Whether you are a diehard darts fan or have never heard of the sport, the first darts player you should know is Phil “The Power” Taylor. No one has ever dominated their sport in a way like Phil Taylor has in the darts.
To put this in perspective, Taylor is a 16-time World Champion and won 14 times in the PDC tournament (no one has more than two PDC titles and this year is just the 25th edition). And in many of the other major tournaments, Taylor is usually at the top of the order for most titles.
“The Power” announced that he would retire after the 2018 PDC World Darts Championship and while he is retiring at a time where his skill is near the top, Taylor hasn’t been the dominating darts player he used to be. Despite that, many pro darts players would kill to have the talent Taylor has now when even he’s admitted he isn’t the player he used to be.
In this World Darts Championship, top seeds had been falling at an alarming rate from the very beginning. But when the top stars kept falling out, Taylor kept surviving and taking on all comers so far. After defeating third seed Gary Anderson, Taylor took on surprise underdog Jamie Lewis in the semifinal. The unranked Lewis had to qualify via the preliminary round and literally took the final spot of the 72 player field when another competitor was able to win an automatic spot and opened up a prelim spot.
Lewis took out second seed Peter Wright in the second round and after that, he had been dominant. But going up against “The Power” with a Final spot on the line, the veteran defeated the youngster 6-1. It may have looked like a blowout but Lewis took Taylor to the brink and made him earn the win. And Taylor noted that, giving the 26-year-old Welshman praise and letting him know he’s got a future in the sport.
PHIL TAYLOR IS INTO THE FINAL!
Is it destiny here at Ally Pally? Phil Taylor beats Jamie Lewis 6-1 to book his place in the final.
Will it be World Title 17 for The Power? pic.twitter.com/YgOPWPgdvx
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) December 30, 2017
In the way of Phil Taylor’s 17th World Championship is either top seed and defending back-to-back champ Michael van Gerwen or 20th seed Rob Cross, who like Lewis, is a major underdog with a bright future and trying to pull himself to the top of the darts world.
Darts aficionados have been on pins and needles each round wondering if this would be the last round of Phil Taylor’s career. Now we know that will take place on New Year’s Day Monday (on BBC America) and there is a chance for “The Power” to walkaway on top with a 17th World Title.
