MARK WALSH defeated Phil Taylor 6-4 to win Saturday's Players Championship in Coventry.
Walsh became the first player to defeat Taylor away from the television screens in 2009, edging a tight final at the Ricoh Arena.
Walsh led 2-0 and 5-2 thanks to two breaks of throw before Taylor cut the deficit to one leg, with the world number one taking out 128 during his fightback.
But Walsh's consistent scoring paid in the next leg, hitting three successive 140s and taking out 81 for a 12-darter to seal the £6,000 title - his first ranking event win since September 2005.
Walsh made strong progress through the early rounds with wins over Scott Kirchner, Dave Honey and Jim Withers before defeating Matt Clark and Steve Beaton 6-1 to reach the semi-finals.
He then defeated in-form Terry Jenkins 6-2 to reach the decider, and went on to repeat his win in the 2005 UK Open Welsh Regional Final against Taylor in the final.
Taylor had only previously lost in 2009 to James Wade in the Whyte & Mackay Premier League, having won the Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship and coral.co.uk Players Championship on television in January and six PDC Pro Tour events.
He whitewashed Mike Roberts in round one, and then enjoyed 6-1 victories against Kevin McDine, Wayne Mardle and Adrian Lewis before seeing off Mervyn King 6-2 in the quarter-finals and whitewashing Jan van der Rassel in the semis.
Dutchman van der Rassel's semi-final appearance was his first with the PDC and included wins against Wayne Jones, Par Riihonen, Mark Dudbridge and Andy Smith.
Jenkins followed up an appearance in the final of the UK Open South-East Regional Final last Sunday by reaching the last four, including a win over Dennis Priestley in the quarter-finals.
King recorded his first competitive nine-darter, achieving a perfect leg to seal a 6-0 victory over Stuart Bousfield, earning him a £4,000 bonus.
Anastasia Dobromyslova dropped just one leg in victories over Darren Latham and Mark Carter to reach the last 64, where she came from 3-0 down to lead Steve Beaton before losing 6-4.
Former Lakeside Champion Andy Fordham suffered a preliminary round defeat on his PDC debut, losing 6-4 to Gary Scratchley.
Mark Webster and Gary Anderson suffered second round defeats, to Adrian Lewis and Jelle Klaasen respectively, and three-time World Champion John Part was defeated at first round stage by Colin Lloyd.
Players Championship
Preliminary Round
Alex Tinsley 6-5 Norman Fletcher
Mark Jodrill 6-2 Geoff Whitworth
Mark Webster 6-1 Geoff Wylie
Louis Blundell 6-3 Peter Wright
Richie Burnett 6-0 Dave Ansell
Par Riihonen 6-3 Robert Watson-Lang
Roland Scholten 6-3 Shaun Dring
Jan van der Rassel 6-3 John MaGowan
Michael Barnard 6-1 Jonathan Overton
Steve Perry 6-2 Jon Archer
Nigel Birch 6-4 Adrian Gray
Stephen Hardy 6-1 Lionel Sams
Gary Anderson 6-1 John Quantock
Bryan de Hoog 6-1 Jim McKevitt
Darren Johnson 6-1 Steve Perkins
Steve Hine 6-3 Steve Grubb
Arron Monk 6-1 Ian Perkins
Jim Withers 6-0 Andy Downes
Steve Brown 6-3 Gary Blades
Gary Scratchley 6-4 Andy Fordham
Anastasia Dobromyslova 6-1 Darren Latham
First Round
Board One
Phil Taylor 6-0 Mike Roberts
Kevin McDine 6-3 Co Stompe
Wayne Mardle 6-1 Matt Gallett
Alex Tinsley 6-1 Mark Jodrill
Board Two
