The 2021/22 William Hill World Darts Championship took place from December 15-January 3.
The tournament saw 96 players from around the world competing for £2.5million in prize money, as Peter Wright defeated Michael Smith in the final to become a two-time World champion.
Schedule of Play
Wednesday December 15 (1900 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
(R1) Ritchie Edhouse 3-2 Peter Hudson*** (3-1, 2-3, 1-3, 3-0, 3-0)
(R1) Ricky Evans 3-0 Nitin Kumar (3-1, 3-0, 3-1)
(R1) Adrian Lewis 3-1 Matt Campbell (2-3, 3-0, 3-0, 3-2)
(R2) Gerwyn Price 3-1 Ritchie Edhouse (0-3, 3-2, 3-2, 3-0)
Thursday December 16
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
(R1) Steve Lennon 3-1 Madars Razma (3-1, 1-3, 3-2, 3-2)
(R1) Chris Landman 3-0 Scott Mitchell (3-0, 3-0, 3-2)
(R1) Chas Barstow 3-1 John Norman Jnr (3-1, 3-0,1-3, 3-2)
(R2) Daryl Gurney 3-1 Ricky Evans (2-3, 3-1, 3-1, 3-2)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
(R1) William O’Connor 3-2 Danny Lauby (3-1, 3-1, 1-3, 2-3, 3-2)
(R1) Ryan Meikle 3-0 Fabian Schmutzler (3-0, 3-1, 3-2)
(R1) Ron Meulenkamp 3-0 Lisa Ashton (3-1, 3-0, 3-1)
(R2) Gary Anderson 3-1 Adrian Lewis (2-3, 3-0, 3-1, 3-0)
Friday December 17
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
(R1) Ryan Joyce 3-2 Roman Benecky (3-0, 3-1, 1-3, 1-3, 3-2)
(R1) Keane Barry 3-2 Royden Lam (3-1, 3-1, 2-3, 1-3, 3-1)
(R1) Boris Koltsov 3-0 Jermaine Wattimena (3-1, 3-1, 3-2)
(R2) Steve Lennon 3-1 Krzysztof Ratajski (3-2, 0-3, 3-0, 3-1)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
(R1) Joe Murnan 3-2 Paul Lim (1-3, 3-1, 3-2, 2-3, 3-1)
(R1) William Borland 3-2 Bradley Brooks (0-3, 3-1, 3-2, 2-3, 3-2) ^Borland hit nine-darter in set five, leg five
(R1) Ross Smith 3-0 Jeff Smith (3-1, 3-0, 3-2)
(R2) Peter Wright 3-0 Ryan Meikle (3-2, 3-1, 3-0)
Saturday December 18
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
(R1) Raymond Smith 3-1 Jamie Hughes (3-2, 3-1, 1-3, 3-1)
(R1) Callan Rydz 3-0 Yuki Yamada (3-2, 3-0, 3-0)
(R1) Mike De Decker* 3-1 Darius Labanauskas (1-3, 3-0, 3-2, 3-0) ^Labanauskas hit nine-darter in set one, leg four
(R2) Ian White 3-1 Chris Landman (3-2, 3-0, 2-3, 3-0)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
(R1) Adam Hunt 3-0 Boris Krcmar (3-1, 3-1, 3-2)
(R1) Jim Williams 3-1 Ted Evetts (3-0, 3-1, 0-3, 3-1)
(R1) Rowby-John Rodriguez 3-0 Nick Kenny (3-0, 3-1, 3-0)
(R2) Michael van Gerwen 3-1 Chas Barstow (2-3, 3-1, 3-0, 3-1)
Sunday December 19
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
(R1) Maik Kuivenhoven 3-1 Ky Smith (3-1, 3-0, 1-3, 3-1)
(R1) Jason Heaver 3-1 Gordon Mathers** (3-1, 3-2, 2-3, 3-0)
(R1) Alan Soutar 3-2 Diogo Portela (2-3, 3-1, 3-1, 2-3, 3-1)
