Phil Taylor's sweet 16: how he powered to his world title triumphs | Sport | The Guardian Phil Taylor's sweet 16: how he powered to his world title triumphs The Burslem-born magician first became world champion in 1990 and has been almost untouchable ever since Phil 'The Power' Taylor's 16 world championship victories have included four whitewashes in finals. Photograph: Leon Neal/AFP/Getty Images Phil Taylor's sweet 16: how he powered to his world title triumphs The Burslem-born magician first became world champion in 1990 and has been almost untouchable ever since Brooke Streatfield and John McDougall Wednesday 2 January 2013 20.29 EST First published on Wednesday 2 January 2013 20.29 EST No1: Beat Eric Bristow 6-1 , 13 Jan 1990 It all began for Burslem-born Taylor as he claimed his maiden world title with a 6-1 win over his mentor Eric Bristow at the Lakeside Country Club in Frimley Green, Surrey.

The 125-1 unseeded player overcame the Australian Russell Stuart and Englishman Dennis Hickling in the early rounds before beating the Scotsman Ronnie Sharp 4-2 in the quarter-final. 'The Power' then thrashed Cliff Lazarenko 5-0 in the semis before taking on the five-time winner and No1 seed, Bristow. 'The Crafty Cockney' was destroyed 6-1 by his protégé and a new legend in the world of darts was born. No2: Beat Mike Gregory 6-5 , 11 Jan 1992 Taylor won his second world darts title at the Lakeside Country Club by beating Mike Gregory 6-5. It was to be Taylor's last World Darts Championship win before a dispute in 1994 led to the formation of the WDC, later the PDC Championship, rivalling the British Darts Organisation's version. Taylor overcame Sweden's Magnus Caris and Denmark's Per Skau in the first and second rounds respectively, before thrashing Wales' Martin Phillips 4-0 in the quarter-final.

A close 5-4 victory over John Lowe in the semi-final was followed by a tight final win over Gregory, one Taylor has described as among the favourites of his career. No3: Beat Rod Harrington 6-2, 2 Jan 1995 Having been thrashed 6-1 by Dennis Priestley in the inaugural PDC final the previous year, Taylor's third world crown came after he dispatched Rod Harrington, in the now Sky pundit's only final appearance. Taylor beat Gerald Verrier and Sean Downs in the group stages and Bob Anderson in the quarter-final but it was an epic semi-final against Lowe where Taylor scraped through to win 5-4 that darts fans will most remember from this tournament. No4: Beat Dennis Priestley 6-4, 2 Jan 1996 'The Power' gained revenge over Priestley for his 1994 defeat by beating 'The Menace' 6-4 at the Circus Tavern. Drawn in group eight, Taylor beat his fellow Englishmen Shayne Burgess and Lazarenko 3-0 to gain passage to the quarter-finals.

He faced the group seven winner, Keith Deller, defeating 'The Feller' 4-0 before beating Lowe in another semi-final, 5-1. The finalists had lost only three sets between them in getting there, setting up a tantalising encounter in which Taylor eventually came through. No5: Beat Dennis Priestley 6-3, 5 Jan 1997 The Circus Tavern was again the venue as Taylor clinched the title 6-3. He beat Verrier and Chris Mason in the group stages and Deller in the quarter-finals but the most memorable match of the competition was his semi-final against Bristow that was branded the battle of The Mentor v the Protégé. Taylor emerged the winner beating Bristow 5-4, equalling the Crafty Cockney's tally of world championship triumphs. No6: Beat Dennis Priestley 6-0 , 4 Jan 1998 The Power became the most successful player in world championship history after defeating Priestley for a third time in consecutive years to record his fourth title in a row. Taylor took over from Bristow, who won five titles during the 1980s.

The match was one of Taylor's most convincing wins to date with Priestley unable to take a single set off the champion. During the tournament Harrington was the only player to take any sets from Taylor, in their semi-final. No7: Beat Peter Manley 6-2, 3 Jan 1999 Taylor's seventh and final world title of the nineties saw the beginning of his trio of final defeats of Manley, defeating 'One Dart' 6-2. As usual Taylor won his first-round tie comprehensively with a 3-0 victory over Reg Harding, but dropped a set in his 3-1 second-round victory over Chesterfield's Lowe. The Power returned to being flawless with a 4-0 victory over Anderson in the quarter-final, before facing a sterner test in his 5-3 semi-final win over the former world No1 Alan Warriner-Little. Taylor made it five world titles in a row with his final victory over Manley.

No8: Beat Dennis Priestley 7-3, 8 Jan 2000 With the World Darts Championships being the earliest sporting event in the calendar, Taylor was labelled the "First World Champion of the new Millennium" after winning his eighth PDC title. Taylor continued to show what a dominant force he was in the world of darts by retaining his title although many reports labelled Priestley unlucky after his fourth final defeat by Taylor in five years. The Power had endured a tough first-round match with Mick Manning, where he struggled to a 3-2 win, but after that early scare he did not lose another set en route to the final, beating Graeme Stoddart, Warriner-Little and Dennis Smith. No9: Beat John Part 7-0 , 3 Jan 2001 Taylor's seventh title in succession was among his most dominant victories as he dropped only one set in the entire tournament and thrashed Part 7-0 in the final at the Circus Tavern. The Power won all three sets in his first-round encounter with Nigel Justice, before dropping his only set of the championship in his 3-1 second-round win over Les Fitton.

Taylor then comprehensively defeated Deller in the quarter-final and Dave Askew in the semis. The Canadian Part – who won only three legs in the final – was simply no match for The Power. No10: Beat Peter Manley 7-0, 5 Jan 2002 Another year, another whitewash in the final, this time over Manley. Taylor beat Paul Williams, Burgess, Part and Askew in his quest for his 10th title, this time dropping two sets during the tournament. Manley had a much harder time getting to the final, dropping at least two sets in every round and having to battle through the semi-final. Manley was booed for years by darts fans after refusing to shake Taylor's hand after the final, later claiming he had urgently had to run to the bathroom. No11: Beat Kevin Painter 7-6 , 4 Jan 2004 Taylor survived a sudden-death leg against Painter to triumph at the Circus Tavern. The No1 seed had beaten Colin McGarry, Priestley, Warriner-Little and Wayne Mardle to reach the final.

