Gary Anderson's win over Phil Taylor at the 2015 World Darts Championship final is one of the biggest results in Scottish darts history. Taylor was already a 16-time world champion, basically synonymous with the sport itself, but Anderson capitalised on a costly mistake at the right moment and fought all the way back to win his first world title, 7–6.
A Scottish challenger against a 16-time world champion
The final was played at Alexandra Palace in London on 4 January 2015. Anderson had never won a PDC World Championship at that point, while his opponent was one of the most successful players in darts history. Most people expected it to be another Taylor coronation.
The turning point in set 8: Taylor misses double 12
Midway through the match, Taylor had the upper hand. In set 8 he had the chance to take the set and stretch his lead to 5–3, but missed double 12 with all three darts. That miss became the match's turning point: Anderson seized the opening to level the set, and the momentum began to swing.
6-4 to 6-6: Taylor's late fightback
Riding that momentum, Anderson pulled ahead to 6–4, on the verge of the title. But Taylor, the greatest player the sport has seen, broke Anderson's throw twice in a row to level it at 6–6, forcing the match into a decider.
The deciding set: a first world title for Scotland
In the final set, Anderson kept his composure and gave Taylor no way back, closing out the match 7–6 for his first-ever PDC World Championship. Plenty of media coverage later described this final as marking a changing of the guard. Anderson went on to defend the title the following year, in 2016, becoming just the third player at the time to successfully defend a world title.
Want to know how sets and legs actually work? Check out our Cricket and 501 rules guide; for more classic matches from Europe's best, see our European steel-tip players guide. Want to feel the pressure of a deciding set yourself? AI DARTS boards run self-service 24 hours, check the menu before you come.