Luke Humphries celebrated a sensational victory in the bet365 US Darts Masters with an 8-6 defeat of Nathan Aspinall, claiming the title in front of a North American record crowd in New York on Saturday night.
World number one tasted glory on the PDC's World Series of Darts circuit for just the second time with the triumph, sinking to his knees after hitting the winning double in front of 4,000 fans in The Theater at Madison Square Garden.
The success for Humphries follows victories in the World Masters and Premier League this year, as he continued his big-stage form with another impressive title.
He defied a typically determined fightback from Aspinall to prevail in the decider, with the 2019 US Darts Masters champion hitting back from 3-0 down to level at five-all with a clutch 90 finish on the bullseye.
Humphries, though, showed his class with a 142 checkout to respond in style, and he held his nerve before landing double eight to seal a memorable triumph.
HUMPHRIES IS THE BET365 US DARTS MASTERS CHAMPION! 🏆
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC)
Luke Humphries drags himself over the line in a sensational contest, as he beats Nathan Aspinall 8-6 to be crowned the US Darts Masters champion for the first time in his career!
📺
"This is the most iconic venue that we play in and it's really special to win this event," said Humphries.
"It's one of the top venues in the world and it's one I've always dreamed of winning. When I finally won it tonight it was an amazing relief.
"Once I knew I was in a winning position I started getting nervous - I'm really pleased to win and I'm over the moon. It's another massive event ticked off for me.
"I've won World Championships, World Matchplays, Premier Leagues and these big titles and if felt like I'd won another major.
"That's how big it is - it's very special and you could see my relief at the end. This was the one on the World Series that I really wanted to win.
"The crowd have been absolutely amazing this week, and to have my mum and dad here to see me win again means the world to us all."
Humphries added: "Nathan is such a credit to the sport and you can see that with the amount of support he got from the crowd.
"Nathan is so gritty and determined - he came back at me and made it hard for me but he missed two darts to go seven-all and gave me a chance.
"It's nice to see him back playing the way he can - he makes me want to be better and we always seem to have really good games."
Humphries followed up Friday's first round defeat of Stowe Buntz by ending American hopes in New York with a 6-2 quarter-final win over Danny Lauby.
He then reeled off five straight legs to pull clear from two-all to win his semi-final with Gerwyn Price 7-2.
Aspinall had overcome top-ranked Canadian Matt Campbell in Friday's first round, and continued his superb form to take victory in a quarter-final of the highest quality against Luke Littler.
The World Champion averaged almost 109 in a 6-4 defeat, as Aspinall averaged 106 to book his spot in the semis, where he defied a 170 checkout from Damon Heta to claim a 7-3 win.
"I've had a fantastic weekend and I think it's one of the best tournaments I've played in a long time," said Aspinall.
"I played really well in the final and Luke saved his best performance for the last game; that's why he's world number one and the best player in the world.
"I pushed him all the way but it was a great tournament for me. The crowd were unbelievable again."
Earlier, Price was a 6-3 winner over two-time US Darts Masters winner Michael van Gerwen in their quarter-final, while Heta whitewashed American qualifier Jason Brandon - who had knocked out Rob Cross 24 hours earlier.
US Darts Masters: Results
Quarter-Finals
- Damon Heta 6-0 Jason Brandon
- Nathan Aspinall 6-4 Luke Littler
- Luke Humphries 6-2 Danny Lauby
- Gerwyn Price 6-3 Michael van Gerwen
Semi-Finals
- Nathan Aspinall 7-3 Damon Heta
- Luke Humphries 7-2 Gerwyn Price
Final
- Luke Humphries 8-6 Nathan Aspinall
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