There was no PDC World Championship banana skin for Phil Taylor, although it was far from plain sailing as he navigated a first-round clash at his final ever tournament.

Taylor is calling time on his unrivalled career at the end of a championship he hopes will bring him a 17th world title and the first man in his way was Chris Dobey.

There was no stardust for the man known as 'Hollywood' in the first two sets as Taylor pulled clear to 2-0, but Dobey came back to 2-1 and had the darts to level, which would have seen him have the advantage going into the decider.

He failed to take his chance and Taylor settled it 3-1, on a clearly emotional night - the highlight of which was a hair-raising walk to the stage as the 57-year-old was serenaded.

Former Lakeside champion Stephen Bunting was humbled by Dimitri Van den Bergh, the World Youth Championship winner.

Bunting has endured a tough 2017 and this 3-1 first-round exit followed on from similar ones at the World Matchplay and the World Grand Prix.

"Definitely happy about that," Van den Bergh told Sky Sports Darts.

"Today is my father's birthday and that is even more important to me. He is my heart, my soul and the reason I play darts."

Rob Cross booked his place in the second round with a 3-0 victory over Seigo Asada in the final game of the night.