PHIL TAYLOR remains on course to retain the PartyPoker.net German Darts Championship title following the first day of this year's €100,200 event.
Taylor won through to the quarter-finals of the tournament at the Gerry Weber Centre in Halle without dropping a set on the first of two days of play.
He defeated Kevin Wensink, Robert Thornton and Jelle Klaasen in moving to the last 16, where he then hit six 180s and averaged almost 114 in defeating Kevin Painter, setting up a quarter-final with Wayne Jones.
Jones knocked out Wayne Mardle and then defeated Alan Tabern in a deciding leg with a 14-darter to reach the quarter-finals.
Taylor's brilliant display on stage was matched by Denis Ovens, the runner-up 12 months ago who is aiming for another final after knocking out world number two Raymond van Barneveld 3-1 in the last 16.
Ovens takes on Andy Hamilton for a place in the semis, after the Stoke man held off Adrian Gray and Colin Lloyd to book his spot in the quarters.
World Champion John Part defeated Peter Manley 3-1 and now meets Mark Dudbridge in the quarter-finals, after the Bristol man came from behind to defeat Terry Jenkins 3-2.
Steve Hine overcame Alex Roy, Adrian Lewis and Dennis Priestley to reach the last eight, where he meets Holland's Co Stompe.
Dutch youngster Michael van Gerwen missed three darts to defeat Raymond van Barneveld earlier in the day, while Lewis included a ten-dart leg in one win but saw a dart for victory against Hine fall out of the board before missing two further attempts for the match.
The tournament, which offers €25,000 to the winner, will be played to a conclusion on Sunday.
The quarter-finals are the best of five sets, best of three legs per set. The semi-finals and final are the best of seven sets, best of three legs per set.
Pictures courtesy Arno Witvliet/Darts International Magazine
2008 PartyPoker.net German Darts Championship
Preliminary Round
Martin Kapucian 3-0 Dieter Engel
Mario Masurka 3-0 Leroy Kwadijk
Matt Clark 3-0 Andree Welge
Jurgen Lechtken 3-1 Rolf Kaiser
Steve Maish 3-0 Murat Morakaktu
Olaf Tupuschis 3-0 Manfred Hausler
Bernd Roith 3-0 Thomas Frogel
Peter Wright 3-0 Steve Randall
Steve Hine 3-0 Klaus Dusterhus
Hannes Schnier 3-0 Robert Novakovic
Andy Krockel 3-0 Huseyin Zengin
First Round
Phil Taylor 3-0 Kevin Wensink
Robert Thornton 3-0 Peter Aleman
Jelle Klaasen 3-1 Markus Schonbern
Martin Kapucian 3-2 Maik Langendorf
Ali Avci Bye (Roland Scholten)
Johann Honner 3-1 Karsten Koch
Kevin Painter 3-1 Stephan Wusch
Jacko Barry 3-1 Darren Latham
Wayne Mardle 3-1 Chris Kotal
Hans Pfaff 3-1 Markus Scheck
Wayne Jones 3-1 Olaf Fiβ
Mario Masurka 3-0 Peter Trapp
Alan Tabern 3-0 John Lokken
Mensur Suljovic 3-0 Jurgen Demler
Andy Smith 3-1 Carlos Rodriguez
Matt Clark 3-0 Freddy Pohlers
Terry Jenkins 3-0 Reinhard Timmerman
Mike Herold Bye (Dave Honey)
Barrie Bates 3-0 Nick Fulwell
Sladan Nedic 3-0 Jurgen Lechtken
Mervyn King 3-0 Stephan Schneider
Colin Monk 3-2 Michael Rosenauer
Mark Dudbridge 3-0 Marek Brommelhaus
Toon Greebe 3-0 Erwin Extercatte
John Part 3-0 Michael Hahn
Colin Rice 3-0 Darren Johnson
Tony Eccles 3-0 Kai Nithammer
Jan van der Rassel 3-0 Steve Maish
Peter Manley 3-0 Rudiger Lohse
Kevin Munch 3-0 Christian Kruger
Mark Walsh 3-0 Jasper Smidt
Ben Burton 3-1 Boyd Meijer
Raymond van Barneveld 3-0 Alexander Kohler