Kevin Painter 6-5 Chris Mason
Simon Craven 6-2 Tony Blundell
Adrian Lewis 6-0 Steve Randall
Mark Webster 6-3 Steve Cusick
Board Three
Colin Lloyd 6-1 John Part
Brendan Dolan 6-1 Tom Wilson
Jamie Caven 6-1 Mark Lawrence
Louis Blundell 6-2 Jim Leighton
Board Four
Mervyn King 6-3 Russell Mason
Barrie Bates 6-1 Ian Lever
Andy Jenkins 6-4 Joe Cullen
Stuart Bousfield 6-2 Richie Burnett
Board Five
Stuart Holden 6-5 Ronnie Baxter
Chris Cooper 6-4 Sean Dowling
Steve Maish 6-0 Steve Lane
Par Riihonen 6-4 Roland Scholten
Board Six
Mark Dudbridge 6-0 Darren Whittingham
Robert Alford 6-5 Stuart Dutton
Andy Smith 6-3 Sean Palfrey
Jan van der Rassel 6-2 Ian Jopling
Board Seven
Robert Thornton 6-4 Dennis Zijderhand
Steve Watts 6-5 Andy Fulton
Michael van Gerwen 6-3 Mick McGowan
Michael Barnard 6-3 Steve Perry
Board Eight
Dennis Smith 6-3 Denis Ovens
Mark Frost 6-2 John Kuczynski
Wayne Jones 6-4 Kevin Dowling
Gary Welding 6-4 Nigel Birch
Board Nine
Dennis Priestley 6-0 Dyson Parody
Ricky Williams 6-4 Alan Warriner-Little
Jelle Klaasen 6-2 Dave Askew
Gary Anderson 6-1 Stephen Hardy
Board Ten
Raymond van Barneveld 6-2 Steve Evans
Wayne Atwood 6-1 Kirk Shepherd
Vincent van der Voort 6-1 Brian Jones
Bryan de Hoog 6-5 James Barton
Board 11
Terry Jenkins 6-4 Chris Allen
Gary Mawson 6-5 Ken Dobson
Tony Eccles 6-0 Kevin Harris
Michael Smith 6-5 Darren Johnson
Board 12
Colin Osborne 6-3 Richard Foster
John Jenkinson 6-5 Ian Lilley
Alex Roy 6-3 Peter Allen
Steve Hine 6-3 Dave Smith
Board 13
James Wade 6-0 Gary Storey
Tony Ayres 6-3 Chris Loudon
Matt Clark 6-0 Robbie Newland
Arron Monk 6-1 Nick Fullwell
Board 14
Mark Walsh 6-0 Scott Kirchner
Dave Honey 6-1 Andy Mason
Paul Nicholson 6-3 Peter Manley
Jim Withers 6-0 Alan Caves
Board 15
Alan Tabern 6-5 Dave Ladley
Larry Butler 6-0 Lee Williams
Ray Farrell 6-4 Wes Newton
Steve Brown 6-0 Gary Scratchley
Board 16
Colin Monk 6-4 Andy Hamilton
Martyn Turner 6-5 Steve Musson
Steve Beaton 6-0 Chris Daglish
Anastasia Dobromyslova 6-0 Mark Carter
Second Round
Phil Taylor 6-1 Kevin McDine
Wayne Mardle 6-2 Alex Tinsley
Simon Craven 6-3 Kevin Painter
Adrian Lewis 6-4 Mark Webster
Colin Lloyd 6-0 Brendan Dolan
Jamie Caven 6-4 Louis Blundell
Mervyn King 6-3 Barrie Bates
Stuart Bousfield 6-1 Andy Jenkins
Chris Cooper 6-5 Stuart Holden
Par Riihonen 6-3 Steve Maish
Mark Dudbridge 6-1 Robert Alford
Jan van der Rassel 6-5 Andy Smith
Robert Thornton 6-1 Steve Watts
Michael van Gerwen 6-1 Michael Barnard
Dennis Smith 6-3 Mark Frost
Wayne Jones 6-4 Gary Welding
Dennis Priestley 6-4 Ricky Williams
Jelle Klaasen 6-5 Gary Anderson
Raymond van Barneveld 6-3 Wayne Atwood
Vincent van der Voort 6-1 Bryan de Hoog
Terry Jenkins 6-4 Gary Mawson
Michael Smith 6-3 Tony Eccles
Colin Osborne 6-1 John Jenkinson
Steve Hine 6-3 Alex Roy
Tony Ayres 6-4 James Wade
Matt Clark 6-1 Arron Monk
Mark Walsh 6-3 Dave Honey
Jim Withers 6-5 Paul Nicholson
Larry Butler 6-3 Alan Tabern
Ray Farrell 6-4 Steve Brown
Martyn Turner 6-0 Colin Monk
Steve Beaton 6-4 Anastasia Dobromyslova
Losers £200
Third Round
Phil Taylor 6-1 Wayne Mardle
Adrian Lewis 6-1 Simon Craven
Jamie Caven 6-2 Colin Lloyd
Mervyn King 6-0 Stuart Bousfield ** Mervyn King hits nine-darter
Par Riihonen 6-3 Chris Cooper
Jan van der Rassel 6-4 Mark Dudbridge
