JAMIE CAVEN claimed his first PDC title with a 6-5 victory over Alan Tabern in the Blue Square UK Open Welsh Regional Final.
The 33-year-old, in his third year as a professional, followed up his appearance in a Players Championship final in Newport last September by going one better at the same venue this time around.
He followed up early wins over Alan Caves and Ben Burton with a narrow 6-5 victory against Vincent van der Voort, before seeing off Andy Hamilton, Mark Dudbridge and Co Stompe to reach the final.
He led 2-0 in the decider before Tabern took four successive legs to lead 4-2.
Tabern also moved 5-4 up, but missed a dart at the bullseye in the next two legs as Leicester's Caven levelled and then hit double top for the victory.
"I'm over the moon," said Caven, a former World Youth Masters winner.
"It's nice to play well throughout the day and a big confidence boost for me ahead of Bolton next month.
"I'm delighted to have come back in the final, but only Alan and Vincent van der Voort had darts to beat me on the day, which is a good achievement."
Caven added: "I told my wife if I won I would take her to the Las Vegas Desert Classic this summer, so I've got to shell out for that now - but I don't mind!"
Tabern's run to the final moved him into the top 32 of the UK Open Order of Merit, meaning he enters the UK Open televised finals at the third round stage next month.
A high-quality day of darts saw the St Helens man defeat Colin Lloyd, Peter Manley, Colin Osborne, Terry Jenkins and Kevin Painter to claim the £3,000 runner-up prize.
Lloyd and Stompe battled through to the last four, while Manley reached the quarter-finals for only the second time in 2009.
Beaton overcame Saturday's Players Championship winner Gary Anderson on his way to a fifth quarter-final of the year, although he will be among the second round entrants in the UK Open at Bolton.
The Welsh Regional Final was the last of eight qualifiers for next month's UK Open, with a run to the last 16 for Lee Williams and last 64 appearances for Ian Critchett and Gibraltar's Dyson Parody seeing them qualify for Bolton at the final attempt.
A first round defeat to Mark Dudbridge for former Lakeside Champion Andy Fordham means he will have to wait for his debut in a major PDC championship, although Anastasia Dobromsylova has qualified for Bolton.
Tickets for the Blue Square UK Open, which is held from June 4-7, are still available from the Reebok Stadium Box Office on 0844 871 2932.
Blue Square UK Open Welsh Regional Final
Preliminary Round
Stephen Hardy 6-5 Ian Jopling
Nigel Birch 6-4 Tom Martin
Peter Wright 6-4 Kevin Harris
Dave Ladley 6-0 Geoff Whitworth
Mark Jodrill 6-0 Chris Jackson
Ben Burton 6-4 Steve Musson
Alan Caves 6-0 Jimmy Dunlop
Stuart Dutton 6-1 Mark Tiller
Paul Gudgeon 6-4 Richard Foster
Ian Lilley 6-4 Geoff Wylie
Owen Caffrey 6-4 Ian Lever
Bryan de Hoog 6-4 Chris Allen
Richie Burnett 6-1 Ian McFarlane
Shaun Dring 6-3 Frazer Hill
Alex Tinsley 6-4 Robert Watson-Lang