Detlev Haut 3-2 Alexander Glatthorn
Michael van Gerwen 3-0 Alexander Berger
Olaf Tupuschis 3-0 Stephan Mischke
Steve Evans 3-2 Ronnie Baxter
Marko Puls 3-0 Brian Jones
Denis Ovens Bye (Mario Hermann)
Lars Martin 3-2 Zoran Lukan
Andy Hamilton 3-2 Wayne Atwood
Shane Cox 3-0 Norbert Grimm
Adrian Gray 3-0 Tobias Hontsch
Kevin Dowling 3-2 Bernd Roith
Colin Lloyd 3-0 Karel Sedlacek
Remco van Eijden 3-0 Dave Ladley
Andy Jenkins 3-0 Dietmar Burger
Kevin McDine 3-0 Peter Wright
Adrian Lewis 3-0 Marakandu Garunakumar
Yves Cottenge 3-0 Christian Peter
Alex Roy 3-2 Robert Watson-Lang
Steve Hine 3-1 Ian Jopling
Dennis Priestley 3-0 Mattheus Ziolkowski
Jason Clark 3-0 Bernhard Kraus
Chris Mason 3-2 Michael Wolf
Hannes Schnier 3-1 Jon Archer
James Wade 3-0 Chris Sehmann
Steve Brown 3-0 Markus Riether
Co Stompe 3-2 Wes Newton
Mick McGowan 3-0 Andy Krockel
Colin Osborne 3-0 Marek Polach
Paul Nicholson 3-2 Mark Carter
Vincent van der Voort 3-0 Thomas Gerock
Jamie Caven 3-0 Tomas Seyler
Second Round
Phil Taylor 3-0 Robert Thornton
Jelle Klaasen 3-0 Martin Kapucian
Johann Honner 3-0 Ali Avci
Kevin Painter 3-1 Jacko Barry
Wayne Mardle Bye (Hans Pfaff Timed Out)
Wayne Jones 3-1 Mario Masurka
Alan Tabern 3-2 Mensur Suljovic
Matt Clark 3-2 Andy Smith
Terry Jenkins 3-0 Mike Herold
Barrie Bates 3-1 Sladan Nedic
Mervyn King 3-0 Colin Monk
Mark Dudbridge 3-1 Toon Greebe
John Part 3-0 Colin Rice
Tony Eccles 3-0 Jan van der Rassel
Peter Manley 3-0 Kevin Munch
Mark Walsh 3-0 Ben Burton
Raymond van Barneveld 3-0 Detlev Haut
Michael van Gerwen 3-0 Olaf Tupuschis
Marko Puls 3-0 Steve Evans
Denis Ovens 3-0 Lars Martin
Andy Hamilton 3-1 Shane Cox
Adrian Gray 3-1 Kevin Dowling
Colin Lloyd 3-0 Remco van Eijden
Kevin McDine 3-2 Andy Jenkins
Adrian Lewis 3-0 Yves Cottenge
Steve Hine 3-1 Alex Roy
Dennis Priestley 3-1 Jason Clark
Hannes Schnier 3-2 Chris Mason
Steve Brown 3-1 James Wade
Co Stompe 3-2 Mick McGowan
Colin Osborne 3-1 Paul Nicholson
Vincent van der Voort 3-1 Jamie Caven
Losers €450
Third Round
Phil Taylor 3-0 Jelle Klaasen
Kevin Painter 3-1 Johann Honner
Wayne Jones 3-1 Wayne Mardle
Alan Tabern 3-1 Matt Clark
Terry Jenkins 3-0 Barrie Bates
Mark Dudbridge 3-2 Mervyn King
John Part 3-1 Tony Eccles
Peter Manley 3-1 Mark Walsh
Raymond van Barneveld 3-2 Michael van Gerwen
Denis Ovens 3-0 Marko Puls
Andy Hamilton 3-2 Adrian Gray
Colin Lloyd 3-1 Kevin McDine
Steve Hine 3-2 Adrian Lewis
Dennis Priestley 3-0 Hannes Schnier
Co Stompe 3-0 Steve Brown
Vincent van der Voort 3-1 Colin Osborne
Losers €850
Fourth Round
Phil Taylor 3-0 Kevin Painter
Wayne Jones 3-2 Alan Tabern
Mark Dudbridge 3-2 Terry Jenkins
John Part 3-1 Peter Manley
Denis Ovens 3-1 Raymond van Barneveld
Andy Hamilton 3-1 Colin Lloyd
Steve Hine 3-2 Dennis Priestley
Co Stompe 3-1 Vincent van der Voort
Losers €1,400
Sunday (12pm start)
Quarter-Finals
Phil Taylor v Wayne Jones
Mark Dudbridge v John Part
Denis Ovens v Andy Hamilton
Steve Hine v Co Stompe
Losers €3,000
Best of five sets, best of three legs per set
Semi-Finals
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v
Losers €6,000
Best of seven sets, best of three legs per set
Final
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Winner €25,000
Runner-Up €12,000
Best of seven sets, best of three legs per set
News Updates
Preliminary Round
Steve Maish wins 3-0 against qualifier Murat Morakaktu.
