James Wade made an impressive start to his quest for a second Betfair World Matchplay title with a 10-5 win over Richie Burnett at the Winter Gardens on Sunday night.
The number three seed Wade, who won the 2007 World Matchplay in a run of reaching the final four times in the last six years, blew in-form Burnett away with a storming start which the Welshman never recovered from.
Wade won eight of the first nine legs before a late rally from Burnett at least added some respectability to the scoreline.
'The Machine' will face Mark Walsh in the second round on Wednesday after 'Walshy' battled back to defeat Colin Osborne 10-8 in the opening match of the night.
Osborne looked set to kick-start his bid to push back towards the world's top 16 when he took a 6-3 lead - only to see Walsh hit back to level at seven-all.
Although Osborne moved 8-7 up, he missed a crucial dart in the next and Walsh levelled before taking the next two to progress into the last 16.
Also on Sunday, Steve Beaton recovered from a slow start to defeat Kevin Painter 10-6 and move into the second round.
The former World Champion was punished for missed doubles early in the contest as Painter took an early 3-1 lead - only to win five successive legs to turn the game in his favour before completing the win.
Michael Van Gerwen rounded off the evening with a stunning 10-6 victory over Simon Whitlock.
