Van Gerwen had won three of the six UK Open Qualifiers and in the fourth round of the main event he produced his fifth televised nine-dart finish whilst defeating Rob Cross 9–5. He also hit 170 finishes in the leg before and after the perfect leg. He recovered from 4–1 down to Taylor in the semi-finals to win 10–6 and, in a repeat of last year's final, bested Wright 11–4 to retain his title. Van Gerwen won his second consecutive World Matchplay title with a comfortable 18–10 win over Taylor. It was 15-time winner Taylor's first defeat in a Matchplay final and only his eighth defeat in the tournament since 1994. He did suffer an 11–5 loss to Taylor in the final of the inaugural Champions League of Darts, but then set a record average in a World Grand Prix final of 100.29 as he beat Anderson 5–2.