(R2) Ross Smith 3-2 Stephen Bunting (3-0, 2-3, 1-3, 3-1, 4-2)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
(R1) Martijn Kleermaker 3-1 John Michael (3-0, 3-2, 1-3, 3-0)
(R1) Florian Hempel 3-0 Martin Schindler (3-1, 3-2, 3-1)
(R1) Steve Beaton 3-2 Fallon Sherrock (3-2, 2-3, 3-0, 0-3, 3-1)
(R2) Jonny Clayton 3-2 Keane Barry (3-1, 2-3, 1-3, 3-1, 3-0)
Monday December 20 (1900 GMT)
3x First Round, 1x Second Round
(R1) Luke Woodhouse 3-1 James Wilson (2-3, 3-1, 3-2, 3-1)
(R1) Rusty-Jake Rodriguez 3-1 Ben Robb (3-2, 2-3, 3-0, 3-1)
(R1) Raymond van Barneveld 3-0 Lourence Ilagan (3-1, 3-0, 3-1)
(R2) James Wade 3-1 Maik Kuivenhoven (3-1, 3-1, 0-3, 3-1)
Tuesday December 21
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
2x First Round, 2x Second Round
(R1) Lewy Williams 3-0 Toyokazu Shibata (3-1, 3-1, 3-0)
(R1) Jason Lowe 3-0 Daniel Larsson (3-0, 3-1, 3-0)
(R2) Mervyn King 3-2 Ryan Joyce (1-3, 0-3, 3-0, 3-0, 3-0)
(R2) Dave Chisnall 3-0 Mike De Decker (3-2, 3-1, 3-1)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
4x Second Round
(R2) Vincent van der Voort 3-0 Adam Hunt (3-2, 3-2, 3-0)
(R2) Michael Smith 3-0 Ron Meulenkamp (3-0, 3-1, 3-0)
(R2) Florian Hempel 3-1 Dimitri Van den Bergh (3-2, 0-3, 3-1, 3-0)
(R2) Raymond Smith 3-0 Devon Petersen (3-0, 3-1, 3-2)
Wednesday December 22
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
4x Second Round
Ryan Searle 3-0 William Borland (3-0, 3-2, 3-2)
William O’Connor 3-0 Glen Durrant (3-1, 3-0, 3-0)
Luke Humphries 3-0 Rowby-John Rodriguez (3-0, 3-1, 3-1)
Joe Cullen 3-2 Jim Williams (0-3, 3-0, 1-3, 3-0, 3-1)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
4x Second Round
Nathan Aspinall 3-2 Joe Murnan (2-3, 3-1, 1-3, 3-2, 3-1)
Dirk van Duijvenbode 3-2 Boris Koltsov (3-2, 0-3, 1-3, 3-1, 4-2)
Kim Huybrechts 3-1 Steve Beaton (1-3, 3-1, 3-1, 3-2)
Martijn Kleermaker 3-1 Simon Whitlock (3-2, 2-3, 3-1, 3-0)
Thursday December 23
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
4x Second Round
Damon Heta 3-1 Luke Woodhouse (3-2, 3-1, 2-3, 3-1)
Callan Rydz 3-0 Brendan Dolan (3-1, 3-0, 3-2)
Alan Soutar 3-2 Mensur Suljovic (1-3, 0-3, 3-2, 3-2, 6-4)
Jose de Sousa 3-2 Jason Lowe (2-3, 2-3, 3-1, 3-1, 3-0)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
4x Second Round
Danny Noppert 3-1 Jason Heaver (1-3, 3-1, 3-0, 3-1)
Gabriel Clemens 3-0 Lewy Williams (3-0, 3-2, 3-1)
Rob Cross 3-1 Raymond van Barneveld (1-3, 3-1, 3-2, 3-0)
Chris Dobey 3-2 Rusty-Jake Rodriguez (2-3, 2-3, 3-1, 3-1, 3-1)
Monday December 27
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x Third Round
Dirk Van Duijvenbode 4-3 Ross Smith (1-3, 2-3, 2-3, 3-2, 3-0, 3-1, 3-1)
Michael Smith 4-2 William O'Connor (1-3, 3-2, 3-1, 3-0, 2-3, 3-2)
