New Zealand Darts Masters 2025: Back Price for bounceback glory
Darts' World Series continues across Friday and Saturday this weekend with the 2025 New Zealand Darts Masters.
Luke Littler took the title last week in Australia but our arrows tipster Matt Hill (@Matt_Hill93) has his eyes on the other half of the draw for some outright value.
It can be hard trying to oppose Luke Littler at times from an outright perspective, and those brave enough (or foolish) to try and do so last week had our fingers burnt as the Nuke reigned supreme in Wollongong.
That's not to say it was all plain sailing for the world champion Down Under, with Haupai Puha spurning the chance of a monumental round one update when failing to hold his throw in a deciding leg. Damon Heta, one of my outright picks last week, then went a break up early in his quarter final with Littler before eventually succumbing to the youngster's relentless scoring.
As I often say, these events aren't the most appealing from an outright betting perspective because you just never know what mood the players are going to be in. It's a far more relaxed environment than, say, a big TV tournament – and it is commonplace to see a player produce some pretty mediocre stuff in round one before really going through the gears on the final day's action.
That was the case for both Littler and last week's runner-up Mike De Decker, who was pretty dire in stumbling through his opening clash before producing a 6-0 whitewash win over Luke Humphries (Cool Hand remaining a bit out of form, admittedly) and breezing past Chris Dobey in the semis. Still, De Decker didn't average over 95 in any of his three wins, so it's hard to get enthusiastic about him repeating his heroics this weekend.
Instead, the man I'm happy to chance again is Gerwyn Price.
I thought things were really opening up for the Welshman halfway through last weekend's quarter finals, but then a frustrating loss to Dobey put paid to his chances. Frustrating, in the sense that a 101 average compared with the Geordie's 98 shows Price was in control of the scoring phase but let the game slip through his grasp with some shoddy doubling.
However, I would deem Price as a good prospect to put that behind him quickly. We don't have to look too far back for some transferable form, given he exited the US Darts Masters at the end of June quite tamely, only to bounce back and win in Poland a week later.
11/2 is available with Star Sports for the each-way players among us, though with only 1/3 of the odds for a losing finalist, I'm not seeing much value there. Instead, taking a bit of the 7/1 upwards on Betfair Exchange seems a worthwhile ploy.
In terms of first round betting, the fact that all eight PDC pros to come through their opening clashes only pays even money with William Hill tells you all you need to know.
I know many like to perm 6-0 wins in these kind of events but traditionally, I'm a lot more selective when it comes to whitewashes. It doesn't happen quite as often as you'd maybe expect, and clearly the jeopardy involved is high with no room for error.
There are two that catch my eye here though, largely due to the low operational level of the qualifiers.
Damon Heta takes on Dean Reyland in his opener and its fair to say Reyland was a surprise name on this list. He's only ranked 11th in New Zealand's domestic Pro Tour standings and has a first average only just north of 80.
It's a big ask for him to produce his top level on big stage debut and he faces a man in Heta who, although he can tighten up on occasion in the biggest matches, usually cuts a relaxed and ruthless figure in these early games.
At just shy of 4/1 for a 6-0 win, Heta is worth chancing.
Then we have Josh Rock, a man in red-hot form who averaged 108 in his opening game last weekend, before being surprisingly whitewashed 6-0 by Stephen Bunting in the quarter-finals.
Perhaps Rock overdid the celebrations last Friday night but that showing wasn't consistent with the repeated brilliance we've seen from him in the last few months. I'm expecting much better here and he's another one who can make the best of a kind draw against a Kiwi with limited TV experience.
John Hurring is ranked fourth on the New Zealand circuit but there is still a decent gap between him and the top three – Benn Robb, Jonny Tata and Tour Card holder Haupai Puha.
Across a 60-game sample, his 79 three-dart average leaves work to be done in order to make this competitive and even if he does play well, Rock is quite capable of blowing him away on current form regardless.
So, though 23/10 is not quite as attractive as the Heta price, I still make it a bet.
If we can get either one up, I'll be a happy man. And a small flutter on the double also makes sense.
2pts - Gerwyn Price to win the New Zealand Darts Masters - 7/1 (Betfair Exchange)
1pt - Damon Heta to beat Dean Reyland 6-0 - 19/5 (Ladbrokes)
1pt - Josh Rock to beat John Hurring 6-0 - 23/10 (Ladbrokes)
0.5pt double - Josh Rock and Damon Heta both to win 6-0 in R1 - 14.84/1 (Ladbrokes)
Matt Hill is Odds Now's Head of Content and leads our digital operation, while also offering his insight as a tipster across darts and football.
Having worked in the industry for the best part of a decade, including extended stints with Betfred and LiveScore, Matt joined the project in May 2024 with the sole aim of making Odds Now a key player in the betting content space.
He has also forged a reputation as a respected darts tipster, landing numerous three-figure outright winners over the years, while his love for lower league football also helps him pick out the odd obscure winner in that space.
When not at the editorial desk, Matt enjoys travelling the country supporting his beloved Carlisle United FC, chucking a few arrows and spending time with his young family.
Matt Hill is Odds Now's Head of Content and leads our digital operation, while also offering his insight as a tipster across darts and football.
Having worked in the industry for the best part of a decade, including extended stints with Betfred and LiveScore, Matt joined the project in May 2024 with the sole aim of making Odds Now a key player in the betting content space.
He has also forged a reputation as a respected darts tipster, landing numerous three-figure outright winners over the years, while his love for lower league football also helps him pick out the odd obscure winner in that space.
When not at the editorial desk, Matt enjoys travelling the country supporting his beloved Carlisle United FC, chucking a few arrows and spending time with his young family.
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