UK Open - Final Day

MIGHTY MIKE'S MINEHEAD GLORY IN CORAL UK OPEN
MICHAEL VAN GERWEN won the Coral UK Open for the first time with a brilliant display to defeat rival Peter Wright 11-5 in Sunday's final at the Butlins Minehead Resort.

The world number one followed up some sensational displays throughout the weekend in Minehead - including a 114 average against Kim Huybrechts as he missed double 12 for a nine-darter - by going all the way to the 60,000 pound title. He had overcome South Africa's Devon Petersen in Sunday afternoon's quarter-finals and defied ten 180s and a 108 average from emerging Suffolk ace Andrew Gilding to win 10-8 in a tight semi-final as he progressed to the decider.
Wright shared the final's opening six legs before a key 11-darter in the seventh broke throw for the Dutchman and a 164 checkout helped him establish a lead he would never give up. The Scot pulled back to 6-5, but paid for missed doubles as van Gerwen swept through the next five legs as he claimed the title.
The win means that van Gerwen currently holds the World Grand Prix, European Championship, The Masters and UK Open titles as he extended his lead at the head of the PDC Order of Merit ahead of Phil Taylor.
The triumph also continued an incredible run for van Gerwen so far in 2015, having won The Masters, three UK Open Qualifiers and a European Tour event during a peerless February, while he is also unbeaten following five Premier League games.

"It is an amazing feeling to win this title," said van Gerwen. "This is a really big tournament to win and a difficult tournament too, and I'll enjoy this. In the semi-finals I was under real pressure against Andrew Gilding and it makes me the player who I am that I can deal with that because it was my hardest game of the weekend. I was confident going into the final but I don't like losing any final so I was nervous and I'm really glad the winner was me. It wasn't a great game, but I did the right things at the right time and kept believing in myself.
The final was really hard but I've played really well on my way to the final, as did Peter. Winning tournaments is the best feeling in the world and this is my second TV title this year I'm loving playing darts at the moment and it has been a great start to 2015 for me, but I have more to come. I love this game and I love entertaining the crowds so I hope I can keep doing this."

Wright had knocked out Phil Taylor in the quarter-finals before whitewashing Stephen Bunting to reach the final, but he fell to defeat in a televised final against van Gerwen for a third time.

"It's been a long weekend and I think I ran out of energy in the final, and Michael was too good," said Wright, who also lost to van Gerwen in the 2014 World Championship and Dubai Masters finals. I'm really pleased to have got to the final though and I'm getting closer to a big TV title. There's a lot of potential going forward with these darts after only nine or ten days using them. I want to win titles like Michael is doing at the moment and I want to get to number one in the world, so I'll get back on the practice board and prepare for the events coming up."

Gilding takes home a career-best 17,000 pound prize money after he won through to his first major TV quarter-final with a superb weekend of darts in Minehead. He had opened his challenge with a whitewash of Kevin Painter and then defeated Jelle Klaasen, James Wade and Mensur Suljovic as he reached the last four, where he pushed van Gerwen all the way in an impressive display.

The run moves Suffolk-based Gilding inside the world's top 32 for the first time, and he admitted: "My goal for this year was to break into the top 32 so it's happened quite quickly and I'm ahead of schedule. This weekend has been a fantastic experience for me and I want to carry on playing how I am. The only advantage the other players have over me is experience and I'm rapidly gaining that as we go on."

Bunting also continued his fine form in major televised events as he reached the semi-finals, enjoying wins over Michael Smith, Dave Chisnall, William O'Connor and Mervyn King before being outplayed by a clinical Wright display in the semi-finals.
Statistics Quarterfinals
Ave180sDoublesPlayervPlayer Ave180sDoubles
93.22210/23Bunting 10:6King94.5336/19
106.65710/20v.Gerwen 10:5Petersen98.1425/11
99.44410/23Gilding 10:8Suljovic94.8718/21
102.99510/18Wright 10:6Taylor108.5786/9

Statistics Semifinals
Ave180sDoublesPlayervPlayer Ave180sDoubles
82.39120/3Bunting 0/10Wright105.10510/19
105.56410/22v.Gerwen 10/8Gilding108.37108/17


Statistic Final
Ave180sDoublesPlayervPlayer Ave180sDoubles
99.3365/17Wright 5:11v.Gerwen98.43611/23












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