In a classic showpiece Taylor was 4-1 down after five sets as Painter pressed his advantage. He fought back, though, to reduce the deficit to a set, eventually going 6-5 ahead. Painter drew the scores level to take the final to sudden death but The Power won an unbelievably tense encounter with a double five. He announced his retirement from darts but performed a U-turn four days later. No12 Beat Mark Dudbridge 7-4 , 3 Jan 2005 Changing his mind over retirement proved the right decision as Taylor won the title again the following year. He had to come from behind twice to win as Dudbridge led by 2-1 and then 3-2. Taylor had enjoyed another easy path to the final, losing only one set, his first in the quarter-finals against the man he had beaten in the final the previous year, Painter. No13: Beat Peter Manley 7-0 , 3 Jan 2006 Manley suffered another whitewash at Taylor's hands as the champion secured his 13th World Darts Championship title. Taylor was imperious once more, losing only two sets on the way to the semis.

He breezed past David Platt in the first round, before dropping a set in his 4-1 victory over Matt Clark. A 4-0 triumph in the third round over Andy Hamilton was followed by a 5-1 quarter-final drubbing of Painter. The semi-final proved more difficult as Taylor struggled past Mardle 6-5, leaving Manley confident it would have left his final opponent mentally spent. But it did not prove the case. No14: Beat Raymond van Barneveld 7-1 , 4 Jan 2009 After a three-year gap Taylor regained his form, crushing the Dutchman in the final at Alexandra Palace. He set a world record average for a tournament final of 110.94, underlining his status as world No1, and was never really troubled throughout the competition. No15: Beat Simon Whitlock 7-3 , 3 Jan 2010 Taylor was at his best throughout the 2010 World Darts Championship, losing one set to Scotland's Robert Thornton in the third round on his way to meeting Whitlock. This championship prize was the biggest of Taylor's career to date with a fund of £1m.

No16: Beat Michael van Gerwen 7-4 , 1 Jan 2013 Having gone out in the second round in 2012, the first time in his career Taylor had not reached the quarter-finals of the worlds, others were being touted ahead of him for the title. Taylor, however, breezed through the early rounds, losing only one set as he closed on a semi-final against Van Barneveld. Taylor led 5-1 and fought off a Van Barneveld fightback to win 6-4, before having a memorable spat with the Dutchman for which he later apologised. In the final he came back from 4-2 down – despite suffering from a cold – to defeat Van Barneveld's fellow Dutchman, the 23-year-old Van Gerwen, who had triumphed in their two previous meetings, in the final at Alexandra Palace. World Darts Championship: Schedule of play released sees Phil Taylor on opening night | Darts News | Sky Sports Sky Bet World Darts Championship: Schedule of play released sees Phil Taylor on opening night Defending world champion Phil Taylor will star on the opening night of this year's tournament on Friday December 13.

Last Updated: 04/12/13 4:50pm Phil Taylor says he can't wait to get going at the World Darts Championships. Taylor, who won his 16th World Championship title on New Year's Day when he came from 4-2 down to claim a famous 7-4 victory against Michael van Gerwen, will open his bid to retain the Sid Waddell Trophy against either New Zealand's Rob Szabo or PDPA Qualifier Ian Moss, who will play their preliminary round tie earlier in the night. The opening night will also feature three-time World Champion John Part - the first Alexandra Palace winner in 2008 - up against Holland's Mareno Michels, the 1995 Lakeside Champion Richie Burnett up against Dean Winstanley and Peter Wright's clash with Joe Cullen. The World Championship's first round is split across eight sessions in the opening seven days, with one preliminary round contest accompanied by four games from the first round at the north London venue, live on Sky Sports.

The afternoon session of Saturday December 14 sees former World Championship semi-finalists Wayne Jones and Terry Jenkins in action, Stoke's rising star Ian White up against DPA Australian Grand Prix champion Kyle Anderson and former UK Open finalist Mark Walsh taking on top Finnish player Jarkko Komula. Saturday Saturday's evening session will see three former World Championship finalists in action, with 2011 star Gary Anderson taking on the 2005 runner-up Mark Dudbridge, before Andy Hamilton - who lost to Adrian Lewis in the 2012 final - plays either Julio Barbero or Andree Welge. Five-time World Champion Raymond van Barneveld is in action on Sunday December 15 as he faces Jamie Lewis, with former World Grand Prix finalists Dave Chisnall and Brendan Dolan also on stage before Jamie Caven meets ex-Lakeside Champion Jelle Klaasen. Monday's play sees the eagerly-awaited clash between Belgian brothers Kim and Ronny Huybrechts, while former Lakeside Champion Steve Beaton meets either South African Devon Petersen or Malaysia's Mohammed Latif Sapup, with Ronnie Baxter taking on Ricky Evans and Mervyn King meeting Darin Young.

World number two Michael van Gerwen begins his bid to reach the final for a second successive year on Tuesday December 17 when he plays the winner of the preliminary round contest between Zoran Lerchbacher and Ben Ward. 2010 World Championship finalist Simon Whitlock is also in action on Tuesday as he plays Ross Smith, while former World Matchplay winner Colin Lloyd plays Oceanic Masters champion Beau Anderson and Vincent van der Voort takes on Matt Clark. Two-time World Champion Adrian Lewis opens his challenge for a third Alexandra Palace title on Wednesday December 18 against experienced Dennis Smith, while World Youth Champion Michael Smith is also in action as he plays Japan's Morihiro Hashimoto or Singapore's Paul Lim. Thursday The first round concludes on Thursday December 19, when three-time Ally Pally semi-finalist James Wade takes on Darren Webster and 2004 World Championship finalist Kevin Painter plays Germany's Tomas Seyler. World number eight Wes Newton taking on either Gino Vos or Ting Chi Royden Lam, and Mark Webster, a former Lakeside Champion and two-time Alexandra Palace semi-finalist, plays Austria's Mensur Suljovic.

The second round sees 15 of the 16 ties take place before the Christmas break, with one game kicking off the post-Christmas action on Friday December 27 when the tournament resumes. The third round is held on December 27 and 28, when the first two quarter-finals will be held. The second pair of quarter-finals will be held on Sunday December 29, with the semi-finals on Monday December 30 and the final taking place on Wednesday January 1, as the winner of the record £250,000 first prize is crowned. The World Darts Championship starts on Friday December 13, live on Sky Sports 1 HD from 7pm Player Profiles | PDC Player Profiles Snap - (I've Got) The Power Date of Birth: Follow Phil Taylor on Twitter Watch Phil Taylor Highlights in LIVEPDC.TV * The PDC are not responsible for the content of external websites Biography Titles THE greatest player ever to throw a dart, Taylor exploded onto the darts scene at the end of the 1980's and has rewritten the history books since, with his achievements headlined by an unrivalled 16 World Championship wins.

