Luke Woodhouse sees steady progress as the explanation for his landmark victory against Luke Littler, moving into the last 16 of the BOYLE Sports World Grand Prix for the third time in his career. Woodhouse will face Nathan Aspinall in round two at the Mattioli Arena, hoping to beat the Asp for the third time […]
Luke Woodhouse sees steady progress as the explanation for his landmark victory against Luke Littler, moving into the last 16 of the BOYLE Sports World Grand Prix for the third time in his career.
Woodhouse will face Nathan Aspinall in round two at the Mattioli Arena, hoping to beat the Asp for the third time after nine previous encounters.
Coming back from a set down, Woodhouse reeled back-to-back sets to beat the reigning Champion for the first time in his career, despite a below-par average of 82.51.
“It was a scrappy game,” admitted Woodhouse, who stopped Littler in his pursuit to win all Televised Premier events in 2026.
“It was a very short format… When the games get longer, Luke gets better.
“Sometimes it’s about grinding results out.”
Since his 2024 European Championship semi-final run, the 37-year-old has continued to improve, picking up two maiden titles on the ProTour this year.
“It shows my progress and my maturity, I am now able to turn disappointments around,” considered Woodhouse.
Despite averaging just 71.35 in his first set, Woodhouse markedly improved his performance after the break, averaging north of 87 in the following two sets.
After an impressive year on the ProTour, The Baltic Sea Darts Open champion now has his eyes set on televised success, with his past victories acting as a stepping stone.
“If you win a major, you will be spoken in higher regards,” added Woodhouse.
“I don’t think I have really covered myself in glory on the main TV stage.
“You put yourself under unneeded pressure. I try not to overthink it too much … I used to lose my head too easily.”
Woodhouse will face 2022 runner-up Nathan Aspinall in round two, after the Stockport Star beat Kevin Doets in a dramatic deciding-leg shootout.
The Dutchman missed two visits at 73 for the match, spurning three match darts for a straight-sets win, before Aspinall produced an excellent fightback to claim victory from the brink.
“Nathan is a fantastic player,” said Woodhouse of his upcoming opponent on Wednesday.
“He came back against the odds. The game’s never done … I class him with James Wade: They’ve got gears and got heart.
“It should be a good game.”
Although Aspinall has impressed on the European Tour once again this year – winning the German Darts Grand Prix in April – his round one win against Doets marked just his fourth win in televised Premier events in 2026.
Wednesday evening will also include a rematch of the World Series of Darts Finals final, with Gerwyn Price seeking revenge against Ross Smith following his thrashing of Sebastian Bialecki in round one.
Jonny Clayton will face Wessel Nijman, with the 2021 champion hoping to reach the quarter-finals for the third consecutive year, while two-time semi-finalist Danny Noppert takes on Ryan Joyce.