THE schedule of play for Saturday's opening fixtures at the SINGHA Beer Grand Slam of Darts has been confirmed.
Reigning champion Phil Taylor, PDC World Champion Gary Anderson and 2012 Grand Slam of Darts winner Raymond van Barneveld are all in action in Saturday's afternoon session at the Wolverhampton Civic Hall as the tournament begins with the opening games from Groups E-H.
Taylor will take on Welsh left-hander Martin Phillips, the 2014 World Masters champion, while Anderson faces American ace Larry Butler and Dutch star van Barneveld is up against PDC Qualifier Andy Boulton.
Austria's Rowby-John Rodriguez kicks off the tournament against Robbie Green, while former finalists Terry Jenkins, Robert Thornton and James Wade then take to the stage as they face Jonny Clayton, Geert De Vos and Michel van der Horst.
World Youth Champion Keegan Brown, a quarter-finalist in last year's Grand Slam of Darts, then plays former Lakeside Champion Mark Webster in the afternoon session's other game.
Saturday's evening session will see Groups A-D open their challenges, with top seed Michael van Gerwen taking on Dutch debutant Mark Oosterhuis in his first round-robin match.
2014 semi-finalist Kim Huybrechts opens Saturday evening's session against debutant Steve West before former Lakeside Champions Jelle Klaasen and Steve Beaton clash.
Wolverhampton's Wayne Jones then takes on former World Youth Champion Michael Smith, while 2014 runner-up Dave Chisnall meets Mervyn King, a two-time Grand Slam of Darts semi-finalist.
Popular former Lakeside Champion Andy Fordham then makes his Grand Slam of Darts debut against two-time World Champion Adrian Lewis, with three-time Lakeside Champion Martin Adams taking on number eight seed Ian White.
The opening night's final game then sees colourful Peter Wright, the number four seed, meet reigning Lakeside Champion Scott Mitchell, who is making his first Grand Slam of Darts appearance.
The Group Stage continues on Sunday with players contesting their second matches, with Saturday's losing players facing each other and the two winning players up against each other.
Groups E-H will play their second group matches on Sunday afternoon and their final games on Monday night, with Groups A-D in action on Sunday evening and Tuesday evening.
The top two players from each group at the conclusion of the round-robin phase then progress to the knockout stage from the last 16 onwards, which commences from Wednesday night.
Tickets for the SINGHA Beer Grand Slam of Darts can be purchased from the Wolves Civic Box Office in person, by calling 0870 320 7000 or online via www.wolvescivic.co.uk.
The SINGHA Beer Grand Slam of Darts will be preceded on Friday night (7.30pm) by a PDC Fans' Forum at The Cleveland Arms, Wolverhampton, with Phil Taylor, Dave Chisnall and Scott Mitchell set to meet fans and take questions in a Q&A hosted by Sky Sports' Nigel Pearson and streamed through www.youtube.com/OfficialPDC. Admission is FREE by registering at www.owal.co/register.
SINGHA Beer Grand Slam of Darts
Schedule of Play
Saturday November 7
Afternoon Session (1pm-5pm)
Groups E-H First Games
Rowby-John Rodriguez v Robbie Green (H)
Terry Jenkins v Jonny Clayton (G)
Robert Thornton v Geert De Vos (G)
James Wade v Michel van der Horst (F)
Keegan Brown v Mark Webster (F)
Gary Anderson v Larry Butler (E)
Phil Taylor v Martin Phillips (H)
Raymond van Barneveld v Andy Boulton (E)
Evening Session (7pm-11pm)
Groups A-D First Games
Kim Huybrechts v Steve West (A)
Jelle Klaasen v Steve Beaton (B)
Michael Smith v Wayne Jones (C)
Dave Chisnall v Mervyn King (D)
Adrian Lewis v Andy Fordham (C)
Michael van Gerwen v Mark Oosterhuis (A)
Ian White v Martin Adams (B)
Peter Wright v Scott Mitchell (D)
Sunday November 8
Afternoon Session (1pm-5pm)
Groups E-H Second Group Games
Evening Session (7.30pm-11.30pm)
Groups A-D Second Group Games
Monday November 9 (7pm-11pm)
Groups E-H Final Games
Tuesday November 10 (7pm-11pm)
Groups A-D Final Games
Wednesday November 11 (7pm-11pm)
Second Round x4
Thursday November 12 (7pm-11pm)
Second Round x4
Friday November 13 (7pm-10pm)
Quarter-Finals x2
Saturday November 14 (7pm-10pm)
Quarter-Finals x2
Sunday November 15
Afternoon Session (1pm-4pm)
Semi-Finals
Evening Session (7pm-9pm)
Final
Format
Group Games - Best of nine legs
Second Round - Best of 19 legs
Quarter-Finals - Best of 31 legs
Semi-Finals - Best of 31 legs
Final - Best of 31 legs