A protege of five-time World Champion Eric Bristow, he picked up his first major title at the 1990 Embassy Championship with a 6-1 thrashing of his mentor. He also added the 1990 World Masters title before picking up a second World Championship two years later in one of darts' greatest matches against Mike Gregory. Since the formation of the PDC, Taylor has dominated professional darts and picked up an unparalleled number of titles, with his achievements leading to him being compared to the likes of Mohammed Ali and Sir Donald Bradman as a sporting great. Eleven victories at the Circus Tavern - following a loss to Dennis Priestley in the inaugural PDC World Championship in 1994 - plus two World Championship wins at Alexandra Palace have been complemented by success every other major tournaments. He claimed a first World Matchplay title in 1995 and also won the title in 1997 before being unbeaten at the Winter Gardens from 2000 to 2004 to claim five successive titles - a record he broke with a sixth successive triumph in 2013.

Taylor's rivalry with Priestley saw him repay the Yorkshireman for that 1994 World Championship loss many times over in major finals - winning the World Championship deciders between the duo in 1996, 1997, 1998 and 2000 as well as the 1995 World Matchplay final. The new Millennium saw the emergence of a new challenger to his throne, John Part, with Taylor coming out on top in one World Championship final, one World Matchplay decider and two World Grand Prix finals and the Canadian claiming a 7-6 win in the 2003 World Championship. Taylor regained the World Championship title 12 months later, coming from 4-1 down to win in a sudden-death leg against Kevin Painter in arguably the sport's best-ever game. The introduction of the double-start World Grand Prix in 1998 saw Taylor win that event for five of the first seven years, only losing in 2001 and 2004 in the first round to Painter and Andy Callaby.

He was also the Las Vegas Desert Classic champion in 2002 and 2004, and he won the first-ever UK Open in 2003 before being the unbeaten victor in the inaugural Premier League Darts in 2005. Taylor's place in the record books had also been assured after he hit the first live nine-dart leg on Sky Sports during the 2002 World Matchplay - a feat he repeated in both the 2004, 2005, 2007 and 2008 UK Open and in the 2007 International Darts League, and he was unbeaten for two years in a televised match from 1999 to 2001. 2005 also saw Taylor retain his World Championship title by defeating Mark Dudbridge, and claim a second UK Open and a third Las Vegas Desert Classic, before Part ended his bid for a clean sweep of honours with a defeat in the World Matchplay, although he bounced back to win the World Grand Prix against defending champion Colin Lloyd.

Taylor then went on to retain the World Championship with a 7-0 defeat of Peter Manley at the Circus Tavern in January 2006 to claim his 13th crown, but that year saw the arrival of another new challenger to his throne - Holland's Raymond van Barneveld. After retaining the Premier League crown - again unbeaten - and then winning the first World Series of Darts, he lost twice to van Barneveld, in the UK Open and Las Vegas Desert Classic. However, he recaptured the World Matchplay title in the summer of 2006 by seeing off James Wade in Blackpool to take the trophy back to Stoke for an eighth time and also retained the World Grand Prix by defeating Terry Jenkins. Van Barneveld inflicted another defeat on Taylor in a dramatic 2007 World Championship final, the Dutchman overturning a 3-0 deficit before winning a sudden-death leg and taking the title.

Although Taylor won the Premier League for a third successive year, once again being unbeaten in the event, he also lost once more to van Barneveld in the UK Open, and then went out in the Las Vegas Desert Classic at the first round stage against Mark Dudbridge and to Terry Jenkins in the World Matchplay semi-finals. A loss to Adrian Gray in the World Grand Prix, for a third time in the event at the first round stage, was followed by a quarter-final exit to Wayne Mardle in the World Championship - the first time in the PDC event he had failed to reach the final - and even victories during the autumn of 2007 in the inaugural Grand Slam of Darts and German Darts Championship failed to prevent talk that Taylor's power may be on the wane. His defeat in the opening game of the 2008 Premier League, to James Wade, was his first ever in the history of the tournament, and two more in his opening four games left Taylor second bottom in the table.

But a change of darts marked an incredible turnaround, with an 8-0 whitewash of Wayne Mardle followed by nine successive wins which saw him top the league table and then take play-off glory against Wade. Taylor also won six successive PDC Pro Tour events in the spring of 2008, and hit a nine-darter during a Players Championship in Germany, which was followed by a fourth perfect leg in the UK Open before he suffered a third successive quarter-final loss to van Barneveld in Bolton. Wade was also defeated in the finals of the Las Vegas Desert Classic and the World Matchplays as Taylor regained the number one position in the PDC Order of Merit in the summer of 2008. He went on to win an eighth World Grand Prix in the autumn, as well as retaining his Grand Slam of Darts title and taking victory in the inaugural Championship League Darts and European Championship events. Although Taylor was victorious in another five straight Players Championships in the second half of the year, he lost in the final of the German Darts Championship to Co Stompe - only to avenge that in the 2009 World Championship.

The clash with Stompe came at the quarter-final stage, with Steve Grubb, Michael van Gerwen and Kevin Painter already defeated. Mervyn King was Taylor's semi-final victim before he defeated van Barneveld 7-1 to claim a 14th World Championship, having dropped only four sets in the tournament and averaged a record 110 in the final. His run of form continued into the early part of 2009, with victory in the inaugural Players Championship event at the Circus Tavern, where he defeated Robert Thornton in the final of the new televised event. His reign in the Premier League Darts was ended in May 2009, losing to Mervyn King in the semi-finals after topping the league table for a fifth successive year. However, he bounced back to win the UK Open for a fourth time, overcoming Colin Osborne in the final, and then take a fifth Las Vegas Desert Classic with victory against Raymond van Barneveld. The summer of 2009 saw Taylor claim his tenth World Matchplay title, overcoming Terry Jenkins 18-4 with a record winning margin at the Winter Gardens, having also twice averaged 109 earlier in the event.

