Luke Littler wins his first ranking major title at the Grand Slam of Darts. The 17-year-old used the finale for an impressive demonstration of power. A few weeks before the start of the World Cup, several records were set.
There are still a few weeks until the peak of the season. On December 15th, world champion Luke Humphries will open the Darts World Championships of the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) in London. And even though the five major tournaments since the last World Cup have all produced different winners, the big favorite after this memorable weekend is clear.
“Luke is just a different sauce,” said the Englishman Martin Lukeman succinctly after he suffered a nasty defeat against his compatriot in the final of the Grand Slam of Darts. However, what was meant was not Humphries, the world number one, but his opponent from the World Cup final on January 3rd, prodigy Luke Littler.
While Humphries sensationally failed in the group phase of the major tournament in Wolverhampton, Littler used the weeks to put on an impressive demonstration of power. The 17-year-old had only given up four legs in his three matches during the group stage, had to survive a match dart from his opponent in the round of 16 thriller against the Belgian Mike De Decker, but then won the next round with the highest victory ever achieved in a Grand Slam quarterfinals. Jermaine Wattimena experienced humiliation despite a strong performance and an average score of 92.69. Littler won 16-2.
A class difference at the highest level, which he also demonstrated in the final. After dropping the first two legs, he got off to an impressive start against Lukeman and won an incredible 15 legs in a row. The match lasted less than 35 minutes, Littler averaged 107.08 at 16:3 and allowed his opponent just six attempts at doubles.
He took refuge in sarcasm during the Littler show when he managed to win another leg at 2:15 and was celebrated extensively by the audience. “He is absolutely brilliant. He has done great things for our sport and created so many new fans,” praised Lukeman after the final, which marked his first major final.
For Littler it was the first real major victory of his young career. The World Cup finalist has already won the Premier League and the World Series of Darts Finals in his first year on the PDC tour, but the two events do not count towards the ranking. In this respect, the Grand Slam was a first that pushed him to fifth place in the Order of Merit. A fantastic achievement, as the unofficial world ranking is calculated based on the prize money won over the past two years – but Littler has only been there since January 2024.
Littler has strong nerves against Anderson
“I knew at the start of the tournament that I would be ranked fifth in the world if I got my hands on the trophy,” said the teenager, who hit the ground running in his first year. Only three players in the history of the PDC have achieved ten tournament wins in one calendar year: Phil Taylor, Michael van Gerwen and Peter Wright. And it doesn’t have to stay that way. The Players Championship Finals are coming up next weekend in Minehead, England, before the big highlight of the season in London in December.
“I hope I can get a little bit higher than fifth place. I can’t wait to attend both events. “Hopefully I can have a good run in Minehead and then all eyes will be on the big thing – the World Cup,” he said.
Littler goes into his second World Cup as the top favorite. After Mike De Decker, Gary Anderson also showed how he can be defeated despite this form at the Grand Slam. The Scot, 36 years his senior, stood up to “The Nuke” in a thrilling and high-class semi-final and consistently took advantage of his chances. Anderson checked 164, 142 and 102 points, hit at least one triple on almost every shot and earned an 11-7 lead. He was able to defend it until 13:9 and after 14:14 he even took the lead again with 15:14. With three 180s in the last two legs, Littler laid the foundation for reaching the final with strong nerves.
It was already clear at this point that he would smash another record. Adrian Lewis held the Grand Slam record for most 180s during the tournament. In 2013, he threw a maximum of 52 times. Littler ended up with 60 despite the clear victories in the quarter-finals and final.
Grand Slam of Darts, results
Semifinals
Martin Lukeman (ENG) – Mickey Mansell (NIR) 16:12
Luke Littler (ENG) – Gary Anderson (SCO) 16:15
Finale
Luke Littler (ENG) – Martin Lukeman (ENG) 16:3
If Lutz Wöckener isn’t just anyone Sport in self-experimentation tried it out, he writes about darts and sports politics, but sometimes also something off-kilter like football.
