PHIL TAYLOR has revealed the two moments which have sparked his incredible return to form - and could lead to him becoming "better than ever".
Taylor is unbeaten in his last six Whyte & Mackay Premier League Darts matches, and won an incredible six out of eight PDC Pro Tour events during March.
However, his first round exits in the Las Vegas Desert Classic and SkyBet World Grand Prix last year were followed by a quarter-final exit to Wayne Mardle in the Ladbrokes.com PDC World Darts Championship - the first time in the history of the event he had not reached the final.
And suggestions that Taylor's unparalleled career was beginning to wane gained momentum when he changed his darts and then lost three of his first four Premier League games this year, including the pivotal 8-3 loss to Peter Manley in Coventry.
Taylor moved onto a new style of dart after that loss before whitewashing Mardle 8-0 in Bournemouth - and has since been in unstoppable form.
"I am going to get better than I've ever been," he said. "Give me six months and hopefully you'll see darts you've never seen before.
"I'm still experimenting on my game a little bit, doing different things that could help me out and I'll keep working at it.
"My will to win's back again now, maybe more so than when I first started.
"I got to a place where I wasn't bothered [by losing].
"It was weird when I lost in the World Championship and it didn't bother me. And I think the Peter Manley match did it for me!
"Losing, and seeing people gloating, hurts.
"All of a sudden it kicked in and I asked myself what I was doing. I had to get off my backside and put some work in, and I did.
"I've been doing this for 20 years, so that few months might have done me good."
Taylor, 47, admits that he has now tailored his practice regime, focusing on the quality of his practice rather than quantity of time on the board.
"I'm practising every day and when I finish I'm absolutely shattered," said the 13-time World Champion.
"It's only a couple of hours, but it's what you do in the two hours that matters - you don't have to practice four or five hours.
"If you do two hours properly you're so tired at the end."
Taylor meets Raymond van Barneveld in front of almost 8,000 fans in Liverpool on Thursday, having defeated Raymond the Dutchman 8-3 when they last met in the Premier League, averging a tournament record 111.14 and hitting an incredible five ton-plus finishes in the game.
"It did [hurt him]," added Taylor. "It's in his mind, but when it's there and you keep getting beaten you need to practice harder and Barney will do that.
"He's a professional and he knows what he's got to do - I'm expecting him to come out playing brilliantly. It's going to be buzzing with all those people and I'm excited!
"You're going to see a belting average, it could be as high as 115. I'll get ready for it, and I know Raymond will, and it will be a cracker."
Click here to read Rod Harrington's Liverpool Preview
Click here to purchase the official 2008 Whyte & Mackay Premier League Darts programme
Watch the Whyte & Mackay Premier League Darts from the Liverpool Echo Arena, live on Sky Sports One from 7.30pm on Thursday.
The final tickets are still available from the Liverpool Echo Arena Box Office on 0844 800 0400.
Whyte & Mackay Premier League Darts
Night 11, Liverpool Echo Arena
James Wade v Wayne Mardle
John Part v Adrian Lewis
Peter Manley v Terry Jenkins
Phil Taylor v Raymond van Barneveld
Live on Sky Sports One, 7.30pm