He returned to action in September in Championship League Darts, before retaining his South African Masters title in Johannesburg with a victory over James Wade in the final at Emperors Palace. A Players Championship win in Dublin was followed by a ninth World Grand Prix title in October, with a 6-3 comeback victory over Raymond van Barneveld, after he was initially 2-0 down, maintaining Taylor's record of holding all major ranking titles at once. Taylor then claimed a second successive European Championship - hitting a then record average for a major championship of 118 against Gary Anderson during the event - and also won a Players Championship in Killarney before retaining the Grand Slam of Darts title in November with victory over Scott Waites in the final in Wolverhampton. Taylor also won back the German Darts Championship title, defeating Mervyn King in the final to take his prize money for 2009 beyond £750,000 and add a 22nd tournament win of the year to his CV.

He then went on to win yet another World Championship, his 15th, with victory in the 2010 event at Alexandra Palace, overcoming Australian Simon Whitlock 7-3 in the final following another imperious display throughout the event. While Paul Nicholson knocked him out in the semi-finals of the Players Championship Finals, Taylor's challenge to regain the Premier League Darts crown saw him create further history by hitting two nine-dart finishes in the final against James Wade, being the first player to achieve that feat and also to land a perfect leg in a televised final. Further success in the UK Open - defeating Gary Anderson in the final after recording another 118 average, against Kevin Painter - and World Matchplay, where he overcame van Barneveld, followed as he retained those titles, and a third successive European Championship win in August 2010 proved to be his last major title of the year. Adrian Lewis ended his World Grand Prix hopes, while Steve Beaton denied him in the Grand Slam of Darts and Mark Webster knocked him out of the World Championship, as Taylor endured an unusual barren spell.

Taylor returned to form in the early part of 2011, though, edging out Anderson again to win the Players Championship Finals trophy back, and then seeing off van Barneveld in the RTL7 International Masters in Holland during his bid for a sixth Premier League Darts title. However, that aim was ended with a semi-final defeat to Lewis in the Premier League, and Paul Nicholson's final-leg victory in the last 16 of the UK Open saw another title slip from Taylor's grasp before he returned to defend his World Matchplay title in July 2011. Mark Hylton, Wayne Jones, Wes Newton and Andy Hamilton were defeated as Taylor reached a fourth straight final, before claiming his 12th World Matchplay victory with an 18-8 win over James Wade. The winning feeling continued as Taylor then won the European Championship for a fourth successive year, this time defeating Lewis in the final after also seeing off Nicholson in the quarter-finals. Taylor's success continued into the autumn as he regained the World Grand Prix, Championship League Darts and Grand Slam of Darts titles in a brilliant run, defeating Brendan Dolan, Nicholson and Anderson in the respective finals.

However, the year would end in disappointment as his defence of the Players Championship Finals crown was ended by Mervyn King in the second round before he was knocked out in the last 32 of the World Championship to Dave Chisnall. Victory alongside Adrian Lewis in the World Cup of Darts was a superb way for Taylor to open 2012, before he went on to reclaim his Premier League title in impressive style - hitting a nine-darter as he topped the league table in the group phase, before defeating Simon Whitlock in the final. Taylor also hit nine-darters in successive days on the PDC ProTour and won a Players Championship and back-to-back UK Open Qualifiers, before winning through to the UK Open final in Bolton in June, where Robert Thornton denied him another Reebok Stadium triumph. Taylor, though, responded to win the German Darts Championship European Tour event in Berlin before continuing his incredible domination of the World Matchplay in Blackpool, picking up a record-equalling fifth straight victory and his 13th Winter Gardens title in July - again defeating Wade in the final.

An exhibition tour of Australia followed during the summer, but Taylor was to lose his European Championship and World Grand Prix crowns in the early autumn, being defeated by Brendan Dolan in Germany and Robert Thornton in Dublin. Michael van Gerwen would also end his hopes of retaining the Grand Slam of Darts title, but - after winning a third Players Championship Finals title by seeing off Kim Huybrechts in Minehead - Taylor avenged that defeat to win his 16th World Championship. Taylor trailed 4-2 in the World Championship final but reeled off five straight sets to become the first winner of the Sid Waddell Trophy as he returned to the very top of the world! The rivalry with van Gerwen would continue as the Dutchman claimed victory in the 2013 Premier League final, although Taylor had already won a second World Cup of Darts title alongside Lewis before going on to pick up another UK Open title, overcoming Hamilton in the final in Bolton. Taylor also won the Gibraltar Darts Trophy event and then bounced back from a second round exit in the European Championship by winning yet another World Matchplay title, extending his winning run to six successive years at the Winter Gardens by seeing off Lewis in a final of incredible quality.

A first World Series of Darts win at the Sydney Darts Masters, where he overcame van Gerwen in the final, was followed by a tenth World Grand Prix title as Taylor crushed Dave Chisnall 6-0 in a one-sided final. He landed a nine-darter in claiming a fourth Championship League Darts win and then took victory in the inaugural Masters tournament, sweeping past Lewis in the final in Edinburgh. Taylor and Lewis also clashed in the Grand Slam of Darts, in a classic semi-final, but it was Taylor who took victory on his way to another title in an imperious autumn. Van Gerwen, though, proved too strong as he took the Players Championship Finals title with a win over Taylor in the final at Minehead, and the Dutchman also succeeded his rival as World Champion, and world number one, with his success at Alexandra Palace after the reigning champion was knocked out by Michael Smith. Despite hitting two nine-darters in victory in a UK Open Qualifier, Taylor also saw the UK Open title slip away from his grasp in March 2014 when newcomer Aden Kirk produced a huge upset, and van Barneveld then ended Taylor's hopes of regaining the Premier League title with a semi-final triumph.

Taylor, though, bounced back in style with yet another World Matchplay triumph, hitting a nine-darter against Michael Smith before overcoming van Gerwen to claim his seventh successive Blackpool win. World Series glory followed in the Perth Darts Masters and Sydney Darts Masters, and after losing out in the World Grand Prix, European Championship and The Masters, Taylor picked up another Grand Slam of Darts success as he defeated Chisnall in the final in Wolverhampton. The year, though, ended in disappointment as Taylor lost to Gary Anderson in the Players Championship Finals and was then defeated by the Scot when they met again in the 2015 World Championship final. Victories in two PDC ProTour events in the early stage of 2015 were bright spots as Taylor again missed out in The Masters and at the quarter-final stage of the UK Open, before he failed to reach the Premier League Play-Offs for the first time in the event's history as he was edged out of the top four despite some stellar performances.

