Taylor Takes PartyPoker.net Players Championship
PHIL TAYLOR defeated Raymond van Barneveld 3-1 in the final of Saturday's PartyPoker.net Players Championship in Germany.
Taylor picked up his third PDC Pro Tour title of the month with a fine display at the Ramada Hotel in Bad Soden.
His fine form continued in his charge to the title, seeing off Steve Cusick and Germans Frank Mast and Marcus Schulte to reach the last 16.
He then produced a 170 finish to see off Ronnie Baxter, overcame Roland Scholten in straight sets in the quarter-finals and came from a set down against Andy Hamilton in the semis.
Facing old foe van Barneveld in the final, Taylor produced an 11-darter in winning the first set 2-0.
World number one van Barneveld came from a leg down to win the second set, but never recovered after another 11-darter from Taylor saw him take the deciding leg of set three.
He led in the fourth, but double ten put Taylor to the brink of victory and a 96 finish, on double 18, sealed the triumph.
Earlier Rounds
Colin Lloyd hit a nine-darter against Colin Monk in their Board Final, winning him the £12,400 rolling prize for a nine-dart leg.
The feat, Lloyd's second in a PDC ranked event following his achievement in the 2006 Irish Masters, was not enough to save Lloyd from defeat to Monk, as he went down 3-2.
The day also saw a near-miss at a nine-darter from Tony Eccles, who was off-target on double 12 to match Lloyd's achievement.
Andy Hamilton came from two sets down to defeat James Wade 3-2 in the quarter-finals, while Roland Scholten, Wayne Jones and Wayne Mardle also went down in the last eight.
Phil Taylor defeated Ronnie Baxter with a 170 finish at the last 16 stage, with Holland's Jelle Klaasen and Vincent van der Voort and Spain's Carlos Rodriguez among the victims at the same stage.
The PDC sends its best wishes to Swen Raush, who was injured in a car crash on his way to Bad Soden on Friday night.
Semi-Finals
Raymond van Barneveld came from behind to edge Alan Tabern in a dramatic first semi-final.
Tabern took the game's opening set with finishes of 106 and 121, and was a leg up in the next before van Barneveld levelled and then took out a two-dart 64 for the second set.
Tabern won the third set's opener on double nine, and then moved 2-1 up in the game with an 84 finish on double six, with van Barneveld sat on a double.
Van Barneveld took the first leg of set four on double top, after Tabern failed to set up a finish, and the St Helens man paid the price for a narrowly missed double eight for a 136 finish as the Dutchman returned to land double four to send the game into a decider.
Van Barneveld led thanks to a double top finish, but Tabern landed a maximum in the next to level, with van Barneveld waiting on tops for victory.
Tabern had a golden chance to win the deciding leg, needing 140 and seeing his first dart land in treble 20, only for his second to bounce out of the same bed. He was given another chance, but three missed darts at double ten and five gave van Barneveld one last chance, and he nailed double eight to move into the final.
Van Barneveld will face great rival Phil Taylor in the final, after the 13-time World Champion's 3-1 win over Andy Hamilton.
Hamilton defied a ten-darter from Taylor to win the first set in a decider, only for Taylor to take the second without reply, including an 11-darter.
Taylor won the third set in the same manner, including another 11-darter, before powering to victory by winning the next two legs.
The German Darts Classic Weekend continues on Sunday with a second PartyPoker.net Players Championship.
PartyPoker.net Players Championship (Saturday)
Taylor picked up his third PDC Pro Tour title of the month with a fine display at the Ramada Hotel in Bad Soden.
His fine form continued in his charge to the title, seeing off Steve Cusick and Germans Frank Mast and Marcus Schulte to reach the last 16.
He then produced a 170 finish to see off Ronnie Baxter, overcame Roland Scholten in straight sets in the quarter-finals and came from a set down against Andy Hamilton in the semis.
Facing old foe van Barneveld in the final, Taylor produced an 11-darter in winning the first set 2-0.
World number one van Barneveld came from a leg down to win the second set, but never recovered after another 11-darter from Taylor saw him take the deciding leg of set three.
He led in the fourth, but double ten put Taylor to the brink of victory and a 96 finish, on double 18, sealed the triumph.
Earlier Rounds
Colin Lloyd hit a nine-darter against Colin Monk in their Board Final, winning him the £12,400 rolling prize for a nine-dart leg.
The feat, Lloyd's second in a PDC ranked event following his achievement in the 2006 Irish Masters, was not enough to save Lloyd from defeat to Monk, as he went down 3-2.
The day also saw a near-miss at a nine-darter from Tony Eccles, who was off-target on double 12 to match Lloyd's achievement.
Andy Hamilton came from two sets down to defeat James Wade 3-2 in the quarter-finals, while Roland Scholten, Wayne Jones and Wayne Mardle also went down in the last eight.
Phil Taylor defeated Ronnie Baxter with a 170 finish at the last 16 stage, with Holland's Jelle Klaasen and Vincent van der Voort and Spain's Carlos Rodriguez among the victims at the same stage.
The PDC sends its best wishes to Swen Raush, who was injured in a car crash on his way to Bad Soden on Friday night.
