Luke Littler defended his World Matchplay title on Sunday night, beating Gerwyn Price 18-9 at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool. Across the week the teenager posted a tournament average of 111.04, the highest the event has ever recorded, and the mark erased a scoring record Phil Taylor had held for 15 years. The victory also made him only the third player to defend the crown.
A 15-year record finally beaten
The final was settled early, and largely in one direction. Littler landed a 167 checkout, his first bullseye finish of the tournament, then added a 110 to move 4-1 clear. Back-to-back 11-dart legs and finishes of 128 and 127 soon carried him to a commanding 11-3 lead.
Price refused to fold, taking successive legs to keep some hope alive, and he even reached his best form of the fortnight. But Littler always had a reply, firing in a 148 checkout during another late surge. The distance between the two men never truly closed.
Ten in a row against an old rival
Littler struck 12 maximums and six ton-plus finishes over the course of the night. Price still managed an average of 104.97, the finest of his week, yet fell to a second runner-up finish in four years. For Littler it was a tenth straight win over the Welshman.
The result returned the Phil Taylor Trophy to his name, along with a £200,000 first prize that pushed his earnings for the year beyond £3m. He had averaged 109 or better in all five of his matches on the road to the final. The run kept alive his bid to win every ranked major in a single year.
He closed the contest with an 81 finish, landed cleanly on the bullseye. It was a quiet end to a near-flawless week. At 19, Luke Littler leaves Blackpool with both the record and the title still in his hands.
