The 2020 BoyleSports World Grand Prix begins at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry on Tuesday as 32 of the world's top stars compete in the prestigious double-start event.
Five-time champion Michael van Gerwen will begin his title defence on the opening night against Krzysztof Ratajski as the tournament - traditionally held in Dublin - takes place across seven nights from October 6-12.
Aiming to win his third successive World Grand Prix title, Van Gerwen comes into the tricky tie with Polish number one Ratajski under pressure to arrest a slump in form.
The Dutchman, the 17/4 pre-tournament favourite with sponsors BoyleSports, has been knocked out in the last 16 of the past two televised knockout events and also failed to reach the Premier League Play-Offs for the first time in August.
"I feel good. Of course it could be better, in the last few months I've had too many ups and downs and you need to get past that," admitted Van Gerwen.
"It's not always that easy but you have to fight hard, work hard and put a lot of effort into your game, and that's what I do.
"I think the World Grand Prix is a tournament that suits me, of course the first round is always dangerous, whoever you play, but I feel comfortable.
"The first round is tough for anyone. I can remember Phil Taylor lost to Adrian Gray in the tournament, I've lost before to a phenomenal John Henderson in the first round, so you need to be really sharp against whoever you play in the first round because it's the most tricky one and you need to get past that.
"With Krzysztof Ratajski to play against, it's not an easy one but I think it counts even more for him."
The tournament will begin with a meeting between 2010 runner-up Adrian Lewis and 2019 semi-finalist Chris Dobey, while the pick of the first round ties will also be played on Tuesday as 2016 runner-up Gary Anderson takes on fifth seed Rob Cross.
Night two will see two of the world's in-form stars, Peter Wright and Gerwyn Price, enter the fray against Ryan Joyce and Jermaine Wattimena respectively as the first round concludes.
World Champion Wright, who was visibly distraught on stage after losing the 2018 final to Van Gerwen, begins his quest for a first World Grand Prix crown against Joyce, a winner at the PDC Summer Series in July.
"Preparation is everything with this tournament, it's very difficult so you've got to be ready for it," explained Wright, the 11/2 third favourite with BoyleSports.
"I started practicing my doubles in July in preparation.
"I've got a tough first game against Ryan. He's won a ProTour event and done well before at the World Championship so he's a handy player.
"I'm always nervous for the first round because it's a short distance match so let's see what happens."
Third seed Gerwyn Price, who enjoyed a glittering September with victory at the World Series of Darts Finals and in two PDC Autumn Series events, is targeting a fourth TV title as he bids to become world number one.
"You need to be on your game all the way through or you will struggle to get off at the start of legs," said Price, BoyleSports' 5/1 second favourite.
"As long as my doubles are going in and I score as well as I have been doing then I'm going to be a tough player to beat.
"I don't really look at other players. I know that if I bring my 'A-game' then nine times out of ten I'm going to win.
"I've made no secret about the fact I want to be world number one and I believe I can do that within the next year or two.
"Hopefully I can win one of the big TV events before the end of the year and then go on to win the World Championship."
Wednesday's second night of action will also see Glen Durrant attempting to avenge last year's semi-final defeat to Dave Chisnall, before 2017 champion Daryl Gurney meets Joe Cullen and Premier League semi-finalist Nathan Aspinall plays Gabriel Clemens.
All first round ties will be played over a best of three sets, with three legs needed to win a set.
The first round winners will return to the stage on October 8-9 for the second round, before the quarter-finals are held on Saturday October 10. The semi-finals will take place on Sunday October 11 and the final on Monday October 12.
The tournament will be broadcast live on Sky Sports, as well as through the PDC's international broadcast partners including RTL7 and DAZN and for PDCTV Rest of the World Subscribers.
