World Matchplay: Phil Taylor beats Michael van Gerwen in final

Phil Taylor's last defeat in Blackpool came against Terry Jenkins in the 2007 semi-final

Phil Taylor sealed a 15th World Matchplay title and his seventh in succession with victory over reigning PDC world champion Michael van Gerwen.

The 53-year-old from Stoke-on-Trent won six straight legs early on to take a 7-1 lead and eased to a 18-9 win.

Taylor, the world champion on 16 occasions, has not lost in Blackpool since a semi-final defeat in 2007.

Van Gerwen was appearing in his first Matchplay final but the Dutchman could not keep pace with Taylor's fast start.

Michael van Gerwen struggled to recover from losing six straight legs early in the final

The 25-year-old trailed 11-2 at one stage but won five out of seven legs to make it 13-7, only for Taylor to race clear again and secure victory with a 57 checkout.

Taylor hit a nine-dart finish in his second-round win over Michael Smith, the man who knocked him out of the World Championship last December, and came through a high-quality last-four tie against Gary Anderson to make it into Sunday's final.