Semi-Finals
Raymond van Barneveld came from behind to edge Alan Tabern in a dramatic first semi-final.
Tabern took the game's opening set with finishes of 106 and 121, and was a leg up in the next before van Barneveld levelled and then took out a two-dart 64 for the second set.
Tabern won the third set's opener on double nine, and then moved 2-1 up in the game with an 84 finish on double six, with van Barneveld sat on a double.
Van Barneveld took the first leg of set four on double top, after Tabern failed to set up a finish, and the St Helens man paid the price for a narrowly missed double eight for a 136 finish as the Dutchman returned to land double four to send the game into a decider.
Van Barneveld led thanks to a double top finish, but Tabern landed a maximum in the next to level, with van Barneveld waiting on tops for victory.
Tabern had a golden chance to win the deciding leg, needing 140 and seeing his first dart land in treble 20, only for his second to bounce out of the same bed. He was given another chance, but three missed darts at double ten and five gave van Barneveld one last chance, and he nailed double eight to move into the final.
Van Barneveld will face great rival Phil Taylor in the final, after the 13-time World Champion's 3-1 win over Andy Hamilton.
Hamilton defied a ten-darter from Taylor to win the first set in a decider, only for Taylor to take the second without reply, including an 11-darter.
Taylor won the third set in the same manner, including another 11-darter, before powering to victory by winning the next two legs.
The German Darts Classic Weekend continues on Sunday with a second PartyPoker.net Players Championship.
PartyPoker.net Players Championship (Saturday)
| Final Phil Taylor 3-1 Raymond van Barneveld (2-0, 1-2, 2-1, 2-1) Winner £5,000 Runner-Up £2,500 |
| Semi-Finals Raymond van Barneveld 3-2 Alan Tabern (0-2, 2-1, 0-2, 2-0, 2-1) Phil Taylor 3-1 Andy Hamilton (1-2, 2-0, 2-0, 2-0) Losers £1,250 |
| Quarter-Finals Raymond van Barneveld 3-1 Wayne Mardle Alan Tabern 3-1 Wayne Jones Phil Taylor 3-0 Roland Scholten Andy Hamilton 3-2 James Wade Losers £600 |
| Fourth Round Raymond van Barneveld 3-0 Colin Osborne Wayne Mardle 3-0 Colin Monk Alan Tabern 3-2 Carlos Rodriguez Wayne Jones 3-1 Kevin Painter Phil Taylor 3-1 Ronnie Baxter Roland Scholten 3-1 Wes Newton Andy Hamilton 3-1 Vincent van der Voort James Wade 3-0 Jelle Klaasen Losers £300 |
| Third Round Raymond van Barneveld 3-0 Steve Maish Colin Osborne 3-0 Kevin McDine Wayne Mardle 3-1 Mick McGowan Colin Monk 3-2 Dave Honey Carlos Rodriguez 3-2 Adrian Gray Alan Tabern 3-0 Andy Smith Wayne Jones 3-2 Terry Jenkins Kevin Painter 3-1 Mervyn King Phil Taylor 3-0 Marcus Schulte Ronnie Baxter 3-1 Darren Latham Roland Scholten 3-2 Steve Beaton Wes Newton 3-1 Owen Caffrey Andy Hamilton 3-1 Anton Pein Vincent van der Voort 3-2 Barrie Bates James Wade 3-0 Dave Askew Jelle Klaasen 3-0 Kirk Shepherd Losers £150 |
| Second Round Raymond van Barneveld 3-1 Ian Eames Steve Maish 3-2 Tony Eccles Colin Osborne 3-0 Dave Ladley Kevin McDine 3-0 Chris Mason Wayne Mardle 3-2 Erwin Extercatte Mick McGowan 3-1 Olaf Schmethusen Colin Monk 3-2 Colin Lloyd Dave Honey 3-1 Alex Roy Carlos Rodriguez 3-1 Danny Pinhorne Adrian Gray 3-0 Alexander Albert Alan Tabern 3-0 Alan Caves Andy Smith 3-2 Mensur Suljovic Terry Jenkins 3-1 Dennis Smith Wayne Jones 3-1 Alex Kohler Kevin Painter 3-0 Sladan Nedic Mervyn King 3-0 Pavel Jimkal Phil Taylor 3-0 Frank Mast Marcus Schulte 3-2 Alan Warriner-Little Ronnie Baxter 3-0 Alexander Hamacher Darren Latham 3-2 Steve Smith Roland Scholten 3-1 Maik Langendorf Steve Beaton 3-1 Holger Kauf Owen Caffrey 3-2 Peter Manley Wes Newton 3-1 Thomas Eisgruber Andy Hamilton 3-0 Johann Honner Anton Pein 3-0 Nick Fulwell Barrie Bates 3-0 Miloslav Navratil Vincent van der Voort 3-2 Karsten Koch James Wade 3-0 Huseyin Zengin Dave Askew 3-0 Tony Littleton Jelle Klaasen 3-2 Marko Puls Kirk Shepherd 3-0 Dietmar Burger Losers £75 |
