PHIL TAYLOR continued his dominance over James Wade with victory in the final of Saturday's Players Championship tournament in Koningshof, Holland.
Taylor has taken victory over Wade in the finals of the Whyte & Mackay Premier League Darts, PartyPoker.net Las Vegas Desert Classic and Stan James World Matchplay this year, and picked up the £5,000 title with a 3-1 victory.
Taylor, making his first competitive appearance since winning the World Matchplay five weeks ago, survived an early scare to come from behind to defeat Kevin McDine - who narrowly missed one dart at the bullseye for victory - in the last 32, and never looked back.
He failed to drop a leg in a scintillating destruction of Chris Mason and then defeated John MaGowan and Stoke rival Andy Hamilton to reach the final.
He included a 13-darter in taking the first set of the final 2-1, and also edged the second after Wade missed a host of doubles.
Wade took the third set without reply and also led in the fourth, but Taylor levelled and then landed a third maximum of the final before sealing victory in 11 darts.
Wade defeated Tony Eccles 3-1 in the semi-finals and also saw off Gary Mawson, Vincent van der Voort and Colin Osborne by the same scoreline in the event.
The day also included a nine-darter from 67-year-old MaGowan, his first in competition and which earned him a £3,600 bonus as the first in a PDC Pro Tour event since Colin Osborne's achievement in April.
MaGowan went on to reach the quarter-finals, his best display since reaching the semi-finals of the 2006 UK Open.
Eccles improved his chances of qualifying for October's Sky Poker World Grand Prix by reaching the semi-finals, including straight sets wins over Terry Jenkins and Kevin Painter.
Players Championship - Koningshof, Saturday
Preliminary Round
Dave Honey 3-0 Pauzr Jiri
Wayne Atwood 3-0 Jon Archer
Ian Jopling 3-0 Raul Conde
Tobias Hontsch 3-0 Thomas Gerock
Willem Kralt 3-0 Colin Monk
Leroy Kwadijk 3-0 Mike Herold
James Barton 3-0 Jim Leighton
Rolf Kaiser 3-0 Steve Cusick
John Kuczynski 3-0 Detlef Vrba
Lee White 3-2 Stephan Wusch
Edwin Max 3-0 Andy Relf
Michael Rosenauer 3-0 Hans Hagley
Elmer Kralt 3-1 Toon Greebe
Co Stompe Bye (Volker Beck)
Mensur Suljovic 3-2 Steve Brown
Pavel Jirkal Bye (Freddy de Geus)
First Round
Phil Taylor 3-1 Jan van der Rassel
Steve Evans 3-2 Dave Honey
Kevin McDine 3-1 Chris Thompson
Maik Langendorf 3-2 Wim Mink
Chris Mason 3-1 Rocco Maes
Wayne Atwood 3-0 Louis Blundell
Darren Johnson 3-2 Kirk Shepherd
Jelle Klaasen Bye (Sven Wens)
Alan Tabern 3-1 Dick van Dijk
Lionel Sams 3-2 Ian Jopling
Alex Roy 3-0 Ali Avci
John MaGowan 3-2 Steve Maish ** John MaGowan hits nine-darter
Ronnie Baxter 3-0 Detlef Bietz
Andy Howarth 3-2 Tobias Hontsch
Mick McGowan 3-0 Bernd Roith
Robert Watson-Lang 3-0 Rico Vonck
Colin Lloyd 3-2 Dave Ladley
Willem Kralt 3-1 Mario Masurka
Michael van Gerwen 3-0 Jonathan Overton
Martyn Turner 3-0 Miloslav Navratil
