Wikipedia

World Matchplay (darts)

For the previous WDF tournament, see MFI World Matchplay.

The World Matchplay, also known as the Betfred World Matchplay for sponsorship purposes,[1] is a professional darts tournament and one of three legs of the Triple Crown. It is played in a legs format, and is run by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC). Luke Humphries is the current champion after winning the 2024 edition.

World Matchplay
The Winter Gardens in Blackpool, where the tournament has been held for every edition except 2020.
Founded1994
First season1994
CountryEngland
Venue(s)Winter Gardens (1994–2019, 2021–)
Marshall Arena (2020)
Most recent
champion(s)		England Luke Humphries
(2024)
Tournament formatLegs

History

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The World Matchplay has been played annually since 1994 in the Empress Ballroom at the Winter Gardens, Blackpool. The first ever winner was Larry Butler, who beat Dennis Priestley 16–12, and the current holder is Luke Humphries.

The 1995 World Matchplay turned out to be Jocky Wilson's last appearance in a major televised event. Wilson had reached the quarter-finals of the inaugural tournament in 1994 and he beat Rod Harrington in the 1st round in 1995, but a 2nd round defeat against Nigel Justice was effectively the end of his career.

From 1994 to 2012, matches at the World Matchplay had to be won by two clear legs. For example, the first round was usually played over the first to 10 legs, but if the score reached 9–9, play continued until either player gained a two-leg lead. Starting with the 2013 World Matchplay, if a two leg-lead hadn't been established after six extra legs, then a sudden death leg is played, so sudden death would come into play in a first round match at 12–12.[2]

Over the course of the tournament's 31-year existence, there have been thirteen different winners: Phil Taylor (16), Michael van Gerwen (3), Rod Harrington (2), Gary Anderson (1), Nathan Aspinall (1), Larry Butler (1), Rob Cross (1), Peter Evison (1), Luke Humphries (1), Colin Lloyd (1), Dimitri Van den Bergh (1), James Wade (1) and Peter Wright (1). Dennis Priestley was also runner-up for three consecutive years.

From 2018 onwards, the World Matchplay champion will receive the Phil Taylor Trophy, as was announced by the PDC following the retirement of the sixteen-time winner of the tournament.[3]

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom, the 2020 World Matchplay was held at the Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes, behind closed doors.[4]

World Matchplay finals

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Year Champion (average in final) Score Runner-up (average in final) Prize money Sponsor Venue
Total Champion Runner-up
1994   Larry Butler (92.70) 16–12   Dennis Priestley (91.59) £42,400 £10,000 £6,000 Proton Cars Winter Gardens, Blackpool
1995   Phil Taylor (90.72) 16–11   Dennis Priestley (87.63) Webster's
1996   Peter Evison (100.51) 16–14   Dennis Priestley (96.67) £46,000 £12,000 £7,000
1997   Phil Taylor (106.32) 16–11   Alan Warriner (98.42) £6,000
1998   Rod Harrington (95.03) 19–17   Ronnie Baxter (94.07) £58,000 £14,000 £7,000 PDC
1999   Rod Harrington (85.95) 19–17   Peter Manley (86.91)
2000   Phil Taylor (100.32) 18–12   Alan Warriner (97.14) Stan James
2001   Phil Taylor (99.57) 18–10   Richie Burnett (90.99) £65,000
2002   Phil Taylor (98.76) 18–16   John Part (94.14) £75,500 £15,000 £7,500
2003   Phil Taylor (94.38) 18–12   Wayne Mardle (97.44) £80,000 £8,000
2004   Phil Taylor (100.20) 18–8   Mark Dudbridge (89.24) £100,000 £20,000 £10,000
2005   Colin Lloyd (97.89) 18–12   John Part (94.53) £120,000 £25,000 £12,500
2006   Phil Taylor (100.08) 18–11   James Wade (90.01) £150,000 £30,000 £15,000
2007   James Wade (96.83) 18–7   Terry Jenkins (91.62) £200,000 £50,000 £20,000
2008   Phil Taylor (109.47) 18–9   James Wade (102.58) £300,000 £60,000 £30,000
2009   Phil Taylor (106.05) 18–4   Terry Jenkins (92.32) £400,000 £100,000 £50,000
2010   Phil Taylor (105.16) 18–12   Raymond van Barneveld (100.11)
2011   Phil Taylor (103.84) 18–8   James Wade (98.84) Sky Bet
2012   Phil Taylor (98.97) 18–15   James Wade (95.92) Betfair
2013   Phil Taylor (111.23) 18–13   Adrian Lewis (105.92) BetVictor
2014   Phil Taylor (107.19) 18–9   Michael van Gerwen (101.49) £450,000
2015   Michael van Gerwen (99.91) 18–12   James Wade (90.37)
2016   Michael van Gerwen (103.93) 18–10   Phil Taylor (101.13)
2017   Phil Taylor (104.24) 18–8   Peter Wright (99.74) £500,000 £115,000 £55,000
2018   Gary Anderson (101.12) 21–19   Mensur Suljović (104.43)
2019   Rob Cross (95.16) 18–13   Michael Smith (95.91) £700,000 £150,000 £70,000 Betfred
2020   Dimitri Van den Bergh (98.31) 18–10   Gary Anderson (92.81) Marshall Arena, Milton Keynes
2021   Peter Wright (105.90) 18–9   Dimitri Van den Bergh (100.88) Winter Gardens, Blackpool
2022   Michael van Gerwen (101.19) 18–14   Gerwyn Price (96.92) £800,000 £200,000 £100,000
2023   Nathan Aspinall (96.21) 18–6   Jonny Clayton (93.56)
2024   Luke Humphries (100.94) 18–15   Michael van Gerwen (98.74)

