game, as this one feels like one of those games that will be an entertaining back-and-forth contest.

Gerwyn Price vs. Martin Schindler

Winner: Gerwyn Price, 10-6

Price has played some of the best darts we've seen from any player in 2025, but a deep run at a major still hasn't come just yet for him.

It feels inevitable, as he's had a ton of success on the Pro Tour and has made several quarterfinal appearances in big events.

His results at majors aren't poor by any means, but he'll be looking to make at least the semifinal at the Grand Slam, especially with the way the bracket is set right now, which favors him.

Schindler will be looking to make a third career-ranked-major quarterfinal, but it'll take a great game to outduel Price in a longer-format game.

Luke Humphries (1) vs. Jurjen van der Velde

Winner: Luke Humphries, 10-3

It's been a positive few days in Wolverhampton for Jurjen van der Velde.

He qualified for this event since he was the runner-up at the 2024 World Youth Championship.

His performances haven't been the strongest, with all of his averages under 90.00 in all three group stage games, but he's shown glimpses of enticing potential, beating Damon Heta and last year's Grand Slam runner-up, Martin Lukeman.

Humphries hasn't had any eye-opening numbers yet, but has been efficient enough to get the job done. Even in the game against Michael Smith that he won on a nine-darter, Humphries admitted that he wasn't satisfied with his performance up to that point.

After some struggles and inconsistency in his game, he's really put together a few nice tournaments in recent months to indicate that he's back.

This should be a cake-walk for Humphries, unless he can't produce his A or B game.

MORE: Watch Luke Humphries hits rare match-clinching 9-darter at Grand Slam of Darts

Chris Dobey (8) vs. Michael Smith

Winner: Michael Smith, 10-9

Two current/former Premier League players will be going head-to-head.

Smith will be talked about more entering this contest, as this is his first major he's played in since earlier this year, and he's on a mission to make steps back towards the form he was in just a few years ago.

I can really see either player winning this one, but the crowd will definitely be on Smith's side here.

Dobey went 3-0 in his group but has yet to be battle-tested, unlike Smith, who has already faced Humphries and Aspinall.

The way Smith plays should really determine how close this game is, but he's been slowly making progress throughout the tournament, so I think he has the slight edge entering what should be a fun match with Dobey.

Lukas Wenig vs. Niko Springer

Winner: Niko Springer, 10-5

Those who watch the Euro Tour often might have seen Wenig play this year, where he didn't perform too badly.

His group opened up quite a bit after Jonny Clayton had some early losses, and he was able to book his spot in the round of 16 after beating Cam Crabtree.

I think it'll be tough to beat Springer since he fared well in one of the best groups in the event this year, but both players have minimal experience at majors in their careers, so anything is possible.

Josh Rock vs. Connor Scutt

Winner: 10-6

Josh Rock continued to play high-quality darts this weekend, going 2-1 in an extremely difficult group.

His only loss was to Wessel Nijman, which he only lost by one leg, while also averaging 109.23.

Scutt was a player coming into the event that I thought people should keep an eye on, and he proved why in the group stage.

Scutt has stepped up on the big stage events in the last couple of years, having some eye-catching averages and performances.

He could give Rock a run for his money, but Rock has been far more consistent over the last year, and is the comfortable pick in what could still be a high-scoring clash.

MORE: 5 PDC darts who might win their first career TV title in 2025

Luke Littler (2) vs. Wessel Nijman

Winner: Luke Littler, 10-7

Littler hasn't been as big a topic of discussion in the last few days as he would be in a typical event.

He breezed through his group, and there were more intriguing matchups and groups to discuss, which kept Littler in the shadows for a bit.

That will completely change going into his matchup against Nijman, which is one of the best we will see in this round.

With how dominant Littler has been, it's hard to pick against him, but we know what Nijman is capable of.

A win against Littler would be a career-changing moment for him, especially since he hasn't quite yet broken through and made a run at a major just yet.

However, until Littler slows down or is met with a player just as good, it's hard to see him losing this one.

MORE: Predicting when Luke Littler will overtake Luke Humphries as world number one in darts

Michael van Gerwen (3) vs. Danny Noppert

Winner: Michael van Gerwen 10-8

I've counted out van Gerwen a few times recently and think I've learned my lesson.

Even though there's a good chance he wins, he faces a fellow Dutch player who has been one of the best performers in the last two majors.

Noppert has made back-to-back semifinals in majors, at the World Grand Prix and European Championship.

After a below-par first game, Noppert averaged 100.38 and 107.00 in his next two games.

Van Gerwen has had a few impressive performances of his own, which should set up yet another close round-of-16 matchup.

More importantly, he looked comfortable on stage, and he was playing with a rhythm that he hadn't had in quite a while.