World No.1 Luke Humphries has successfully defended his Czech Darts Open title, claiming the crown for the third time in his career after a hard-fought 8-5 victory over Josh Rock in Prague. It completes a tournament hat-trick for ‘Cool Hand Luke’, who showed his class under pressure to snatch the title from Rock, who led for much of the final.
Unlike last year’s dominant 8-1 win over Kim Huybrechts, Humphries had to dig deep this time. Rock started strong, breaking early and going 2-0 up, including a clinical 146 attempt and a double-four finish. Despite missing several chances to consolidate, he edged ahead 5-4 thanks to a sensational 153 checkout.
However, the turning point came in leg 12. With the score tied at 5-5, Rock missed multiple chances to hold, and Humphries pounced with a 98 checkout to break for 7-5. He then closed out the match 8-5, sealing another Euro Tour triumph and giving himself a crucial confidence boost heading into a packed autumn schedule.
The win is especially meaningful after a quiet showing at the recent World Matchplay in Blackpool, and reinforces his position as the top-ranked player in the world.
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For Josh Rock, it was a second successive final defeat after narrowly losing to Luke Littler in the Flanders Darts Trophy last week. Despite his superb form — including a 111 average and 112 checkout in the quarter-finals — he again fell just short of silverware.
Evening Session Recap
The quarter-finals served up a mixed bag of drama and dominance. Luke Humphries edged out Wessel Nijman 6-5 in a nail-biting clash, recovering from 5-3 down with key checkouts of 81 and 66 in the closing legs. James Wade also came through a last-leg decider against Stephen Bunting, sealing a 6-5 win with a clinical 11-darter.
Gian van Veen produced one of the standout performances of the weekend, dismantling Gerwyn Price 6-0 with a 102.79 average and a 135 checkout, while Josh Rock cruised past Ricardo Pietreczko 6-1 with an 81 finish and an 11-darter.
Semi-Finals
The semi-finals were far more one-sided. Humphries swept past James Wade 7-1, while Rock defeated Van Veen 7-3 with a 99 average and a brilliant 156 checkout, setting up a mouthwatering final between the in-form pair.
Although Rock again came close, it was Humphries who lifted the trophy, reminding everyone why he sits at the top of the PDC rankings. For Rock, the wait for a Euro Tour title continues, but his consistent deep runs suggest it’s only a matter of time.
