Darts results: Jonny Clayton hits a nine-dart finish at the UK Open
A review of Saturday's action at the UK Open, where Jonny Clayton bagged a nine-dart finish and Michael van Gerwen upped his game in the evening.
Nine-dart finish for Clayton
Jonny Clayton produced fireworks to reach the quarter-finals of the UK Open, throwing one nine-dart finish and threatening another as he beat Chris Dobey 10-8.
The Welshman was 7-4 up when producing a perfect leg to move into an 8-4 lead before Dobey staged a rally with back-to-back finishes of 117 and 104.
Clayton had the darts at 9-8, however, and opened with successive 180s - his eighth and ninth of the match - before sealing victory on tops.
"It's a very special moment for me and I'm chuffed to bits," said Clayton, who defeated Joe Cullen 10-4 earlier on Saturday in round four. "There were loads of Welsh fans watching too, which was great.
"I've never hit one in a tournament before - I've had a few in practice but only my dog was watching, so to do it in front of a crowd has shown that I can do it."
Clayton is now aiming to claim his maiden televised title on Sunday, and added: "I'm on the big stage tomorrow and I can't wait. I've done well here before and I'd love to go all the way."
Clayton's nine-darter was the ninth in the history of the UK Open, and the first since Michael van Gerwen achieved the feat in 2016.
It was also the second in a televised event inside a fortnight, following Michael Smith's nine-darter in the Premier League in Dublin, as well as being the 13th in a PDC event so far in 2020.
Price survives serious scare
The possibility of an all-Wales final remains after Gerwyn Price had to dig deep to beat Gabriel Clemens 10-9 on the main stage.
Clemens was ahead from the third leg and never trailed until Price pinned tops with his first match dart to complete the comeback.
It was a game of high standards, Clemens bagging a 127 finish and Price 114 as they combined for eight maximums in a real tussle which deservedly went the distance.
Clemens opened the door with visits of 96, 97 and 92 in the decider, Price stepping up with 140, 180 and 127 to leave 54, which he got rid of with the minimum of fuss to complete a world-class 11-dart leg.
Price, who turned 35 on Saturday, is aiming to win his third televised title, and said: "It's a nice birthday present for me!
"I've played well in all three games I've played so far but in the first two I took my chances. I missed some doubles early on in this game and he got in front of me.
"He was full of confidence and played well but I stuck in there and I'm thankful that I had such a good last leg. I'm through and I can look forward to Sunday now."
Big win for Gurney
World champion Peter Wright was beaten 10-6 by Daryl Gurney, who produced an excellent all-round display against a player at the top of his game.
While Wright scored slightly the heavier, Gurney hit the key shots at big moments, winning four legs from five in the middle of the match which made all the difference.
Wright started with real intent, hitting bullseye for a 128 finish, and he led 3-1 as the following three legs went with the throw.
Gurney bagged his first break with a 136 finish but a 12-dart leg helped restore Wright's cushion and everything appeared to be going to plan.
But as the Northern Irishman kept clinging on, Wright's three missed darts for leg 10 were punished and at 5-5, there was a feeling that the momentum had shifted somewhat.
That proven true as Gurney hit double two to lead for the first time after another miss from his opponent, and the following leg was a carbon copy as he established daylight.
A show-stopping 148 finish capped a key sequence of four legs in succession for Gurney and while the following leg went to Wright, that would prove to be his final contribution to a quality match which Gurney ultimately won with something to spare.
More like it from Mighty Mike
Michael van Gerwen produced a much-improved display to thump James Wade 10-4 and reach the quarter-finals.
Van Gerwen escaped in the afternoon having appeared set to lose to Jason Lowe, against whom he'd squandered a 5-0 lead and was ultimately fortunate to win.
It was a different story when he returned in the evening, van Gerwen throwing six maximums and missing just four darts at double in an imperious display which reaffirms his status as favourite.
Wade took the opening leg, but van Gerwen took out 116 for the second and 103 for the third, those 24 darts putting him on course for a straightforward victory.
Another 12-dart leg saw him lead 3-1 and it was 4-1 after he needed just 11 in the next, a 180 leaving 47 which he took out in two darts.
Three big visits paved the way for MVG to move into a 5-1 lead and it took a magnificent 141 from Wade to stop the bleeding, which he followed to legs later with a 90 finish completed on the bullseye.
Still, he had it all to do trailing 6-3 and van Gerwen responded with a 114 finish, his third 100-plus checkout of the match. The next two legs were shared, before van Gerwen popped in two more 12-dart legs to advance.
Klaas is class
While van Gerwen had it easy, that wasn't the case for compatriot Jelle Klaasen who nevertheless claimed the scalp of Gary Anderson in a 10-9 win.
There was never more than two legs in this one and while it was Klaasen who held the early advantage, Anderson's stunning 150 finish to level the scores at 9-9 forced another dramatic decider.
Back-to-back 140s against the throw kept his hopes alive, too, but they came only in response to identical throws from Klaasen, who tidied up nicely to win the match with his first dart for it.
Kyle Mckinstry's week ended in a 10-8 defeat to Dimitri Van den Bergh, who rallied from 4-0 down against an opponent who was clearly feeling the pinch as the match progressed.
Indeed, Mckinstry missed three darts to force a decider and that proved decisive as an unconvincing Van den Bergh advanced to Sunday.
Jamie Hughes booked his first quarter-final at a televised PDC event with a 10-5 defeat of Mensur Suljovic and the final game on the second stage saw Rob Cross beat Stephen Bunting 10-8.
