Phil Taylor wins fourth UK Open title

Phil Taylor collected the trophy and the �40,000 first prize in Bolton

Phil Taylor has successfully defended his UK Open title and claimed the trophy for a record fourth time.

Taylor, from Stoke-on-Trent, overcame Adrian Lewis 10-2 in his quarter-final and then booked a place in the final with a 10-5 win over Denis Ovens.

The current world champion then defeated Gary Anderson 11-5 to win the first prize of £40,000.

"I'm over the moon to have won," Taylor told BBC Radio Stoke. "One of us has to win and I'm glad it's me."

"Gary is fantastic, we played last weekend, he played superbly and I told him it wouldn't surprise me if we would be in the final.

"It gets sweeter and more precious every time I win a tournament."

Taylor had a tough route to the final, starting with a third-round tie against former World Championship semi-finalist Wayne Mardle on Friday, with Taylor eventually prevailing 9-2.

The 49-year-old was in record-breaking form on Saturday; in his 9-0 victory over Kevin Painter in the fourth round, he had a three-dart average of 118.66, the highest ever in a televised match.

He followed that up with a 9-6 win over Simon Whitlock, the man he beat to claim his 15th world title in January, in round five.

Taylor, who also won the UK Open in 2003, 2005 and 2009, was far too good for fellow Potteries star Lewis on Sunday afternoon, hitting seven maximums on his way to a comfortable quarter-final success.

It was much tougher against Ovens, who took a 4-2 lead in his semi-final against the world number one.

However, Taylor responded in typical fashion, winning eight of the next nine legs to reach the final.

Both Taylor and Anderson, who had knocked out Andy Hamilton in the last eight, looked jaded after a gruelling day at the oche.

The final never really lived up to its billing, with neither player able to find any real form, although Taylor produced checkouts of 161, 167 and finally 121 to seal victory.