Who is World Darts Championship finalist Luke Littler and how old is he?
LUKE LITTLER is one of the greatest talents to grace the oche in a generation – and has become a star because of his heroics this year.
Nicknamed ‘The Nuke’, here we take a look at the darts prodigy’s life and career so far.
Who is Luke Littler and how old is he?
Luke Littler was born in Warrington, Cheshire on January 21, 2007 — making him 16 years old.
He is the reigning world youth champion and has hit incredible averages on the Modus Super Series, earning himself a PDC Tour Card for the 2024-25 season.
Speaking about his meteoric rise in August 2023 before this year’s PDC World Darts Championship, Littler said: “I still can’t believe it. I have surprised myself.
“At the start of the year, my ambition was to win one Development Tour title, and I’ve won five.
“I knew I had the ability to beat the best players on the Development Tour, and I’ve beaten quite a few Tour Card holders — Dylan Slevin, Danny Jansen, Lewy Williams, Keane Barry.
“It is unbelievable. Now I’ve got my Tour Card, I can’t wait to prove what I can do on the big stages.”
He added: “This is a massive achievement in my career, I believe it will raise my game because I will be playing against the best players in the world, week in, week out on the ProTour and in qualifying for the European Tour.
“At the moment I don’t practice much. I usually do 30 minutes to an hour a day.
“Some people probably won’t believe it, but if I’m playing against the best, then I’ve got to up my standard.”
He made his PDC debut in March 2023 at the UK Open in Somerset, beating Nick Fullwell 6-0.
Little stunned Ally Pally with one of the greatest debuts in the history of the sport, as he beat Christian Kist in the first round – and then celebrated that victory with a kebab.
His victory saw Littler become the youngest winner of a match at the tournament and record the highest average (106.12) for a player making his debut at Ally Pally.
The teenager then went a step further by beating No 20 seed Andrew Gilding to shockingly become one of the FAVOURITES to win the tournament.
Littler has since become one of the nation’s darlings, with a picture of him on Christmas day opening presents going viral, along with old footage of an incredible trick shot while he is still in NAPPIES.
Littler revealed of his early years: “By the age of four I got on to the proper board. From 18 months on I have been non-stop.
“When we moved to Warrington when I was eight or nine we started going out to pubs four to five times a week.”
His January has been even better than his December, however, with the teenager incredibly storming to the final of the tournament, beating two former champions along the way.
He destroyed five-time champion Raymond van Barneveld in the last 16 and then eased past Brendan Dolan in the quarter-final.
He then stunned 2018 champion Rob Cross in the semi-final with a whopping average of 108.67 to become one of the most successful sporting teens the UK has ever produced.
What is Luke Littler’s darts record?
Luke won the WDF Irish Open 2021 — his first seniors title — at the age of just 14.
The Nuke has already amassed an impressive array of accolades and titles, including:
- Hitting a nine-dart finish at the JDC MVG Masters 2021
- Selected for the England Men’s Team 2022
- JDC Super 16 2022 winner
- WDF Isle of Man 2022 youth winner
- WDF Welsh Classic 2022 youth winner
- WDF Welsh Open 2022 youth and men’s winner
- Romanian Classics 2022 winner
- Selected for JDC England A Team 2022
- ADC Grand Slam Liverpool 2022 winner
- WDF Boys World Masters 2022 champion
- JDC World Champion 2022
- Won JDC Super 16 2023 — events 1, 3 & 4
- Isle of Man Youth Grand Prix 2023 winner
- Isle of Man Mixed Pairs 2023 champion
- Isle of Man Classic 2023 Men’s winner — Hitting a nine-darter on his way to the title
- PDC Development Tour 2023 — 3, 5, 16 & 20 winner
- JDC Advanced Tour 2023 — 5, 6, 8, 10, & 12 winner
- MODUS Super Series 3 2023 Champion of Champions
- Cheshire Open 2023 men’s pairs winner
- MODUS Super Series 4 2023 Champion of Champions – Luke became the first champion to defend their title
- ADC Vault 2023 winner
- WDF British Classic 2023 men’s event champion
- MVG Masters 2023 champion
- WDF Gibraltar Open 2023 juniors, youth & men’s champion
- WDF British Open 2023 champion
- PDC World Youth Champion 2023
- 2023 JDC number 1 ranked player
- Youngest winner at the PDC World Darts Championship
- Highest average for a debutant at the PDC World Darts Championship