Damon Heta set the World Championship alight on its resumption with a stunning nine-dart finish before bowing out.
The Australian, seeded ninth, achieved darting perfection in the second set of his third round match with Luke Woodhouse to earn a cool €72,325 payday.
However, his joy was short-lived as Woodhouse won a thrilling battle 4-3, having trailed 3-1.
Heta was millimetres away from throwing a nine-darter in the previous round when he missed the double 12, but he made no mistake this time in the first match after the Christmas break.
He followed up successive 180s with a treble 20 and treble 19 before sending his ninth dart the right side of the wire.
Heta’s feat was the second time a nine-darter has been thrown in the 2025 tournament and the 16th of all time at the World Championship, following Christian Kist’s effort before Christmas.
Woodhouse took his opponent’s achievement in good spirits, hugging the Australian and raising his arm in the air.
As well as landing the Australian a hefty payday, it also saw a lucky fan in the Alexandra Palace win a £60,000, with £60,000 also being donated to Prostate Cancer UK.
Seventh seed Jonny Clayton survived a scare as he also won a seven-set thriller against Daryl Gurney.
The Welshman looked to be cruising through when he soared into a 3-0 lead, but Gurney recovered to make it 3-3.
Gurney then had six darts to send it to a tiebreaker in the decider but lost his nerve and Clayton stole victory.
Crowd favourite Stephen Bunting enjoyed a more comfortable afternoon, beating Madars Razma 4-1.
