Luke Littler may look like a seasoned pro who has been hanging around dart boards in pubs for the past 16 years, but that would be impossible.
Despite his much more mature look, sporting a light beard and grown-up confidence, Littler is just 16 years old.
And he is taking the darts world by storm.
The English teenager from Runcorn, which is located just down the River Mersey from Liverpool, stunned many by advancing all the way to the final of the World Darts Championship this week.
But the teenage dream came to an end on Wednesday, with world No. 1 Luke Humphries taking the title by a score of 7-4.
The unseeded Littler had a chance to become the youngest winner of the biggest prize in the sport before sputtering out in the final.
In fact, Littler held a 4-2 lead in the final match before Humphries stormed back to win five straight sets and secure the championship and it’s $630,000 prize.
For his troubles, Littler took home $250,000 — not bad for a teenager playing a pub game — and has moved up No. 32 in the world rankings.
“I’m happy, top 32, runner-up on my debut. Unbelievable,” he said.
Humphries was effusive in his praise for the phenom after the match, tipping Littler for success in the future.
“Honestly, I was thinking in the back of my mind, ‘Get this one now’ because he’s going to dominate world darts soon,” Humphries said after the match. ”He’s an incredible talent. I had to win this one tonight, but he’s going to win plenty, I’m sure.”
While Littler has enjoyed success in the younger ranks, having won the world youth title last year, he began turning heads after knocking out two former champions in Raymond van Barneveld and Rob Cross during his run to the world final.
“You will never see a 16-year-old kid as down to earth as him … he’s just something else,” Humphries said of his opponent. “He is one of the best players in the world, no doubt about that.”
While his charisma on the stage helped win over fans, Littler shared that he’s just as charming off it. In fact, speaking before the final, the teen said that he’s stick to his pre-match routine of eating a ham-and-cheese omelette, and then later a pizza.
Now that sounds like a typical teenager – even if he doesn’t look like one.
He also admitted that he only trains for roughly 30 minutes a day — talk about a natural.
And, even though he turns 17 later this month, Littler has plenty of time to set the record for youngest darts world champion.
For now, that claim belongs to Michael van Gerwen, who took his first title at 24 years old in 2014.