Reigning World Champion Luke Littler will be a notable absentee at this afternoon’s Players Championship 33 in Wigan.The Nuke missed the 11am registration cut-off by just two minutes and, due to the PDC’s strict ruling, is ineligible to compete today.
It’s a bit of an oxymoron really – whoever they find to fill the vacant spot will also have to arrive after 11am, unless they’ve got a time machine handy.
Still, that’s the way the PDC rolls, and Luke can instead enjoy a rare day off – perhaps a few hours of FIFA and a nap between goals. It’s hardly a disaster for the Warrington lad anyway. His win at Robin Park a couple of weeks ago already secured his spot at next month’s Players Championship Finals in Minehead.
So if you see headlines claiming Luke Littler was barred from playing today, take them with a pinch of salt. The truth is far less dramatic – he missed registration by two minutes, and the PDC doesn’t bend the rules, not even for the World Champion.
He’ll probably want to leave a littler earlier tomorrow though. Maybe three minutes, just to keep the drama going.
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Images: PDC
