Luke Humphries' slump continued with a disappointing last-16 exit at the Players Championship 9 in Wigan, while Chris Dobey claimed his second title of 2026 with a commanding victory. Just four days after his quarter-final loss to Jonny Clayton in Brighton, which put his Premier League finals hopes in doubt, Humphries was unable to bounce back and suffered a 6-4 defeat at the hands of Andrew Gilding. Gilding went on to overcome Beau Greaves 6-3, after Greaves made history by becoming the first woman to reach a PDC ProTour quarter-final with wins over Raymond van Barneveld and Premier League leader Jonny Clayton. However, Gilding's run was halted in the semi-finals with a 7-1 loss to eventual champion Dobey, who had earlier thrashed Luke Woodhouse 6-1 in the last 16 and Richard Veenstra 6-3 in the quarter-finals, before securing the £15,000 prize with an 8-4 win over Justin Hood in the final.
Dobey trailed 2-0 against Hood but then took control by winning six of the next seven legs. Throughout the tournament, Dobey consistently produced high averages, culminating in a 105.28 average in the final, which proved too much for Hood's 102.91 average. "My goal is to win more titles, given my performance this year," Dobey said.
"Winning one is tough, so winning ten is an incredible feeling. Stream Premier League Darts with NOW Premier League Darts schedule and table Latest darts videos and highlights Listen to the Love the Darts podcast "Hood put up a great fight with some crucial shots, but I played well all day and I'm thrilled with another win. "My focus now is on replicating this form on TV and in European Tour events. I know I have the ability, it's just about consistency." The tournament in Wigan also saw a nine-darter, courtesy of Thomas Lovely in his round-three loss to Luke Woodhouse.
Last 16 results: Tom Bissell 6-4 Krzysztof Ratajski, Connor Scutt 6-3 Steve Lennon, Tom Sykes 6-3 Martijn Dragt, Justin Hood 6-3 Mensur Suljovic, Beau Greaves 6-4 Joe Hunt, Andrew Gilding 6-4 Luke Humphries, Chris Dobey 6-1 Luke Woodhouse, Richard Veenstra 6-5 Kevin Doets. Quarter-final results: Connor Scutt 6-4 Tom Bissell, Justin Hood 6-0 Tom Sykes, Andrew Gilding 6-3 Beau Greaves, Chris Dobey 6-3 Richard Veenstra. Semi-final results: Justin Hood 7-3 Connor Scutt, Chris Dobey 7-1 Andrew Gilding.
Final result: Chris Dobey 8-4 Justin Hood. Who will claim this year's Premier League Darts title? Luke Humphries will be defending his crown, and you can catch the action every Thursday until May on Sky Sports. Stream darts and more top sports with NOW.