Here we go, the bottom quarter. In my fantasy land so far, this is for the right to play Peter Wright in the semi-finals. It has to be Gerwyn Price, surely? The second-best player in the world on the form, the Grand Slam of Darts winner looks set to begin a rivalry with Michael van Gerwen that might define a generation. Price has underachieved at Ally Pally in years gone by, but that can’t continue, can it?

Before I get to ‘The Iceman’, I’ll go through the rest of the quarter, because believe it or not there are some serious darts players standing in Price’s way. John Henderson (30), Simon Whitlock (14) and Mervyn King (19) all find themselves in Price’s section. The three seeds will be disappointed with their 2019s, although King might point to TV wins over MVG and Anderson in claiming differently. The three veterans are more than capable of beating top players on their day, so write them off at your peril. Also, those of you doing some sort of Ally Pally commentator bingo have a new rule — whenever anyone says ‘Big John Henderson’, take a drink. Your night will be short.

The three veterans can all upset the apple cart, but the smart money might be placed on their own orchards being messed with, and history could be made in the process. ‘Big John’ will face either James Richardson or Mikuru Suzuki in round two, and what price the current BDO Women’s World Champion becoming the first female to win on the Alexandra Palace stage? Richardson is no mug, and it feels as though he is being treated in a similar manner to Jan Dekker before his match with Lisa Ashton last year. Richardson is someone who will get the ‘solid pro’ qualifier more often than not, and he’ll go into his first-round match with Suzuki feeling confident. But, and it isn’t a massive but, if Mikuru can sort her counting out, history may well be made. A John Henderson/Mikuru Suzuki second-round match? I’m going for it.

Simon Whitlock is a strange one. I’m a big fan of the Aussie, have been for years, but it is difficult to shake the feeling that he is going in one direction as opposed to the other. Harry Ward or Madars Ramza await in round two, and neither of those young men should be discounted. Ward came out of nowhere to win Players Championships 16, so he is a young man that is more than capable of closing out games. Will that take him past Razma and Whitlock? I’m not so sure. Whitlock for me. I also stick with King having too much for Ross Smith or Ciaran Teehan, so a battle of the former BDO finalists is on the cards for the last 32.

As for the top half of the quarter? Wow. Wow, wow, wow. Daryl Gurney (6) is the highest seed in the section and a solid outside bet for a good run. Gurney has been as high as three in the world this year and is a two-time major winner, a solid Premier League performer and one of the world’s elite. He lost out to Jamie Lewis in the early stages last year, but he’ll be looking to make amends with a decent run this year. He’ll have to get past Justin Pipe or Benjamin Pratnemer to get to the last 32, but ‘Superchin’ should be far too good for either player. It’ll be very interesting to see how Pipe is received on the stage, just two years removed from ‘coughgate’, but the Somerset thrower should have too much for his Slovenian opponent. Gurney will beat either man though unless something incredible happens.

Which brings us, finally, to the most difficult section of the entire draw. Your seed is Glen Durrant (27). Where to start with ‘Duzza’? The reigning three-time BDO World Champion, a semi-finalist in three PDC majors this year, a man who has made a lot of people look very silly throughout the year. Before the draw was made, Durrant would have been a dark horse for a deep run, capable as he is of beating anyone on any day. That might still happen, I personally think it will, but boy is it going to be difficult.

Because Durrant will face the winner of the standout first-round tie. Damon Heta and Jose de Sousa will have been watching the draw with serious interest, and any other part of the set-up will have seen a flood of money being put on their names. Heta is an Aussie breakout waiting to happen, while de Sousa has shocked everyone in winning two Players Championships this year. Both men are shocks waiting to happen, but they will face each other in the first round, and then they have to take on Durrant. Will that first-round match take too much out of them? Maybe so, maybe not, but that match and then a game against Durrant almost certainly will. Put your money on ‘Duzza’ here.

And then the final section of my review, oh my lord. Mensur Suljović (11) may have peaked, but you never know with ‘The Gentle’. Ignore him at your peril. Every now and then he seems to slip into a run of form that is as good as anyone in the world, especially when it comes to the ton-plus checkouts, and whats to say he can’t do that at the Worlds? He’ll have to come past Ted Evetts of Fallon Sherrock though, and there is so much to discuss about that match.

Fallon Sherrock is the best female player in the world. I truly believe this, and her performances in qualifying for Ally Pally confirm that. Her averages throughout the qualifier towered over everyone else, and it truly felt like a case of ‘when’ as opposed to ‘if’. She could do some damage here, but she finds herself going up against someone who could burst onto the main stage at any time, a man who has dominated the development tour and has also got a couple of Ally Pally appearances under his belt. Fallon Sherrock vs. Ted Evetts is going to be all sorts of fascinating, to say the least. If nothing else, it is an example of how the PDC is always moving forward.

Chris Dobey (22) has had a fabulous year. ‘Hollywood’ may well be a big name in years to come, a top player with a litter of titles behind him. He should have too much for Ron Meulenkamp or Ben Robb, and may even be confident of moving past Mensur/Ted/Fallon. Dobey is a fixture in the upper echelons of PDC darts, make no mistake about it.

But can any of these men and women beat Gerwyn Price? In his current form? Maybe Duzza, maybe Dobey, maybe Gurney. But realistically? No. Gerwyn Price will come through this quarter, defeating Chris Dobey 5-2 in the quarter-finals.

So that gives me Michael van Gerwen vs. Michael Smith and Peter Wright vs. Gerwyn Price in the semi-finals. Will that happen? Of course not, only time will tell. Either way, I can’t wait to watch.

John Bills writes books about Eastern Europe, tomes covering history, travel, booze and the rest. These magical pieces of literary competency can be purchased at this link, so get yourself over there and do the right thing. Pay attention to the discounts.