Players Championship 19: Prediction, Tips and Odds

A field of 128 players will be toeing the oche at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes on Thursday for Players Championship 19.

Big names of the calibre of Luke Humphries and Luke Littler won't be in Buckinghamshire but plenty of top darts stars will be with their eyes fixed firmly on the £15,000 top prize and trying to secure a place at the lucrative end-of-year Players Championship Finals.

This is the second PC (Players Championship) event in two days and it will be super competitive - these floor events always are.

Players Championship 19 betting tips and predictions

Ross Smith to win - 12/1

One man who has a history of producing his best stuff on the floor (something he is finally translating to the stage) is Ross Smith, who will always be on plenty of shortlists for events like these.

Smith has triumphed in a Players Championship heat already this year - he won PC13 at Milton Keynes in early July - and has posted another four semi-final appearances as well.

That goes some way to explaining why he was second in the PC Order of Merit going into this week's double-header.

Smith's confidence started to soar when he won the European Championship in 2022, a first major for the Kent thrower.

The follow-up success is proving more elusive, though he threw well at the World Matchplay, crushing Josh Rock and then pipping Gerwyn Price before losing to surprise semi-finalist James Wade in the last eight.

Smiffy is also a two-time European Tour finalist this year so his form stands up to all scrutiny.

Cameron Menzies to win - 28/1

Cameron Menzies came into this week inside the top 20 on the PC Order of Merit meaning he is all but guaranteed a place in the lucrative Players Championship Finals at the end of the season.

The top 64 players from the 30 Players Championship events over the course of 2024 make it to the Finals where the Scot has appeared twice before.

Menzies is still arguably better known for being Fallon Sherrock's partner rather than his own darting prowess. However, he is changing that script by producing a string of good runs.

The 35-year-old has made a semi-final and three quarter-finals in PC competition this season and with just a fraction more consistency, can take that next step.

And on Thursday, in a field missing the likes of Humphries, Littler, Michael Smith and Price, this should be seen as the ideal chance to further boost his reputation.

Krzyzstof Ratajski to win - 66/1

One player who is back this week is Michael van Gerwen, the former world No.1 playing his first events since the Matchplay after a jaw operation.

His game looks to be in good order but there are better-priced alternatives to the Dutchman, among them Krzysztof Ratajski.

The Pole really is a floor specialist having won seven PC events since 2018, though none yet this year.

Ratajski has reached two semis and a quarter-final in 2024, and it feels inevitable that the world No.26 will soon be back in the winner's enclosure.

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