Records and statistics

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As of 21 July 2024.

Total finalist appearances

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Rank Player Nationality Won Runner-up Finals Appearances
1 Phil Taylor   England 16 1 17 24
2 Michael van Gerwen   Netherlands 3 2 5 16
3 Rod Harrington   England 2 0 2 9
4 James Wade   England 1 5 6 18
5 Gary Anderson   Scotland 1 1 2 15
Peter Wright   Scotland 1 1 2 14
Dimitri Van den Bergh   Belgium 1 1 2 5
8 Larry Butler   United States 1 0 1 3
Peter Evison   England 1 0 1 11
Colin Lloyd   England 1 0 1 15
Rob Cross   England 1 0 1 8
Nathan Aspinall   England 1 0 1 6
Luke Humphries   England 1 0 1 4
13 Dennis Priestley   England 0 3 3 17
14 Alan Warriner   England 0 2 2 14
John Part   Canada 0 2 2 15
Terry Jenkins   England 0 2 2 13
17 Ronnie Baxter   England 0 1 1 17
Peter Manley   England 0 1 1 13
Richie Burnett   Wales 0 1 1 9
Wayne Mardle   England 0 1 1 7
Mark Dudbridge   England 0 1 1 8
Raymond van Barneveld   Netherlands 0 1 1 14
Adrian Lewis   England 0 1 1 17
Mensur Suljović   Austria 0 1 1 7
Michael Smith   England 0 1 1 12
Gerwyn Price   Wales 0 1 1 10
Jonny Clayton   Wales 0 1 1 7
  • Active players are shown in bold
  • Only players who reached the final are included
  • In the event of identical records, players are sorted in alphabetical order by family name

Champions by country

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Country Players Total First title Last title
  England 8 24 1995 2024
  Netherlands 1 3 2015 2022
  USA 1 1 1994 1994
  Scotland 2 2 2018 2021
  Belgium 1 1 2020 2020

Nine-dart finishes

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Nine nine-dart finishes have been thrown at the World Matchplay. The first one was in 2002, when Phil Taylor hit the first live 9-darter in UK television history.

Player Year (+ Round) Method Opponent Result
  Phil Taylor 2002, Quarter-Finals 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12   Chris Mason Won
  Raymond van Barneveld 2010, 1st Round 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12   Denis Ovens Won
  John Part 2011, 1st Round 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12   Mark Webster Lost
  Michael van Gerwen 2012, 2nd Round 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12   Steve Beaton Won
  Wes Newton 2012, 2nd Round 3 x T20; 2 x T20, T19; 2 x T20, D12   Justin Pipe Lost
  Phil Taylor 2014, 2nd Round 3 x T20; 2 x T20, T19; 2 x T20, D12   Michael Smith Won
  Gary Anderson 2018, Quarter-Finals 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12   Joe Cullen Won
  Gerwyn Price 2022, Semi-Finals 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T19, T20, D12   Danny Noppert Won
  Dimitri Van den Bergh 2024, 1st Round 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T19, T20, D12   Martin Schindler Won