The runner-up in May's Dubai Darts Masters, he returned to winning ways on the big stage in June by partnering Lewis once again to World Cup of Darts glory in Germany before then winning the Japan Darts Masters with a narrow defeat of Peter Wright. Taylor's incredible winning run in the World Matchplay, though, was also ended in July 2015 as James Wade inflicted his first defeat in Blackpool since 2007 with his semi-final triumph. Taylor avenged that loss to Wade in the Perth Darts Masters final as he retained that title before landing a nine-dart finish on his way to a third successive Sydney Darts Masters win. William Hill World Darts Championship 2016 - 2017 Tickets Group Bookings William Hill World Darts Championship Tickets World Darts Championships tickets can be ordered safe and secure on Worldticketshop. Our Marketplace allows you to securely buy and sell tickets online for concert tickets , football tickets and theatre tickets . Take advantage of our unique ticket buyer guarantee and TicketCover reimbursement. Your tickets will be sent by registered mail or local delivery. Order your World Darts Championships tickets today at Worldticketshop!

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Phil Taylor | Darts Wikia | Fandom powered by Wikia 2010, 2010, 2011, 2011 Other achievements 2002 Achieves his first televised nine dart finish (and the first live televised nine-darter in the UK) at World Matchplay 2004 Becomes first player to hit a second televised nine-dart finish 2005 Hit third televised nine-dart finish 2006 PDC Player of the Year 2007 Fourth televised nine-darter in IDL in the Netherlands 2007 Fifth televised nine-darter in 2007 UK Open at the Reebok Stadium, Bolton 2007 PDC Fans' Player of the Year 2008 Sixth televised nine-darter in 2008 UK Open 2008 Fans' Player of the Year, PDC Player of the Year and PDPA Player's Player of the Year 2009 Hits seventh televised 9 darter in Championship League Darts against John Part 2009 PDC Player of the Year, PDPA Players’ Player of the Year, Fans’ Player of the

 Year and Best PDC Pro Tour Player 2010 Inaugural inductee into Stoke-on-Trent Sporting Hall of Fame 2010 Hit two televised nine dart finishes in Premier League Final against James Wade 2010 Scored world record televised average of 118.66 against Kevin Painter in UK Open Updated on 20 November 2011.

Philip Douglas 'Phil' Taylor (born 13 August 1960) is an English professional darts player, nicknamed The Power. He is regarded as the best darts player ever to have played the game, having won more than 150 professional tournaments and a record 15 World Championships . He won PDC Player of the year four times (2006, 2008, 2009 and 2010) and has been twice nominated for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award (2006 and 2010). He was the first person to hit two nine darters in one match, in the 2010 Premier League Darts final against James Wade . As of 26 September 2010, he has hit nine televised nine dart finishes , and is ranked World No. 1 in the PDC Order of Merit . Taylor played in the British Darts Organisation (BDO) from 1988 to 1993 before he, and several other players, broke away to form the World Darts Council, now known as the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC).

He was given the nickname "The Power" by a Sky Sports production manager, Peter Judge. Judge told Taylor that he should have a nickname, and he was named "The Power" after Judge stepped on an empty CD case of Snap!'s "The Power". Early life Edit Taylor was born to Douglas "The Wizard" and Elizabeth "The Dame" Taylor on 13 August 1960 in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent. He left school at the age of 16 and after holding a few jobs including as a sheet metal worker, he would spend most of his early working days making ceramic toilet roll handles, for which he earned £52 a week. Although he liked to play darts as a child, he never took up the game seriously until 1986 when he moved into a terraced house in Burslem, living near to Eric Bristow 's pub the Crafty Cockney. A few months later, his wife Yvonne bought him a set of darts for his birthday and he started playing weekly, occasionally at Bristow's pub. By 1988 he was selected for the county team and playing at Super League level.

Bristow started sponsoring him by loaning him £10,000 later that year to help him get started as a professional darts player and on the condition that he gave up his job as a ceramic engineer. Early career Edit Taylor's first title came in the Canadian Open in 1988 and after reaching the quarter finals of the British Open and the semi finals of the Winmau World Masters in 1989 he had qualified for the World Championships for the first time in 1990. Although he had achieved some success in Open events, he went into the 1990 World Championship as a 125–1 unseeded outsider. He beat number six seed Russell Stewart 3–1 in the first round, Dennis Hickling 3–0 in the second round, Ronnie Sharp 4–2 in the quarter finals and Cliff Lazarenko 5–0 to reach the final, where he met his mentor, Bristow. Bristow had been suffering with dartitis since 1986 but had recovered his world number one ranking to be the top seed in the event.

After sharing the first two sets, Taylor beat Bristow 6–1 in sets to claim his first world title. For the rest of 1990, Taylor dominated the Open events taking the titles in Isle of Man, Finland, North America, Denmark plus the British Pentathlon, British Masters, Europe Cup and the game's second major tournament at the time, the Winmau World Masters . Taylor's defence of the world championship in 1991 ended at the quarter-final stage with a loss to Dennis Priestley , who went on to win his first world title. He picked up fewer titles in 1991 losing both his Danish Open and World Masters titles in finals to Rod Harrington . Taylor regained the world championship the following year, beating Mike Gregory 6–5 in the final. He called the win as the favourite of his career. Split in darts Main article: Split in darts From a peak during the 1980s, the game of darts had lost many sponsors and almost all television coverage. Players felt that the BDO was no longer serving the interests of the game at the top level.

In 1993, some players broke away from the game's ruling body, the British Darts Organisation , and formed their own organisation, the World Darts Council (WDC), later renamed the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). In the 1993 World Championship , the last unified World Championship to be held, Taylor lost in the second round to Kevin Spiolek . The BDO refused to allow the new organisation to set up and run their own tournaments, so the WDC players decided that they would no longer compete in the BDO World Championship. They founded the WDC World Darts Championship as an alternative. In the first WDC World Championship in 1994 , Taylor lost to Priestley, but Taylor dominated the event for the next decade and beyond. PDC career Edit After losing to Priestley in the final of the first PDC World Championship in 1994, Taylor began to dominate the event during the next few years.

Rod Harrington reached his first World Final in 1995 and although he had won his previous three finals against Taylor in 1991 and 1992, Taylor took the title 6–2 and it would turn out to be Harrington's only appearance in a World Final. The finals of 1996, 1997 and 1998 would feature Taylor v Priestley in a repeat of the inaugural final. Priestley achieved the first 100 average in a final in 1996 but still ended up runner-up and the next two finals would be more one-sided in favour of Taylor who took the title 6–3 in 1997 and 6–0 in 1998 with an average in the final of 103.98. By 1998, he had passed his mentor Eric Bristow 's haul of five world championships.

