darts
Littler shines in Bahrain: record and tournament victory
Played a nine-darter in the quarter-finals of the Bahrain Masters: Luke Littler. photo
© Zac Goodwin/PA Wire/dpa/archive image
The 16-year-old Brit is writing darts history in Bahrain. He manages a nine-darter: nine darts for 501 points. And he wins the tournament too.
After the historic perfect leg – 501 points with nine arrows – in the quarterfinals, Littler went on to win the Bahrain Darts Masters two days before his 17th birthday.
“Simply breathtaking from the 16 year old,” commented the Professional Darts Corporation on X, formerly Twitter. In the final, Littler beat former world champion Michael van Gerwen. At just under 18 years old, the Dutchman was also the youngest player to hit a nine-darter in front of TV cameras in 2007.
“Nobody believes me, but I hadn’t thrown a dart since the World Cup final until yesterday,” Littler told ITV4. He was just very happy to have won on his debut. “It’s an incredible week.”
He didn’t really set any goals for this year. “I didn’t even think I would win this trophy,” said Littler. It wasn’t just the victory, it was above all the way in which he won the title at the tournament on the Bahrain International Circuit. Especially in the game against his compatriot Nathan Aspinall, when he only needed nine arrows to get 501 points.
Littler on February 8th in Berlin
When Littler had done it, he spread his arms and looked at the roaring audience, laughing. His opponent, who was also defeated in the end, applauded with respect before congratulating Littler with a hug.
The darts prodigy celebrates his 17th birthday this Sunday. The giant talent’s next appearances include Wales and Germany, where the first stops of this year’s Premier League will take place in Cardiff (February 1st) and Berlin (February 8th).