Mervyn King 3-0 Alexander Glatthorn
Kevin Harris 3-0 Leroy Kwadijk
Mark Frost 3-2 Mark Walsh
Ben Burton 3-0 Steve Randall
Andy Hamilton 3-1 John Lokken
James Barton 3-0 Alan Weist
Matt Clark 3-2 Jacko Barry
Geoff Wylie 3-2 Scott Kirchner
Denis Ovens 3-1 Nick Fulwell
Matheus Ziolkowski 3-0 Rolf Kaiser
Jamie Caven 3-0 Andy Smith
Tony Blundell Bye (Sascha Muller)
James Wade 3-0 Daniel Kibellus
Colin Rice 3-1 John Kuczynski
Gary Mawson 3-0 Hans Pfaff
Joe Cullen 3-1 Pin van Veenendal
Vincent van der Voort 3-0 Detlef Haut
Lee White 3-2 Daniel van Mourik
Andy Jenkins 3-2 Bernhard Kraus
Aaron Turner 3-0 Eimardo van Enegelen
Peter Manley 3-0 Ricky Williams
Edwin Max 3-1 Martin Burchell
Wes Newton 3-0 Huseyin Zengin
Tomas Seyler 3-0 Andrew Davies
Colin Osborne 3-1 Carlos Rodriguez
Michael Rosenauer Bye (Kevin Winsink)
Wayne Jones 3-0 Owen Caffrey
Dennis Smith 3-1 Brendan Dolan
Roland Scholten 3-0 Kim Huybrechts
Elmer Kralt 3-0 Roland Schmidt
Steve Beaton 3-0 John Jenkinson
Steve Hine 3-0 Klaus Wolhorn
Kevin Painter 3-2 Joey Palfreyman
Co Stompe 3-0 Roy Leenders
Adrian Gray Bye (Anton Pein)
Olaf Tupuschis 3-0 Mario Hermann
Terry Jenkins 3-2 Jeffrey Stigter
Mensur Suljovic 3-1 Shane Passey
Tony Eccles 3-0 Thorsten Wefers
Hannes Schnier 3-2 Domien Raes
Robert Thornton 3-1 Mark Dudbridge
John Quantock 3-0 Pavel Jirkal
Barrie Bates 3-1 Chris Kotal
Peter Wright 3-1 Gary Barnett
Second Round
Phil Taylor 3-0 Steve Evans
Kevin McDine 3-0 Maik Langendorf
Chris Mason 3-1 Wayne Atwood
Jelle Klaasen 3-2 Darren Johnson
Alan Tabern 3-2 Lionel Sams
John MaGowan 3-1 Alex Roy
Ronnie Baxter 3-1 Andy Howarth
Mick McGowan 3-1 Robert Watson-Lang
Colin Lloyd 3-2 Willem Kralt
Michael van Gerwen 3-0 Martyn Turner
Mervyn King 3-0 Kevin Harris
Mark Frost 3-2 Ben Burton
Andy Hamilton 3-1 James Barton
Matt Clark 3-0 Geoff Wylie
Denis Ovens 3-0 Matheus Ziolkowski
Jamie Caven 3-0 Tony Blundell
James Wade 3-2 Colin Rice
Gary Mawson 3-0 Joe Cullen
Vincent van der Voort 3-0 Lee White
Andy Jenkins 3-0 Aaron Turner
Peter Manley 3-2 Edwin Max
Tomas Seyler 3-1 Wes Newton
Colin Osborne 3-0 Michael Rosenauer
Wayne Jones 3-2 Dennis Smith
Elmer Kralt 3-1 Roland Scholten
Steve Beaton 3-2 Steve Hine
Kevin Painter 3-0 Co Stompe
Adrian Gray 3-2 Olaf Tupuschis
Terry Jenkins 3-0 Mensur Suljovic
Tony Eccles 3-1 Hannes Schnier
John Quantock 3-1 Robert Thornton
Barrie Bates 3-2 Peter Wright
Losers £75
Third Round
Phil Taylor 3-2 Kevin McDine
Chris Mason 3-2 Jelle Klaasen
John MaGowan 3-2 Alan Tabern
Mick McGowan 3-1 Ronnie Baxter
Colin Lloyd 3-2 Michael van Gerwen
Mervyn King 3-0 Mark Frost
Andy Hamilton 3-2 Matt Clark
Denis Ovens 3-2 Jamie Caven
James Wade 3-1 Gary Mawson
Vincent van der Voort 3-0 Andy Jenkins
Peter Manley 3-0 Tomas Seyler
Colin Osborne 3-1 Wayne Jones
Steve Beaton 3-2 Elmer Kralt
Kevin Painter 3-0 Adrian Gray
Tony Eccles 3-0 Terry Jenkins
John Quantock 3-1 Barrie Bates
Losers £150
