Van Gerwen in 7th Heaven
Michael van Gerwen claimed his record-breaking 7th Premier League Darts Trophy, after beating table topper Gerwyn Price 11-5 in the Final at the O2 Arena in London. The Dutchman overtakes Phil Taylor and becomes the competitions most successful player, after a fantastic display in the English capital where he included finishes of 150 and 170 in the Final.
The Dutch player earns £275,000 after successfully defending his trophy, beating World No 1 Michael Smith 10-8 in the Semi Finals, coming through a very close encounter with the reigning World Champion.
Van Gerwen came into Finals Night on the back of pulling out of Night 16 in Aberdeen, with a shoulder injury at the Semi Final stage. The problem wasn’t fazing him early in the Semi Final, as he raced into a 7-3 lead against Michael Smith, including a 100 finish in the 8th leg.
The former 3-time World Champion wrapped up his victory with a 54 checkout in the 18th leg, hitting double 10 with his last dart to clinch the win with an average of 101.45.
MVG faced Gerwyn Price in the Final after the Iceman claimed a 10-2 victory over Welsh compatriot Jonny Clayton in the other Semi Final. The Markham player earned his spot in his maiden Premier League Final with a staggering 107.54 average against the 2021 former winner, finding 2 double tops to finish 131 for the match.
Both players held their initiative early in the Final, holding throw in the first 5 legs of the match. However, with the experience of winning the competition 6 times before, Van Gerwen reeled 5 legs in a row including the big fish and a 128 checkout in breaking his opponents throw twice. Mighty Mike went in at the interval 7-3 up, rising to the big occasion at the O2 Arena.
The Winmau player continued to impress after the break, going 1 away from victory with a 150 finish in the 15th leg of the Final. The Green Machine wrapped up his victory after finding double 9 with his last dart in hand, claiming a record-breaking 7th Premier League title with an average of 105.43 in London.
Gerwyn Price played out his best campaign so far, finishing top of the league table for the first time in his darting career. However, it was a fantastic showing from Michael van Gerwen at the O2 Arena as he made history, averaging over 100 twice on Finals Night in winning the 2023 Premier League Darts.
By Harry Masterson
2023 Premier League Darts: Finals Night Results
Semi Finals:
Gerwyn Price 10-2 Jonny Clayton
Michael van Gerwen 10-8 Michael Smith
Final:
Michael van Gerwen 11-5 Gerwyn Price