The World Matchplay is largely considered to be the second biggest of the PDC majors, behind the World Darts Championship, and ahead of the 2025 instalment of the Blackpool showpiece we take a look at some of the records and statistics from years previous.
Phil Taylor simply loved Blackpool's Winter Gardens, capturing the coveted World Matchplay crown no fewer than 16 times!
It's a truly remarkable record, even for a player of the calibre of 'The Power' - who won 16 of the 17 finals he reached in the competition.
In fact, such is the difficulty in winning the World Matchplay, only Michael van Gerwen (3) and Rod Harrington (2) have been able to reign supreme in the event on more than one occasion.
Taylor's sensational form in Blackpool included a near decade of dominance there between 2000 and 2010, where he romped to glory on nine occasions.
Most World Matchplay Darts Titles:
What makes Phil Taylor's record haul of 16 World Matchplay crowns even more so remarkable is that he was only ever beaten in the final once!
That's right, the Power reached the tournament showpiece 17 times, 11 more than James Wade, who sits second in the list on six.
The Stoke-on-Trent star's solitary World Matchplay final defeat came at the hands of Michael van Gerwen towards the twilight of his professional playing career in 2016.
The Dutchman inflicted an 18-10 defeat upon the greatest arrowsmith ever to have toed the oche, before Taylor went to regain his crown for one final time 12 months later against Peter Wright.
Like pretty much every other record in the World Matchplay, Phil Taylor also boasts the most appearances in the competition having featured in it on 24 separate occasions.
James Wade is second on the list, featuring 18 times, with Dennis Priestly, Ronnie Baxter and Adrian Lewis chalking up 17 inclusions.
Michael van Gerwen (16) and Gary Anderson (15), both of whom will hope to feature in 2025, have notched up 31 appearances between them.
Most World Matchplay Darts Appearances:
There have been plenty of whitewashes in World Matchplay history, with Phil Taylor responsible for his fair share of them.
Fellow Stokies Adrian Lewis (10-0 v Andrew Gilding) and Ian White (10-0 v Joe Cullen) have also comprehensively won on the Winter Gardens stage in the past.
As far as the World Matchplay final goes, well Taylor holds the record for the biggest victory, romping to a resounding 18-4 success over Terry Jenkins in the 2009 showpiece.
No player has been able to better Phil Taylor's 106.31 tournament average from the 2010 World Matchplay.
'The Power' captured the title for an 11th time that year, seeing off a spirited Raymond van Barneveld in the final.
Incredibly, Taylor currently holds the record for the five highest tournament averages, ranging from a 104.82 World Matchplay average in 2008 to a tournament high 106.31 two years later, in 2010.
Top 5 World Matchplay Darts Tournament Averages:
Serial winner Phil Taylor hit a phenomenal 114.99 three-dart average in his 10-6 triumph over Barrie Bates in the last 32 of the World Matchplay in 2020.
Of course, like the vast majority of his other inclusions in the competition, Taylor went on to reign supreme that year, seeing off the Steve Beaton, Kevin Painter, Simon Whitlock and Raymond van Barneveld, hitting 103+ average in each match.
Highest World Matchplay Darts Averages:
Few matches in the sport's history will ever top the battle between Phil Taylor and Adrian Lewis in the 2013 final.
'The Power' notched a sensational 111.23 average as he roared to an 18-13 victory over his then close friend and practice partner Adrian Lewis, who averaged a near 106 three-dart score of his own.
It remains arguably the greatest ever game to have taken place on the fabled Winter Gardens stage.
Astoundingly, Phil Taylor reeled off 38 successive victories at the World Matchplay across a sensational seven-year period of dominance.
'The Power' lifted the coveted title on seven occasions, from 2008 until 2014, before James Wade finally ended Taylor's stranglehold on the event in the semi-finals of the 2015 competition.
There have been a total of nine perfect legs in World Matchplay history, with Phil Taylor responsible for two of them.
In fact, the Stoke-born star is the only player to have landed perfection on more than one occasion in the Blackpool-staged event, doing so for the first time against Chris Mason in 2002, before following it up some 12 years later during a second round success over Michael Smith.
Other players to have pinned double 12 for darting perfection in the World Matchplay include Raymond van Barneveld, John Part, Michael van Gerwen and Gary Anderson.
Player: | Method: | Year: |
Phil Taylor v Chris Mason | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | 2002 |
Raymond van Barneveld v Dennis Ovens | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | 2010 |
John Part v Mark Webster | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | 2011 |
Michael van Gerwen v Steve Beaton | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | 2012 |
Wes Newton v Justin Pipe | 3 x T20; 2 x T20, T19; 2 x T20, D12 | 2012 |
Phil Taylor v Michael Smith | 3 x T20; 2 x T20, T19; 2 x T20, D12 | 2014 |
Gary Anderson v Joe Cullen | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | 2018 |
Gerwyn Price v Danny Noppert | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | 2022 |
Dimitri van Den Bergh v Martin Schindler | 3 x T20; 3 x T20; T20, T19, D12 | 2024 |