Luke Humphries thrashed an out-of-sorts Luke Littler 6-1 in the semi-finals on Night 16 of the BetMGM Premier League Darts in Sheffield.
The defeat shattered the Warrington youngster’s hopes of securing a record-breaking seventh nightly win and establishing the highest seasonal points total in history.
While Stephen Bunting went on to win the night’s final 6-3 against Humphries, the evening successfully locked in the final seedings ahead of next week’s highly anticipated playoff finale.
Littler arrived at the Utilita Arena freshly decorated from receiving an MBE from Prince William at Windsor Castle.
However, “The Nuke” admitted before the action that a recent lack of practice had hindered his form. His opening match against bottom-of-the-table Josh Rock foreshadowed trouble. In a sluggish, error-strewn quarter-final, Littler scraped through with a 6-5 victory despite averaging a lowly 87.89. The narrow escape set up a box-office semi-final clash against his familiar rival, Luke Humphries. Littler held his throw with a brilliant 12-darter to take the opening leg. It proved to be a false dawn. Driven by heavy scoring and a 100-plus average, Humphries seized complete control. He reeled off six consecutive legs to demolish the reigning world champion 6-1, limiting Littler to just a single attempt at a double for the remainder of the contest.
Despite the heavy defeat, Littler’s dominant regular season means he still finishes comfortably at the top of the Premier League standings. The final standings have carved out an explosive line-up for Finals Night, which takes place next Thursday, 28 May, at The O2 in London.
Play-Off Stage
Semi-Final 1 Luke Littler vs. Gerwyn Price
Semi-Final 2 Jonny Clayton vs. Luke Humphries
Final: Winner SF1 vs. Winner SF2
The playoffs switch to an expanded, high-pressure format where the semi-finals are contested over a best-of-19 legs. Defending Premier League champion Humphries will enter London full of confidence after finishing third, setting up a mouth-watering clash with second-placed Jonny Clayton. Meanwhile, Littler will have to quickly dust himself down to face fourth-seeded Gerwyn Price. Having lost the Premier League title to Humphries on the same stage last year, Littler remains fiercely determined to reclaim the crown in front of a massive London crowd.
STATEMENT MADE! 😳
Luke Humphries confirms third spot in the Premier League table by storming past Luke Littler, defeating the 19-year-old 6-1…
Cool Hand is now into his FOURTH consecutive nightly final!
📲 https://t.co/gFQK4rQ2wU #PLDarts pic.twitter.com/kvmQbwCRHI
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) May 21, 2026
