Sports
WORLD champion Luke Humphries thrashed Michael van Gerwen 8-1 in the final to win the German Darts Grand Prix.
Van Gerwen held his throw in the opening leg but then lost eight on the spin to suffer the heavy defeat.
Humphries averaged 112.66, which is the second highest in a European Tour final, and took out two scores of 100-plus, including 170 to win leg eight.
“These are the levels you need to be to win these days, that’s how crazy it’s got,” said Humphries.
“I look up to Michael a lot and beating him in another final is fantastic. I just love playing him to be honest, he shows a lot of respect and the game just goes on.
“It was a great final, but I was just unbeatable.”
The 29-year-old – who received a bye in the first round – overcame Luke Woodhouse, Ryan Joyce, Danny Noppert and Gerwyn Price to reach the final.
“At this moment he is the best player. We all have to face him and battle and we have to get back on top,” said Van Gerwen.
“He’ll know it won’t last forever though, but he’s playing some cracking darts.”
The event was the second of 13 PDC European Tour events on the 2024 PDC Pro Tour.
It is Humphries’ sixth European tour success, while Van Gerwen was appearing in a record-extending 48th final.
Teenager Luke Littler failed to qualify for the event in Munich but won the opening event of the tour in Wieze, Belgium in March.
Humphries, Van Gerwen and Littler will be among the players in action in night 10 of the Premier League Darts in Manchester on Thursday, with live text commentary on the BBC Sport website and app from 19:00 BST.
BBC
2nd April, 2024.
C.E.
Tags: Luke Humphries
