HUMPHRIES CONFIDENT HEADING INTO PREMIER LEAGUE

By Aaron Nijjar 

LUKE HUMPHRIES heads into his Premier League campaign this Thursday at Belfast full of confidence after winning the Winmau World Masters last night (Sunday).  

The World No.1 became only the seventh player to win seven PDC Major titles joining an illustrious list of players which include Phil Taylor and Gary Anderson. 

After finishing runner-up to Luke Littler last year, the Newbury darts ace will be looking to go one better and claim the Premier League title this time around as he gears up to face Nathan Aspinall on the opening night.  

He said: “Yeah really confident because you know Premier League’s are really tough. I’m really happy to win that Major and I can take it into the first Premier League night but you’re playing the best week in, week out.  

“So yeah, it can all just come crashing down in a couple of weeks when you have a couple of bad performances. So hopefully that confidence will really push me forward and hopefully have a great start to the Premier League this year.” 

Over the past year on tour, ‘Cool Hand’ has hit the second-most 140s with 1,295, trailing only Wessel Nijman, and recorded the second-most 100+ averages.  

With his ability to maintain elite scoring and performances over an extended period, Humphries is one of the favourites to win the Premier League, a long and grueling exhibition played across 16 consecutive Thursday nights from February to May.  

Quarter-Final fixtures are set for 14 out of the 16 nights with the latter half being played in draw bracket order.   

All matches are best of 11 legs with a £10,000 bonus to the nightly winner. It does not go on the rankings. Five points are given to the winner, three to the runner-up and two to the semi-finalists to form the league table for the final at The O2 on May 29. 

Teenage sensation Littler enters this year’s tournament as the defending champion and a serious contender to win once again. This year ‘The Nuke’ claimed his debut World title and won the Ballon d’art trophy after he hit the most 180s at Ally Pally, finishing with 76—20 more than his nearest rival, Michael van Gerwen who he faces on the opening night.  

‘The Green Machine’ is a player who should never be overlooked. With seven Premier League titles to his name and having reached the final nine times in 11 appearances, the Dutchman is the most successful player in the Major’s history. 

Stephen Bunting returns for the first time since 2020 and will face Rob Cross in his opening match. Both players are in great form, having each picked up a World Series title this year, setting the stage for an exciting matchup.  

Chris Dobey will face Gerwyn Price, with both players looking to make a strong start to the tournament.  

Images by Taylor Lanning