Unibet Masters Darts 2014 Results: Daily Scores, Updated Draw and Schedule
James Wade produced a stunning comeback to win the final of the 2014 Unibet Masters Darts, beating Mervyn King in a decider.
The duo had knocked out favourites Phil Taylor and Michael van Gerwen in the semi-final, and the King appeared to be cruising to his first ever PDC major win, leading the Machine 8-2 in the final at one point. The nerves clearly got the better of him, however, as he missed seven match darts, allowing Wade to fight his way back into the final.
The experienced Wade took advantage of King's late struggles on the checkout, winning the decider and grabbing the £50,000 cash price in the process.
Schedule and Updated Draw
1 of 5
Semi-Finals
Phil Taylor 9-11 James Wade
Michael van Gerwen 9-11 Mervyn King
Best of 21 legs
Final
Mervyn King 10-11 James Wade
Best of 21 legs
For more information, visit the PDC's official website. All times are local.
November 2, Evening Session
2 of 5
Results
Semi-Finals
Phil Taylor 9-11 James Wade
Michael van Gerwen 9-11 Mervyn King
Best of 21 legs
Final
Mervyn King 10-11 James Wade
Best of 21 legs
Recap
James Wade shocked the Edinburgh crowd on Sunday night, beating Phil Taylor in the semi-finals before producing a stunning comeback to get past Mervyn King in the final.
Favourites Taylor and Michael van Gerwen were both bounced from the tournament in the semi-finals, two close and hard-fought matches, before a ton of late drama decided the final in Wade's favour.
The Machine's performance in the first semi-final was breathtaking to say the least, beating Taylor courtesy of a 105.56 average and an impressive 55 percent on the checkout. The Power played as well as one might have expected, but there simply was no stopping Wade.
Neither player was able to build a significant lead during the match, answering brilliant darts with much of the same. Tied at 9-9, The Machine made the difference with a 120 checkout and a superb 15-darter to close out the match.
King and Van Gerwen served up a similar match, trading punches until 5-5. The King took out 88 and a crucial miss by Mighty Mike on double 16 gave his rival a two-leg lead, but the Dutchman used another 180 to tie things up at 9-9.
The crowd got ready for another wild finish, and King produced a 180 of his own before taking out tops to move within one leg of the win. Known for his proficiency on the bull, he took out 121 in the final leg and finished in emphatic fashion, hitting the bull to produce the second big shock of the night.
Wade missed a double in the first leg of the final, gifting momentum to the King, and in the blink of an eye, the score was 5-0. Wade tried to hit back but the King kept up his excellent play, making it 9-2 with a double 16 to move within two legs of victory.
Wade refused to give in, launching a sensational comeback to tie things at 10-10 and force a decider. King had several chances to win the match, including an incredible run of six consecutive misses in the 18th leg. In the decider, Wade completed his epic comeback by taking out 135 tops, not giving the King a chance to return to the board.
November 2, Afternoon Session
3 of 5
Quarter-Finals Results:
Mervyn King 10-6 Justin Pipe
James Wade 10-6 Adrian Lewis
Phil Taylor 10-6 Gary Anderson
Michael van Gerwen 10-7 Dave Chisnall
Best of 19 legs
Recap
The table was set for an epic final session Sunday night as the top favourites all easily took care of business in the afternoon, with none of the four matches being particularly close. Michael van Gerwen and Phil Taylor are still on pace to meet in the final, providing they can get past the in-form duo of Mervyn King and James Wade.
The King ran out to a quick 5-2 lead in the first match of the afternoon, and a 180 with a double-six finish saw him extend his advantage to 8-4. Pipe did what he could to close the deficit, but double 16 on the checkout saw King become the first to qualify for the semi-finals.
Wade struggled early on the checkout and allowed Adrian Lewis to keep things close until 6-6, but when the latter missed several darts to take the lead, the Machine exploded. Two quick doubles gave him an 8-6 lead, and with Lewis buckling under the pressure, the win was never in doubt for Wade.
Taylor had similar struggles early, falling behind 2-0 before turning on the heat. Averaging 95.55 on his throws, he took full advantage of Gary Anderson's inability on the checkout to grab the lead at 6-5 before winning the next three legs.
Anderson fired back with double six before the Power produced a stunning 139 checkout with treble 20, treble 13 and double tops to end the match, setting up a date with Wade.