Louis Blundell 6-3 Ian Perkins
Gary Blades 6-1 Bryan Whybrow
Steve Perkins 6-1 Jon Archer
Dyson Parody 6-4 Michael Smith
Ken Dobson 6-3 Kieran Leal
Paul Knighton 6-2 Steve Lane
Steve Cupitt 6-0 Norman Fletcher
First Round
Steve Beaton 6-1 Pete Allen
Andy Smith 6-4 Stuart Bousfield
Gary Anderson 6-0 Darren Latham
Kevin McDine 6-5 Stephen Hardy
Andy Jenkins 6-0 Robbie Parker
Steve Evans 6-0 Mike Roberts
Mark Lawrence Bye (Sean White timed out)
Mick McGowan 6-5 Nigel Birch
Dennis Smith 6-3 Jim Withers
John Part 6-1 Danny King
Toon Greebe 6-3 John Quantock
Jelle Klaasen 6-3 Peter Wright
Ian Critchett 6-2 Gary Welding
Co Stompe 6-4 Chris Loudon
Dennis Priestley 6-2 Simon Cunningham
Mervyn King 6-1 Dave Ladley
Tony Ayres 6-5 Dennis Zijderhand
Jason Clark 6-3 Russell Mason
Dave Honey 6-1 Gary Scratchley
Andy Hamilton 6-3 Mark Jodrill
Vincent van der Voort 6-0 Arron Monk
Lionel Sams 6-2 Ray Farrell
Ben Burton 6-4 Roland Scholten
Jamie Caven 6-2 Alan Caves
Steve Grubb 6-1 Dave Ahmet
Mark Webster 6-5 Gary Mawson
Tony Eccles 6-0 Kevin Hill
Michael Barnard 6-5 Stuart Dutton
Mark Dudbridge 6-2 Andy Fordham
Darren Johnson 6-3 Andy Relf
Paul Gudgeon 6-4 Steve Maish
Wayne Atwood 6-1 Ian Lilley
James Barton 6-5 Adrian Gray
Michael van Gerwen 6-1 Ricky Williams
Lee Williams 6-0 Chris Mason
Jan van der Rassel 6-3 Owen Caffrey
Steve Hine 6-4 David Platt
Colin Lloyd 6-1 Robbie Newland
Robert Thornton 6-1 Bryan de Hoog
Brendan Dolan 6-1 Richie Burnett
Mark Walsh 6-1 Sean Dowling
Denis Ovens 6-2 Stuart Holden
Wayne Jones 6-1 Mark Stephenson
Mark Frost 6-1 Shaun Dring
Barrie Bates 6-2 Jim Leighton
James Wade 6-0 Steve Perry
Adrian Lewis 6-1 Alex Tinsley
Louis Blundell 6-3 John MaGowan
Steve Brown 6-1 Chris Daglish
Ronnie Baxter 6-0 Simon Craven
Wayne Mardle 6-1 Lee White
Gary Blades 6-5 Matt Clark
Peter Manley 6-0 Trevor Frost
Colin Monk 6-4 Robert Alford
Kevin Dowling 6-2 Steve Perkins
Dyson Parody 6-2 Martyn Turner
Chris Thompson 6-2 Sam Rooney
Terry Jenkins 6-1 Justin Pipe
Kevin Painter 6-1 Danny Pinhorne
Alan Tabern 6-3 Ken Dobson
Alex Roy 6-5 Dave Smith
Wes Newton 6-4 Par Riihonen
Colin Osborne 6-1 Paul Knighton
Nick Fullwell 6-3 Steve Cupitt
Second Round
Steve Beaton 6-2 Andy Smith
Gary Anderson 6-2 Kevin McDine
Andy Jenkins 6-5 Steve Evans
Mark Lawrence 6-0 Mick McGowan
John Part 6-3 Dennis Smith
Toon Greebe 6-5 Jelle Klaasen
Co Stompe 6-3 Ian Critchett
Dennis Priestley 6-5 Mervyn King
Tony Ayres 6-4 Jason Clark
Andy Hamilton 6-2 Dave Honey
Vincent van der Voort 6-1 Lionel Sams
Jamie Caven 6-1 Ben Burton
Mark Webster 6-4 Steve Grubb
Tony Eccles 6-4 Michael Barnard
Mark Dudbridge 6-0 Darren Johnson
Wayne Atwood 6-3 Paul Gudgeon
James Barton 6-5 Michael van Gerwen
Lee Williams 6-5 Jan van der Rassel
Colin Lloyd 6-3 Steve Hine
Brendan Dolan 6-5 Robert Thornton
Mark Walsh 6-3 Denis Ovens
Mark Frost 6-4 Wayne Jones
James Wade 6-5 Barrie Bates
Adrian Lewis 6-5 Louis Blundell
Steve Brown 6-3 Ronnie Baxter
Wayne Mardle 6-5 Gary Blades
