"They let me go up there early, so there was no public around" - Luke Humphries tells story on romantic New York proposal

After the disappointment of missing out on Premier League Darts glory in the playoffs, Luke Humphries returns to action at the iconic Madison Square Gardens in New York for the US Darts Masters this weekend.

Ahead of the latest round of World Series of Darts action, 'Cool Hand Luke' has been using his pre-tournament time in the Big Apple wisely, by proposing to his long time partner. "This city will obviously always have a special place in our hearts now," a beaming Humphries tells Online Darts. "I had to do it in a way where, I just wanted her to least expect it. I felt like she'll probably think that that would never cross my mind ag a darts event. I'm so dedicated and so prepared for every tournament I play, but this tournament was for her. She's always wanted to come here."

Read also

"It could work like the FedEx Cup" - Luke Humphries proposes radical format change to Premier League Darts

"I think I've been planning this for about 3 or 4 months," Humphries continues, explaining how it wasn't just a spur of a moment decision either. "We've been going through the schedule of how we're going to do it and obviously, with the public getting there I think at 8:00 a.m. or something, we had to do it before. We had to get The Edge's blessing to do it, which we're very thankful for. They let me go up there early, so there was no public around and I could just do it by ourselves."

Despite the romance and the lifelong memory making, Humphries does still have business to attend to this weekend. After making his World Series debut in New York last year, the Englishman takes on the experienced Canadian thrower David Cameron in the opening round in the City That Never Sleeps this time around.

"I feel like winning in America is quite big. Especially in, let's be honest, it's probably the most iconic venue we play in on the calendar," he previews. "To win it in such an iconic venue, for us as players is a dream. So I think that's probably the reason why there is such a buzz about and everyone wants to win. Winning it would rank in my top five moments definitely. I think it would be right up there."

Read also

Schedule opening day US Darts Masters including stateside debut of Luke Littler