Michael van Gerwen 6-5 Robert Thornton
Wayne Jones 6-3 Dennis Smith
Dennis Priestley 6-4 Jelle Klaasen
Vincent van der Voort 6-3 Raymond van Barneveld
Terry Jenkins 6-3 Michael Smith
Steve Hine 6-4 Colin Osborne
Matt Clark 6-4 Tony Ayres
Mark Walsh 6-2 Jim Withers
Ray Farrell 6-4 Larry Butler
Steve Beaton 6-5 Martyn Turner
Losers £300
Fourth Round
Phil Taylor 6-1 Adrian Lewis
Mervyn King 6-4 Jamie Caven
Jan van der Rassel 6-4 Par Riihonen
Wayne Jones 6-5 Michael van Gerwen
Dennis Priestley 6-5 Vincent van der Voort
Terry Jenkins 6-4 Steve Hine
Mark Walsh 6-1 Matt Clark
Steve Beaton 6-3 Ray Farrell
Losers £400
Quarter-Finals
Phil Taylor 6-2 Mervyn King
Jan van der Rassel 6-2 Wayne Jones
Terry Jenkins 6-3 Dennis Priestley
Mark Walsh 6-1 Steve Beaton
Losers £800
Semi-Finals
Phil Taylor 6-0 Jan van der Rassel
Mark Walsh 6-2 Terry Jenkins
Losers £1,500
Final
Mark Walsh 6-4 Phil Taylor
Winner £6,000
Runner-Up £3,000
News Updates
Preliminary Round
Richie Burnett whitewashes Dave Ansell, and Jim Withers is another 6-0 winner.
Stephen Hardy and Bryan de Hoog take 6-1 wins, against Lionel Sams and Jim McKevitt.
Anastasia Dobromyslova moves into first round with 6-1 defeat of Darren Latham.
Arron Monk takes 6-1 victory against Ian Perkins.
Steve Brown, Par Riihonen, Louis Blundell, Steve Hine and Jan van der Rassel enjoy 6-3 wins.
Michael Barnard is 6-1 winner against Jonathan Overton.
Youngster Alex Tinsley edges out Norman Fletcher 6-5.
Gary Anderson is 6-1 winner against John Quantock.
Steve Perry is 6-2 winner against Jon Archer.
Roland Scholten defeats Shaun Dring 6-3.
Andy Fordham's PDC debut is ended by Gary Scratchley, who wins 6-4 in their clash.
First Round
James Wade is whitewash winner against Gary Storey, and Mark Walsh defeats Scott Kirchner in the same manner.
Colin Lloyd wins 6-1 in battle with John Part.
Mervyn King is 6-3 winner against Russell Mason, and Terry Jenkins wins 6-4 against Chris Allen.
Kevin Painter edges out Chris Mason in a deciding leg.
Dennis Priestley whitewashes Dyson Pardody and Phil Taylor is 6-0 winner against Mike Roberts.
Colin Monk knocks out Andy Hamilton with 6-4 victory.
Mervyn King, Mark Dudbridge and Robert Thornton emerge unscathed from round one.
Stuart Holden defeats Ronnie Baxter in a deciding leg, with Alan Tabern overcoming Dave Ladley in the same manner.
Kevin McDine knocks out Co Stompe 6-3.
Paul Nicholson wins 6-3 in clash with Peter Manley.
Matt Clark and Steve Beaton take whitewash wins against Robbie Newland and Chris Daglish respectively.
Wayne Mardle defeats Matt Gallett 6-1.
Anastasia Dobromyslova reaches last 64 with 6-0 win over Mark Carter - setting up a rematch of her win over Steve Beaton last weekend.
Larry Butler is another 6-0 winner, against Lee Williams.
Stuart Bousfield knocks out Richie Burnett 6-2, with Louis Blundell winning in the same manner against Jim Leighton.
Adrian Lewis is 6-0 winner against Steve Randall, and Jim Withers whitewashes Alan Caves.
Dutch duo Jelle Klaasen and Jan van der Rassel are 6-2 winners, against Dave Askew and Ian Jopling.
Mark Webster defeats Steve Cusick 6-3, and now meets Adrian Lewis.
Steve Brown whitewashes Gary Scratchley to reach second round.
Par Riihonen takes 6-4 win against Roland Scholten.
