 After defeating Bob Taylor in the first round, Wallace avenged his defeat by van Barneveld in 1997, beating him 3-2 in the second round.He went on to win the World Championship with further wins against Paul Williams and Mervyn King and a 6-3 victory over Welshman Marshall James in the final.Wallace became the first left-handed player to win a World Championship (either PDC or BDO).