Gerwyn Price: World number three seals double PDC autumn titles
- Published
Gerwyn Price is ranked third in the PDC World order of merit
Gerwyn Price admits he might now be the man to beat at October's World Grand Prix after winning back-to-back PDC Autumn series titles in Germany.
The Welshman beat South African Devon Petersen in Tuesday's day four final, before beating Poland's Krzysztof Ratajski 8-5 on the final day.
A relaxed Price produced five successive 100+ averages on his way to title number two.
"Once I won (Tuesday) I just felt there was no pressure at all," said Price.
"Obviously I try my best every time," added the world number three, "but if I'd lost, I'd already had a good run. Sometimes with that mentality you just seem to play a bit better.
"I was under no pressure at all and it showed in my darts."
Price, 35, topped the Autumn Series Order of Merit ahead of world-leading duo Peter Wright and Michael van Gerwen - who each won one title in the five-match series - and the former rugby player accepts he has now joined the pair amongst the world's elite.
"I think I'm up there with the best of them with my scoring and, if I can check out rather than missing loads of doubles, I'll be up there with the best of them," he said.
"I just want to carry on now from where I left off. I know I'm playing well.
"I've had two good days, hopefully I can just carry this form into next week and then into the ranking events as well.
"It's always nice to win and put a marker down and let everybody else chase you but it's a different tournament next week with a crowd and a major, so everybody will be up for it, not just me."
The darts tour heads to Salzburg for the World Series of Darts this weekend (18-20 September), which will be the first event with spectators since the start of the coronavirus pandemic following a decision by the Austrian government to allow indoor events of up to a 5,000 capacity.
"I'm in a good place now going into Austria. There's going to be a crowd for the first time in a long while which is going to be a little different, but I'm looking forward to it," Price said.
The season's first televised ranking event is the World Grand Prix, normally staged in Dublin, but which this year will be held behind closed doors at Coventry's Ricoh Arena from 6-12 October because of Covid-19.