The 19-year-old world number one broke Phil Taylor’s long-standing tournament records, lifted his career earnings past millions, and kept alive his bid for a clean sweep of 2026 majors.
Record-Breaking Dominance at the Winter Gardens
The 19-year-old world number one averaged 111.53 in the final, shattering Phil Taylor’s long-standing tournament records.
Littler finished the week with an overall tournament average of 111.04, breaking Taylor’s record of 106.31 set in 2010. His 111.53 final average also eclipsed Taylor’s previous final benchmark of 111.23, thrown against Adrian Lewis in 2013. Alongside those milestones, the teenager hit 12 maximums in the final to take his tournament total to 66 180s, surpassing the 64 he hit across the week in 2025.
“It’s been a crazy week, one of the best weeks of my life with the darts I’ve played. It’s not been easy, it’s been tough. The stats make it look easy but when you’re on this stage with how hot it is, I’ve definitely played some of the best darts of my life. I feel like it’s the best version of myself. I have just played so well.”
Luke Littler, World Matchplay Champion, via The Guardian
How the Final Unfolded Against Gerwyn Price
Price entered the showpiece decider having reached his first final at the tournament without ever previously winning the trophy. The Welshman averaged a respectable 104.97, but he was repeatedly overwhelmed by Littler’s scoring power and high checkouts.
Littler seized control early by taking a 4-1 lead in the first mini-session, highlighted by an impressive 167 checkout in the fourth leg. By the time he stretched his advantage to 8-2, his average had climbed to 114.74. Price managed to narrow the gap later in the match by cutting the deficit to 14-7 and hitting an 11-darter to reach 15-9, but Littler responded with a 148 checkout before sealing the victory.
“Luke is one in a million. I think I played pretty decent. In that game I missed a couple of opportunities but the bull checkouts, the 167, it was a big turning point even though it was early in the game. I didn’t play brilliant, but I played decent.”
Gerwyn Price, World Matchplay Runner-Up, via The Guardian
Praise from Mark Webster and the Darts World
Sky Sports Darts analyst and former BDO world champion Mark Webster described the run as the best major campaign in the history of the sport, noting that the world number one leaves opponents searching for answers.
“This is what I keep saying – what do the other players cling on to now? Where is the weakness? What do you do? He is playing fantastic at the minute and he is making his opponents miss. It is a recipe for dominance.”
Mark Webster, Sky Sports Darts Analyst, via Sky Sports
On social media, journalist Graeme Bailey wrote on X that Littler produced some of the greatest darts ever seen as he sweeps to the World Matchplay – absolutely unplayable
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PDC Order of Merit Earnings and the 2026 Clean Sweep Pursuit
With the Blackpool victory, Littler earned £225,000 in prize money, lifting his total on the PDC’s two-year order of merit to £3,143,500. That puts him £2.13 million clear of world number two Luke Humphries. Earlier in the tournament, his semi-final win over Dirk van Duijvenbode also made him the first player in PDC history to win £3 million in prize money.
Littler now holds the World Darts Championship, UK Open, Premier League, Masters, and World Matchplay titles. To complete an unprecedented clean sweep of all major PDC ranking titles in a single calendar year, he must turn his attention to the Pro Tour to qualify for the Players Championship Finals in Minehead in November since he skipped the first 24 events and pulled out of two in Hildesheim.
“I don’t think my dad’s too happy because we were going to go to Spain and I think we’ve got to go to Leicester now and play some Pro Tours, but it is what it is. I’ve been checking the Pro Tour rankings and whoever is in 64th just keeps going up and up and up. I know there are four in Leicester that I’ve got to go to now and we’ll see what happens.”
Luke Littler, via BBC Sport
Beau Greaves Wins Women’s World Matchplay
The men’s final was accompanied by the Women’s World Matchplay, where Beau Greaves claimed her third crown in four years by edging out Fallon Sherrock 6-5 in a thrilling final.
“I’m not one to celebrate but it was relief in the end. Fallon is a great lass and an even better darts player. I knew I had to play well but to hit that last dart was an outpouring of relief.”
Beau Greaves, Women’s World Matchplay Winner, via The Guardian
The victory cements Greaves' position as a dominant force in the game following her hard-fought win over Sherrock in the final.
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