Gerwyn Price came agonisingly close to a nine-darter during a 6-6 draw with Luke Humphries on night four of the Premier League in Exeter.
Leading 3-2 following an explosive start to the match, the Welshman missed double 12 for the perfect leg.
A MUST WATCH BATTLE | Some match this between the Iceman and the contender!#Unibet180 pic.twitter.com/HmBEURcsQo
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) February 28, 2019
Price returned to complete a 10-darter and move 4-2 ahead, but Humphries fought back to lead 6-5 and move one leg away from becoming the first 'contender' to win a game this campaign.
Humphries, who averaged 101.3, missed a match dart at taking out 148 and Price punished him by holding his nerve on double 20 to claim a third draw in four outings, preserving his unbeaten record.
James Wade ended leader Michael Van Gerwen's 100 per cent record, taking advantage of the world champion's 27 per cent checkout percentage to claim five legs in a row en route to a 7-3 victory.
WADE DEFEATS VAN GERWEN | What a performance from The Machine as he defeats Mighty Mike, 7️⃣-3️⃣ 🙌🏼#Unibet180 pic.twitter.com/gByu23rkJr — PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) February 28, 2019
Michael Smith overcame injury to beat winless Raymond Van Barneveld 7-4.
The 28-year-old was forced to have emergency surgery on an abscess on Monday but, after hobbling onto the oche, overturned a 3-1 deficit to move off the bottom of the table.
Former world champion Rob Cross averaged 102.16, producing a fine 153 checkout along the way, in a 7-1 demolition of Daryl Gurney, while Mensur Suljovic beat Peter Wright 7-4 to clinch his first win.