Tournament records

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A match in progress on the World Matchplay stage.
Longest match in Matchplay history
The 2018 final went to 40 legs as a result of the format of "2 clear legs".
Longest unbeaten run
Phil Taylor from 2008 to 2015: Won 38 matches in a row. Taylor only lost eight matches in the history of the event:

Averages

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An average over 100 in a match in the PDC World Matchplay has been achieved 142 times, of which Phil Taylor is responsible for 62. In 2010, Phil Taylor became the first player to average over 100 in all five rounds of the tournament. He repeated this feat in 2011 and 2013.

An average of over 105 in a match in the World Matchplay has been achieved 35 times, of which Phil Taylor is responsible for 24. The highest match average ever in the World Matchplay is 114.99 by Phil Taylor in his Last 32 victory over Barrie Bates in 2010. The highest match average ever in the World Matchplay Final is 111.23 by Phil Taylor against Adrian Lewis in 2013.

Ten highest PDC World Matchplay one-match averages[5]
Average Player Year (+ Round) Opponent Result
114.99   Phil Taylor 2010, Last 32   Barrie Bates 10–6
113.43   Phil Taylor 1997, Last 32   Gary Mawson 8–0
112.17   Phil Taylor 2002, Quarter-Final   Chris Mason 16–7
111.23   Phil Taylor 2013, Final   Adrian Lewis 18–13
110.93   Michael van Gerwen 2015, Last 16   Jamie Lewis 13–2
110.51   Adrian Lewis 2014, Last 32   Andrew Gilding 10–0
110.37   Peter Wright 2021, Semi-Final   Michael van Gerwen 17–10
109.71   Phil Taylor 2008, Last 16   Colin Osborne 13–5
109.47   Phil Taylor 2008, Final   James Wade 18–9
109.47   Phil Taylor 2009, Last 16   Kevin Painter 13–3
Five highest losing averages
Average Player Year (+ Round) Opponent Result
105.92   Adrian Lewis 2013, Final   Phil Taylor 13–18
105.68   Gary Anderson 2014, Semi-Final   Phil Taylor 15–17
105.17   Gary Anderson 2017, Last 16   Daryl Gurney 9–11
104.57   Peter Wright 2019, Quarter-Final   Daryl Gurney 13–16
104.43   Mensur Suljović 2018, Final   Gary Anderson 19–21
Different players with a 100+ match average (Updated 21/07/24)
Player Total Highest Av. Year (+ Round)
  Phil Taylor 62 114.99 2010, Last 32
  Michael van Gerwen 20 110.93 2015, Last 16
  Peter Wright 15 110.37 2021, Semi-Final
  Gary Anderson 11 106.06 2018, Semi-Final
  Adrian Lewis 9 110.51 2014, Last 32
  James Wade 8 103.59 2015, Last 32
  Luke Humphries 7 108.76 2024, 1st Round
  Rob Cross 7 106.99 2024, 2nd Round
  Dimitri Van den Bergh 6 103.68 2021, Last 16
  Gerwyn Price 4 104.64 2022, Quarter-Final
  Michael Smith 4 102.08 2024, 1st Round
  Ryan Searle 3 105.19 2023, Last 32
  Daryl Gurney 3 104.43 2023, Last 16
  Raymond van Barneveld 3 103.86 2010, Last 16
  Mervyn King 3 101.06 2014, Last 32
  Krzysztof Ratajski 2 107.53 2020, Last 32
  Glen Durrant 2 106.93 2020, Last 32
  Mensur Suljović 2 104.43 2018, Final
  Peter Evison 2 103.77 1996, Last 16
  Ian White 2 103.51 2015, Last 32
  Dave Chisnall 2 103.02 2018, Last 16
  Stephen Bunting 2 102.48 2016, Last 32
  Danny Noppert 2 102.36 2022, Last 16
  Jonny Clayton 2 101.90 2023, Last 16
  Steve Beaton 2 100.98 2011, Last 32
  Joe Cullen 2 100.67 2023, Last 32
  Dirk van Duijvenbode 1 103.61 2022, Last 32
  José de Sousa 1 103.26 2022, Last 16
  Jeffrey de Zwaan 1 103.22 2018, Quarter-Final
  Nathan Aspinall 1 102.96 2019, Last 32
  Colin Lloyd 1 102.57 2005, Last 16
  Shayne Burgess 1 102.03 1999, Last 16
  Andy Hamilton 1 101.88 2006, Semi-Final
  Alan Warriner-Little 1 101.55 1997, Quarter-Final
  John Henderson 1 101.33 2019, Last 32
  Cristo Reyes 1 101.29 2017, Last 32
  Rod Harrington 1 101.22 1997, Last 32
  Jamie Hughes 1 101.13 2020, Last 32
  Kevin Painter 1 101.01 2009, Last 32
  Damon Heta 1 100.93 2024, 1st Round
  Luke Littler 1 100.83 2024, 1st Round
  Gian van Veen 1 100.81 2024, 1st Round
  Ricardo Pietreczko 1 100.74 2024, 1st Round
  Mark Walsh 1 100.41 2008, Last 32
Five highest tournament averages
Average Player Year
106.31   Phil Taylor 2010
105.81   Phil Taylor 2013
105.73   Phil Taylor 2009
105.50   Phil Taylor 2011
104.82   Phil Taylor 2008