Mario Masurka knocks out Dutch youngster Leroy Kwadijk in straight sets.
Matt Clark, Steve Hine and Peter Wright progress to last 128 without dropping a set, as do Olaf Tupuschis, Martin Kapucian, Bernd Roith, Andy Krockel and Hannes Schnier.
First Round
Peter Manley opens with 3-0 win over Rudiger Lohse, with Colin Osborne winning by the same scoreline.
Steve Evans edges out Ronnie Baxter 3-2.
Mervyn King takes 3-0 win over Stephan Schneider, while Kevin Munch's win over Christian Kruger ensures second round clash with Manley.
Colin Lloyd progresses with 3-0 win over Karel Sedlacek.
Phil Taylor opens the defence of his title with 3-0 win over Kevin Wensink, while Alan Tabern defeats John Lokken in straight sets.
Wayne Mardle wins 3-1 against Christian Kotal.
Adrian Lewis, Dennis Priestley, James Wade, Terry Jenkins and Raymond van Barneveld begin with 3-0 victories.
Marko Puls sets up second round with Evans after 3-0 win over Brian Jones.
Colin Monk edges past Germany's Michael Rosenauer in five sets.
Colin Rice knocks out Darren Johnson 3-0.
Andy Hamilton wins five-set game with Wayne Atwood to progress, with Paul Nicholson defeating Mark Carter in the same manner.
Robert Thornton's win over Peter Aleman sets up second round date with Phil Taylor.
Austria's Mensur Suljovic, Holland's Vincent van der Voort and English duo Mark Dudbridge and Tony Eccles all enjoy 3-0 victories.
Andy Smith overcomes Spanish star Carlos Rodriguez 3-1, while Jacko Barry defeats Darren Latham by the same scoreline.
Toon Greebe wins all-Dutch battle with Erwin Extercatte 3-0.
Jamie Caven defeats German hopeful Tomas Seyler 3-0.
Michael van Gerwen and Kevin McDine begin with victories over Alexander Berger and Peter Wright.
Alex Roy is pushed all the way by Robert Watson-Lang before taking 3-2 win.
Austrian Hannes Schnier wins 3-1 against Jon Archer.
Kevin Dowling comes from 2-1 down to win in a deciding leg against Bernd Roith.
Second Round
Johann Honner wins place in last 32 with 3-0 defeat of Ali Avci.
Colin Lloyd overcomes Remco van Eijden 3-0 to move into round three, and Mervyn King defeats Colin Monk by the same scoreline.
Mark Walsh defeats Ben Burton in straight sets to reach last 32, and World Champion John Part wins in the same manner against Colin Rice.
Terry Jenkins wins 3-0 against Mike Herold, while Wayne Mardle has a bye after Hans Pfaff is timed out.
Mark Dudbridge wins 3-1 against Holland's Toon Greebe.
Number three seed James Wade is knocked out 3-1 by Steve Brown, while Kevin Painter sees off Jacko Barry 3-1.
Kevin McDine's narrow win over Andy Jenkins means he meets Colin Lloyd in last 32.
Phil Taylor includes a 170 finish in his 3-0 defeat of Robert Thornton.
Wayne Jones sets up board final against Wayne Mardle with 3-1 defeat of Mario Masurka.