Fourth Round
Phil Taylor 3-0 Chris Mason
John MaGowan 3-1 Mick McGowan
Colin Lloyd 3-1 Mervyn King
Andy Hamilton 3-2 Denis Ovens
James Wade 3-1 Vincent van der Voort
Colin Osborne 3-0 Peter Manley
Kevin Painter 3-2 Steve Beaton
Tony Eccles 3-2 John Quantock
Losers £300
Quarter-Finals
Phil Taylor 3-0 John MaGowan (2-0, 2-0, 2-1)
Andy Hamilton 3-0 Colin Lloyd (2-0, 2-1, 2-0)
James Wade 3-1 Colin Osborne (2-0, 1-2, 2-1, 2-1)
Tony Eccles 3-0 Kevin Painter (2-1, 2-0, 2-0)
Losers £600
Semi-Finals
Phil Taylor 3-1 Andy Hamilton (0-2, 2-1, 2-0, 2-1)
James Wade 3-1 Tony Eccles (2-0, 2-0, 1-2, 2-1)
Losers £1,250
Final
Phil Taylor 3-1 James Wade (2-1, 2-1, 0-2, 2-1)
Winner £5,000
Runner-Up £2,500
Preliminary & First Rounds
Ian Jopling sees off Spain's Raul Conde in straight sets in their preliminary round match.
Kevin McDine defeats Chris Thompson 3-1 in the first round, while Andy Smith crashes out 3-0 to Jamie Caven.
John MaGowan, 67, hits nine-dart leg against Steve Maish, achieving the feat in the first set to earn himself a £3,600 bonus before edging a 3-2 victory.
Willem Kralt defeats Colin Monk to move into first round.
Darren Johnson comes from 2-0 down to win in a decider against Kirk Shepherd.
Matt Clark, against Jacko Barry, and Mark Frost, against Mark Walsh, also win in five-set games.
Kevin Painter
Phil Taylor overcomes Holland's Jan van der Rassel 3-1, while number two seed James Wade opens with a 3-0 victory over Daniel Kibellus.
Andy Jenkins and Kevin Painter need five sets before seeing off Bernhard Kraus - who missed 11 darts for the match - and Joey Palfreyman respectively.
Robert Thornton overcomes Mark Dudbridge 3-1, while another Bristolian, Steve Brown, suffers and early defeat, going out to Mensur Suljovic.
Ronnie Baxter, Mervyn King, Michael van Gerwen, Roland Scholten, Gary Mawson and Wayne Jones all open with straight sets victories.
Colin Lloyd is pushed all the way by Dave Ladley, while Colin Rice defeats American John Kuczynski 3-1.
Germany's former World Championship qualifier Tomas Seyler wins 3-0 against Andrew Davies.
Geoff Wylie squeezes out America's Scott Kirchner in the deciding leg of a five-set epic.
Second Round
Jelle Klaasen moves into last 32 with five-set win over Darren Johnson.
He is joined by fellow Dutchman Michael van Gerwen, who defeats Martyn Turner 3-0.
Andy Jenkins sees off Aaron Turner 3-0, with Gary Mawson overcoming Bradford youngster Joe Cullen by the same scoreline.
Jamie Caven reaches third round with 3-0 defeat of Tony Blundell.
Phil Taylor win in straight sets against Steve Evans.
John Quantock overcomes recent Australian Open Players Championship winner Robert Thornton.
Vincent van der Voort races past Lee White in straight sets.
James Wade needs five sets before edging out Colin Rice.
Ronnie Baxter sees and Mick McGowan set up third round meeting with 3-1 wins over Andy Howarth and Robert Watson-Lang respectively.
