THE Shanghai Darts Masters will see the PDC's top players return to China for the first time since 2004, when Phil Taylor won the China Telecom Global Cup.
In what was perhaps a forerunner of the World Series of Darts concept, eight PDC stars travelled to Shantou for the Global Cup, where they faced the eight players who had reached the quarter-finals of the 2004 China Open.
The evental winner Tang Jun - who went on to compete in the World Championship - was defeated in straight sets by Wayne Mardle, while Taylor would overcome Shi Yongsheng in his opener, with the Chinese ace going on to qualify for three World Championships from 2007-2009.
All eight Chinese players were defeated in the first round, with John Lowe, Kevin Painter and Roland Scholten joining Taylor in the semi-finals by defeating Mardle, then world number one Colin Lloyd, Peter Manley and John Part respectively.
Painter then defeated three-time World Champion Lowe 4-2 in the semi-finals before Taylor won by the same scoreline against Scholten, before an imperious Taylor claimed a straight-sets 5-0 win in the final to claim the title and the specially designed trophy.
The tournament was held at the Zhenda leisure complex in Shantou and televised through highlights for regional television, and preceded by an opening ceremony featuring local dignitaries.
The week also saw Scholten play a special leg of darts with one local player, Qiang ba DangZong, who had endured a three-day rail journey from Tibet for the China Open only to be delayed en route and arrive after the tournament had begun!
China Telecom Global Cup
First Round
John Lowe 3-0 David Li
Wayne Mardle 3-0 Tang Jun
Kevin Painter 3-0 Andy Cheng
Colin Lloyd 3-0 Sam Lai
John Part 3-0 Liu Cheng'An
Phil Taylor 3-0 Shi YongSheng
Peter Manley 3-0 Han XiCheng
Roland Scholten 3-0 Henry Ho
Quarter-Finals
John Lowe 3-0 Wayne Mardle
Kevin Painter 3-1 Colin Lloyd
Phil Taylor 3-0 John Part
Roland Scholten 3-2 Peter Manley
Semi-Finals
Kevin Painter 4-2 John Lowe
Phil Taylor 4-2 Roland Scholten
Final
Phil Taylor 5-0 Kevin Painter
Wayne Mardle at an autograph session
Kevin Painter in action during the China Telecom Global Cup