Grand Slam of Darts 2016: Scores, Results, Updated Schedule After Wednesday

Phil Taylor and Michael van Gerwen both advanced to the quarter-final of the 2016 Grand Slam of Darts after each securing 10-5 victories on Wednesday. Taylor saw off Jeff Smith before Van Gerwen beat Robert Thornton at the Wolverhampton Civic Hall.

Ian Dolan and Peter Wright also made it through to the last eight after second-round victories over Gerwyn Price and Darryl Fitton, respectively. 

Taylor wasn't quite at his dominant best, but he still staged a commendable recovery after being beaten 5-0 by Darren Webster on Monday. Van Gerwen was also pushed by Thornton but looked unstoppable after the second interval.

Here are the results from Wednesday's matches:

Player	Score	Player
Brendan Dolan	10-9	Gerwyn Price
Phil Taylor	10-5	Jeff Smith
Michael van Gerwen	10-5	Robert Thornton
Peter Wright	10-3	Darryl Fitton

Here's what Thursday's schedule looks like, with play beginning at 7 p.m. on Sky Sports 1:

Player	Vs.	Player
Jamie Hughes	vs.	Chris Dobey
Benito Van de Pas	vs.	James Wade
Gary Anderson	vs.	Danny Noppert
Raymond van Barneveld	vs.	Glenn Durrant

Recap

The Power took out a 32 to win the first leg against Smith. Taylor was up 3-2 at the interval after he hit a double-five.

Taylor may have been in front, but Smith had let several opportunities slip by. He couldn't break throw in the fifth leg but was still scoring well, according to 3 Dart Analyst:

Smith couldn't earn a break, but Taylor soon did to move 5-2 in front. Struggles landing doubles were dooming Smith's chances, per Live Darts:

It was soon 6-2 after The Power had hit tops in spectacular fashion. PDC's official Twitter page relayed highlights:

Taylor had taken another leg before Smith finally stopped the rot ahead of the second interval, courtesy of a brilliant 152 checkout.

Yet it proved to be just a temporary reprieve. Smith missed another chance to break, but he held throw to make it 8-4.

A double-16 soon put Taylor on the brink of victory, though. Smith made him wait until he was back on throw, but Taylor ultimately sealed his 10-5 win with a double-10.

Earlier, Dolan was 5-1 down before he rallied in style against Price. Ultimately, the former took down a 101 checkout to seal a memorable win.

Jordan Mansfield/Getty Images

He's now through to the last eight for a rare time. Yet Dolan may not celebrate too much when he looks at the level of competition awaiting him in the quarter-final.

Van Gerwen made a fast start to seeing off the Thorn when he took down a maximum to begin the first leg. Predictably, MVG claimed the leg, but Thornton struck back thanks to a 129 checkout.

Thornton was keeping things close. He trailed 3-2 at the first interval and just 6-4 at the second after another excellent checkout, this one a 145.

Yet few players are more dangerous when backed into a corner than MVG. He reasserted control with a stunning 170 checkout to win the 11th leg, via PDC Darts:

Van Gerwen was in the mood now, and he soon broke throw to build a healthy, four-leg lead. A double-10 made it 9-4, and Mighty Mike was just a leg away from reaching the last eight.

Live Darts detailed Van Gerwen's impressive scoring run:

Snakebite couldn't close out a 141, and that let Fitton even things at 1-1 early on. However, Wright checked out on 82 to move back in front.

He soon broke throw with a 13-darter to make it three legs apiece. Wright followed it by holding throw thanks to a 106 checkout.

Another 180 from Wright stretched his lead to 6-3. It was soon 7-3, as Wright established total control over the match.

A double-16 followed by tops put Wright on the cusp of victory. He confirmed the win after taking an eighth leg in a row. His strength on the doubles proved the difference:

Wright's been in fine fettle this week, but it's slightly ominous for the rest of the pack that Taylor and Van Gerwen have still reached the last eight despite not being at their best.

All scoring information and match details, per PDC.tv.