Grand Slam of Darts: Jonny Clayton will 'do his best' for late father John

Jonny Clayton goes into the Grand Slam of Darts ranked eighth in the world

Jonny Clayton goes into the Grand Slam of Darts opening round in Wolverhampton on Saturday determined to "do his best" for his late father John.

The 49-year-old Welshman's father died in July, 2023.

"We were big friends, me and dad, and I miss him every day," said Clayton ahead of his first match with Berry van Peer.

"It's difficult, it's hard. His life was darts and for me to be on TV and performing on the world stage, he was proud of that."

Clayton opens his Group B campaign against "good friend" Van Peer, but Clayton's father will not be far from his thoughts.

"I have to be honest, I'm still trying to do my best for him and obviously for me, but at this present moment, darts is my job," Clayton told BBC Radio Wales Sport.

"So I have to go back and try and earn some money.

"So my head has got to be back in the right place to try and get back into what I know I can do; to good form and cross fingers, this kicks off a good end to the season."

After facing Van Peer, World Cup champion and World Matchplay runner-up Clayton will also face Masters champion Chris Dobey of England and World Youth title holder Josh Rock of Northern Ireland in Group B.

"Berry is a class act… he ain't gonna go up there and just show up," said Clayton.

"So it's gonna be difficult. It's hard when you play against friends. So I've got to get my head on and I have to just try and get through the match."

Clayton says the event is one of his "favourites" because its eight-pool, round-robin format, which finishes on Sunday, 19 November, offers all 32 competitors "more than one chance".

"You (can) lose your first game, but you're still in the competition because you've got another two games to put your head on and to get yourself back into the competition," he added.

"It might sound silly, but it's a little bit less pressure. If it's a straight knockout, you lose the first game that's your tournament finished. At least with this tournament you do get a second chance."

Title-holder Michael Smith of England starts his defence of the Eric Bristow Trophy against Scotland's Nathan Girvan.

Clayton's fellow Welshman Gerwyn Price takes on Northern Ireland's Nathan Rafferty in his Group D opener, with Englishman Ryan Searle and debut-making Dutchman Gian van Veen to also contend with.

Listen to the full interview with Jonny Clayton on Radio Wales Sport, BBC Radio Wales from 19:00 GMT on Friday, 10 November and later on demand.