UK Darts Issue 13 - April 2014 | Page 47

PDC Players Championship 4 Photo: PDC Phil Taylor had been in fine form on the the Saturday, so it was perhaps no surprise to see him claim a second tournament victory of the year when the PDC’s elite players returned to Crawley for a second tournament in as many days on Sunday 23rd March. The 16-time World Champion was in stunning form throughout the day, winning six of his seven matches with ton-plus averages and ending the day with an overall average of 106.59 - not to mention missing double 18 for a nine-dart finish against Michael Smith. Taylor opened the day with a 109.98 average as he whitewashed Brian Woods, and then overcame Mareno Michels and Paul Nicholson before defeating Vincent van der Voort with a stunning 118.42 average to reach the quarter-finals. There, he avenged his World Championship defeat to Michael Smith with a 6-1 win, which included missing double 18 for a nine-darter before he returned to land double nine for a ten-dart winning leg. He then saw off Mervyn King in the semi-finals with a 6-2 triumph before sweeping past Stoke rival White in the decider to take the £10,000 first prize. “It’s been a great weekend for me and I’m really pleased with how I played,” said Taylor. “I knew coming to Crawley that the two tournaments could be great match practice for me and that’s how it’s panned out. “The results are starting to come for me now and the way I’ve played this weekend shows that the hard work in recent weeks has all been worth it.” Quarter-Finals Magnus Caris 6-4 Stephen Bunting Ian White 6-2 Dave Chisnall Phil Taylor 6-1 Michael Smith Mervyn King 6-3 Adrian Lewis Semi-Finals Ian White 6-4 Magnus Caris Phil Taylor 6-2 Mervyn King Final Phil Taylor 6-0 Ian White