Second Round
Colin Lloyd reaches last 32 with whitewash win over Brendan Dolan.
Raymond van Barneveld overcomes Wayne Atwood 6-3.
Vincent van der Voort races to 6-1 win against fellow Dutchman Bryan de Hoog.
Simon Craven knocks out Kevin Painter 6-3.
World number two James Wade is eliminated with 6-4 loss to Tony Ayres.
Colin Osborne sees off John Jenkinson 6-1, and Martyn Turner whitewashes Colin Monk,
Mark Walsh is 6-3 winner against Dave Honey, and Mervyn King sees off Barrie Bates in the same manner.
Stuart Bousfield sets up board final with Mervyn King thanks to 6-1 win over Andy Jenkins.
Mark Dudbridge is another 6-1 winner, against Robert Alford.
Terry Jenkins wins 6-4 against Gary Mawson.
Phil Taylor wins 6-1 against Kevin McDine.
Steve Beaton avenges last weekend's loss to Anastasia Dobromyslova with 6-4 victory - although the Russian came from 3-0 down to go 4-3 up.
Adrian Lewis defeats Mark Webster 6-4.
Matt Clark is 6-1 winner against Arron Monk.
Jim Withers edges out Paul Nicholson in a deciding leg.
Wayne Mardle takes 6-2 win over Alex Tinsley.
American Larry Butler overcomes number three seed Alan Tabern 6-3 to reach last 32.
Jelle Klaasen is deciding leg winner against Gary Anderson, with Chris Cooper a 6-5 winner against Stuart Holden.
Par Riihonen is 6-3 winner against Steve Maish, and Michael van Gerwen defeats Michael Barnard 6-1.
Third Round
Vincent van der Voort reaches last 16 with 6-3 win over Raymond van Barneveld.
Mervyn King hits nine-darter in winning leg of 6-0 defeat of Stuart Bousfield, which will earn him a £4,000 bonus should no other player achieve a perfect leg in the remainder of the event.
Jamie Caven enjoys 6-2 win over Colin Lloyd.
Terry Jenkins progresses with 6-3 win over Michael Smith.
Steve Beaton wins a deciding leg battle with Martyn Turner to reach last 16.
Steve Hine knocks out Colin Osborne 6-4 and now meets Terry Jenkins.
Jan van der Rassel moves into last 16 with 6-4 win over Mark Dudbridge,
Phil Taylor - a double winner on the PDC Pro Tour last weekend and unbeaten away from the TV cameras in 2009 - is 6-1 winner against Wayne Mardle.
Adrian Lewis takes 6-1 win against Simon Craven and now takes on Taylor.
Michael van Gerwen defeats Robert Thornton in a deciding leg.
Ray Farrell is 6-4 winner against Larry Butler and now takes on Beaton in last 16.
Wayne Jones takes 6-3 win against Dennis Smith.
Par Riihonen reaches last 16 with 6-3 win over Chris Cooper.
Fourth Round
Terry Jenkins' run of form continues with 6-4 win over Steve Hine.
Mervyn King is 6-4 winner against Jamie Caven to reach quarter-finals.
Phil Taylor remains on course for third successive Pro Tour win after 6-1 defeat of Adrian Lewis.
Dennis Priestley comes from 5-3 down to defeat Vincent van der Voort in a deciding leg.
Mark Walsh is 6-1 victor against Matt Clark to reach last eight for the first time since January.
Steve Beaton reaches quarter-finals with 6-3 win over Ray Farrell.
Wayne Jones edges out Michael van Gerwen in an 11-leg contest.
Jan van der Rassel books quarter-final spot - his first since April 2008 - with 101 finish to complete 6-4 win over Par Riihonen.
Quarter-Finals
Phil Taylor wins 6-2 against Whyte & Mackay Premier League Darts rival Mervyn King to reach semi-finals.
Terry Jenkins is 6-3 winner against Dennis Priestley in his third successive PDC Pro Tour quarter-final appearance.
Mark Walsh reaches first semi-final with 6-1 win over Steve Beaton.
Jan van der Rassel sets up semi-final with Taylor after 6-2 defeat of Wayne Jones, with the Dutchman hitting seven perfect darts in one leg and a 167 finish in another.
Semi-Finals
Mark Walsh defeats Terry Jenkins 6-2, reaching his first final since last November in Holland.
Phil Taylor includes a ten-dart leg in whitewashing Jan van der Rassel to reach final.