Meet Luke Littler, The 16-Year-Old Darts Prodigy Who Looks Like He's In His Mid-30s

Darts is massively popular in England and so we occasionally get highlights of packed arenas cheering on guys playing a game I only attempted when drunk in college. On Tuesday, 16-year-old Luke Littler beat Rob Cross 6-2 to advance to the final. Littler is clearly an emerging power in the darts world, but video of his accomplishment focused on one thing: how the hell is that kid only 16?

I don’t think describing the scene will do it justice. So here’s video and you’ll immediately know what I’m talking about:

I’m sorry, he looks like a 36-year-old factory worker, not a 16-year-old darts player. How is that kid 16? I honestly can’t believe it. Is this a Danny Almonte situation where we need to check his birth certificate? Commenters on the Internet certainly couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

Littler is quite the story. He reached the final in his world championship debut, and set a record by averaging 106.2 in a 3-0 win over Dutchman Christian Kist, which is the highest ever for a first-time entrant. Littler was the 2023 World Youth champion and will face fellow Englishman Luke Humphries in the final, which will have a best of 13 sets format. The 28-year-old Humphries is the third-ranked player in the world.