Alan Tabern edges out Mensur Suljovic in five sets to reach last 32.
Michael van Gerwen defeats Olaf Tupuschis to set up clash in round three with Raymond van Barneveld.
Adrian Lewis includes ten-dart leg in win over Belgium's Yves Cottenge.
Dennis Priestley moves through with 3-1 win over Jason Clark.
Steve Hine sets up board final with Adrian Lewis after 3-1 win over Alex Roy.
Wins for Andy Hamilton and Adrian Gray over Shane Cox and Kevin Dowling mean they meet in round three.
Co Stompe sets up board final with Steve Brown thanks to 3-2 defeat of Mick McGowan.
Matt Clark edges past Andy Smith 3-2 and now meets Alan Tabern in round three.
Hannes Schnier defeats Chris Mason in five sets to move into last 32, where he meets Dennis Priestley.
Third Round
Denis Ovens is first man into last 16 after comfortable win over Marko Puls.
Peter Manley wins board eight final against Mark Walsh 3-1 to reach last 16.
Terry Jenkins moves into fourth round with 3-0 win over Barrie Bates.
Colin Lloyd overcomes Kevin McDine 3-1 to move into last 16.
John Part sets up fourth round game with Peter Manley with 3-1 defeat of Tony Eccles.
Michael van Gerwen pays the price for two missed darts at double top for a 3-0 win over Raymond van Barneveld - with the number two seed taking out 116 for the third set and then winning the next two to progress.
Phil Taylor progresses to last 16 with third successive 3-0 victory, this time defeating Jelle Klaasen.
Kevin Painter will meet Taylor in round four, following his 3-1 defeat of Johann Honner.
Wayne Jones is 3-1 winner against Wayne Mardle.
Co Stompe wins 3-0 against Steve Brown to reach last 16.
Alan Tabern's 3-1 defeat of Matt Clark sets up last 16 clash with Wayne Jones.
Dennis Priestley defeats Hannes Schnier to reach fourth round, where he meets Steve Hine.
Andy Hamilton wins remaining third round clash, defeating Adrian Gray in a deciding set.
Fourth Round
Mark Dudbridge comes from 2-1 down to defeat Terry Jenkins, winning four legs without reply to take the final two sets.
World Champion John Part defeats Peter Manley 3-1 to win a place in Sunday's quarter-finals, where he meets Dudbridge.
Denis Ovens - last year's runner-up - defeats Raymond van Barneveld 3-1, taking out a spectacular 160 finish to win the game with the Dutchman sat on 91 after nine darts.
Steve Hine wins five-set epic with Dennis Priestley, coming from 1-0 down to lead 2-1 before taking the deciding set without reply.
Defending champion Phil Taylor powers past Kevin Painter in straight sets, averaging 113.94 in a superb display. Taylor hit six 180s in the contest, taking the first set 2-1, and then coming from behind in the second to take four straight legs for victory in 10, 12, 13 and 11 darts, with Painter averaging over 101 in reply but unable to halt the charge.
Co Stompe booked his quarter-final place with a 3-1 defeat of Vincent van der Voort. The first two sets were shared before Stompe edged the third and then came from a leg down in the fourth with finishes of 121 and 104 sealing his victory.
Wayne Jones won a final-leg shoot-out with Alan Tabern to set up a quarter-final on Sunday with Taylor. Jones paid for missed doubles to win the second set when Tabern levelled, and the duo shared the next two sets to send the game into a decider, before Jones hit a 180 in a 14-darter to claim victory.
Andy Hamilton booked the last quarter-final spot with a 3-1 defeat of Colin Lloyd. Hamilton took the first set 2-1 and the second without reply, including an 11-darter, before Lloyd took the third 2-0. But a missed bullseye for a 170 finish cost Lloyd as Hamilton led in the fourth before taking victory in a deciding leg.
Please note that prize money will count on the PDC Order of Merit and Continental Europe Order of Merit at the following rate:
Winner: £18,518
Runner-Up: £8,888
Semi-Finalists: £4,444
Quarter-Finalists: £2,222
Last 16 losers: £1,037
Last 32 losers: £629
Last 64 losers: £333