Peter Manley 6-5 Colin Monk
Kevin Dowling 6-1 Dyson Parody
Terry Jenkins 6-4 Chris Thompson
Alan Tabern 6-3 Kevin Painter
Wes Newton 6-3 Alex Roy
Colin Osborne 6-2 Nick Fullwell
Losers £200
Third Round
Steve Beaton 6-5 Gary Anderson
Mark Lawrence 6-5 Andy Jenkins
Toon Greebe 6-4 John Part
Co Stompe 6-2 Dennis Priestley
Andy Hamilton 6-4 Tony Ayres
Jamie Caven 6-5 Vincent van der Voort
Tony Eccles 6-2 Mark Webster
Mark Dudbridge 6-3 Wayne Atwood
Lee Williams 6-0 James Barton
Colin Lloyd 6-4 Brendan Dolan
Mark Walsh 6-3 Mark Frost
James Wade 6-4 Adrian Lewis
Wayne Mardle 6-3 Steve Brown
Peter Manley 6-4 Kevin Dowling
Alan Tabern 6-2 Terry Jenkins
Colin Osborne 6-1 Wes Newton
Losers £300
Fourth Round
Steve Beaton 6-5 Mark Lawrence
Co Stompe 6-4 Toon Greebe
Jamie Caven 6-4 Andy Hamilton
Mark Dudbridge 6-5 Tony Eccles
Colin Lloyd 6-4 Lee Williams
Mark Walsh 6-4 James Wade
Peter Manley 6-5 Wayne Mardle
Alan Tabern 6-4 Colin Osborne
Losers £400
Quarter-Finals
Co Stompe 6-5 Steve Beaton
Jamie Caven 6-3 Mark Dudbridge
Colin Lloyd 6-2 Mark Walsh
Alan Tabern 6-2 Peter Manley
Losers £800
Semi-Finals
Jamie Caven 6-2 Co Stompe
Alan Tabern 6-4 Colin Lloyd
Losers £1,500
Final
Jamie Caven 6-5 Alan Tabern
Winner £6,000
Runner-Up £3,000
News Updates
Preliminary Round
Dave Ladley and Mark Jodrill progress to last 128 with whitewash wins.
Stuart Dutton, Gary Blades and Steve Perkins all pick up 6-1 victories.
Ben Burton is 6-4 winner against Steve Musson.
Owen Caffrey and Bryan de Hoog pick up 6-4 wins against Ian Lever and Chris Allen.
Ken Dobson, a semi-finalist in the East Midlands Regional Final three weeks ago, defeats Kieran Leal 6-3.
Paul Knighton wins 6-2 against Steve Lane.
Stephen Hardy is 6-5 winner against Ian Jopling, who loses in a deciding leg for a second successive day.
Nigel Birch, Paul Gudgeon and Peter Wright move into round one with 6-4 wins.
Alan Caves whitewashes Jimmy Dunlop.
Welshman Richie Burnett defeats Ian McFarlane 6-1.
Steve Cupitt and Dyson Parody both progress to first round with wins.
Alex Tinsley defeats Robert Watson-Lang 6-4.
Ian Lilley sees off Geoff Wylie 6-4.
Wins for Louis Blundell and Shaun Dring complete the preliminary round.
First Round
Steve Grubb picks up 6-1 win over Dave Ahmet, and Ian Critchett sees off Gary Welding 6-2.
Tony Ayres defeats Dennis Zijderhand in a deciding leg.
Steve Brown overcomes Chris Daglish 6-1, and Chris Thompson is 6-2 winner against Sam Rooney.
Andy Jenkins whitewashes Robbie Parker, and Steve Beaton and Mark Walsh pick up 6-1 victories.
James Barton wins a deciding leg to defeat Adrian Gray.
Ronnie Baxter defeats Simon Craven without dropping a leg, and Vincent van der Voort whitewashes Arron Monk.
Peter Manley whitewashes Trevor Frost.
Wales' Mark Webster defeats Gary Mawson - the runner-up in last year's Blue Square UK Open televised finals - in a deciding leg.
Steve Hine is 6-4 winner against David Platt, with Jason Clark picking up a 6-3 victory over Russell Mason.