Raymond Smith 4-1 Florian Hempel (3-1, 3-2, 2-3, 3-1, 3-2)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x Third Round
James Wade bye Vincent Van der Voort****
Gerwyn Price 4-3 Kim Huybrechts (3-0, 1-3, 2-3, 3-0, 3-0, 2-3, 6-5)
Jonny Clayton 4-0 Gabriel Clemens (3-1, 3-1, 3-2, 3-0)
Tuesday December 28
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x Third Round
Mervyn King 4-0 Steve Lennon (3-1, 3-1, 3-1, 3-2)
Ryan Searle 4-2 Danny Noppert (2-3, 3-1, 3-2, 1-3, 3-2, 3-0)
Martijn Kleermaker 4-3 Joe Cullen (3-0, 3-1, 3-2, 0-3, 2-3, 0-3, 4-2)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x Third Round
Rob Cross 4-3 Daryl Gurney (3-2, 3-2, 2-3, 3-2, 1-3, 2-3, 3-1)
Peter Wright 4-2 Damon Heta (1-3, 2-3, 3-2, 3-1, 3-0, 3-0)
Chris Dobey bye Michael van Gerwen*****
Wednesday December 29
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x Third Round
(R3) Alan Soutar 4-3 Jose De Sousa (2-3, 3-0, 3-1, 0-3, 2-3, 3-2, 3-1)
(R3) Luke Humphries bye Dave Chisnall******
(R3) Callan Rydz 4-0 Nathan Aspinall (3-1, 3-1, 3-0, 3-2)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
1x Third Round, 2x Fourth Round
(R3) Gary Anderson 4-3 Ian White (2-3, 0-3, 2-3, 3-1, 3-0, 3-2, 3-1)
(R4) Gerwyn Price 4-1 Dirk van Duijvenbode (1-3, 3-0, 3-0, 3-0, 3-0)
(R4) Michael Smith 4-3 Jonny Clayton (2-3, 1-3, 3-1, 3-2, 3-1, 1-3, 6-4)
Thursday December 30
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
3x Fourth Round
Mervyn King 4-3 Raymond Smith (2-3, 0-3, 3-0, 0-3, 3-0, 3-1, 3-0)
Callan Rydz 4-1 Alan Soutar (1-3, 3-1, 3-0, 3-0, 3-0)
Luke Humphries 4-3 Chris Dobey (2-3, 0-3, 3-2, 2-3, 3-1, 3-1, 5-3)
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
3x Fourth Round
James Wade 4-0 Martijn Kleermaker (3-0, 3-1, 3-2, 3-1)
Gary Anderson 4-3 Rob Cross (2-3, 3-0, 3-1, 3-1, 1-3, 2-3, 3-1)
Peter Wright 4-1 Ryan Searle (3-1, 3-2, 1-3, 3-0, 3-1)
Saturday January 1
Afternoon Session (1230 GMT)
2x Quarter-Finals
James Wade 5-0 Mervyn King (3-2, 3-2, 3-1, 3-2, 3-1)
Gary Anderson 5-2 Luke Humphries (0-3, 3-2, 3-1, 1-3, 3-2, 3-2, 3-2)
Evening Session (1930 GMT)
2x Quarter-Finals
Peter Wright 5-4 Callan Rydz (0-3, 2-3, 3-1, 1-3, 3-1, 3-2, 1-3, 3-0, 4-2)
Michael Smith 5-4 Gerwyn Price (2-3, 3-0, 2-3, 3-1, 1-3, 3-0, 2-3, 3-2, 3-1)
Sunday January 2 (1930 GMT)
2x Semi-Finals
Michael Smith 6-3 James Wade (3-2, 3-1, 2-3, 3-2, 3-1, 3-0, 1-3, 2-3, 3-1)
Peter Wright 6-4 Gary Anderson (3-1, 3-2, 3-1, 1-3, 1-3, 3-1, 1-3, 3-1, 1-3, 3-2)
Monday January 3 (2000 GMT)
Final
Peter Wright 7-5 Michael Smith (3-1, 3-1, 1-3, 2-3, 3-2, 1-3, 0-3, 3-1, 2-3, 3-2, 3-0, 3-1)
* Mike De Decker replaced Charles Losper, who withdrew on December 6.
