{
  "id": 10551448,
  "title": "Littler stunned by Waterhouse at World Grand Prix",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/28/littler-stunned-by-waterhouse-at-world-grand-prix",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-28T22:49:06.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "BBC Sport",
    "slug": "bbc-sport",
    "url": "https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/darts/articles/cmzxzjv5gwzqo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Luke Littler's aspirations to defend his World Grand Prix title were shattered following a stunning first-round loss to Luke Woodhouse in Leicester. The 19-year-old Littler, who had been aiming to recover from his quarter-final exit to Jonny Clayton at the World Series of Darts Finals just a week prior, struggled throughout the best-of-three match, averaging only 82.41. Despite taking the first set, Woodhouse managed to level the match and ultimately clinch the deciding set with a checkout of 75, winning it 3-1 in legs. Woodhouse will now face Nathan Aspinall, who upset Dutch debutant Kevin Doets 2-1. Earlier in the day, Michael van Gerwen's six-time title suffered a setback as he lost five legs out of the last six, with Ryan Joyce fighting back to win 2-1. England's Joyce will challenge Dutchman Danny Noppert, who beat Germany's Niko Springer with the same score. Meanwhile, Wales' Gerwyn Price only lost a single leg in his victory over Poland's Sebastian Bialecki 2-0, setting up a clash with England's Ross Smith, who came back from behind to beat Scotland's Cameron Menzies 2-1. Welshman Clayton also advanced past Krzysztof Ratajski 2-1, and he will encounter the Netherlands' Wessel Nijman, who overcame 2018 world champion Rob Cross in straight sets.",
  "summary": "World champion Luke Littler's hopes of defending his World Grand Prix title are dashed as he falls to a shock shock first-round defeat by Luke Woodhouse in Leicester.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}