Luke Humphries secured his first ProTour title of the year at Players Championship 26 in Wigan with a thrilling 8-7 victory over Stephen Bunting in the final. This win adds to Humphries’ already impressive season, which includes titles at the World Matchplay, World Series, and European Tour events.
In the final, Humphries, the current world number one, trailed 7-6 but fought back to win the last two legs and claim the title. This victory gives him great momentum ahead of his World Grand Prix title defense next week, where he will once again face Bunting in the opening round.
“This was important for me,” Humphries admitted after his win. “You go through times when you’re playing great darts, and other times when it feels like you can’t win a match. I’m dedicated to this sport, and it’s crucial to build confidence.”
Humphries started the tournament with strong performances, including ton-plus averages in wins over George Killington and Callum Goffin. He then beat Connor Scutt and Josh Rock to reach the quarter-finals. In the next round, he came from behind to defeat top seed Dave Chisnall, and later survived a close semi-final match against Luke Woodhouse, who rallied from 6-2 down to force a deciding leg.
The final against Bunting saw both players trading legs, with Humphries taking a 5-3 lead after Bunting missed five darts at double across two legs. Bunting fought back to move ahead 7-6, but Humphries hit an 83 finish to level the match and sealed the win with a 12-dart break of throw in the final leg.
Bunting, appearing in his third ProTour final in three days, played brilliantly but fell short for the fifth time in a final this year. He scored wins over Joshua Richardson, Stefan Bellmont, Radek Szaganski, and Robert Owen, before edging past Raymond van Barneveld 7-6 in the semi-finals.
Van Barneveld had an outstanding run, defeating William O’Connor and Jeffrey de Zwaan in whitewashes and putting up big averages against Mensur Suljovic and Luke Littler. His campaign ended with a close loss to Bunting in the quarter-finals.
Woodhouse also had a strong showing, battling back from 5-1 down against Adam Gawlas in the first round and putting in a 105 average against Ryan Meikle. He reached the semi-finals with wins over Andy Boulton, Wessel Nijman, and Christian Kist.
Notably, Ritchie Edhouse set a stunning 120.24 average to whitewash Graham Hall, and Lee Evans hit a nine-darter in his victory over Dirk van Duijvenbode, both achieving personal milestones in Wigan.
With this win, Humphries continues his dominant year and looks poised for more success as he heads into the World Grand Prix next week.
For all 2024 players Championship 26 results
