From November 21 to 23, the eighteenth edition of the Players Championship Finals was held in Minehead. 64 players fight for the title. It was ultimately world number 1 Luke Littler who claimed the title for the first time after a final victory against Nathan Aspinall.
Littler started the tournament with a 6-1 victory over Jeffrey de Graaf. One round later, he defeated former European champion Ross Smith 6-3 with an average of over 107. Littler also threw well in the last sixteen and managed to win convincingly: this time he beat Ricardo Pietreczko 10-6.
In the quarter-finals, he faced Chris Dobey. Dobey threw well, but Littler threw better and defeated ‘Hollywood’ 10-5. In the semi-finals, a clash with Gerwyn Price followed, not for the first time this year. Littler often manages to win their head-to-head encounters, and this time too he is the strongest: with an average of well over 108, he defeats the Welshman 11-8 and will battle in the final in Minehead for the second year in a row.
He will play that final against Nathan Aspinall. In Minehead, ‘The Asp’ successively defeats Karel Sedlacek (6-3), Richard Veenstra (6-0), Danny Noppert (10-8), Josh Rock (10-8), and Jermaine Wattimena (11-2). A notable absentee in Minehead is Michael van Gerwen, who has not delivered enough good performances at the various Players Championships to be allowed to participate in this tournament. Defending champion Luke Humphries loses in the first round to Gian van Veen (6-5).
Littler and Aspinall will therefore play the final. Littler lost the final to Luke Humphries last year and is eager to add this missing title to his trophy cabinet. Aspinall certainly doesn't make it easy for ‘The Nuke’, but he cannot prevent the title from going to Littler. He manages to win 11-8 and claims the Players Championship Finals for the first time.