Winmau World Masters darts: Luke Littler faces 'extra pressure' as he chases missing TV major and continued dominance
Luke Littler needs Winmau World Masters and European Championship titles to complete the set of winning every PDC-ranked TV major; Gian van Veen and Jonny Clayton spoke to Sky Sports ahead of Littler's push for continued darting dominance in Milton Keynes this week
Monday 26 January 2026 20:56, UK
Luke Littler has made winning the Winmau World Masters his next major target, with fresh pressure on the world No 1 as he chases one of the few tournaments left to complete his darting CV.
Littler has dominated the sport since his breakout performance at the 2024 World Darts Championship, winning the Sid Waddell Trophy each of the next two years along with an array of major TV titles.
'The Nuke' claimed the UK Open, World Matchplay, World Grand Prix, Grand Slam of Darts and Players Championship Finals during a dominant 2025, then thrashed Gian van Veen at Alexandra Palace to become the first back-to-back world champion in a decade.
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He needs to win the World Masters and the European Championship to have completed the full set of PDC-ranked TV majors, with world No 3 Van Veen - making his debut in Milton Keynes - intrigued to see how Littler performs.
"The pressure is always going to be on Luke [Littler]," Van Veen told Sky Sports. "Everyone expects Littler to win pretty much every time he plays, which he's not going to do, but he's going to be favourite for all of them - especially this one.
"He said he wants to win the World Masters and the European Championship, so he's going to be extra dangerous in those tournaments. I'm curious to see how far he goes!"
Littler responded to seeing his 21-match winning run on TV being ended at the Bahrain Darts Masters earlier this month by winning the Saudi Arabia Darts Masters, with the 19-year-old now turning his attention to this week's event at Arena MK.
He thrashed Andy Baetens and James Wade in straight sets during his World Masters debut last year before suffering a quarter-final exit to 2021 champion Jonny Clayton, who went on to finish runner-up to Luke Humphries.
"I must have upset him, I think, when I beat him!" Clayton told Sky Sports. "When he writes his book in years to come, it will say he lost against me the first time we met each other on the stage!"
Littler responded to his World Masters exit last January by winning six of the next seven TV-ranked majors, elevating him to world No 1 and leaving Clayton in no doubt about his status as already one of the sport's all-time greats.
"You can ask any player and we're all going to answer the same - he [Littler] is just fantastic," Clayton added. "He's got everything - I think if he played blindfolded, he'd be a tough man to beat!
"He's a good kid and he's a good character for the game of darts. And with the way he plays, what more do you want? You're going to enjoy watching Littler play darts.
"He uses all the board. I know people say 'oh, his favourite double is this', but I think he'd just hit any double for fun. What Luke went on to achieve in 2025…it's only Phil Taylor and Michael Van Gerwen [that have had years like that].
"Humphries is also fantastic and has won multiple, multiple majors, so those are the four names that come straight to mind that have done what they have done in the PDC."
All matches at the World Masters see sets played over the best-of-three legs, a nod to the tournament's historical structure and offering a different test to those faced in other ranked events.
"It's a fantastic tournament," Clayton insisted. "It's anybody's game, but that's what makes it so exciting. It's one of the iconic tournaments and formats, so it's nice to have it back.
"It brings different concentration levels and it's different, isn't it? Whatever you do, if it's different, you worry about it and it plays in your mind. I like things that are odd, so it suits me well!"
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