Bunting was always on the back foot until a 130 finish saw him lead for the first time at 7-6, which soon became 8-7.
However, Cross - hardened by a gritty defeat earlier in the day - saved his biggest checkout for when he needed it most, taking out 105 to level once more, and he took the following two legs to win.
Afternoon session
Michael van Gerwen was able to breathe a huge sigh of relief after emerging unscathed from a last-leg decider against unheralded Jason Lowe in Minehead.
Despite having won the first five legs of their best-of-19 encounter, van Gerwen found himself trailing 7-6, 8-7 and 9-8 before winning the final two legs to progress to the last 16.
Lowe had two chances in the decider, in which he threw first, but on neither occasion was he able to leave a match dart as he finally buckled under the pressure of this momentous occasion and fabulous opportunity.
First he threw from 141, but Lowe was only able to hit 55 to leave 86, which he made a mess of with single four rather than 18, two of which would've given him a dart at the bullseye.
Meanwhile, van Gerwen had worked his way down to 20 and he kept his cool despite hitting the single, switching to double five and pinning it at the first attempt.
It was an almighty escape for the two-time champion, who looked to have all but wrapped things up by taking the first five legs before his rhythm was interrupted by the interval.
Before it, he'd produced a 170 checkout to take the second leg and 116 to take the fifth, the latter a huge blow to Lowe who was waiting in the winds on tops having already missed a dart to get on the board.
Unperturbed, the Qualifying School graduate took out 85 after some sloppy darts from van Gerwen, who went on to miss five darts for leg seven as Lowe again ate into a huge deficit.
Lowe was by now visibly growing in confidence and took the next in just 11 darts, got within one by taking leg nine in 13, and then took out 104 on double 16 to draw level.
The following two legs were exchanged, each a break of throw, before Lowe led for the first time with another 13-dart leg before missing two darts for a two-leg lead as van Gerwen levelled.
That was his first big chance and as the next three legs went with throw, he had another, leading 9-8 and with van Gerwen staring at defeat.
The three-time world champion opened the door in the next but escaped with throws of 100, 177 and 70 to take it, before double five came to the rescue after Lowe stalled at the death.
Cross edges Smith in epic
Also on Saturday afternoon, Rob Cross held his nerve to hit double top and beat Michael Smith 10-9.
In a match of real ebb and flow, Smith going missing in the middle following a hot start, only to rally at the end, the outcome was decided by the narrowest of margins.
Smith, who had hit bullseye for a 118 finish to force a decider, needed bull again for a 164 finish and the match - but his dart at it fell just below its target and he could only stand aside with Cross on 60.
Although making life difficult for himself by blocking part of the bed, the former world champion hit tops with his second attempt to edge into the last 16.
Daryl Gurney also survived match darts - three of them, in fact - to beat William O'Connor 10-9, but there were no such problems for Gerwyn Price, a 10-3 winner over Ricky Evans, and James Wade, who thrashed Kim Huybrechts 10-1.
Peter Wright won the last five legs to beat Ian White 10-6, Chris Dobey was never behind as he saw off Simon Whitlock 10-5, and Gary Anderson didn't need to be at his best to beat Simon Stevenson 10-5.
Saturday's results & Sunday schedule
Click here for full tournament guide
Afternoon Session
TV Coverage: ITV 4
Fifth Round (Best of 19 legs)
Main Stage
- Simon Whitlock 5-10 Chris Dobey
- Jason Lowe 9-10 Michael van Gerwen
- Peter Wright 10-6 Ian White
- Rob Cross 10-9 Michael Smith
Stage Two
- William O'Connor 9-10 Daryl Gurney
- Gerwyn Price 10-3 Ricky Evans
- James Wade 10-1 Kim Huybrechts
- Gary Anderson 10-5 Simon Stevenson
Stage Three
- Jonny Clayton 10-4 Joe Cullen
- Dirk van Duijvenbode 7-10 Mensur Suljovic
- Stephen Bunting 10-2 Alan Tabern
- Matthew Edgar 4-10 Dimitri Van den Bergh
Stage Four
- Martin Atkins 7-10 Jamie Hughes
- Jelle Klaasen 10-1 Steve West
- Kyle McKinstry 10-5 Martin Schindler
- Andy Boulton 6-10 Gabriel Clemens
Evening Session
TV Coverage: ITV 4
Sixth Round (Best of 19 legs)
Main Stage (Televised)
- Gerwyn Price 10-9 Gabriel Clemens
- James Wade 4-10 Michael van Gerwen
- Jelle Klaasen 10-9 Gary Anderson
- Peter Wright 6-10 Daryl Gurney
Stage Two
- Chris Dobey 8-10 Jonny Clayton
- Jamie Hughes 10-5 Mensur Suljovic
- Dimitri van den Bergh 10-8 Kyle Mckinstry
- Rob Cross 10-8 Stephen Bunting
Sunday March 8
Afternoon Session (1245 start)
TV Coverage: ITV 4
Quarter-Finals (Best of 19 legs)
All Main Stage
- Dimitri van den Bergh v Gerwyn Price
- Michael van Gerwen v Rob Cross
- Daryl Gurney v Jelle Klaasen
- Jamie Hughes v Jonny Clayton
Evening Session (1900 start)
TV Coverage: ITV 4
Semi-Finals (Best of 21 legs)
- Two Matches
Final (Best of 21 legs)
- Winner SF 1 v Winner SF 2