Luke Littler has been warned not to let darts riches go to his head as he prepares to hunt down another half a million pounds at the World Darts Championship.
Littler, 17, has banked more than £1million in prize money since he first appeared on the Alexandra Palace stage 12 months ago. His run to the final propelled him from a relatively unknown prospect to one of the nation’s most recognisable sportsmen, and a string of tournament victories thereafter proved that he is here to stay.
With this year’s World Darts Championship getting underway tonight (Sunday), Littler is the bookies’ favourite to bank his biggest single payday yet and go one better than he did last year.
But darts legend Bobby George has warned the youngster not to let wealth and notoriety change him. “Money and fame can go to your head – especially being so young,” the two-time world runner-up told Express Sport, in association with 10bet.
“People can change. My advice to him would be to simply keep his feet on the ground and do exactly what he’s done all year: press the d button and play darts. Don’t grow up too quickly.”
Littler’s mesmerising run in 2024 has taken him from obscurity to fourth in the PDC Order of Merit. And that is without factoring in his £200,000 Premier League Darts triumph, which does not count towards the world rankings.
The stage is set for Littler and Luke Humphries to do battle again at Ally Pally, as they did in January’s final. They each claimed big tournament wins leading up to the worlds, with Littler storming the Grand Slam of Darts and ‘Cool Hand’ clinching the Players Championship Finals.
The structure of the draw means they can only meet in the semi-finals this time round, but fans will still be eager to see them face off in the year’s showpiece event.
George believes that Littler has become an even more dangerous prospect than he was on his debut, when he dispatched a number of seasoned professionals at the age of 16.
“He seems more relaxed,” said the 78-year-old. “He smiles and plays to the crowd a bit more than he did, which is nice to see. You want to see him enjoying the environment and the pressure of these stages. If you’re relaxed, then you enjoy playing. If you’re miserable and tighten up, then you’re not going to enjoy playing the game.
“I watched him, I thought, ‘Here he goes, 180, 180.’ It’s amazing. The thing about him is his finishing. He has the ability to win a game quickly, get good shots out. He doesn’t miss that double 10. That’s his lucky number.”
