UK Open darts: Luke Littler cruises to TV title after thrashing James Wade in one-sided final in Minehead

Luke Littler cruised to a maiden Ladbrokes UK Open title after thrashing three-time champion James Wade 11-2 in a one-sided final.

Wade had defeated world No 1 Luke Humphries and Northern Ireland's Josh Rock on his way to the final at Butlin's Minehead Resort but was outclassed by the world champion.

Littler - who had seen off Gian van Veen and Jonny Clayton earlier in the day - fired a 101.51 average and nine maximums in a dominant display against Wade, winning each of the first nine legs to grab full control.

• Recap: How Luke Littler secured UK Open title
• UK Open Darts 2025: Full results and schedule ?
• Listen to Sky Sports' Love The Darts Podcast ?️
• Not got Sky? Get Sky Sports or stream with NOW ?

Wade avoided the whitewash by winning a scrappy 10th leg, although Littler quickly closed out victory to claim a 12th PDC title of his remarkable career and close the gap on Humphries at the top of the PDC Order of Merit.

How Littler cruised to UK Open title

Littler immediately took control of the contest by following a 14-dart hold by breaking Wade with a 91 finish in the next, before an 11-darter quickly pulled him into a three-leg advantage.

Wade failed to capitalise on wayward finishing during a scrappy fourth leg, where the teenager broke again despite wasting eight darts at a double, with the world champion wrapping up a clean sweep in the first session with a 13-dart hold.

Back-to-back 14-darters and an 11-dart break moved Littler 8-0 up and raised the possibility of the first whitewash ever in a UK Open final, with 'The Nuke' capitalising on Wade missing three darts at double to win the next and move within two of victory.

Wade, who appeared to be struggling with a hand injury late in the contest, received huge cheers after securing the 10th leg with a 21-darter, while 'The Machine' responded to losing the next leg by taking out an 85 checkout to briefly extend the contest.

That leg from Wade only delayed the inevitable, as Littler burned two match darts at double 12 before closing out the second-biggest UK Open final win in history by securing the match on double six.

Wade: Littler bashed me to bits!

"I played well in the semis, but in the final he just completely gassed me out," Wade told ITV. "It seems quite strange - I'm the senior darts player and he absolutely bashed me to bits.

"What can you do against that? He was the far superior player, as much as it kills me to admit it, it is what it is. For me, it's a great step in the right direction. Fair play to him, at the moment he is probably the best or second best in the world comfortably."

Littler, speaking about his victory, said: "It's one I've wanted to win, it's my third time here. Last year I made the quarter-finals, and this year I've gone two better to win it.

"I had a job to do and just wanted to pick up the trophy. It's one I can tick off the list now. I'm now looking at the Premier League and making the top four, making sure I do go to the 02.

"I have got the Pro Tour, the Players Championship and back to the Premier League, so it is going to be a long few weeks."

What else happened on Sunday?

The teenager saw off van Veen 10-4 in the quarter-finals, hitting seven 180s with a match average of just over 107, before Humphries lost to Wade in a final-leg decider and missed out on another potential showdown with Littler. .

Rock beat Nathan Aspinall 10-7 to reach his maiden PDC major TV semi-final and Clayton edged out former world champion Michael Smith 10-8, before both were eliminated in the last four.

Clayton led Littler 4-3 before the world champion rattled off eight of the next 10 legs in a 11-6 victory, while Rock's hopes were ended by a heavy 11-2 loss against Wade.

What's next?

The Premier League continues with Night Five in Brighton on Thursday, where Michael Van Gerwen faces Gerwyn Price in the opening match of the evening ahead of Littler taking on Chris Dobey in the top half of the draw.

Rob Cross meets Humphries before Stephen Bunting plays Nathan Aspinall to round off the quarter-final action. Watch Night Five of the Premier League Darts on Thursday from 7pm, live on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports+.

Sky Sports will once again be the home of the Premier League in 2025, with every night exclusively live along with the World Matchplay, World Grand Prix, Grand Slam of Darts and more! Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW to watch darts and more top sport.

(c) Sky Sports 2025: UK Open darts: Luke Littler cruises to TV title after thrashing James Wade in one-sided final in Minehead