Taylor's record at Blackpool in the WDC's second major event, the World Matchplay was not as strong in the early days, losing to Bob Anderson in 1994, Peter Evison in 1996 and Ronnie Baxter in 1998 – but he still won the event twice in the first five years, beating Priestley 16–11 in 1995 and Alan Warriner-Little 16–11 in 1997. 1999 to 2004 Edit Taylor stretched his World Championship unbeaten run to eight years in the PDC World Championship beating Peter Manley in 1999 and 2002, Priestley for a fourth time in 2000 and John Part in 2001. Part would finally end the run by beating Taylor 7–6 ( sets ) in the 2003 World Championship . He would improve his record at Blackpool during this spell.

After he lost in the 1999 semi-final of the World Matchplay to Peter Manley, he would go on to win the title for the next five years (2000–2004) beating five different opponents in the final, Alan Warriner-Little (2000), Richie Burnett (2001), John Part (2002), Wayne Mardle (2003) and Mark Dudbridge (2004). By the end of 2004, he had won 11 World Championships and seven World Matchplays. Taylor has faced the incumbent BDO World Champion in challenge matches on two occasions. In 1999, he beat Raymond van Barneveld by 21 legs to 10 in a one-hour challenge dubbed "The Match of the Century" at the Wembley Conference Centre. The second challenge match came in 2004 against Andy Fordham . Taylor was leading 5–2 in sets when Fordham, feeling unwell, abandoned the match.

2004 to 2008 Edit Taylor continued his dominance during 2004 and 2005, but after winning his 13th World Championship title in January 2006, he lost four matches in televised tournaments during the first half of the year. He lost to Jelle Klaasen and Simon Whitlock in the International Darts League tournament, and twice in a row to Raymond van Barneveld —in the UK Open and the Las Vegas Desert Classic . He came back to win the World Matchplay , the World Darts Trophy (a BDO affiliated event), and the World Grand Prix in the second half of the year. The 2007 World Final was between Taylor and Raymond van Barneveld . The game was tied at 6–6 in sets and van Barneveld had a 2–1 lead in legs. van Barneveld missed four darts and Taylor tied the set at 2–2. The set went to 5–5, and van Barneveld won the sudden death leg for his fifth World Championship (four with BDO and one with PDC).

Taylor had many opportunities to win the match, as he led 3–0, 4–2 and 5–3. Taylor said, "Of all the finals I've played in, I would probably put this one as the best". 2007 proved to be Taylor's most barren year for major title successes. He was defeated at the International Darts League and the World Darts Trophy in the Netherlands. At the UK Open in Bolton, he suffered a 4–11 loss to van Barneveld. He lost to Mark Dudbridge at the Las Vegas Desert Classic , and lost at the World Matchplay in Blackpool. At the World Grand Prix in Dublin, he lost to Adrian Gray . Taylor feared his career was in decline or over but later vowed that he would continue. Taylor's 100% appearance record in the Final of the PDC World Darts Championship came to an end in 2008 after 14 years when Taylor was beaten in the quarter finals. This was the first time that he had not reached the final stage of the PDC World Darts Championship.

He was taken to the final set in each of his first three rounds before losing to Wayne Mardle 5 sets to 4; At one point he was up 3–0 in sets. Before the start of the Premier League tournament, [1] Taylor unveiled some new black 26g darts. [2] Despite a poor start to his Premier League Darts campaign, with three defeats in his first four matches, Taylor finished at the top of the Premier League standings. He beat Adrian Lewis 11–1 with a 112.68 average in the semi-final, and went on to take his fourth consecutive title [3] with a 16–8 victory over Wade (average 108.36). [4] He won his second US Open title in May 2008, defeating Colin Lloyd in the final. [5] [6] At the UK Open , Taylor broke the world record for highest average in a televised game by averaging 118.66 against Kevin Painter in round four. He won the match 9–0, [7] but was defeated 10–9 in the quarter-finals by Raymond van Barneveld .

[8] As he went to Las Vegas for the 2008 Las Vegas Desert Classic in July, he was in an unusual position for him of not holding any of the major televised ranking events, but corrected that by taking his fourth Vegas title. He then regained the World Matchplay , [9] World Grand Prix , [10] the first European Darts Championship . [11] [12] and the Grand Slam of Darts . [13] [14] 2009 to 2012 Edit Taylor won the World Championship title (his 14th title) for the first time in three years by beating Raymond van Barneveld 7–1 in the 2009 world final . His 110.94 three-dart average was the highest ever recorded in a PDC final. His average during the course of the tournament was 104.08. Taylor beat Colin Osborne 11–6 in the final to win his third UK Open title in June, his first win at this tournament since 2005. His tournament average was 107.38.

Success continued throughout the rest of 2009 winning the last Las Vegas Desert Classic (his fifth time), the World Matchplay , the World Grand Prix , European Darts Championship and the Grand Slam of Darts for the third successive time in November. Taylor kicked off 2010 by winning his fifteenth World Championship title, beating Simon Whitlock seven sets to three with an average of more than 104 and winning the match with a 131 checkout. Taylor lost in the semi-finals of the Players Championship at the Circus Tavern in Purfleet. Whilst attempting to defend his title earned in the inaugural event of 2009, Taylor lost to eventual champion Paul Nicholson . Taylor admitted, following his defeat, that he had had little time to practice after his World Championship win. He made history again in the Premier League final against defending champion James Wade in the final by hitting two nine dart finishes , the first time this has been done in professional darts. By the summer of 2010, he was the holder of the World Championship, World Matchplay, Premier League, UK Open, World Grand Prix and Grand Slam of Darts – with only the Players Championship Finals missing from a complete set of major televised titles.

These performances, in addition to his longevity contributed to his nomination for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award in 2010, where he was voted runner-up to A.P. McCoy . However, defeats in the World Grand Prix, the Grand Slam and a loss to Mark Webster in the quarter finals of the 2011 World Championship meant he started 2011 as holder of three major titles – the World Matchplay, Premier League and UK Open. However he won his first major tournament in seven months by winning the 2011 Players Championship beating Gary Anderson 13 – 12 in a thrilling final. Phil won the World Matchplay for a record 12th time in 18 years, beating Mark Hylton 10–8 in the 1st round, Wayne Jones 13–7 in the 2nd round, Wes Newton 16–5 in the Quarter finals, Andy Hamilton 17–9 in the Semi finals and James Wade 18–8 in the final, with a tournament average of over 106.

