Kyle Anderson defeated Australian sensation Corey Cadby 11-10 in the final of the Auckland Darts Masters to claim his first World Series of Darts title.
Cadby, 22, had earlier underlined just why he's a future star of the game by defeating Phil Taylor 11-8 in a thrilling semi-final while he'd also knocked out world number three Peter Wright and Michael Smith in the previous rounds.
However the PDC Unicorn World Youth champion just came up short in his quest for his first senior PDC title as fellow Aussie Anderson clinched a final-leg decider.
The Perth ace, who won his first PDC ranking title last Saturday, had earlier brushed aside James Wade 11-5 in the semi-finals as he continued his recent fine run of form which had also helped him beat world number two Gary Anderson on Friday and Simon Whitlock in the quarter-finals.
The final began with Cadby racing in to 4-1 lead courtesy of three maximums in the open two legs and four out of five successful attempts at doubles.
A major turning point of the match came in the seventh leg where with Cadby sat on 40, having already missed a dart at tops, Anderson took out 160 to break the Cadby throw.
Anderson then went on to move in to the lead for the first time in the match in the ninth leg, taking out 66 on tops.
Cadby regained the break in the next leg, as Anderson decided to go for the bull needing 121, with his opponent not on a finish, leaving 25. ‘The Original’ then missed two darts to hold throw before Cadby broke back.
The pair then exchanged holds until the 15th leg where Anderson hit back-to-back 180’s to move ahead once again.
More misses were to follow for Anderson as three chances were blown to move clear, with Cadby taking out 47 to draw level again.
Cadby was next to feel the pressure, with the score at 9-8 in his favour, the 22-year-old squandered five opportunities to extend his lead to two and was eventually punished by Anderson.
Two holds of throw followed to take the match in to a decider, where Cadby had the advantage of throwing first.
A crucial maximum in the final leg gave Anderson the initiative and he eventually sealed the title, taking out 68 on double four.
Anderson said: “I’m so pleased to win this, I’ve always known I’ve had the ability and I’m starting to show everyone now.
"The 160 in the seventh leg was the crucial moment, it made me believe I could win it after Corey had started so well.
“My scoring has been good and I’m hitting my doubles now, so let’s hope I can carry that on when we head to Melbourne and Perth."
Cadby - who only made his TV debut 12 months ago - also spoke after the final and believes there is more to come as he continues his impressive emergence.
"Confidence is the key and I believe in myself, I always want win but I'm really pleased for Kyle" said the Tasmania-born youngster.
"It's Aussie, Aussie, Aussie all the way and I can't wait to go home."
Earlier in the night Anderson had put James Wade to the sword with an impressive 11-4 victory in their semi-final.
The Australian punished the left-hander for missing four attempts at double in the opening five legs to take a commanding 4-1 lead in to the first break.
Anderson’s hot streak continued as he won the next five legs, including a 164 finish, to move within two legs of the final.
Wade then managed to produce a minor comeback of his own, breaking the Anderson throw, taking out 118 on tops before holding throw to close the gap to six legs.
Anderson’s fourth 180 of the encounter helped him to hold throw in the 13th leg, before he sealed his place in a first World Series of Darts final by pinning tops for an 11-4 win.
Cadby booked his place in the final with a magnificent 11-8 victory over Phil Taylor - following up last August's win in the Perth Darts Masters with a second successive win against the Stoke legend.
Taylor, celebrating his 57th birthday started slowly, with the Australian racing in to a 3-0 lead before a quieter period of the match followed, with the pair trading holds in front of a packed Trusts Arena crowd which included New Zealand's Prime Minister Bill English.
It wasn’t until the tenth leg of the match that Taylor managed to level the score, taking out 116 on double 18 as the intensity rose.
The drama continued right until the end, with the score at 10-7 in the Australian’s favour, Cadby then missed two match darts, seemingly handing the initiative back to Taylor, as he closed the gap to two.
However, Taylor's miss at tops for a 114 checkout allowed Cadby in, and the youngster took out 103 on double 18 to book a spot in the decider.
The fifth event of the 2017 World Series of Darts takes place in Australia as the first staging of the Unibet Melbourne Darts Masters takes place between August 18-20 at the Hisense Arena.
Auckland Darts Masters: Results
Friday August 11
First Round (Best of 11 legs)
Michael Smith 6-0 Rob Szabo
Daryl Gurney 6-2 Rob Modra
James Wade (4) 6-2 Mark Cleaver
Raymond van Barneveld (3) 6-4 Warren Parry
Phil Taylor 6-4 Darren Herewini
Simon Whitlock 6-4 Cody Harris
Gary Anderson (1) 4-6 Kyle Anderson
Peter Wright (2) 4-6 Corey Cadby
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Saturday August 12
Quarter-Finals (Best of 19 legs)
James Wade 10-7 Daryl Gurney
Kyle Anderson 10-9 Simon Whitlock
Raymond van Barneveld 9-10 Phil Taylor
Corey Cadby 10-5 Michael Smith
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Sunday August 13
Semi-Finals (Best of 21 legs)
James Wade 4-11 Kyle Anderson
Corey Cadby 11-8 Phil Taylor
Final (Best of 21 legs)
Kyle Anderson 11-10 Corey Cadby