Format

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From the beginning of the tournament in 1994, the World Matchplay has always been a legs only event. The length of matches for each round has changed several times over the years, as shown below.

1994

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  • First Round: First to 8 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Second Round: First to 8 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Quarter Finals: First to 11 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Semi Finals: First to 11 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Final: First to 16 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)

1995–1996

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  • First Round: First to 8 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Second Round: First to 8 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Quarter Finals: First to 11 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Semi Finals: First to 13 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Final: First to 16 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)

1997

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  • Preliminary Round: First to 6 legs (no tiebreak; sudden death leg at 5–5)
  • First Round: First to 8 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Second Round: First to 8 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Quarter Finals: First to 11 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Semi Finals: First to 13 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Final: First to 16 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)

1998

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  • First Round: First to 8 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Second Round: First to 8 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Quarter Finals: First to 13 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Semi Finals: First to 13 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Final: First to 18 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)

1999–2012

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  • First Round: First to 10 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Second Round: First to 13 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Quarter Finals: First to 16 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Semi Finals: First to 17 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)
  • Final: First to 18 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs)

2013–2015

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  • First Round: First to 10 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs; sudden death leg at 12–12)
  • Second Round: First to 13 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs; sudden death leg at 15–15)
  • Quarter Finals: First to 16 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs; sudden death leg at 18–18)
  • Semi Finals: First to 17 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs; sudden death leg at 19–19)
  • Final: First to 18 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs; sudden death leg at 20–20)

2016–present

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  • First Round: First to 10 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs; sudden death leg at 12–12)
  • Second Round: First to 11 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs; sudden death leg at 13–13)
  • Quarter Finals: First to 16 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs; sudden death leg at 18–18)
  • Semi Finals: First to 17 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs; sudden death leg at 19–19)
  • Final: First to 18 legs (match must be won by 2 clear legs; sudden death leg at 20–20)

Media coverage

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The World Matchplay has been broadcast in the UK by Sky Sports since the first tournament.[6]

Sponsors

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There have been seven different sponsors for the World Matchplay:

Sponsor Years
Proton Cars 1994
Webster's 1995–1997
No sponsor 1998–1999
Stan James 2000–2010
Skybet 2011
Betfair 2012
BetVictor[1] 2013–2018
Betfred 2019–

References

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  1. ^ a b "BetVictor To Sponsor World Matchplay". Professional Darts Corporation. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
  2. ^ "News | PDC". pdc.tv. Archived from the original on 23 June 2013.
  3. ^ "Taylor Receives World Matchplay Honour". PDC.
  4. ^ Phillips, Josh. "Betfred World Matchplay to take place behind closed doors". Professional Darts Corporation. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  5. ^ dartsdatabase.co.uk; best winning averages
  6. ^ "PDC & Sky Sports Extend Partnership". Professional Darts Corporation. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
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