James Wade marched into the second round of the Ladbrokes World Darts Championship with a straight sets defeat of Peter Hudson, as Mark Webster put 12 months of disappointment behind him with victory over Ian White at Alexandra Palace.
World number three Wade, a semi-finalist last year, dropped only two legs in his first round win over the debutant from Eccles, taking out a 102 finish and also winning the game’s final six legs without reply.
Wade will now play either Steve Beaton or Australia’s Kyle Anderson on Sunday afternoon in the second round, and admitted: ”
“It’s good to get the win but I’m frustrated because I’ve put a lot of work in recently and the performance wasn’t what I wanted,” said the seven-time major winner.
“My scoring wasn’t great but I finished well and it’s a step in the right direction for me, and hopefully it can come out in the next round.”
Wade’s fellow left-hander Mark Webster (pictured), a two-time semi-finalist at Alexandra Palace and the number 10 seed, erased the memory of his first round loss to Richie Burnett last year with a high-quality 3-1 win over Ian White.
Webster has endured a tough 12 months since his last Alexandra Palace appearance and shared 14 180s with White, who was the leading qualifier from the ProTour Order of Merit for the World Championship.
The Welshman, though, took out 124 and 107 as he took the first set 3-1 and he landed a trio of maximums by taking the second without reply.
Webster also came from 2-1 down to level in the third, only to miss eight match darts in the deciding leg as White kept himself in the game.
The former Lakeside Champion, though, replied with a brilliant 145 checkout to open the fourth set and won the next two legs in 14 and 13 darts to complete the triumph.
“I’m really pleased,” said Webster. “I came out of the blocks well and I closed the game out well – I’ll ignore those eight darts to win in the third set because I showed a bit of mettle in that last set.
“I didn’t play badly last year but Richie was brilliant and I didn’t want a repeat this year, so there are a lot of positives I can take from this. I’ve got a tough game next so I’ll prepare well and I’m looking forward to it.”
Lowestoft’s colourful Peter Wright produced a strong performance to defeat former World Youth Champion Arron Monk in straight sets and move into the last 32.
After opening the game with a 140 checkout, Wright edged the first set 3-2 before winning six of the game’s next seven legs to progress.
“I took my chances well and got the job done,” said Wright. “Arron struggled to find his pitch and I took advantage, but I can play a lot better than that.”
The Scottish World Cup representative could play Michael van Gerwen in the second round, and added: “It’s something I’ll look forward to if he gets through because he’s had a great run this year.”
The other first round game last night saw debutant John Bowles follow up his 4-2 preliminary round victory over Carlos Rodriguez by edging out Jamie Caven 3-2 in a thriller.
Bowles took out a 116 finish as he won the game’s first set, only for Caven to take command of the game by winning the next two, hitting a 110 checkout of his own.
Caven then moved to the brink of victory in the fourth set by sharing the first four legs, only for Bowles to force a decider by taking out 121 on the bull.
Caven led 2-1 in the final set, but Bowles hit key 180s in the next two legs as he moved ahead before finishing 78 to take the set 4-2 and complete a brilliant win.
“This is one of the best days of my life,” said Widnes-based Bowles, a former rugby league player. “It was a battle and I had to dig in there.
“The preliminary round game’s a short format and that puts pressure on you, so I was happy to get through and I could relax against Jamie, and what a game it was. The 121 finish was the turning point, and I’m thrilled with what I’ve achieved.”