The PDC World Masters has been one of the big darting events on the calendar since its creation in 2013. It is the first ranking event on the PDC Tour and an early chance for darts players to bag some money and ranking points.
In its existence, there have been nine winners overall, with some of the all-time modern greats having got their hands on the trophy. In this article, we look at some of the winners from yesteryear.
Most Decorated World Masters Champion
There is only one person to start with when talking about the World Masters Champion, and that is the most decorated champion of them all, winning this tournament a total of five times, it is the one and only Michael van Gerwen.
From 2015 to 2019, only one name was etched onto that trophy, and it was MVG’s. The format was a bit different then, featuring the Top 16 of the PDC Order of Merit in a fixed draw, and being played over legs, not sets. That takes nothing away from Mighty Mike’s epic achievement.
He’s beaten some big names in the final, too, triumphing over Raymond van Barneveld (twice), Dave Chisnal, Gary Anderson, and James Wade.
Since his 2019 victory, MVG has only made the final once more, and that was in a losing effort in 2024.
Other winners
After MVG, every single other person who has won the World Masters has only won it once. The first person to win the tournament was the great Phil Taylor in 2013. He beat Adrian Lewis in the final in impressive fashion, 10-1 in legs.
James Wade was the winner in 2014, the year before MVG’s period of dominance. In 2020, the final was won by Peter Wright, and since then, there has been a different winner every year. In order, they were Jonny Clayton, Joe Cullen, Chris Dobey, Stephen Bunting and Luke Humphries.
List of Winners
2013: Phil Taylor bt. Adrian Lewis 10–1 (legs)
2014: James Wade bt. Mervyn King 11–10 (legs)
2015: Michael van Gerwen bt. Raymond van Barneveld 11–6 (legs)
2016: Michael van Gerwen bt. Dave Chisnall 11–6 (legs)
2017: Michael van Gerwen bt. Gary Anderson 11–7 (legs)
2018: Michael van Gerwen bt. Raymond van Barneveld 11–9 (legs)
2019: Michael van Gerwen bt. James Wade 11–5 (legs)
2020: Peter Wright bt. Michael Smith 11–10 (legs)
2021: Jonny Clayton bt. Mervyn King 11–8 (legs)
2022: Joe Cullen bt. Dave Chisnall 11–9 (legs)
2023: Chris Dobey bt. Rob Cross 11–7 (legs)
2024: Stephen Bunting bt. Michael van Gerwen 11–7 (legs)
2025: Luke Humphries bt. Jonny Clayton 6-5 (sets)