- 16-year-old sensation Luke Littler beats Nathan Aspinall to win Bahrain Masters
- Littler defeated Gerwyn Price and Michael van Gerwen to reach the final.
- Dutch Masters to start next before Premier League Darts resumes in February
Bahrain Masters winner Luke Littler may have grabbed the headlines with his impressive performance in the final, but there were other players who risked it all in the Middle East.
Littler won the title, defeating Nathan Aspinall with a great performance that included a nine darter, and was awarded the £20,000 prize money.
The 16-year-old showed his quality from beginning to end in a tournament that saw him play against some of the giants of the game, including Gerwyn Price and Michael van Gerwen.
However, another player encountered a wild animal in Bahrain and narrowly made it out alive.
Former world champion Michael Smith nearly had his hand bitten off while out fishing before the tournament.
Michael Smith had a close encounter with a shark while out fishing in front of Bahrain Master
Smith defeated Peter Wright and Filipino Paolo Nebrida, but lost in the semi-finals to Michael van Gerwen.
The shark was said to be around four feet tall and “almost took away” Mr Smith’s hand, but the Briton made a good recovery.
Smith, who earned the nickname “Bully” after working on a livestock farm in his youth, may have backfired in a big way before returning to Osce for the first World Series of the year. be.
Mr Smith told ITV: “In Arabian fishing you don’t need a rod, you just need a line.”
“Within minutes, I was able to hook a 4-foot shark.
“I didn’t really feel it, but I brought it to the side of the boat and it started kicking.
“It bit into my hand and I almost took it off, but it’s all fixed now.”
The St Helens man recovered enough to overcome his worries once again, defeating Filipino Paolo Nebrida for a 6-5 victory despite his opponent missing two match darts.
Smith then beat Peter Wright 6-1, but lost 7-6 to Van Gerwen in the semi-final, a repeat of the thrilling 2023 PDC World Darts Championship final.
Luke Littler threw an incredible nine darter in his quarterfinal match against Nathan Aspinall
Young player beats Michael van Gerwen in the final to win Bahrain Masters and prize money
Reflecting on his journey, Smith emphasized that “last year was a bit of a struggle.” It was my own doing. Too busy partying, having fun and becoming world champion.
“In 2022, I made it to every final. I was pushing and pushing, but when I won I didn’t push as much. I went back to my previous honors and thought I was done.
“Meet Luke” [Humphries] I should have won, but losing the title started to hurt. Now I have to work harder to get back on track. ”