Luke Humphries extended his cushion at the top of the BetMGM Premier League table with a landmark 6-4 victory over his great rival Luke Littler in Exeter’s Night Four final.
Littler had won each of the pair’s six previous meetings in the Premier League, but Humphries halted that unwanted streak with an impressive comeback at Westpoint Exeter.
The world number one followed up his Night One success in Belfast with his second victory of the campaign, defeating Gerwyn Price, Rob Cross and Littler to move seven points clear at the Premier League summit.
The 30-year-old kicked off his Night Four campaign with a 6-4 success against Price, punishing six missed darts from the Welshman in a dramatic finale to avenge his Night Three defeat against the same opponent.
Humphries then landed a trio of ton-plus checkouts in the latter stages of his comeback win over Cross, converting 121, 167 and 116 finishes to triumph in a captivating deciding-leg tussle.
This set up a decisive showdown against a seemingly irrepressible Littler, where Humphries again turned on the style late on to secure the £10,000 winner’s bonus.
Littler drew first blood with an eye-catching 144 checkout, before firing in back-to-back 14-dart legs to establish a 3-1 advantage.
However, the Warrington wonderkid spurned four darts for a 4-1 lead, sparking a mid-match fightback from Humphries, who levelled up proceedings with an 11-darter in leg six.
Littler then paid the price for further missed opportunities in the penultimate leg of the contest, as Humphries crashed in a brace of 13-dart legs to continue his superb start to the season.
“It was hard work tonight, but it felt good,” reflected Humphries, who averaged 101 and hit six 180s to sink the teenage sensation.
“I felt like my game was in a good place, but in certain moments I struggled.
“Luke played fantastically tonight, but he didn’t play as great in the final, and I managed to put my foot on the gas right at the end of the game.
“That’s the first time I’ve beaten Luke in the Premier League, so it’s nice to get that monkey off my back, because if you keep losing, it gets harder and harder.
“It’s a dream start for me, so hopefully I can keep pushing and picking up the points.”
Despite missing out on a second nightly win of the season, Littler performed magnificently in Exeter, averaging 112 and 109 in wins over Stephen Bunting and Nathan Aspinall respectively.
Littler averaged 112.34 to win through an extraordinary quarter-final clash against Bunting, in a contest which featured 16 maximums in just nine legs.
The World Champion then averaged 109.67 to sweep aside Night Three runner-up Aspinall, who defied five 180s from Chris Dobey to triumph in a last-leg shoot-out earlier in the evening.
The evening’s other quarter-final saw Cross edge out seven-time champion Michael van Gerwen, after he survived three match darts to defeat the Dutch superstar for the sixth time in their last seven meetings.
Humphries now boasts a seven-point lead over Littler heading into Night Five at the Brighton Centre on Thursday March 6, with Price and Van Gerwen making up the current top four.
Humphries will renew his rivalry with Cross in the Night Five quarter-finals, with reigning champion Littler pitted against Dobey for a place in the semi-finals.
Elsewhere, Van Gerwen and Price will go head-to-head in the evening’s opener, while Bunting aims to end his winless run against Aspinall.
The 2025 BetMGM Premier League will be broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK & Ireland, through the PDC’s worldwide broadcast partners including DAZN and Viaplay, and on PDCTV for Rest of the World Subscribers.
Click here for match stats and results.
2025 BetMGM Premier League
Night Four (Thursday February 27)
Westpoint Exeter
Quarter-Finals
Rob Cross 6-5 Michael van Gerwen
Luke Humphries 6-4 Gerwyn Price
Nathan Aspinall 6-5 Chris Dobey
Luke Littler 6-3 Stephen Bunting
Semi-Finals
Luke Humphries 6-5 Rob Cross
Luke Littler 6-2 Nathan Aspinall
Final
Luke Humphries 6-4 Luke Littler
Overall Table After Night Four
| NW | MW | L | +/- | Legs Won | LWAT | Pts | |
| Luke Humphries | 2 | 9 | 2 | +17 | 62 | 21 | 15 |
| Luke Littler | 1 | 5 | 3 | +8 | 43 | 12 | 8 |
| Gerwyn Price | 1 | 4 | 3 | +4 | 36 | 15 | 7 |
| Michael van Gerwen | 0 | 3 | 4 | -1 | 33 | 13 | 6 |
| Nathan Aspinall | 0 | 3 | 4 | -6 | 29 | 13 | 5 |
| Rob Cross | 0 | 2 | 4 | -4 | 29 | 9 | 4 |
| Chris Dobey | 0 | 2 | 4 | -6 | 26 | 9 | 3 |
| Stephen Bunting | 0 | 0 | 4 | -12 | 12 | 3 | 0 |
Night Five – Thursday March 6
The Brighton Centre
Quarter-Finals
Gerwyn Price v Michael van Gerwen
Luke Littler v Chris Dobey
Rob Cross v Luke Humphries
Stephen Bunting v Nathan Aspinall
Semi-Finals
Price/Van Gerwen v Littler/Dobey
Cross/Humphries v Bunting/Aspinall
Final
v
All matches best of 11 legs
—–ENDS—–
Images: Simon O’Connor/PDC
