Mike De Decker has made history by winning his first PDC tournament and joining the exclusive group of players who have won the World Grand Prix. De Decker defeated world number one Luke Humphries in the final with a 6-4 scoreline. It was a final filled with high-quality darts, numerous 180 throws, big finishes, and plenty of excitement.
Luke Humphries entered the World Grand Prix final as the big favorite to win. He is the reigning Grand Prix champion and showed brilliant form in his semifinal match against Ryan Joyce. However, Humphries couldn’t handle the pressure; instead, the tournament’s big surprise, Mike De Decker, took the victory.
The 28-year-old Belgian De Decker, ranked 36th in the world before the final (now ranked 25th), had never reached a final in a televised PDC tournament. He had one victory in the Players Championship earlier this year. His previous appearances in the World Grand Prix had ended with first-round exits. But now De Decker found himself in the final after defeating Damon Heta, Gary Anderson, James Wade, and Dimitri Van den Bergh on his way.
Mike De Decker also entered the final as a significant underdog, and his uphill battle became tougher when Humphries won the first set 3-2. But then something changed, as De Decker played his best darts when it mattered the most. He won the second set of the match and four sets in a row, turning a 0-1 deficit into a 4-1 lead. Humphries then found his way back into the game and slowly but surely closed the gap, eventually leveling the score at 4-4. At that point, many expected the world number one, Humphries, to defend his title and secure another PDC win.
But De Decker had other plans, and after winning the ninth set and taking a 5-4 lead relatively easily, he had match point. Many might have felt the title was within reach and become stressed or nervous, but not De Decker. He played perhaps his best darts of the entire match when it mattered most, throwing four 180s in the final set and sealing the game with a double 20 to win 6-4.
With that, his first PDC title was secured, and the victory also meant he made a significant climb in the world rankings and took home £120,000 in prize money.