One week later,Taylor flew over to Düsseldorf, Germany to play in the 2011 European Championship to win his 4th consecutive European title. He did this by beating John Michael 6–3, Mervyn King 10–3, Paul Nicholson 10–7, Simon Whitlock 11–4 and Adrian Lewis 11–8. He had a tournament average of 105.15. On 27 September, Taylor competed in Group 1 of the Championship League, where he won all 7 of his qualifying games, 6-3 vs Adrian Lewis, 6-2 vs Terry Jenkins, 6-3 vs Wes Newton, 6-2 vs James Wade, 6-3 vs Simon Whitlock, 6-2 vs Gary Anderson and 6-1 vs Mark Webster, he finished the Group stage with a maximum 14 points, 42 legs won, 16 lost, for a leg difference of + 28, and won £2,100 during qualifying.

He lost the semi final 6-5 in a superb match vs Wes Newton, he won a further £500 in that match, taking his total winnings for the day to £2,600. Due to not winning the Group he returned the next day to play in Group 2. In Group 2 he won 6 out of his 7 games, losing his 4th match 6-4 to Simon Whitlock. He beat James Wade 6-1, Mervyn King 6-4, Paul Nicholson 6-0, Mark Webster 6-3, Wes Newton 6-4 and Andy Hamilton 6-1, to finish top of the Group with 12 points, 40 legs won, 19 lost, so a leg difference of + 21, he won £2,000 in qualifying. In the semi final he beat Paul Nicholson 6-3 and Simon Whitlock 6-5 to win Group 2 and progress to the Winner's Group.

In the Winner's Group he won all 7 of his qualifying games, he beat Gary Anderson 6-5, Steve Beaton 6-3, Mervyn King 6-3, he also hit a 9 dart leg in this match, his 10th in competition. He also beat Mark Walsh 6-3, Simon Whitlock 6-5, Paul Nicholson 6-1 and Dennis Priestley 6-2 to qualify top of the Group. In the Semi Finals he beat Steve Beaton 6-1 and in the Final he beat Paul Nicholson 6-1 to win his second Championship League title, winning £6,600 in the Group stages, and a further £10,000 for winning the title. In November, he won the Grand Slam of Darts by beating Gary Anderson 16-4. He lost his Players championship title to Kevin Painter when he was defeated by Mervyn King. Taylor failed to make the quarter-finals of the PDC World Championship for the first time in his career in 2012 . He was beaten in the second round, 1-4, by Dave Chisnall .

Rivalries Edit Dennis Priestley and Phil Taylor have played each other in five World Finals, with Taylor on top in these head-to-heads 4–1. During the early years of the WDC, Priestley and Taylor had an agreement where they would share prize money won at events. Following the split in darts, the players had already gone through large expenses to fight court cases that would last until 1997 when they were finally able to overturn a ban by the British Darts Organisation . Their arrangement lasted between 1994 and 2000 and made sound financial sense given that one or the other generally delivered success in the immediate years after the split. The agreement eventually ended when the prize money grew to a level where the players could individually sustain a better living and this ironically coincided with Priestley's sharp dip in form. Taylor and Priestley first met in major competition in the 1990 World Masters. Taylor won that semi-final encounter en route to the title. Priestley then assumed the upper hand in their rivalry, however, with victories over Taylor in the 1991 World Championship and British Matchplay final later that year.

Their early meetings in the WDC were also won by Priestley, who defeated Taylor in the finals of the 1993 UK Matchplay and 1994 World Championship. However, since Taylor's defeat in the 1994 World Final, he has only lost twice in all competitions and hasn't been beaten on television by Priestley since 1995. Taylor and Priestley remain great friends, and Taylor has claimed Priestley is the toughest opponent he has ever faced. At the 2009 Las Vegas championship Taylor was emotional when he beat Dennis Priestley 8–0 in the second round. He later said it was tough to beat such a great friend that way. Part Edit Taylor's next rivalry was with Canadian John Part , who won the BDO World Championship in 1994 and moved to the PDC in 1997. Their first meeting in the PDC came at the 2001 PDC World Championship final . The match was one-sided as Taylor averaged 107 and won 7–0.

Taylor won their first five encounters including a 6–0 quarter final win at the 2002 PDC World Championships , a much closer match at the 2002 World Matchplay final, 18–16 and the 2002 World Grand Prix final, where Taylor again ended Part's attempt at a title by winning 7–3. A turning point came in the 2003 World Championship , where Part and Taylor met in the final. Part took a 4–1 lead but Taylor hit back to take the lead, 5–4. At 6–6 Part held his nerve and beat Taylor 7–6 to end Taylor's eight tournament unbeaten run in the championship. Taylor's other losses to Part came in the 2003 Las Vegas Desert Classic (10–13 in the semi-final), the 2004 UK Open (6–8 in the quarter final) and at the 2005 World Matchplay (11–16 in the quarter final).

Part won the 2008 PDC World Championship and became one of only three people with Adrian Lewis and Phil Taylor to have won the tournament more than once, but Taylor has an overall winning record greater than 85% against Part and has continued to improve the win percentage in recent years by winning all of his games against Part since the 2005 World Matchplay defeat. Van Barneveld Edit Whilst Taylor was clocking up World titles in the PDC, Raymond van Barneveld was amassing four in the BDO. Darts was denied a great rivalry as the two best players were unable to compete against each other regularly due to the split in the game. Van Barneveld switched to the PDC in 2006. Their first clash came in the 2006 Premier League Darts tournament and ended in a 7–7 draw. The return match went in Taylor's favour. Barneveld's first PDC win over Taylor came at the 2006 UK Open with an 11–10 quarter final success, which he followed up with success in the semi-finals of the Las Vegas Desert Classic , winning by 4 sets to 3.

Taylor later defeated van Barneveld by 3 sets to 1 in the World Grand Prix. They then met in the final of the 2007 PDC World Championship at the Circus Tavern. The match has been described as the greatest game of darts ever played. Despite being three sets to none up at one point, Taylor was defeated by van Barneveld seven sets to six in a sudden-death leg in the thirteenth set. Following further defeats to Van Barneveld at the Masters of Darts (3-0) and the World Darts Challenge (4-1), Taylor responded by defeating Van Barneveld on two occasions in the 2007 Premier League Darts and beating him in the final of the inaugural US Open . Van Barneveld later defeated Taylor in the quarter-finals of the UK Open by 11 legs to 4. Taylor lost his top spot in the PDC World Rankings to van Barneveld in January 2008, but regained it in June when Van Barneveld was unable to defend his ranking points at the UK Open.

