"I have to try now before it’s too late, to unearth something that could be very, very special": Luke Humphries aims to confront negative attitude

Luke Humphries battled through to the next round of the 2025 World Series of Darts Finals with a hard-fought 6–5 victory over James Wade. Despite averaging seven points higher than his opponent, Humphries admitted his performance left plenty to be desired, and he gave a typically honest assessment afterwards.

Humphries survived a match dart in the process to open his World Series of Darts Finals campaign and it has not been the best by his own standards as of late for 'Cool Hand Luke' who has often been in a pretty open mood about his current form.

“Yeah, I mean 99 average, probably flattering to be honest,” Humphries said to Online Darts. “It was a very up and down performance. For me I feel like I’ve got those brilliant legs in me like I usually have, I’ve just not got that consistency. I think that’s the only thing that’s missing in my game.

“Obviously when I do these interviews I’m always honest, I’ll never lie and say, ‘yeah, I thought it was a good game.’ It was a funny game but I think I’m halfway there performance-wise. There’s a couple of legs in games where I’m missing 21 darts and that’s not me really. I think we’re used to seeing better from myself, but I dug myself out of the hole in the end. I won the game and it allows me to go on and play tomorrow and put it right.”

Humphries compared the performance to Prague the previous weekend, where he won despite a significantly lower average. “So yeah, 99 average shows I was steady, but performance-wise it wasn’t at a consistent level, which obviously, as the number one player in the world, you strive for.”

From the outside, Humphries never looked fully settled, something he acknowledged. “Yeah, I didn’t feel comfortable throughout the whole game to be honest,” he explained. “I was swapping and changing flights just to try and appease my mind, to change things up and make myself more comfortable. The white flights worked for a little bit and then I had to go back because they weren’t working again. So yeah, it felt like a struggle.

“But look, it doesn’t matter when you win. I’ll come back tomorrow – different day, different player, different person. I can have these games in the first round but usually I’m much more dangerous after I get through the first one.”

Humphries admitted the tinkering was unusual for him. “When I’m on it, nothing like that goes through my mind. I’m not thinking about changing flights, stems, darts. At the moment, all I’m thinking about is changing darts, changing points, changing flights, changing stems – just trying to get something to work. That’s a negative attitude and not something I’m used to, but I feel like at this point in my career I’m up for trying anything.

“Next year after the Worlds, I’m going to try something new. Same barrel shape, same everything, but I’ll give something else a go because maybe this setup has had its day. I know there’s a level in me that can be really, really good, and I’m excited to try something new to get that out of me. I know there’s a level in me that can match the big averages the top players like Luke [Littler] and all the others do.”

Despite holding the world number one spot, Humphries stressed that he is still searching for improvements. “Yeah, I do class myself as a top player – I’m the number one,” he said. “But what you’re getting from me right now is that I believe there’s a lot of talent in myself that I know I can get better. You have to try different things to become better.

“I’ve won so much being a good player, but I feel like there’s a level in me – without sounding arrogant – that I know I can get out of myself. I have to try now before it’s too late, to unearth something that could be very, very special. I know I’m a great player and I’ve achieved so much, but I just know there’s something in me that can be even better. If I want to win more titles, I have to be better than I am now because the top guys are getting better and better, and I have to follow them.”

Reflecting on the deciding leg against Wade, Humphries admitted he was surprised when “The Machine” missed crucial darts at double. “That’s James all over,” Humphries said. “It wouldn’t surprise anyone if he’d won averaging seven or eight points less. He does the right things at the right time. Unfortunately for him he didn’t do the right thing at the end of the game, which was a shock.

“When he hit the 51, I was adamant he was going to hit that double 16. When that missed, I was definitely thinking the last one’s going in – because that happens to me a lot. But he missed it by quite a distance. When I stepped up for double 14 I told myself, ‘this is like a bucket, you’re going to hit it.’ And it went straight in. That positive change in attitude helped me.

