Darts May 08, 2026

Premier League Darts permutations: Luke Humphries leapfrogs Michael van Gerwen into Play-Off spot

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By Admin
Sports Journalist
Premier League Darts permutations: Luke Humphries leapfrogs Michael van Gerwen into Play-Off spot

Luke Humphries moved one point ahead of Michael van Gerwen and into the fourth and final Premier League Darts Play-Off spot with only two weeks remaining before Finals Night at The O2.

Humphries has been the chaser for the past few weeks, gradually reeling in Van Gerwen in fourth before finally leapfrogging him on Night 14 in Leeds.

The defending champion earned three points for victories over Josh Rock and Stephen Bunting on his way to the final, taking his tally to 19 for the season, while Van Gerwen stays stuck on 18 after back-to-back quarter-final exits.

Gian van Veen and Bunting are still in contention for that final Play-Off spot, albeit Van Veen's defeat to the latter in their quarter-final in Leeds saw him lose ground on Humphries, who he started the night level on 16 points with.

He now trails the world No 2 by three points, while Bunting - beaten in the semis by Humphries after spurning three match darts - is a further three points off the pace on 13.

'The Bullet' does, however, get an immediate opportunity to eat into that gap and gain some revenge on 'Cool Hand' when then pair meet again in the quarter-finals next week in Birmingham.

Van Gerwen, meanwhile, faces Gerwyn Price - third in the table on 21 points - and has the chance to drag him back into the scuffle for Play-Off places.

The top two are already assured of their places at Finals Night at The O2 on May 28, with Littler and Jonny Clayton having shared the last five nightly wins to sit first and second respectively, on 39 and 34 points.

The Welshman's semi-final loss to Littler in Leeds, however, gifted the world No 1 the chance to move further clear in top spot which he duly took with his third-straight nightly win and a record-equaling sixth of the campaign.

And Littler is not done there.

"I'll take winning three nights in a row! I'm in the clear now and I just need to keep top spot," Littler told Your Site.

"I'm very happy with myself and now I can go on to break my own record."

As well as the top two having qualified, we now have certainty over one other position in the Premier League table and that is Rock now officially being out of contention for Finals Night.

Humphries' three-point haul in Leeds, which included a quarter-final win over the Norther Irishman, took him to 19 points - 11 clear of Rock, who is still rooted at the bottom on eight.

With only 10 points up for grabs over the final two nights in Birmingham and Sheffield, it means Rock's admittedly slim Play-Off hopes have been extinguished.

Quarter-finals
Josh Rock v Gian van Veen
Gerwyn Price v Michael van Gerwen
Luke Humphries v Stephen Bunting
Jonny Clayton v Luke Littler

Based on league table after Night 15
Quarter-finals
2nd vs 7th
3rd vs 6th
1st vs 8th
4th vs 5th

The season-ending play-offs take place on a bumper night at The O2 in London on Thursday, May 28.

Finals Night is not the best-of-11 legs we see in the regular rounds, with each semi-final contested over 19 legs before a final that is the best-of-21 legs instead.

As part of the PDC's biggest prize money increase in its history, the total prize pot for the 2026 Premier League is £1.25 million, up from £1m the previous year.

Each of the four semi-finalists are guaranteed £110,000, with the runner-up taking home £170,000 and the winner claiming £350,000.

Who will win this year's Premier League Darts? You can watch the action every single Thursday until May on Your Site. .

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