Ross Smith downs Gary Anderson to win Players Championship 5
Smith stayed composed to win 8-6 in a tight encounter at the Barnsley Metrodome to scoop up the £12,000 prize and claim his second ProTour crown.
"I think I thoroughly deserved the win if you look at the calibre of players I've beaten," he said afterwards.
"I felt a bit edgy against Gary, but I told myself to just concentrate and stop thinking, and thankfully I got away with it, because we all know what Gary can do.
"I just play the player in front of me. I try to keep my feet on the ground. Nothing has been going right for me on the floor, but that changed today.
"I wasn't quite expecting it. My confidence hasn't been the greatest of late, so I am really happy to win this title."
The 34-year-old Smith fended off a host of top names at the tournament en route to winning the final.
He kicked off his campaign in simple fashion, dropping just three legs combined in wins over Martijn Kleermaker and Jim Williams.
Smith then ousted world number six Luke Humphries 6-4 in the round of 32 before claiming two 6-3 victories against Dimitri Van den Bergh and Nathan Aspinall.
His trickiest match-up would come in the semi-finals against Germany's Martin Schindler, but he staved off three match darts to win 7-6 and reach the final.
For Anderson, the final defeat was a blow in what has been a tough season so far for the Scotsman.
The 52-year-old put in a string of fine performances, though, with his best display coming in a hard-fought 7-5 victory over Gerwyn Price in the semi-finals.
