2010 UK Open
The 2010 Rileys Darts Zones UK Open was the eighth year of the PDC darts tournament where, following numerous regional qualifying heats throughout Britain, players competed in a single elimination tournament to be crowned champion. The tournament was held at the Reebok Stadium in Bolton, England, from 3–6 June 2010, and had the nickname, "the FA Cup of darts" as a random draw was staged after each round until the final. It was eventually won by Phil Taylor who defeated Scotland's Gary Anderson 11–5 to make it his fourth UK Open and second consecutive championship. Earlier  in the tournament, Anderson was the on the wrong side of a nine-dart finish from Mervyn King. In the fourth round of this tournament, Phil Taylor beat Kevin Painter 9–0 with a 3–dart average of 118.66, which at the time was the all-time highest 3–dart average for a televised darts match. It was eventually beaten on 25 February 2016 in the 2016 Premier League Darts meeting in Aberdeen, when Michael van Gerwen averaged 123.40 in beating Michael Smith 7–1. 2010 UK Open Qualifiers. There were eight qualifying events staged between February and May 2010 to determine  the UK Open Order of Merit Table. The tournament winners were: Format and qualifiers. The tournament featured 138 players. As in previous years, eight regional UK Open events were staged across the UK where players winning were collated into the UK Open Order Of Merit. The top 96 players and ties in the list, who played a minimum of three events received a place at the final stages. Top 32 in Order of Merit (receiving byes into Third Round). The Rileys qualifiers and the players outside the top 32 of the UK Open Order of Merit began the tournament on  the Thursday night. They played down to 32 players, and they were joined by the top 32 of the UK Open Order of Merit the following night, to provide the competition's last 64. A random draw was made after each subsequent round. Remaining Order of Merit qualifiers (starting in First and Preliminary Round). 32 players qualified from Rileys qualifiers held in Rileys Dart Zones across Britain. 10 players qualified as BDO representatives from Avon, Bedfordshire, East Stirlingshire, Gloucestershire, Hampshire, Lothian, Northumberland, Nottinghamshire, Surrey, Warwickshire. These counties were rewarded one spot each in the UK Open for voting in favour  of listening to Barry Hearn's proposed takeover of the BDO. Prize money. For the second consecutive UK Open, the prize fund was £200,000. Draw. The draw for the preliminary, first and second rounds was made on 13 May. Nine Dart Finish. Mervyn King hit a nine dart finish in his fourth round match against Gary Anderson, however he lost the match 9-8. World Record. Phil Taylor hit the highest televised average in history in his 9-0 victory over Kevin Painter, finishing the match with a three-dart average of 118.66.