“It was a funny, up and down game – I couldn’t believe it was a 99 average when I came off because it didn’t feel that way. But I know I have to improve tomorrow against Kevin.”

Humphries has already won the World Championship, Premier League, and multiple other majors, but a handful still elude him. “I want to win [this event] because it’s another major title to add to what I’ve already achieved,” he said. “People have asked me so many times if I sit back and think about what I’ve achieved. The truth is, over the last few weeks since I came off holiday, I have thought, ‘do you know what? I’ve done all right.’

“Eight major titles, a World Cup, World Championship, eight European Tour titles, two World Series… I’ve started giving myself more respect than I used to. I’d just go along winning as much as I could, but now I realise how much I’ve won in such a short space of time. It makes me proud. My family have told me that so many times, but now I sit back and see it too.”

Attention now turns to a second-round clash with Dutchman Kevin Doets, which Humphries is relishing. “Yeah, it’s great to play Kevin again. Is he Dutch or Swedish? [laughs] Oh, he’s Dutch but lives in Sweden? That’s going to be tough then – the Dutch crowd will be on my back! I honestly thought he was Swedish. Maybe I should tell the crowd that tomorrow!

“Obviously, the crowd will support him. Kevin is a fantastic player. We had a really tight game in Germany earlier this year, a strange one. But first to six is anybody’s game. He’ll fancy it against me, I’ll fancy it against him. I never make things easy for myself, so it’ll be close. Hopefully the crowd don’t get on my back too much. I had some great support tonight, and I had loads last week, so hopefully it continues.”

Asked what he needs to do to rediscover his very best, Humphries said: “I think I just need to play more. At the moment I’m playing a tournament here and there, then having a week off. Since the Premier League it’s been a bit stop-start. Playing more will create consistency. When you’re competing all the time, you’re practising more, and your level naturally rises. I think over the next couple of weeks and months that will bring my performances to a higher level.”

But he insisted the next few months will not define his career. “I’ve achieved so much over the last few years that whatever happens in the next three or four months doesn’t define my career. I’ve won so much in a short space of time. If things don’t go my way, it’s just a moment in a career.

“Look at Gezzy Price or Michael van Gerwen – they’ve both had long spells without winning majors. That could happen to me too and I accept that. Over the last six months I’ve still found a way when I’ve not been at my best, and hopefully I’ll keep doing that and adding titles.”

Even with his trophy cabinet already stacked, Humphries insists his desire is greater than ever. “I think I’ve got more hunger now than ever,” he said. “When you’re just making your way on tour, winning the odd game, the hunger isn’t the same. But when you’re winning big titles regularly, it becomes like an addiction – you don’t want it to stop.

“Not winning a title for three, four, five months feels horrible. When I won the Premier League and then the US Darts Masters, I hadn’t won a title for a couple of months and I was desperate. Then I won Prague, and that winning feeling feeds the addiction. So yeah, it makes me more hungry than ever.”

Humphries acknowledged that while he is critical of himself, he’s had another successful year. “I’m not going to start adapting and changing things right this moment,” he said. “I’m just hopeful that in the future I can change something and make myself better. The last few weeks and months haven’t been too bad. I made the World Series final in New Zealand, I won in Prague, I lost two really good Pro Tour games to Bradley Brooks and Dom Taylor who played great. And now I’ve won here with nearly a 100 average.

“I know I’m too hard on myself, but I strive for more. I always want to be better. I feel like my performances sometimes get underrated, and I try too hard to be a player who averages 105 every game. That’s not me – I’m a game player. I play the opponent, I beat what’s in front of me. I don’t need to average 110 and win 6-1. A 6-5 win is good enough because it gets you through.

“As I said earlier, I think there’s another level in me that I want to try and unlock next year. But it hasn’t been a bad year – a couple of majors, European Tour, World Series – and most importantly, I won the US Darts Masters.”