Gary Anderson will fly into Auckland Darts Masters full of confidence after winning the World Matchplay in Blackpool on Monday (NZ time).
The 'Flying Scotsman' held off a late fight back from Austrian Mensur Suljovic to win 21-19 at the Winter Gardens to claim the newly named Phil Taylor trophy in front of 3,500 fans.
The win sees Anderson become the third man to win the Triple Crown of Darts joining Taylor and Michael van Gerwen to have won the Matchplay, World Championships and Premier League.
The 46-year-old was one leg away from winning at 17-13 before Suljovic roared to life, winning five consecutive legs.
Anderson saw a match dart at the bullseye bounce out before he sealed victory.
He pockets an incredible £115,000 (NZ$221,767) for winning, to go along with the £45,000 (NZ$86,977) for hitting a nine-darter against Joe Cullen in the quarter-finals.
However there was no time to celebrate for Anderson who had to make his way to London Airport where he will be on a long haul flight to New Zealand for the Auckland Darts Masters.
"No time to relax, I'll be on a plane for the next two days," he said. "I land on the Wednesday and then play on the Friday.
"I'm looking forward to coming to New Zealand. It is a fantastic place."
Anderson, the 2016 winner of the event, will join van Gerwen, Peter Wright, Michael Smith, Kyle Anderson, Simon Whitlock, and current world champion Rob Cross in the city of sails where they will compete against eight Oceania qualifiers.
After competing in Auckland, the World Series will move to Brisbane and Melbourne for their respective Darts Masters.
Newshub.
