FFive days later, in front of a jubilant crowd of 14,000 at London’s O Arena, he beat world number one Luke Humphries with a brilliant nine-dart to win the Premier League darts title.2 On Tuesday afternoon at the Arena, Luke Littler found himself up against an even more unforgiving opponent: Manhattan rush-hour traffic.
A full-day media frenzy in New York City to promote this weekend’s United States Darts Masters at Madison Square Garden was interrupted by a hired driver in Littler’s black Cadillac Escalade ESV at the studio on November 17, 2019 The event descended into chaos when a live appearance went to the wrong location. When he finally arrived at his Financial District office nearly 40 minutes late, the 17-year-old star known as “Nuke Luke” sat calmly in a chair on the set in front of a crowd that included his parents, girlfriend and best friend The entourage inside poured into the lounge.
Admittedly a bit jet-lagged, Littler warmed up as he went, spending half an hour sparring with Helwani, a popular boxing expert who has become a darts fan in the last year. He’s passionate about everything from Nando (“overrated”) to his beloved Manchester United (“ten Hag deserves another season”). He teased his entry into the world of influencer boxing, even naming a TikTok user named Beavo who ate a whole potato on camera and warmly entertained Helwani on Netflix with A great one-off game from 63-year-old Phil Taylor. We’re on the penultimate leg of an intense day of press conferences, starting with the 8 a.m. hit on CNN, followed by a photo shoot for Show Off magazine, and a press conference at MSG, before Barstool and Barstool Visited Bleacher Report’s downtown offices.
Littler’s first trip to New York was going smoothly until Wednesday’s traffic hiccup. Since arriving at JFK Airport from Manchester on Monday afternoon, he has felt at home at the Renaissance Times Square Hotel, just steps from the Gardens. When we chatted on the sidelines of Wednesday’s marathon, the Warrington native raved about New York’s food scene — McDonald’s, Wendy’s and 99 Cent Fresh Pizza are three of his favorite meals since arriving — while reminiscing Start with a full day of sightseeing on Tuesday, including stops at the Brooklyn Bridge, the Gemini Memorial Museum and the USS Intrepid. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for a lot of people,” Littler told me. “Like being here, seeing the Statue of Liberty and all that stuff. For myself, it’s just a big dream come true.
That dream continues on Friday night, when Littler makes his U.S. debut at the Madison Square Garden Theater, leading a star-studded field of 16 players that includes Humphries, defending champion Michael van Gerwen and former world champion Peter Wright , Gwen Price and Rob Cross. “It’s crazy to think about the other athletes that have played here,” he said, rattling off two of his favorite players, Conor McGregor and Anthony Joshua, despite the different results.
Littler has been playing for a year since he was 18 months old on a chessboard his father bought at a pound shop. This time last May he was still attending secondary school at Padgate Academy, the town between Merseyside and Greater Manchester where he grew up and still lives. But over Christmas he rocketed to the pinnacle of British sporting consciousness with a fairytale run to the final on his world title debut at Alexandra Palace, and has since climbed up the Professional Darts Corporation’s world rankings to No. 25. Even before last Thursday’s thrilling Premier League title win – which saw him beat the man who beat him last December to become the youngest man ever to win a major – and earn £275,000 ($350,450) Championship Prize Money – Littler has become a leader and a centerpiece of the sport’s promotion. The breathtaking hype seems to be growing by the day: earlier this week, Matchroom boss Barry Hearn, as low-key as ever, described him as “the British version of Tiger Woods”.
Littler’s domestic profile has fueled reports that organizers may make the once unthinkable move of moving the world championships to the Ally Pally, a 3,200-capacity venue in north London considered the sport’s home venue. ) moved to a larger space to meet demand. Little told me he was not only open to the change, but willing to go further. “Imagine going to Saudi Arabia and playing darts?” he said with a smile. “I know we went to Bahrain [for a January event], but think about the World Championships in Saudi Arabia. When asked if he felt there was a responsibility to grow the game outside of the UK, Littler adhered to the company’s stance. “The PDC would obviously make changes if they wanted to,” he said. “If they get the data abroad and elsewhere, then they will do what is best for the sport. I’m sure the players will follow whatever direction they choose.
The rigors of the Premier League tour – described by one PDC media outlet as a rock ‘n’ roll tour spanning 17 consecutive Thursdays from February to May – have taken their toll on Littler, who said the biggest challenge was adjusting to the exhaustion. Travel needs. The same goes for days like Wednesday, which are becoming increasingly common as the organization looks to capitalize on his popularity.
There is an easy calm and quietness about Littler that might hurt him in today’s turbulent news economy, but it seems to be his most valuable asset in his work and the basis of his extraordinary courage. When asked if he had developed any habits or superstitions to help ensure confidence and focus, Littler gave a very simple one. (“I just do what I have to do,” he says, “just get in the zone.”) It’s reminiscent of David Foster Wallace’s observation of elite athlete genius three decades ago. Observation: “What goes through a great player’s mind when he stands in the center of hostile crowd noise and prepares to take a game-winning free throw: Nothing.”
After making his Garden debut in Saturday night’s semi-finals and final, a long-awaited holiday awaits. Littler and his colleagues get excited at the mention of his fourth visit to Orlando — his first as an impressionable teenager in 2017 for WrestleMania 33 — This time it was a return to Universal Studios and the long-awaited first trip to Disney World. After that it was back to daily work, with dates in Poland and France coming up. There’s no doubt that lifting weights is heavy, but it beats working.
“I just take everything in stride,” he said. “I’m just a 17-year-old boy enjoying darts.”
