Luke Littler has been the talk of darts ever since he finished runner-up as a 16-year-old debutant in the World Championship at Alexandra Palace, but the teenage terror will be missing from the Masters, which starts in Milton Keynes on Friday evening.
Littler is 31st in the PDC Order of Merit standings - and the top 24 earned spots in the Masters field - so older, more experienced players dominate the betting at the Marshall Arena.
World champion Luke Humphries is the No. 1 seed.
Humphries looks set for a tricky opening match in the Masters, with two heavy scorers - Stephen Bunting and Ross Smith - facing off for the right to tackle Cool Hand in round two.
Michael van Gerwen, the No. 2 seed, also appears to have a difficult early draw.
Chris Dobey, the defending Masters champion who impressed for a long way in the last World Championship, is on a round-two collision course with Van Gerwen.
If Dobey beats Andrew Gilding in round one, Mighty Mike will be Hollywood's subsequent opposition.
- Rob Cross to win the Masters
- Ryan Searle to win the Masters
Resurgent Voltage Has Got Spark Back
Rob Cross is full of beans going into February's darting action and the increasingly confident 33-year-old should be a serious contender for Masters glory.
Cross is delighted to have earned a place in the Premier League and the Hastings-based arrowsmith believes he will perform better than ever in the biggest events this season.
He is moving to Lincolnshire later this month to give himself a more central base from which to mount his challenge.
Cross reached the semi-finals of the World Championship at Christmas, before running into a rampant Littler, who averaged more than 106 in victory.
Cross was world champion in 2018 and is playing well enough to believe a second world title is within his compass at some stage.
Cross beat Gary Anderson, Michael Van Gerwen and Peter Wright in last year's Masters, so the Englishman knows that he can boss this stage. Cross lost 11-7 in the final to Dobey.
Heavy Metal Can Make Plenty Of Noise
Gerwyn Price was a shock withdrawal from the Masters on Thursday - the Welshman citing family reasons - so the top half of the draw has become wide open.
Humphries will obviously be fancying his chances, given Price was a potential semi-final opponent, but Ryan Searle may be the man who benefits most from the Welshman's decision.
Searle won a Players Championship title last February, made the quarter-finals of the World Matchplay in July, then produced a fabulous nine-dart finish in the Grand Slam.
Last season was the Somerset man's best as a professional.
With Dirk van Duijvenbode in woeful form and Nathan Aspinall lacking consistency, Heavy Metal can make the quarter-finals, where one of Daryl Gurney, Joe Cullen or Josh Rock will be waiting.
RYAN SEARLE TO WIN THE MASTERS
