Chris Dobey was inspired by Gary Anderson's 'annoying' mid-match comments as he stunned the two-time world-champion with a shock upset at Ally Pally.
Undercooked Anderson made an ominous start to take the first set but ultimately faded and 'Hollywood' Dobey capitalised to seal a statement victory on the biggest stage in darts.
Clinical Dobey reeled off four straight sets to knock out Anderson 4-1 and set up an enticing last-16 clash against Rob Cross or Mervyn King.
And Anderson, 52, suffered his earliest World Championship exit since 2010 as he became the latest top contender to fall in the third round.
World No.22 Dobey was thrilled to defeat the Flying Scotsman- and disclosed a conversation backstage before the final break in the match that irked him and made him even more determined to seal victory.
"It was a big win, Gary is a class lad, one of the big names in darts," the 32-year-old told Sky Sports. "It is a massive win. I never gave up. That's the kind of lad I am, always fighting to the end. I am delighted to get the win."
"Gary said something to us in the last break and I didn't like it. It annoyed me and there was no way he was winning the game after that.
"I came out and tried to forget about it. He is a class lad but I didn't agree with what he said. I made sure I was winning this game."
He continued: "I have been in this position a number of times so I am hoping to get over that hurdle. I am still in the competition."
Anderson is the latest big fish to be sent packing in round three after defending champion Peter Wright was blown away by 'Hurricane' Kim Huybrechts on Tuesday night.
'Snakebite' also succumbed to an underdog with a 4-1 defeat to the Belgian, with the draw opening up nicely for some unfancied names to stake a claim for the 2023 Sid Waddell trophy.
