GERWYN Price said that teenage sensation Luke Littler ‘kicked me into gear’ after an 8-1 rout in the final of the Australian Darts Masters.
The 39-year-old from Markham powered to his second World Series of Darts title of the year with a dominant display in Wollongong.
Price, who won June’s Nordic Darts Masters, won the £20,000 top prize and deny Littler an eighth title in as many months.
The Welshman produced a blistering barrage to seize control of Saturday’s showpiece, storming 4-0 ahead with a 112 average.
Littler had no answer to Price’s sustained brilliance, and although the Warrington wonderkid opened his account in leg six, Price won the next three legs to cap off a darting demolition.
“Luke is playing fantastic darts at the moment, and that probably kicked me into gear,” said the 2021 World Champion, who averaged 99.42 and converted 53 per cent of his attempts at double.
“I know I need to play well against every player, but especially against this young talent, so I was right up for this game.
“I haven’t been playing well over the last couple of months, but I really wanted to win this one.
“We can all hit nine, ten, 11, 12-darters, but the game is all about confidence, and this will give me the big confidence boost that I needed.”
Price brushed aside Brenton Lloyd in Friday’s first round, before overcoming Australian number one Damon Heta and a resurgent Peter Wright to advance to his third World Series final in as many months.
Littler overcame his woes on the outer ring with a 12-darter in leg six, but this failed to spark a stirring fightback, as Price responded with another three-leg burst to take the title.
“Fair play to Gezzy. I couldn’t keep up with him there,” admitted the 17-year-old. “He didn’t miss much [in the final] and he deserved the win.
“There’s no excuses. I was poor in that final, but hopefully I can carry my form from my first two games into New Zealand.”
Littler was bidding to join Phil Taylor and Gary Anderson in claiming a hat-trick of World Series titles in the same calendar year, winning through high-quality ties against Michael Smith and Dimitri Van den Bergh.
Following Price's triumph in Wollongong, the darts stars cross the Tasman Sea to New Zealand for the second leg of the World Series' Oceanic double-header this weekend.
The 2024 New Zealand Darts Masters will take place at Hamilton's GLOBOX Arena on August 16 and 17.
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