Elmer Kralt defeats Roland Scholten 3-1, but there is defeat for Willem Kralt, against Colin Lloyd in a five-set contest.
Terry Jenkins moves into last 32 with straight sets defeat of Suljovic.
Dennis Smith is edged out 3-2 by Wayne Jones, with Barrie Bates seeing off Peter Wright by the same scoreline.
Third Round
Kevin Painter defeats Adrian Gray in straight sets.
Mervyn King joins Painter in last 16 with 3-0 win over Mark Frost.
Vincent van der Voort and Peter Manley also enjoy straight sets wins, against Andy Jenkins and Tomas Seyler.
Steve Beaton edges out Elmer Kralt 3-2 to reach last 16.
Phil Taylor came from 2-1 down to defeat Kevin McDine in a deciding set, having missed double 12 for a nine-darter when a leg behind in set four and McDine throwing for the match.
Tony Eccles sweeps past Terry Jenkins, Colin Osborne sees off Wayne Jones and Mick McGowan defeats in-form Ronnie Baxter 3-1.
Colin Lloyd edges out Michael van Gerwen 3-2, with Denis Ovens defeating Jamie Caven by the same scoreline - although Caven had included finishes of 161 and 121 in hitting back to level after going two sets down.
James Wade overcomes Gary Mawson 3-1 to end American hopes on the day.
Chris Mason sets up last 16 meeting with Phil Taylor after 3-2 win over Holland's Jelle Klaasen.
John Quantock's 3-1 win over Barrie Bates sets up clash with Tony Eccles.
John MaGowan's fine day continues with a 3-2 win over Alan Tabern, meaning he meets Mick McGowan in the last 16.
Andy Hamilton edges out Matt Clark in another tight third round contest.
Fourth Round
Kevin Painter is the first man into the quarter-finals, after a 3-2 win over Steve Beaton.
Colin Lloyd sees off Mervyn King 3-1.
Phil Taylor lands two 11-darters in a whitewash win over Chris Mason - winning in legs of 13, 15, 11, 11, 13 and 12 darts, a match average of over 120!
Colin Osborne eases into the quarter-finals with straight sets defeat of Peter Manley.
James Wade overcomes Vincent van der Voort 3-1.
John MaGowan progresses to quarter-finals with win over Ireland's Mick McGowan in four sets - meaning he now takes on Phil Taylor.
Tony Eccles survives a fightback from York's John Quantock, who hit back from 2-0 down in sets and a leg down in the third to square the game, before Eccles took the decider.
Andy Hamilton books his place in quarter-finals with another five-set win, this time defeating Denis Ovens in the decider.
Quarter-Finals
James Wade defeats Colin Osborne 3-1, taking the final two sets to book his place in the semis.
Phil Taylor ruthlessly ends John MaGowan's title bid, dropping just one leg in a three-set victory.
Tony Eccles reaches his first PDC Pro Tour semi-final since March, dropping just one leg in seeing off Kevin Painter.
Andy Hamilton's run continues with a straight sets win over Colin Lloyd, dropping just one leg to set up a semi-final with fellow Stoke star Phil Taylor.
Semi-Finals
James Wade took victory in the first semi-final with a 3-1 defeat of Tony Eccles. Wade won the first set with finishes of 122 and 120 for back-to-back 15 dart legs. He also took the second set without reply before Eccles hit back to win the third in a deciding leg, taking out 86 on the bullseye. The pair shared the first two legs of the fourth set, before Wade pulled clear in the decider and landed double top at the first time of asking.
Phil Taylor came from a set down to defeat Andy Hamilton 3-1 in the second semi-final.
Hamilton started the stronger, landing 180s in the opening two legs and taking the first set without reply thanks to a 140 checkout. Taylor edged the second in a deciding leg after Hamilton missed his chances to step in and double his advantage. Taylor then won the third set 2-0 to move ahead, before Hamilton led in the fourth. However, four missed doubles from Hamilton allowed Taylor to level, and he eventually sealed the win on double five.