In major PDC tournaments in 2008, Taylor defeated van Barneveld twice in the Premier League , lost by 10 legs to 9 in the quarter-finals of the UK Open , but won the World Grand Prix against his rival by 6 sets to 2. The rivalry continued into 2009 with the two meeting in the World Championship final for a second time, with Taylor winning 7–1 with a 110.94 three-dart average. The two then met in the 2010 World Matchplay final; Taylor won 18–12, averaging more than 105, while Van Barneveld's averaged 100.11. After the game Barneveld acknowledged "I'm the number two at the moment, and players like James Wade, Simon Whitlock and Gary Anderson are all trying but he's just too good for everyone". They have now met more than 55 times, with Taylor having 44 victories.

Manley, Mason, King and Wade Edit Taylor has overcome rivals such as Peter Manley who he met in three World Finals (1999, 2002 and 2006) and has only lost twice on television (1999 World Matchplay semi-final and in a 2008 Premier League group game). At the 2007 World Championships Taylor defeated Chris Mason in the 3rd Round then claimed afterwards that Mason had sworn at him and the fans. He was "seriously considering his future in the game" because of Mason's behaviour but decided to continue. Mason apologised to Taylor for his behaviour a week later. He also has current rivalries with Mervyn King since he switched to the PDC in 2007 but has only suffered two televised defeats to-date (2009 Premier League semi-final, Players Championship Finals 2011). James Wade has won six PDC titles since he burst onto the scene in 2006, although he has yet to knock Taylor out of a tournament on his way to a televised title, although he beat him in the final of Championship League Darts 2010.

Wade handed Taylor his first defeat in a Premier League match, but Taylor has won every televised knockout match against him, including three World Matchplay finals and two Premier League finals. Nine-dart finishes Edit Taylor has often talked in interviews and his autobiography about his quests to achieve the perfect leg of darts – a nine dart finish . The first time he achieved this was at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool, against Chris Mason in the televised World Matchplay Championship in 2002. He has achieved the feat nine times on television, including four times in the UK Open at the Reebok Stadium, Bolton (2004, 2005, 2007, and 2008). On 24 May 2010, in the final of the 2010 PDC Whyte & Mackay Premier League , Taylor became the first player in professional darts to hit two nine dart finishes in a single match.

Phil Taylor's televised nine-dart finishes Date 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 Outside darts Edit Taylor and his former wife Yvonne have four children: Lisa, Chris, Kelly and Natalie. He has written an autobiography with Sky TV darts commentator Sid Waddell . He supports his home town football club, Port Vale. He was also inducted into the Stoke-on-Trent Hall of Fame when it was opened in January 2011. Taylor discussed whether or not he thought Darts was a sport in a recent interview with 6 Towns Radio. Taylor was convicted of sexual assault in 1999 and fined £2000 Television appearances Edit Taylor's achievements in darts have led to guest appearances on television. Despite PDC darts not being broadcast on the BBC, he has appeared on several BBC television shows over the years. On 2 February 2009, he made a guest appearance in the long-running popular soap opera Coronation Street, playing the part of 'Disco Dave', the captain of a rival darts team to the Rovers Return. Taylor was seen only briefly on screen and had no dialogue.

On 22 January 2011 he appeared to present the award for Best Comedy Panel Show at the British Comedy Awards hosted by Jonathan Ross. After winning the 2011 Players Championship he announced he would be taping an appearance for an upcoming edition of A Question Of Sport. Awards and records Edit Taylor was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2001 New Year honours, but it was retracted and annulled in May 2002 following a conviction for indecent assault. The incident happened after a 1999 exhibition match in Scotland when two women, aged 23 and 25, accompanied Taylor back to his van after the event. They later accused him of sexual assault. Taylor denied the charges but he was found guilty in 2001 and fined £2,000. Taylor holds records for high scoring in darts. His three-dart average per match records are the highest in the history of the game. No player has a winning head-to-head record against him. Taylor has a 79% win rate against Raymond van Barneveld, the player with the most wins against him.

Taylor is the first darts player to win more than £1 million in prize money. On 9 January 2007 Taylor won the 2006 PDC Player of the Year award at the inaugural PDC Awards Dinner held at the Dorchester Hotel in London's Park Lane. He was one of ten nominees for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award in 2006; the award went to Zara Phillips. Taylor was voted the 2007 Fans' Player of the Year following a vote conducted on the website Planet Darts. He received the award at the annual PDC Awards Dinner in January 2008. He won four gongs at the PDC Player Of The Year Awards in 2009. After his fifteenth world championship victory, Taylor was made an inaugural inductee to the Stoke-on-Trent Sporting Hall of Fame on 7 January 2010. Awards excluding Hall Of Fame are handed out the following January so add a year for the year received.

PDC Player of the Year: 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 PDC Fans' Player of the Year: 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 Best PDC Pro Tour Player/Floor Player: 2008, 2009 PDPA Players' Player of the Year: 2007, 2008, 2009, PDC Nine Dart Club: *2007 *2008,*2009,*2010,*2011.-2011 *Gold Pin Badge(Televised)/-Silver Pin Badge(Non Televised) BBC Sports Personality Of The Year ( Runner Up ) 2010 PDC Hall Of Fame 2011 Tournament wins Players Championships (Derby): 2010, 2010 Players Championships (Eindhoven): 2008, 2008 Players Championships (Germany): 2008, 2008, 20

09, 2009 Players Championships (Gibraltar): 2009, 2009 Players Championships (Netherlands): 2005, 2005, 2007, 2007 Players Championships (Ireland): 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011 Players Championships (Las Vegas): 2008 Players Championships (English Midlands): 2008 Players Championships (Nuland): 2009, 2009 Players Championships (Southern England): 2008, 2009 Players Championships (Wales): 2005, 2006 Players Championships (Wigan): 2010, 2011, 2011 UK Open Regionals UK Open Regional (Ireland): 2002, 2004 UK Open Regional (English Midlands): 2008, 2009 UK Open Regional (North West England): 2008 UK Open Regional (South West England): 20

09 UK Open Regional (Southern England): 2003, 2007, 2009 UK Open Regional (Wales): 2002, 2004, 2006 UK Open Qualifier: 2010, 2010, 2011, 2011 Performance timeline

Question: Who won the World Darts Championship 13 times between 1995 and 2010 inclusive?
Answer: Phil Taylor