“He really is one of the best players in the world" - Luke Humphries praises 'best mate' on PDC Tour

Luke Humphries has been right at the top of the world of darts for the last couple years. Last weekend, 'Cool Hand Luke' had another strong showing, reaching the quarter-finals of the 2025 Baltic Sea Darts Open on the European Tour.

En route to the last eight in Kiel, Humphries faced off against the man he calls his best mate on the PDC Tour, Ryan Searle. Showing no mercy to his good friend, Humphries whitewashed 'Heavy Metal' 6-0 in a thumping performance. Nevertheless, the world number one was full of praise for Searle when speaking afterwards, hyping up his friend as one of the best players in the world.

“I just said to him in the end there you don’t play well against me. I don’t understand it," Humphries reflected in his post-match interview on stage in Germany, moments after his comfortable win. “In my mind he is one of the best players in the world, honestly, I know him better than anybody. What he does on the practice board and sometimes the ProTour is scary. He really is one of the best players in the world."

There is seemingly one notable flaw in Searle's game though, he struggles every time he faces Humphries. To highlight this fact, the 6-0 whitewash at the Baltic Sea Darts Open last weekend wasn't even the first time Searle has been ransacked by his friend on TV in 2025. Earlier this year at the UK Open, the world number one took another unchallenged victory, romping to a 10-0 triumph in the last 32 in Minehead.

“Look he didn’t play well there, and he didn’t play well against me in the UK Open. It’s strange but I just did the right things at the right time, I guess," Humphries assesses. “A very comfortable win but I did not expect that and thought it was going to be a lot harder.”

And beating someone he's so close to quite so viciously isn't the nicest feeling for Humphries either. “It’s always hard because I want to see him do well and he wants the best for me," he explains. “Obviously we are best mates not just on the darting circuit we are best friends off it. He gives me too much respect maybe, because the last couple of games I seem to have run away with it.”

As mentioned, Humphries eventually came unstuck in the quarter-finals in Kiel, losing out to the eventual tournament winner Gerwyn Price. Next up for the former world champion though, is a much bigger target as he returns to the Winter Gardens in Blackpool to try and defend the World Matchplay title he won for the first time in 2024. In the opening round there, Humphries faces Gian van Veen.