Luke Humphries Advances to Fourth Round

Luke Humphries the reigning champion along with former winners Gerwyn Price and Peter Wright, all advanced to the fourth round of the PDC World Darts Championship. Humphries, who had not played since December 15 struggled early but eased to a 4-0 win over Nick Kenny. Despite starting poorly, he improved and finished with a 98.59 average and 52.2% checkout rate. “It wasn’t my best, but I’ll fight for this world title,” said Humphries, who will face Wright in the next round.

Wright dealing with a chest infection overcame Jermaine Wattimena 4-2. Despite health issues, the 54-year-old Scotsman maintained his focus and produced key moments to secure the win. “The infection didn’t affect my darts, just my breathing,” said Wright, aiming to feel better for his next match. In an intense match of the night, 2021 champion Price triumphed 4-3 over Joe Cullen in a sudden-death leg. Price, who led 3-0, saw Cullen fight back to force a decider.

Despite missing match darts and struggling with checkouts, Price broke Cullen in the final leg to win. “It was tough, but I got through it,” said Price, who will meet Jonny Clayton in the next round. Ninth seed Damon Heta hit a nine-darter but was eliminated by unseeded Luke Woodhouse, who fought back from 3-1 down to win without dropping a leg.

Heta the 15th seed to fall, expressed disappointment but earned £60,000 for his nine-darter. Stephen Bunting and Jonny Clayton also advanced. Bunting defeated Madars Razma 4-1 with a 100.06 average while Clayton overcame Daryl Gurney 4-3 in a dramatic decider.