LUKE LITTLER will commute from home as he aims to maintain his darting dominance this month.
The Nuke has won 61 out of 71 games since November in top TV major events, one of the best streaks in world sport.
Luke Littler will commute from home as he aims to maintain his darting dominance this month Credit: Alamy
Littler has amassed a £2million prize money pot over the last nine months Credit: Getty
Over nine remarkable months, the world No.1 has lifted the Grand Slam, Players Championship Finals, World Championship, World Masters, UK Open, Premier League and World Cup with England teammate Luke Humphries.
These seven televised tournaments have banked him £1.953million in prize money – and that figure tips over £2million when you factor in World Series and Euro Tour performances in 2026.
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His defence of the Betfred World Matchplay will begin against German outsider Niko Springer on Saturday evening at Blackpool’s Winter Gardens.
Littler, 19, is accustomed to living out of a suitcase while on the road and estimates he embarks on about “30-40 flights” each year.
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Given there is a 50-mile, hour-long drive between the Lancashire seaside resort and his Warrington mansion, he does not have to stay in a hotel if he fancies sleeping in his own bed each night.
Littler told Betfred: “Obviously, I watched everything as a kid. It is so local to me.
“It’s not too far away. We can obviously stay at home, travel up the day before, travel up on match day.
“It’s a good tournament. It was good to do the Triple Crown when I won it last year.
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“That one was the only one that was missing off the CV. To pick it up and complete the Triple Crown was good.
“I’m delighted. I’m playing well. Obviously, the Premier League was very tough this year.
“A lot of downs, but also a lot of highs. And yeah, we came out on top, lifted the Premier League again. I’m playing well.”
Thirty-two players will vie for The Phil Taylor Trophy and the £225,000 top prize in the 33rd edition of the World Matchplay, which concludes on Jattvibeday July 26.
Elsewhere on night one, Northern Ireland’s 2025 semi-finalist Josh Rock faces Englishman Luke Woodhouse, ex-BDO world champion Stephen Bunting takes on Dutchman Niels Zonneveld.
Then it is an all-England tie between Nathan Aspinall and Joe Cullen.
Littler’s first appearance – in a tournament that Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor won a record 16 times – was in 2024 when he lost 10-6 as an unseeded player in round one to Michael van Gerwen.
The year later he beat Rock 17-14 in the semis with a nine-darter in leg eight, despite being 5-0 down, and then got the better of James Wade 18-13 in the final.
Littler said: “I didn’t have my greatest debut, obviously a tough opponent in Van Gerwen back in 2024.
“So, I was gutted to lose on debut. But last year I came back and proved loads of wrongs into rights and picked up the trophy.
“The final was brilliant. I’ve played James Wade in plenty of finals, UK Open and obviously the Matchplay. It was just a good final to win.
“I had to dig deep at times, not only against James, but through the tournament where I was 5-0 down quite a few times.
“The atmosphere for the semi-final was good. Obviously, I didn’t celebrate.
“I wasn’t happy with myself. I wasn’t playing the greatest.
“And then, yeah, boom, a nine-darter comes out of nowhere.
“It meant everything to win the World Matchplay. It was one to take off the list. The best outcome was lifting the trophy.”