Denis Ovens picks up 6-2 win over Stuart Holden.
Wayne Mardle and Terry Jenkins progress with 6-1 victories.
Barrie Bates defeats Jim Leighton 6-2, and Steve Evans is whitewash winner against Mike Roberts.
John Part overcomes Danny King 6-1, and Kevin Painter sees off Danny Pinhorne in the same manner.
Alex Roy defeats Dave Smith in 11 legs.
Mark Dudbridge sees off Andy Fordham, ending the former Lakeside Champion's hopes of qualifying for the UK Open televised finals.
Gary Anderson, Dennis Priestley, Michael van Gerwen, Tony Eccles and Lionel Sams also move through to the last 64.
Colin Lloyd wins 6-1 against Robbie Newland and James Wade whitewashes Steve Perry.
Mervyn King defeats Dave Ladley 6-1, while Toon Greebe is 6-3 winner against Dave Ladley.
Mick McGowan picks up 6-5 victory against Nigel Birch.
Alan Tabern wins 6-3 against Ken Dobson, and Gary Blades edges past Matt Clark in a deciding leg.
Kevin McDine earns a deciding leg victory against Stephen Hardy.
Andy Hamilton wins 6-3 against Mark Jodrill, and Ben Burton defeats Roland Scholten 6-4.
Robert Thornton picks up 6-1 victory over Bryan de Hoog, with Mark Frost winning by the same scoreline against Shaun Dring.
Wes Newton is 6-4 winner against Par Riihonen.
Jan van der Rassel defeats Owen Caffrey 6-3, and Kevin Dowling wins 6-2 against Steve Perkins.
Michael Barnard takes out 157 to win deciding leg against Stuart Dutton, and Jamie Caven is 6-2 victor against Alan Caves.
Colin Osborne picks up 6-1 victory over Paul Knighton.
Brendan Dolan knocks out Richie Burnett.
Dyson Parody takes 6-2 win against Martyn Turner.
Newcomer Paul Gudgeon defeats Steve Maish 6-4.
Louis Blundell overcomes John MaGowan 6-3.
Nick Fullwell takes 6-3 win in game with Steve Cupitt.
Wayne Atwood completes the round one action with 6-1 win over Ian Lilley.
Second Round
Steve Brown is first man into last 32 with 6-3 win over Ronnie Baxter.
Terry Jenkins wins 6-4 against Chris Thompson.
Steve Beaton enjoys 6-2 victory over Andy Smith, and Co Stompe takes 6-3 win against Ian Critchett.
Andy Jenkins goes to a deciding leg against Steve Evans.
Mark Walsh defeats Denis Ovens 6-3.
Tony Ayres overcomes Jason Clark 6-4 to reach last 32, and Mark Webster wins in the same manner against Steve Grubb.
James Barton edges past Michael van Gerwen in a deciding leg.
Colin Lloyd picks up 6-3 win against Steve Hine to progress to round three.
Gary Anderson, Saturday's Welsh Players Championship winner, is 6-2 victor in clash with Kevin McDine.
Vincent van der Voort and Mark Lawrence also move into round three with wins.
Wayne Mardle goes to 11 legs with Gary Blades before moving into last 32.
Alan Tabern sets up third round game with Terry Jenkins thanks to 6-3 win over Kevin Painter.
Peter Manley, James Wade, Dennis Priestley and Lee Williams all take deciding leg victories to move into last 32.
John Part is 6-3 winner against Dennis Smith, with Mark Frost winning 6-4 over Wayne Jones.
Jamie Caven takes 6-1 win over Ben Burton.
Brendan Dolan edges out Robert Thornton 6-5 in a tight contest.
Toon Greebe wins all-Dutch affair with Jelle Klaasen in a deciding leg.
Kevin Dowling defeats Gibraltar's Dyson Parody 6-1.
Adrian Lewis holds off Louis Blundell's fightback to win a deciding leg with 130 finish.
Colin Osborne hits four 12-darters and a 170 finish in defeating Nick Fullwell 6-2.
Wayne Atwood ends the second round action with 6-3 win over Paul Gudgeon.
