The 2024 World Grand Prix will see Luke Humphries head to Leicester between October 7-13 in the hopes of trying to defend his title.
He managed to be victorious in last year’s event by defeating Gerwyn Price in the final, winning 5-2. It was his first major title and it is one that has set him up for success, as he has won the Grand Slam of Darts and Players Championship Finals later in the year. He followed those victories up by winning the 2024 PDC World Darts Championship for the first time, defeating Luke Littler in the final.
Since then, he has gone from strength to strength, as he has become the #1 player in the world. He was the runner-up at the UK Open, beaten by Dimitri Van den Bergh after he missed two match darts. He won the World Cup of Darts representing England alongside Michael Smith before beating Michael van Gerwen 18-15 to win the 2024 World Matchplay.
Most recently, he lost in the 2024 Premier League final after finishing second in the league format. Littler managed to triumph and beat him in a rematch of their contest at the PDC World Championships in January.
The World Grand Prix tournament follows a concept that is different from other major competitions, and will challenge the world’s best because of the format that is required to follow.
Players are needed to start their legs with a double check-in (or a bullseye). They must also finish on a double or bull. Given the need to be precise from the very beginning, it can be a very frustrating tournament for those who are unable to hit their doubles.
This shouldn’t be a huge problem for Humphries, as he is usually pretty cool when it comes to hitting one of the smaller targets on the board. With that said, he isn’t the main favorite to win the competition with the bookies.
Unibet, one of the world’s biggest and most reputable online betting platforms, has him as the second favorite with their latest odds. He has been priced at 5.00 ahead of the upcoming tournament, with Littler being named the main contender at 4.50. Of course, with the odds rather small in terms of the difference between them, it does appear that he is likely to be challenging.
The latest betting odds perhaps also take into account the recent showdown between the pair at a major televised tournament. As mentioned, Littler managed to defeat Humphries in the 2024 Premier League final, winning 11-7 at The O2 Arena in London.
Humphries starts his tournament against Stephen Bunting and he will feel confident going into the match. He recently faced his upcoming opponent in his most recent Pro Tour event in the final and defeated him 8-7 after being 7-6 behind in Wigan.
Although darts can be about the moment and how well the player is throwing, sometimes it can be a good idea to look at the history of the competition. This can help us to gain valuable insights about what might happen, especially as the tournament is unique to any of the other majors that are televised.
When looking at whether there have been any champions to have retained their title, there have only been two players in history to have been able to go back-to-back. One is the legend that is Phil Taylor (who achieved it five times) and the other is Michael van Gerwen (who did it most recently and just on one occasion). More often than not, there is usually a new winner crowned with each edition of the competition.
Humphries does have a 100% record in the final, having reached it once and winning. This year’s competition will be the fourth time that he will be involved in the 32-player event.
The 2024 World Grand Prix Darts competition is one of the biggest of the year, with a prize pot of £600,000 available to participating players. The champion will take home £120,000 as their winner’s prize, with the runner-up taking £60,000.
