By Alex Moss
12 APRIL 2017 • 8:53PM
The World Trophy will take place in Wales this year after the BDO released an announcement today with details regarding the major event.
The fourth edition of the World Trophy will be held at the Memo Arts Centre, in Barry, between May 26-29, and will once again feature 32 men and 16 ladies competing.
The top 16 players from the men’s invitational table will be seeded in the first round draw, with last year’s winner Darryl Fitton entering the event as the seventh seed.
Reigning Winmau World Masters and BDO world champion Glen Durrant is the top seed, and he is followed in the rankings by recent Dutch Open winner Mark McGeeney, World Championship semi-finalist Jamie Hughes and 2015 BDO world champion Scott Mitchell.
Martin Adams and Scott Waites are also among the former world champions in the 16 seeds, while recent World Championship finalist Danny Noppert, Welsh ace Dean Reynolds and WDF World Cup Pairs champions Wesley Harms and Richard Veenstra are also seeded for the event.
The 16 seeds will be joined in the first round by nine regional qualifiers, including Eastern European qualifier Umit Uygunsozlu, who will be the first Turkish player ever to play on the stage of a major darts tournament.
Completing the field for the 32-player tournament are the four next highest ranked players not already qualified, which includes 2004 BDO world champion Andy Fordham, who has this year climbed back into the top 20 for the first time since winning at Lakeside 13 years ago, plus the three winners from the play-offs, which will be held at Pontins Prestatyn on Friday, May 12.
Lisa Ashton is the defending ladies champion and is seeded second for this year’s tournament, with Deta Hedman topping the seedings as the BDO world number one.
Aileen de Graaf, Anastasia Dobromyslova, Corrine Hammond, Lorraine Winstanley, Trina Gulliver and Sharon Prins make up the rest of the eight seeded players, who will go up against players ranked 9-14 and two winners from the play-offs.
2017 BDO World Trophy
Memo Arts Centre, Barry May 26-29
Men’s line-up
16 seeded players
1. Glen Durrant
2. Mark McGeeney
3. Jamie Hughes
4. Scott Mitchell
5. Dean Reynolds
6. Danny Noppert
7. Darryl Fitton
8. Wesley Harms
9. Ross Montgomery
10. Scott Waites
11. Darius Labanauskas
12. Martin Phillips
13. Martin Adams
14. Nick Kenny
15. Geert de Vos
16. Richard Veenstra
16 unseeded players
Next four highest ranked players
Wouter Vaes
Jim Williams
Brian Dawson
Andy Fordham
Regional qualifiers
Seigo Asada (Asia)
TBC (Australia)
Dennis Nilsson (Baltic and Scandinavia)
Cameron Menzies (British Isles)
David Cameron (Canada)
Umit Uygunsozlu (Eastern Europe)
Greg Moss (New Zealand)
Joe Chaney (USA)
Willem Mandigers (Western Europe)
3x TBC (3 play-off winners)
Ladies’ line-up
8 seeded players
1. Deta Hedman
2. Lisa Ashton
3. Aileen de Graaf
4. Anastasia Dobromyslova
5. Corrine Hammond
6. Lorraine Winstanley
7. Trina Gulliver
8. Sharon Prins
8 unseeded players
Next six highest ranked players
Fallon Sherrock
Rhian Griffiths
Paula Jacklin
Anca Zijlstra
Rachel Brooks
Sue Edwards
2x TBC (2 play-off winners)
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