Matchplay, most legs played in a match by round: L32: B Anderson 17-15 Manley (2002) L16: Baxter 19-17 Painter (2004) QF: A Lewis 19-17 Hamilton (2013) & G Anderson 19-17 Cullen (2018) SF: Wade 19-17 Scholten (2006) F: G Anderson 21-19 Suljovic (2018)
The 2024 edition of the World Matchplay gets underway next Saturday in Blackpool. Due to the interesting format where matches must be won by two clear legs, some ties have gone a lot longer than planned.
The World Matchplay first took place in 1994, the innaugral summer showpiece of the PDC was then surprisingly won by American darter, Larry Butler, who defeated former World Champion Dennis Priestley, 16-12 in the final. The record for longest ever final however, came in the form of an epic showdown between Gary Anderson and Mensur Suljovic. In the end, Anderson got the better of Suljovic 21-19 in the 2018 final to lift the title.
Previous rounds of the tournament have also seen many matches go deep into extra legs over the course of the World Matchplay's history. Remarkably, among them we again come across the name of Gary Anderson, who that same year, 2018, won the longest ever quarterfinal tie in Winter Gardens history, 19-17 over Joe Cullen to reach the final four. It's fair to say that the Flying Scotsman really did have to work hard for his title that year.
By the skin of his teeth, James Wade ensured himself another World Matchplay appearance in 2024. Going back to 2006 however, The Machine was involved in a titanic semifinal struggle with Dutchman Roland Scholten. In the end, Wade triumphed 19-17 to book his place in the final, where he would eventually lose out 18-11 to Phil Taylor.
Curious to see if we can witness such exciting matches at the Winter Gardens again this year. The draw has already provided a pair of absolute crackers in the first round with the clashes between Michael van Gerwen and Luke Littler, plus Michael Smith and Gary Anderson. To beat the record for the longest first round match in Matchplay history however, the 17-15 win for Bob Anderson over Peter Manley from back in 2002 will have to be overcome.
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Oct 20, 22:28
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- That's the thing, Richie. I used to love the Lakeside walk on; Fitton, Madness, and many others too. As I stated in a much earlier post, I used to attend Lakeside (when the cash allowed it) with my late old man - late 80s, early 90s and enjoyed it immensely. How times have changed, sadly.MrYnyslas197129-10-2024
- Yes, indeed. I have been watching darts for over 40 years and like to think I have good knowledge of the sport, but I haven't heard of most of these players. I really miss the characters like Wolfie, 2 Hotty, Fitton, O Shea, Hankey etc. All my friends ask what happened to the Lakeside darts as they were casual fans who never had SKY and only watched and attended Lakeside. I understand age is probably an issue now and form, but only Paul Lim would motivate me to attend and cheer on. Maendl-Lawrance will send the crowd to sleep. He makes Justin Pipe look like Ricky Evans. If this tournament was mixed, Beau would be the outright World Championrichieburnettrocks29-10-2024
- This tournament is now pretty pointless. Years ago,it was fantastic, Wolfie, Waites,Atkins, Robson etc. But now not many average above 80!!rick6728-10-2024
- So pleased for Ritchie Edhouse. As with Mike de Decker's recent triumph, it's great to see the lesser lights of the darting world rising to the big occasions, highlighting the depth of talent in the PDC. And Ritchie's beautiful 144 finish was a joy to behold!
UndartedWaters28-10-2024 - The men's champ will still get more than twice Wayne Warren did at the last ever BDO World's/farce. I agree on the boys and girls getting equal prize money - I feel it needs to be equal there. And I totally agree about the BBC - I get the feeling they were looking to poach some PDC events but it has backfired on them.Thomas Moffatt27-10-2024