Grand Prix Glory For Humphries

Grand Prix Glory For Humphries

Alex Moss |

A Week In Darts – October 9, 2023 – Humphries Claims First Major At The World Grand Prix

One of the most prestigious and unique tournaments in the PDC took over the world of darts last week, as the World Grand Prix played out at Leicester’s Morningside Arena. The final pitted a former champion against a young contender looking to win their first major title. Here’s our look back at a busy week on the oche…

GRAND PRIX GLORY FOR HUMPHRIES

Luke Humphries added his name to the list of PDC major champions as he overcame Gerwyn Price 5-2 to win the World Grand Prix on Sunday night.

The 2019 PDC World Youth Champion had previously shown his credentials with several deep runs in the major events, including an appearance in the UK Open final in 2021, along with five European Tour titles over the last 18 months.

And at the weekend ‘Cool Hand’ fulfilled his dream of winning silverware at the highest level, triumphing over former world number one Price in the final to claim his first televised ranking title, the £120,000 cheque and move up to a career-high of fourth on the PDC Order of Merit.

Welshman Price, a winner of the behind closed doors World Grand Prix back in 2020, as well as being a runner-up the following year, was bidding to win his second title in the tournament which sees players have to start on a double in each leg.

‘The Iceman’ made a brilliant start by winning the first set 3-0, but Humphries fought back and took nine of the next 11 legs as he raced into a 3-1 lead in the first to five set contest.

Price defied a 170 finish from Humphries to hit back by winning the fifth set in a decider, but the next two sets went to England’s Humphries as he sealed a memorable victory with a 138 checkout.

“I’ve imagined this moment for my whole career. It’s very emotional,” said Humphries, who averaged 93.30 in the double-start format in the final.

“Regardless of anything else I’ve done in my career, that was the greatest game I’ve ever played in my life.

“I couldn’t have picked a better ending for my first major title. I think a lot of people wrote me off tonight, they thought Gezzy would steamroll me, but I’ve got a bit of bottle about me, I have got the ability to play well.”

Shop our World Grand Prix 2023 collection featuring darts from Michael Smith, Dave Chisnall and many more!

MORE ALLY PALLY SPOTS SNAPPED UP

The PDC World Championship is less than 10 weeks away and the list of players qualifying via the international qualifiers is growing, as players battle it out around the world for spots in the biggest tournament in darts.

The second staging of the PDC Asian Championship took place in Shimonoseki City, in Japan, last week with 48 of the best players from the continent in action.

Home favorite Haruki Muramatsu edged out Sandro Eric Sosing, of the Philippines, 7-6 in the final on Sunday to win the title and a spot in the Grand Slam of Darts next month.

The two finalists have both qualified for the World Championship in December, along with Hong Kong’s Man Lok Leung, who benefited from Muramatsu’s run to the final to secure the last qualification spot at Alexandra Palace.

Haruki Muramatsu PDC Asian Championship 2023

Elsewhere, Ben Robb has sealed a return to London after winning the DPNZ (Dartplayers New Zealand) Top 16 play-off in New Zealand.

Robb had finished the season top of the DPNZ rankings after claiming six of the 12 Pro Tour events and saw off Haupai Puha 8-4 in the decider to win the qualifier.

Three more international qualifier spots will be confirmed this week as the CDLC (Champions Darts Latin America and Caribbean) and PDC Women’s Series seasons reach their conclusion for 2023 on Sunday.

AROUND THE BOARD

Is this the best man cave you have ever seen? Gerwyn Price revealed what he describes as the ‘Mancave of Mancaves’ at his home which included a dartboard, full size snooker table, pool table, projector screen and bar.

@gezzyprice180

 

♬ In The Forest (Acoustic Indie No Copyright) - Instrumental - Lesfm & Olexy

Check out our ‘Tips On Adding Darts To Your “Man Cave”’ blog for a guide on how to create your own ultimate darts den.

Our ‘How To Create The Ultimate Home Darts Setup’ also has some useful tips on how to get started with your own darts setup at home.

Picture: Professional Darts Asia

Alex Moss is a content creator for Darts Corner and the co-host of the Weekly Dartscast podcast. Alex co-founded the Weekly Dartscast in 2017 and has helped produce 350+ episodes of the podcast, with their list of previous guests on the show a who’s who in the world of darts.

Alex also writes content for the Darts Corner blog, including the weekly darts news round-ups and how-to guides.

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