The Nuke Explodes: Littler Claims 2025 UK Open Crown
- Darts Central
- Mar 3
- 5 min read
Updated: Mar 12
The 2025 UK Open—known as the ‘FA Cup of Darts’—once again lived up to its reputation, producing a thrilling weekend of darting drama at Butlins, Minehead. With its open-draw format, no seedings, and no protection for top-ranked players, anything could happen.
Fans were treated to shock early exits, incredible giant-killing runs, and high-quality contests, culminating in a statement victory from Luke Littler, who proved once again why he is the biggest star in world darts.
Day 1 – Underdogs Shine & Big Names Fall
The opening three rounds saw a mix of established PDC pros, rising talents, and qualifiers from affiliate tours battle it out across eight different stages.
A Fast Start for the Qualifiers: With many lower-ranked players and qualifiers playing on the big stage for the first time, the early rounds provided a huge platform for upsets.
Niko Springer’s Historic Performance: The young German obliterated Cor Dekker 6-2 with a 115.92 average—the second-highest UK Open average ever, behind Phil Taylor’s 118.66 in 2010. Springer’s stunning scoring power left the crowd in awe, announcing himself as a serious future contender.
Gerwyn Price’s Shock Exit: Former World Champion and two-time UK Open finalist Gerwyn Price crashed out in his first match, falling 10-9 to Connor Scutt in a thrilling upset. Scutt, ranked 59th in the world, raced into a 7-2 lead, but Price clawed it back to 9-9 before failing to hold throw in the final leg. Scutt held his nerve to progress in what he labelled “the biggest win of his career.”
Beau Greaves Makes History: The women’s world champion and current leader of three affiliate PDC tours (Development Tour, Women’s Series, and Challenge Tour) became the first woman ever to win three matches at the UK Open. She swept aside Bellmont, Griffin, and Mansell, losing just four legs across her opening three matches.
In the 4th Round, she led world number one Luke Humphries 7-5, before Humphries stormed back with five consecutive legs to close it out 10-7 in devastating fashion. A historic achievement for Greaves, proving once again that she belongs at the highest level.
Day 2 – Heavyweights Take Control
With just 32 players remaining, the top-ranked stars began to assert themselves—but some huge names still fell by the wayside.
Luke Humphries’ Statement Performance: The World Number 1 put on a masterclass, whitewashing Ryan Searle 10-0 in one of the most dominant UK Open displays ever.
Michael van Gerwen Sent Packing: MvG fell 10-8 to Welshman Rob Owen, struggling once again with missed doubles. It was another frustrating UK Open for Van Gerwen, whose erratic form continues to raise questions.
Dimitri van den Bergh’s Title Defence Ends Miserably: The reigning champion crashed out 10-3 to Michael Smith, averaging just 70.90—the worst of his PDC career.
Match of the Day – Van Veen vs. Heta: Gian van Veen defeated Damon Heta 10-9 in an epic contest on Stage 2.
Van Veen: 109.90 average, 10/13 on doubles
Heta: 98.95 average, 9/10 on doubles
A modern UK Open classic, showcasing world-class scoring and finishing, treating the crowd to one of the best matches of the tournament.
Day 3 – The Final Day Drama
Quarter-Finals:
Luke Littler (10-4) Gian van Veen – Littler obliterated Van Veen with a 107.30 average.
Josh Rock (10-7) Nathan Aspinall – A tight, high-quality contest, with Rock reaching his first-ever major semi-final.
Jonny Clayton (10-8) Michael Smith – Clayton edged Smith in a tough battle.
James Wade (10-9) Luke Humphries – Wade rolled back the years to defeat Humphries in a last-leg decider in his bid for a fourth UK Open title.
Semi-Finals:
Luke Littler (11-6) Jonny Clayton – Clayton kept pace early at 5-5, but The Nuke’s explosive scoring saw him rattle off five consecutive legs before sealing victory with a magnificent 10-darter.
James Wade (11-2) Josh Rock – ‘The Machine’ dismantled the young Northern Irishman, using his vast experience to dominate from start to finish. Rock struggled to settle, and Wade never wavered.
🏆 The Final: Luke Littler 11-2 James Wade – The Nuke Blows Away The Machine
The final proved to be a one-sided demolition job as Luke Littler powered past James Wade to secure his first UK Open title in stunning fashion.
From the very first leg, Littler looked in complete control, dominating the scoring phase and giving Wade little breathing space. A ruthless 9-0 surge all but ended the contest before Wade finally got a leg on the board.
It wasn’t Littler’s highest-scoring performance of the tournament, but his relentless finishing, scoring power, and composure made it an unforgettable final.
Littler’s Tournament Stats:
Littler’s Tournament Average: 104.35
Littler’s 180s Total: 47
Wade's Frustrations Showed:
Wade, a three-time UK Open winner, struggled to find his rhythm. He averaged just 88.06, his lowest of the tournament. His only 180 of the match came in the 9th leg when the game was already beyond him.
There were murmurs of ‘gamesmanship, as he suddenly developed a limp and shook his throwing hand while heavily behind. Despite the final disappointment, Wade's weekend was a huge step in the right direction, pushing himself back towards the top 10 rankings and a potential Premier League return.
Post-Final reaction:
After lifting the trophy, Luke Littler reflected on his triumph to ITV Sport:
🎤 "This is a tournament I really wanted to win. It’s my third time at the UK Open. I came here as a 16-year-old a couple of years ago, I made the quarter-finals last year, and now I’ve gone two better this year to win it! I had a job to do tonight. I just wanted to pick up the trophy, and it’s one that I can tick off the list now!”
Despite his disappointment, James Wade remained upbeat about his tournament speaking to ITV Sport:
🎤 "This is a great step in the right direction for me. I played well in the semi-finals, but in the final, Luke just blew me away. I’m the senior dart player, but he absolutely smashed me to bits! What can you do against that? He was the far superior player. Fair play to Luke. At the moment, he is comfortably the best or second-best dart player in the world.”
Final Thoughts
🏆 Luke Littler continues his meteoric rise, securing another major title and £110,000.
🔥 At just 18 years old, he’s now hunting down world number one Luke Humphries, establishing himself as one of the sport’s dominant forces.
🎯 The UK Open once again delivered, with its unique format providing high-stakes drama, upsets, and emerging stars.
What’s Next in the Darts Calendar?
Premier League Darts – Night 5 in Brighton - Thursday 6th March live on Sky Sports
Belgian Darts Open – The first European Tour event of 2025 takes place in Wieze - Friday 7th March-Sunday 9th March live on PDC.tv
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