| First Round Raymond van Barneveld 3-0 Martin Burchell Ian Eames 3-0 John Aylonn Steve Maish 3-0 Alexander Glatthorn Tony Eccles 3-1 Jurgen Lechtken Colin Osborne 3-0 Tomas Seyler Dave Ladley 3-1 Leroy Kwadijk Chris Mason 3-0 Martin van Bijlefeld Kevin McDine 3-0 Andreas Muller Wayne Mardle 3-0 Tino Moser Erwin Extercatte 3-1 Olaf Tupuschis Mick McGowan 3-1 Sean Palfrey Olaf Schmethusen 3-1 Kieran Leal Colin Lloyd Bye (Alan Green) Colin Monk 3-2 Michael van Gerwen Alex Roy 3-0 Kevin Harris Dave Honey 3-0 Jurgen Gallinat Carlos Rodriguez 3-2 Adrian Lewis Danny Pinhorne 3-0 Michael Putz Adrian Gray 3-2 Robert Watson-Lang Alexander Albert 3-1 Ricky Williams Alan Tabern 3-1 Jan van der Rassel Alan Caves 3-2 Steve Evans Andy Smith 3-1 Thomas Gerock Mensur Suljovic 3-1 Tom Wilson Terry Jenkins 3-0 Christian Kruger Dennis Smith 3-0 Matt Clark Wayne Jones 3-0 Hannes Schnier Alexander Kohler 3-2 Stephan Schneider Kevin Painter Bye (Mike Klein) Sladan Nedic 3-2 Michael Wolf Mervyn King 3-0 Andre Welge Pavel Jimkal 3-0 Raimund Mierswa Phil Taylor 3-1 Steve Cusick Frank Mast - Walkover (Bernd Roith) Alan Warriner-Little 3-1 Markus Hinfurtner Marcus Schulte 3-1 Tobias Hontsch Ronnie Baxter 3-0 Andi Waldenmaier Alexander Hamacher 3-2 Alan Dokic Steve Smith 3-0 Mark Dudbridge Darren Latham 3-0 Yves Cottenge Roland Scholten Bye (Richard Plowman) Maik Langendorf 3-0 Andre Michel Steve Beaton 3-0 Carlo Welte Holger Kauf 3-0 Heinz Neuendorf Peter Manley 3-2 Hans Pfaff Owen Caffrey 3-1 Thomas Obstfelder Wes Newton 3-0 Mike Herold Thomas Eisgruber 3-2 Chris Kotal Andy Hamilton 3-1 Jamie Caven Johann Honner 3-1 Shane Passey Anton Pein 3-1 Mark Walsh Nick Fulwell 3-0 Holger Rettig Barrie Bates 3-0 Marco Salmen Miloslav Navratil 3-0 John Lokken Vincent van der Voort 3-0 Jonathan Overton Karsten Koch 3-0 Michael Rosenauer Jamie Wade 3-0 John MaGowan Huseyin Zengin 3-2 Heiko Gallinat Dave Askew 3-0 Haci Halim Senses Tony Littleton 3-0 Frank Bauske Jelle Klaasen 3-2 Denis Ovens Marko Puls 3-1 Ben Burton Kirk Shepherd 3-1 Jurgen Demler Dietmar Burger 3-2 Alexander Berger |
| Preliminary Round Martin Burchell 3-0 Jorg Fassbender Ian Eames 3-2 Stephan Wusch Jurgen Lechtken 3-0 Markus Scheck Dave Ladley 3-0 Karsten Kornath Kevin McDine 3-0 Mario Hermann Olaf Tupuschis Bye (Sven Buchner) Kieran Leal 3-2 Colin Rice Colin Monk 3-1 Lee White Kevin Harris 3-0 Detlev Haut Dave Honey 3-0 Detlev Bietz Carlos Rodriguez 3-0 Steve Grubb Danny Pinhorne Bye (Swen Rausch) Alexander Albert 3-2 Daniel Schmidt Alan Caves 3-0 Frieder Pohlers Mensur Suljovic 3-0 Franz Paulus Matt Clark 3-0 Barnhard Kraus Alex Kohler 3-2 Jason Barry Michael Wolf 3-1 Mario Masurka Andre Welge 3-0 Axel Krauss Pavel Jimkal 3-0 Berthold Wittmann Steve Cusick 3-1 Jon Archer Frank Mast 3-0 Marcel Hausotter Tobias Hontsch 3-1 Roland Schmidt Alan Dokic 3-1 Christophe Laveau Darren Latham 3-0 Norbert Grimm Andre Michel Bye (Gary Welding) Holger Kauf 3-1 Daniel Taube Owen Caffrey 3-1 Olaf Fiss Mike Herold Bye (Gunther Ulrich) Thomas Eisgruber 3-2 Rico Vonck Jamie Caven 3-0 Manfred Hausler Shane Passey 3-1 Ali Avci Nick Fulwell 3-0 Sonja Neuendorf John Lokken 3-0 Gerhard Kremer Michael Rosenauer 3-0 Matheus Ziolkowski Heiko Gallinat Bye (Daniel Smerecinski) Tony Littleton 3-0 Alex Kufer Ben Burton 3-0 Alexander Haack Dietmar Burger 3-0 Stefan Mindum |