Third Round
Gary Anderson comes from 5-1 down to force a deciding leg against Steve Beaton, who proves too strong in finally closing out victory.
Mark walsh defeats Mark Frost 6-3, and Wayne Mardle wins by the same score against Steve Brown.
Alan Tabern ends Terry Jenkins' hopes with 6-2 victory.
Mark Lawrence is 6-5 winner in clash with Andy Jenkins.
Co Stompe defeats Dennis Priestley for the first time with 6-2 win, and Lee Williams whitewashes James Barton.
Jamie Caven defeats Vincent van der Voort in a deciding leg.
Andy Hamilton is 6-4 winner against Tony Ayres and now meets Stompe.
Tony Eccles knocks out Mark Webster 6-2.
Toon Greebe defeats world number four John Part 6-4 and now takes on Stompe in an all-Dutch fourth round tie.
Colin Lloyd wins 6-4 against Brendan Dolan to book last 16 place, taking out 150 for victory.
Peter Manley is another 6-4 winner, against Kevin Dowling, and now takes on Wayne Mardle.
James Wade progresses to last 16 with 6-4 win over Adrian Lewis.
Colin Osborne wins six successive legs to come from a leg down to defeat Wes Newton.
Mark Dudbridge moves into fourth round with 6-3 win over Wayne Atwood.
Fourth Round
Steve Beaton wins second successive game in a decider, defeating Mark Lawrence to reach last eight.
Co Stompe reaches quarter-finals with 6-4 win over fellow countryman Toon Greebe.
Colin Lloyd is 6-4 winner against Lee Williams to ensure his quarter-final berth.
Mark Walsh comes from 4-2 down to win 6-4 against James Wade.
Peter Manley punishes missed doubles from Wayne Mardle to win the deciding leg of their contest.
Jamie Caven overcomes Andy Hamilton to reach his third successive quarter-final in the Regional Finals.
Alan Tabern moves into the last eight with 6-4 win over Colin Osborne.
Mark Dudbridge overcomes Tony Eccles with a 12-darter in the deciding leg to complete the quarter-final line-up.
Quarter-Finals
Co Stompe comes from 5-2 down to win in a decider against Steve Beaton.
Colin Lloyd defeats Mark Walsh 6-2 to reach semi-finals.
Alan Tabern takes 6-2 win against Peter Manley to book his spot in the last four, where he will meet Colin Lloyd.
Jamie Caven wins three successive legs to pull clear of Mark Dudbridge and win a semi-final place with 6-3 win.
Semi-Finals
Jamie Caven defeats Co Stompe 6-2 to reach his second PDC Pro Tour final - having been the runner-up in last September's Welsh Players Championship. He led 5-0 before missing three darts at double six for a whitewash victory and then hitting a 180 to leave 24 in leg seven as Stompe took two legs to hit back - but Caven scrambled over the winning line.
Alan Tabern won the other semi-final, defeating Colin Lloyd 6-4. Tabern led 3-0 before Lloyd cut the gap to one leg, but crucially the St Helens man edged the sixth to lead 4-2 and held his advantage to seal victory.
Final
Caven 1-0 Tabern - Caven takes out 126
Caven 2-0 Tabern - Tabern misses double ten for 140 finish and Caven takes out 70
Caven 2-1 Tabern - 81 finish from Tabern
Caven 2-2 Tabern - Caven hits a 180 but Tabern takes out 52 in two darts
Caven 2-3 Tabern - Tabern takes out double 16 with his fourth dart at a double, to lead for the first time
Caven 2-4 Tabern - a 75 finish puts Tabern two legs clear
Caven 3-4 Tabern - Tabern misses the bull for 121 finish and Caven checks ou 70
Caven 3-5 Tabern - Double 16 puts Tabern a leg away from victory
Caven 4-5 Tabern - Tabern opens with a 180 but Caven follows up three 140s with an 81 finish for a 12-darter to stay in the game
Caven 5-5 Tabern - Tabern misses one dart for the match as Caven sends the game into a decider
Caven 6-5 Tabern - Caven lands double top for his maiden PDC title