And then it was Van Gerwen's turn. Mighty Mike has been in superb form over the last few weeks and continued his rampage against Dave Chisnall, with a 99.11 average and 47.62 percent on the checkout.
Opening with a stunning 170 finish, Chizzy immediately realised in was going to be tough to get past the Dutchman. Van Gerwen ran out to a 5-1 lead and made it 9-4 with his seventh 180 of the match, and while Chisnall was able to grab three legs in a row to reduce the gap, the result never appeared to be in doubt.
Mighty Mike took out double three for the win, and he'll meet King in the second semi-final during the evening session.
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November 1, Evening Session
4 of 5
Results
James Wade 10-5 Brendan Dolan
Phil Taylor 10-4 Wes Newton
Michael van Gerwen 10-9 Raymond van Barneveld
Gary Anderson 10-7 Andy Hamilton
Recap
Favourites Michael van Gerwen and Phil Taylor both moved on to the next round after solid performances during Saturday's evening session, setting up a number of intriguing quarter-final matchups.
Winner of last week's European Championship, no player in darts is currently in better form than Van Gerwen, and he proved it with a strong showing against compatriot Raymond van Barneveld, winning 10-9.
Barney had a hot start to the match and quickly ran out to a 5-2 lead, but Mighty Mike kicked into gear and produced a stunning comeback, tying things up at 7-7. Van Barneveld refused to back down and moved back in front, giving himself three legs to win the match at 9-7.
Van Gerwen thrives in these kind of situations, however, fighting his way back into the match to force a decider. Leaving just 19 after nine darts, the World No. 1 took the win on double eight, setting up a date with Dave Chisnall in the quarter-finals.
None of the other three matches during the evening session produced the same kind of suspense. Taylor easily handled Wes Newton, seeing off his opponent in a hurry.
The Power won with an incredible average of 110, giving Newton no chance. Perhaps even more impressive is that he did it wearing street shoes, as he forgot to bring his normal footwear for matches. Via Twitter, he told his fans he wouldn't make that mistake again, saying:
"Great win for me tonight at the #UnibetMasters! I will try to remember my shoes for tomorrow!"
He'll play Gary Anderson on Saturday, after the Flying Scotsman produced a stunning performance in front of a vocal home crowd, beating Andy Hamilton 10-7.
James Wade easily got past Brendan Dolan, winning 10-5, to complete the field of eight vying for the Masters title. The format will change on Saturday, with the quarter-finals played over best of 15 legs and the semi-finals and final player over best of 19.
November 1, Afternoon Session
5 of 5
Results
Peter Wright 7-10 Justin Pipe
Dave Chisnall 10-8 Robert Thornton
Simon Whitlock 7-10 Mervyn King
Adrian Lewis 10-4 Kim Huybrechts
Recap
Simon Whitlock's nightmare end to the 2014 season continued with a first-round exit in Edinburgh, as he lost 10-7 to in-form Mervyn King.
The Wizard finished the match with a higher average but once again struggled on the checkout, allowing the European Championship semi-finalist to take his time finishing his legs, grabbing a relatively simple win.
Down 4-2, the King took five consecutive legs and never relinquished his lead, finishing double top to book his ticket to the next round.
Adrian Lewis easily disposed of Belgium's Kim Huybrechts, starting with a 10-darter and winning six legs in a row to close out the match. The two-time World Champion slumped after his great opening leg but bounced back nicely. He told PDC's official website he's confident in his form:
"I started the game brilliantly but Kim punished me and moved himself ahead. I got on a roll in the second half of the game but it was hard today.
He's a very difficult player to beat, a very good scorer and finisher and he has a good pace but it wasn't his day. My practice is going well and I think I've got the form to do well this weekend.
"
Huybrechts later revealed he pledged to take part in the event but had difficulty focusing as his mother is undergoing cancer surgery, explaining some of his struggles on the checkout.
Hometown favourites Peter Wright and Robert Thornton were both knocked out in the first round to the dismay of the Edinburgh crowd. Instead, Justin Pipe and Dave Chisnall advanced to the next round.
Chizzy is seen as a dark-horse contender in this event, capable of going on a run of fantastic darts at any given time. His 99.67 average against Thornton certainly suggests his form is fine, but a quarter-final match against Michael van Gerwen or Raymond van Barneveld means he'll have to do it the hard way.
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