Top seed Luke Humphries defeated Nathan Aspinall to secure his place in the knockout stages of the Grand Slam of Darts in Wolverhampton. Humphries averaged 102.62 and maintained a 100% record to finish top of Group A.
Michael Smith, who beat American Alex Spellman 5-2, took second place in the group. That result means an early exit for Aspinall — despite a 100.01 average and five 180s — who was unfortunate to meet Humphries in such rich form; Humphries also produced a nine-darter on Sunday.
Humphries will face Netherlands' Jurjen van der Velde in round two, which begins on Wednesday. Chris Dobey sealed first place in Group B with a 5-1 win over Martin Lukeman and will meet 2023 world champion Michael Smith in the next round, even though Dobey averaged only 81 in that match.
Gerwyn Price also advanced comfortably, winning Group D after a 5-1 victory over Switzerland's Stefan Bellmont. James Wade beat Ricky Evans 5-2, a result that confirmed Price’s top spot in the group.
Already-eliminated Stephen Bunting suffered a third consecutive final-leg defeat as Luke Woodhouse edged him 5-4 to win Group C. Germany’s Martin Schindler progressed after beating the Philippines’ Alexis Toylo
