Taylor And Whitlock Win

Phil Taylor comfortably saw off Wayne Jones 13-7 to reach the last eight of the Sky Bet Mobile World Matchplay.

'The Power', pushed by Mark Hylton in his opening match in Blackpool, finished the contest with a 108 average as he knocked out the man from Wolverhampton.
He stormed out to a 5-1 lead but was forced to weather an attempted comeback by Jones, who won three legs on the spin to cut the gap to one.

"I don't think I can do a lot better. Other players are getting better, but I think I'm at my limit now."

However, with double 16 proving a very popular checkout, Taylor landed a pair of 14-dart finishes to move 11-5 in front. A 124 finish then moved him a leg away and he ended proceedings with an impressive 11-darter.
"It was a good night at the office," an honest Taylor told Sky Sports. "I've not played like that for a few months now.
"I don't think I can do a lot better. Other players are getting better, but I think I'm at my limit now. I'll try my best and I love this tournament."
Asked if he felt under pressure following a barren run by his usual lofty standards, he replied: "I'm not feeling under pressure. I've won thousands of tournaments and I'm not going to worry about them any more. I'm just going to go out there and enjoy it."
Next up for Taylor will be Wes Newton after the local favourite from Fleetwood knocked out Justin Pipe 13-8 in the final match on stage on Thursday night.

Resounding win

Earlier, Simon Whitlock booked his place in the last eight with a 13-1 thrashing of poor Denis Ovens.
The Wizard was magical in the opening match at the Winter Gardens, never losing a leg after his opponent had levelled matters at 1-1 by taking out 132.
He set the tone for an impressive performance with a 180 in his first visit to the board and managed another four of them as he cruised to victory.
The Australian took six legs against the throw and hit 52 percent on his checkouts, the best of which was a 154 in the ninth leg. Ovens, in contrast, managed to hit just one of the 12 doubles he attempted.
"I've been working hard for the last six-to-eight weeks and my game is back very close to its best," Whitlock said afterwards.
"I'm just plodding along, doing my business and I'm happy to be progressing quietly, which suits me.

"Last year I was a bit ill and I didn't appreciate the event but I'm really enjoying it. The atmosphere is fantastic and the crowd have been great."
Next up for the man from Down Under will be Andy Hamilton, who put an end to John Henderson's run in the tournament with a nervy 13-11 triumph over the Scotsman.
Hamilton, who had knocked out Henderson's compatriot Gary Anderson in the previous round, led 4-1 and 10-7 before having to hold off a late comeback attempt by his opponent.
But, just as there appeared a real possibility of sudden death being required to find a winner, 'The Hammer' landed the knockout blow with a 113 finish.