Phil Taylor. Adrian Lewis. Gary Anderson.
These are the names that conjure up thoughts of modern darts greatness, and the trio are the only members of a very exclusive club: the only players to have won back-to-back editions of the PDC World Darts Championship.
But in December and into January, Luke Humphries will get the opportunity to add his name to that vaunted hall of fame.
Cool Hand
The PDC World Darts has Humphries in as the +250 favorite to successfully defend the title he won in such imperious fashion at the start of the year.
Those darts odds tonight are also bullish about the chances of three-time world champion Michael van Gerwen (+650) and a resurgent Anderson (+1600), but it’s Humphries – in a year in which he has established himself as the best player on the planet – that’s expected to prevail.
The 29-year-old has certainly lived up to his Cool Hand nickname since winning his maiden major title, the World Grand Prix, in Leicester back in October 2023.
Since then, Humphries has won the Grand Slam and the World Matchplay – amongst the most prestigious tournaments in darts, the Players’ Championship, the World Cup (alongside teammate Michael Smith), and, the biggest of them all, the World Championship.
LUKE HUMPHRIES IS THE 2023/24 PADDY POWER WORLD DARTS CHAMPION!! 🏆
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) January 3, 2024
What a year. What a final. What a Champion. 🙌 pic.twitter.com/gV6kZYL1AT
Cool Hand Luke has lost in three big finals in 2024, but even so, his pedigree as a proven winner cannot be questioned; will he join the ranks of consecutive PDC world champions in January?
Plumber Menzies Flowing Nicely
Darts fans love an underdog story: a player, considered nothing more than an outsider before the start of a tournament, who comes through the draw to shock the darting world.
The 2024/25 World Championship may have its perfect candidate in Cameron Menzies, the 35-year-old Scot who combines his darts career with a day job as a plumber.
At odds of +12500, you might think that Menzies has little chance of winning the Worlds, but his form since the summer would suggest otherwise.
His cumulative average in all events since August 1, 96.63, marks him down as the ninth best player on the planet right now. And his improvement in form has manifested itself in a maiden PDC title: he landed Players’ Championship 29 at the end of October.
MARVELLOUS MENZIES! 🏆🏴
— Unicorn Darts (@UnicornDarts) October 30, 2024
Cameron Menzies wins his first PDC ranking title after beating Stephen Bunting 8-4 in the Players Championship 29 final. #PC29 pic.twitter.com/l3SdNmcR91
If Menzies can recapture that form on the TV stage, he could be a real handful at the World Championship: where he could have the rather awkward problem of playing his girlfriend, Fallon Sherrock, in the first round.
But for all his success on the oche, the 35-year-old has claimed that he has no plan to quit his day job; regardless of where his success on the oche takes him.
Menzies has revealed that his plumbing work ‘keeps my sanity’, reflecting the stability he currently feels despite the unpredictability of professional sport.
Rather than Humphries winning back-to-back titles, we may yet see Menzies taking his place as the first plumber/world champion!