2020 BoyleSports World Grand Prix
Schedule of Play
Tuesday October 6 (1800 BST)
8x First Round
Adrian Lewis v Chris Dobey
Danny Noppert v Ryan Searle
Mensur Suljovic v Dirk van Duijvenbode
Jose De Sousa v Devon Petersen
James Wade v Mervyn King
Rob Cross v Gary Anderson
Michael van Gerwen v Krzysztof Ratajski
Michael Smith v Dimitri Van den Bergh
Wednesday October 7 (1800 BST)
8x First Round
Brendan Dolan v Kim Huybrechts
Jamie Hughes v Stephen Bunting
Jonny Clayton v Ian White
Dave Chisnall v Glen Durrant
Daryl Gurney v Joe Cullen
Peter Wright v Ryan Joyce
Gerwyn Price v Jermaine Wattimena
Nathan Aspinall v Gabriel Clemens
Thursday October 8 (1900 BST)
4x Second Round
Friday October 9 (1900 BST)
4x Second Round
Saturday October 10 (1900 BST)
Quarter-Finals
Sunday October 11 (1900 BST)
Semi-Finals
Monday October 12 (2000 BST)
Final
Draw Bracket
(1) Michael van Gerwen v Krzysztof Ratajski
Jose De Sousa v Devon Petersen
(8) James Wade v Mervyn King
Adrian Lewis v Chris Dobey
(4) Michael Smith v Dimitri Van den Bergh
Mensur Suljovic v Dirk van Duijvenbode
(5) Rob Cross v Gary Anderson
Danny Noppert v Ryan Searle
(2) Peter Wright v Ryan Joyce
Dave Chisnall v Glen Durrant
(7) Daryl Gurney v Joe Cullen
Jonny Clayton v Ian White
(3) Gerwyn Price v Jermaine Wattimena
Brendan Dolan v Kim Huybrechts
(6) Nathan Aspinall v Gabriel Clemens
Jamie Hughes v Stephen Bunting
Format
First Round - Best of three sets
Second Round - Best of five sets
Quarter-Finals- Best of five sets
Semi-Finals - Best of seven sets
Final - Best of nine sets
All sets are the best of five legs.
All games will be double start and double finish, meaning players must first hit a double before they can begin scoring in each leg.
There is no tie-break; should a game progress to a final set, the fifth leg of the set would be the deciding leg.
Prize Fund
Winner - £110,000
Runner-up - £50,000
Semi-finalists - £25,000
Quarter-finalists - £16,000
Second round - £10,000
First round - £6,000
BoyleSports Darts Betting Odds
(1) Michael van Gerwen 4/9 v Krzysztof Ratajski 7/4
Jose De Sousa Evens v Devon Petersen 4/5
(8) James Wade 8/15 v Mervyn King 6/4
Adrian Lewis 6/5 v Chris Dobey 4/6
(4) Michael Smith 8/13 v Dimitri Van den Bergh 13/10
Mensur Suljovic 8/15 v Dirk van Duijvenbode 6/4
(5) Rob Cross 11/8 v Gary Anderson 4/7
Danny Noppert 4/6 v Ryan Searle 6/5
(2) Peter Wright 1/6 v Ryan Joyce 4/1
Dave Chisnall 11/8 v Glen Durrant 4/7
(7) Daryl Gurney 4/6 v Joe Cullen 6/5
Jonny Clayton 10/11 v Ian White 10/11
(3) Gerwyn Price 1/5 v Jermaine Wattimena 7/2
Brendan Dolan 10/11 v Kim Huybrechts 10/11
(6) Nathan Aspinall 8/15 v Gabriel Clemens 11/8
Jamie Hughes 10/11 v Stephen Bunting 10/11
BoyleSports Outright Darts Betting Odds
Michael van Gerwen - 17/4
Peter Wright - 5/1
Gerwyn Price - 11/2
Nathan Aspinall - 12/1
Gary Anderson - 14/1
Glen Durrant - 18/1
Michael Smith - 23/1
Rob Cross, Devon Petersen - 33/1
Daryl Gurney - 35/1
James Wade - 40/1
Krzysztof Ratajski, Ian White, Dave Chisnall - 50/1
Chris Dobey, Jose De Sousa, Jonny Clayton, Mensur Suljovic, Dimitri Van den Bergh - 66/1
Joe Cullen, Danny Noppert - 80/1
Adrian Lewis, Gabriel Clemens - 100/1
Ryan Searle, Mervyn King - 175/1
Stephen Bunting, Jamie Hughes, Brendan Dolan - 200/1
Kim Huybrechts, Ryan Joyce, Dirk van Duijvenbode, Jermaine Wattimena - 250/1
Odds courtesy boylesports.com and correct at time of publication.