Tommy Morris stuns Luke Humphries with 161 finish to win PC34

Tommy Morris produced a 161 checkout to beat Luke Humphries 8-5 and win his first PDC ranking title at Players Championship 34 in Leicester.

The 34-year-old, who does not hold a Tour Card, finished on the bull to deny the world number three back-to-back titles at the Mattioli Arena on Thursday 5 November.

Morris became only the sixth player without a Tour Card to win a PDC ranking event. His breakthrough also earned him a Grand Slam of Darts debut, a week after Chris Dobey beat him in his first ranking final in Den Bosch.

Tommy Morris beats Luke Humphries with 161 checkout

Humphries had arrived in the final chasing a second title in two days after winning Players Championship 33 on his return from food poisoning.

He took the opening two legs, but Morris responded by winning five of the next six to lead 5-3. When Humphries drew level at 5-5, the Challenge Tour top-up player pulled away again.

Morris won the final three legs, sealing the biggest victory of his career with a 161 finish that left Humphries without another chance.

“I’ve come from nothing. I haven’t even got a Tour Card,” Morris said in his post-match interview, reported by Sky Sports.

His next ambition is to secure a Tour Card and compete alongside the PDC’s leading players full-time.

How Tommy Morris won Players Championship 34

The Poole-based player beat former world champion Rob Cross in the opening round and whitewashed Ricky Evans before overcoming Rob Owen and top seed Wessel Nijman.

Jermaine Wattimena followed in the quarter-finals, before a 7-4 victory over Cristo Reyes put Morris into his second ranking final in eight days.

Round	Opponent	Morris’s winning score
First round	Rob Cross	6-3
Second round	Ricky Evans	6-0
Third round	Rob Owen	6-3
Last 16	Wessel Nijman	6-3
Quarter-final	Jermaine Wattimena	6-3
Semi-final	Cristo Reyes	7-4
Final	Luke Humphries	8-5

Humphries had survived a scare against Mike De Decker, recovering from 4-1 down to win their first-round match 6-5. He later beat Michael van Gerwen 6-3 in the quarter-finals and Jack Aldridge 7-5 in the semi-finals.

Morris is the second non-Tour Card holder to win a Players Championship event this season, following Henry Coates’s victory at Event 25 in July.

Luke Littler and Nathan Aspinall miss Players Championship Finals

The final event of the 34-tournament series also settled the 64-player field for Minehead, with Morris climbing from 44th to 21st on £57,250.

The final Players Championship Order of Merit confirms that Nathan Aspinall finished 85th on £26,500, £6,750 below the qualifying cut-off. Luke Littler ended the series in 130th place.

Coates claimed the final spot with £33,250, level on prize money with De Decker in 63rd. Wesley Plaisier missed out by just £250, finishing 65th on £33,000.

Gary Anderson qualified in 54th, while Josh Rock finished outside the field in 81st. Nijman will be top seed after collecting £160,500 across the series, with Humphries seventh and Beau Greaves eighth.

What comes next for Tommy Morris?

Morris is now set for debuts at the Grand Slam of Darts, Players Championship Finals and World Championship. He had already secured his Alexandra Palace place through the Challenge Tour before Thursday’s victory.

The Grand Slam runs from 14 to 22 November in Wolverhampton. The Players Championship Finals follow at Butlin’s Minehead Resort from 27 to 29 November, with a £750,000 prize fund and £130,000 for the winner.

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