“ I couldn ’ t be any prouder of myself ”
Semi-Finals
In the first of the semi-finals Andy Hamilton produced some of his best darts to edge out Raymond van Barneveld 10-9 . It was another tight match for ‘ Barney ’ but this time he wasn ’ t quite able to come through .
The Dutchman started off by taking the opening leg , but it would be the only time he was to lead the match and although he kept it tight , eventually producing an impressive 100 checkout to force a deciding leg it just wasn ’ t to be and Hamilton punished him for six missed darts for the match by landing a match winning double sixteen .
Phil Taylor proved to be too much for Peter Wright to handle and although the Scotsman produced another fine display he was no match for the 106.84 average the Taylor produced on his way to a 10-5 victory .
Dissappointment for Barney and Snakebite
Taylor led from the start and despite a 161 checkout and 45 % on doubles from Wright the sixteen time World Champion soon closed out the victory .
Final
By the time of the final on Sunday night Andy Hamilton was looking tired and while there had been criticism of Phil Taylor ’ s decision to go for a sleep between sessions on Saturday , non was heard on the Sunday as Taylor looking by far the fresher of the two men produced another fine display and yet another 100 + average on his way to sealing a fifth UK Open crown .
“ I couldn ’ t be any prouder of myself ”
Andy Hamilton
Hamilton did claim the opening leg and led for a second time at 2-1 but from then on it was pretty much one way traffic as Taylor hit finishes of 106 , 121 and 167 on his way to an 11-4 victory .
“ I ’ m very proud of winning this title and it ’ s great to be the champion for a fifth time ,” said Taylor .
“ I was absolutely terrified about coming in on Thursday and getting past Kevin Dowling was my main objective , and once the format got longer I could relax , so to come through the whole field and win this is very special .”
“ I had to get in front of Andy early on in the final and I managed to do that , but it ’ s great to see him doing so well and he ’ s shown that he ’ s got the game to win major tournaments .”
“ He ’ s a player who you can ’ t give half an inch because he ’ ll batter you , and I ’ m a big fan of him and his concentration and dedication . He ’ s a workaholic . I used to practice with him and I know what he ’ s like , so I ’ m chuffed to beat him .”
“ I couldn ’ t be any prouder of myself ,” added Hamilton . “ I ’ ve played some great darts and had a great weekend and I ’ m happy with what