** Gordon Mathers replaced Juan Rodriguez, who withdrew on December 11.
*** Peter Hudson replaced Lihao Wen, who withdrew on December 14.
**** Vincent van der Voort withdrew on December 27, James Wade received a bye.
***** Michael van Gerwen withdrew on December 28, Chris Dobey received a bye.
****** Dave Chisnall withdrew on December 29, Luke Humphries received a bye.
Prize Fund
Winner - £500,000
Runner-Up - £200,000
Semi-Finalists - £100,000
Quarter-Finalists - £50,000
Fourth Round - £35,000
Third Round - £25,000
Second Round - £15,000
First Round - £7,500
Peter Wright won the William Hill World Darts Championship for a second time as he defeated Michael Smith 7-5 in Monday's final.
An Alexandra Palace thriller saw the lead change hands multiple times, before Wright finished strongly to lift the Sid Waddell trophy for a second time in three years, while Smith suffered a second World Championship final defeat.
Smith, seeking a first TV ranking title, was in control of the contest as he led 5-4 in sets and 2-0 in the tenth set, but Wright won nine of the next ten legs to join the list of two-time World Champions.
"I'm over the moon to lift this amazing trophy for a second time," said Wright, a winner of three TV titles in 2021.
"It was a difficult start to the year from me away from darts but I've had a great year on the oche and this tops it off.
"Michael and I didn't perform how we can for a lot of the game, but it was still an entertaining final because it was so close.
"Michael is the future of darts, I feel for him tonight because I've been in his position.
"But, I've got to take the chances I get and thankfully I was able to do that tonight.
"I can't explain what went wrong with my game tonight, I kept swapping darts trying to find something that worked and thankfully I had a good run at the end.
"Thank you to the crowd for turning out to support us all tournament, they were amazing."
Smith was left distraught after losing his eighth televised final in nine attempts, as his wait for a first TV ranking title goes on.
Despite his latest disappointment, the new world number five remains determined to break his duck in 2022.
"I got five sets in this time instead of three but losing these finals is doing my head in now," said Smith.
"Tonight will be difficult but I'll be back on the practice board soon, getting ready for the next one.
"The bullseye shots for big finishes wouldn't go in, that's darts I guess."
Smith hit 24 180s in the match to take his tournament total up to a staggering 83, smashing the previous record of 71 set by Gary Anderson at the 2016/17 tournament.
Two of those 180s came in the opening leg, though it proved to be a nervous start from both players with 23 missed double attempts between the pair in leg two.
Wright took both the opening two sets 3-1, before Smith established himself in the contest by winning the next two sets to level.
Wright regained the lead by winning the set five decider, before Smith won six of the next seven legs to lead for the first time at 4-3.
After Wright levelled once again, Smith regained the advantage by winning the ninth set and looked on course for the title as he led 2-0 in the tenth.
However, Wright came back to win the set with a tide-turning 84 finish before whitewashing Smith in the 11th set to go back in front.
The world number two continued his sprint to the finish line, with Smith powerless to stop Wright winning the 12th and final set 3-1 to seal victory.