Luke Littler claimed back-to-back Ladbrokes UK Open titles in Minehead on Sunday, battling past James Wade in the final for the second successive year.
Littler won through the whopping 157-player field to become the first player to win consecutive UK Open titles since Michael van Gerwen in 2015 and 2016, scooping the £120,000 top prize at Butlin’s Minehead Resort with a hard-fought 11-7 victory in the showpiece.
The world number one started the final in rampant fashion by cruising to a 3-0 lead, but Wade stayed within an arm’s reach, reducing the deficit to 3-2 by the first interval.
Wade’s remarkable resilience continued, levelling the contest at 6-6 after Littler again took the lead despite a 12-point gap in the averages at this point.
However, a huge 116 checkout in leg 15 spurred on the defending champion, who took four consecutive legs to claim his second straight UK Open title.
The 19-year-old becomes the fourth player after Raymond van Barneveld, Phil Taylor and Van Gerwen to retain the title following his successful day in Minehead, and remains undefeated in Premier ranking events since losing to Wade at the European Championship last October.
2026 Ladbrokes UK Open
Sunday March 8
Afternoon Session
Quarter-Finals
Josh Rock 10-7 Krzysztof Ratajski
James Wade 10-9 Rob Cross
Luke Littler 10-6 Danny Noppert
Gerwyn Price 10-8 Jonny Clayton
Evening Session (1900 GMT)
Semi-Finals
James Wade 11-8 Gerwyn Price
Luke Littler 11-9 Josh Rock
Final
James Wade 7-11 Luke Littler
Semi-finals and Final are best of 21 legs.
Prize Fund
Winner - £120,000
Runner-Up - £60,000
Semi-Finalists - £35,000
Quarter-Finalists - £20,000
Round Six Losers - £12,500
Round Five Losers - £7,500
Round Four Losers - £3,000
Round Three Losers - £2,000
Round Two Losers - £1,250
Total - £750,000
Format
Rounds One-Three - Best of 11 legs
Round Four-Quarter-Finals - Best of 19 legs
Semi-Finals & Final - Best of 21 legs
An open draw will be made at the end of each round from the conclusion of Round Three onwards. The first three rounds were pre-drawn at random.