AFTER a night at the Palace, Luke Humphries will now head to No10 Downing Street for a reception with the PM.
Cool Hand Luke lifted a maiden world title on Wednesday evening as he came from 4-2 down to beat 16-year-old sensation Luke Littler 7-4 in a thrilling PDC World Darts Championship final.
The triumph sealed a lifelong ambition to become world champion and he has also woken up this morning as the World No1.
Humphries, 28, received a congratulatory message on from Rishi Sunak as he lifted the Sid Waddell Trophy at Ally Pally.
As part of his media and commercial commitments over the coming days and weeks, he will head to the corridors of power to toast reaching the pinnacle of the oche.
Speaking in an exclusive video chat with SunSport’s Phil Lanning, the Berkshire battler, who is based in Crewe, said: "I now have a very, very busy schedule.
"I have a Pro-Am in Germany on Saturday. I am going to see the Prime Minister tomorrow.
"I don’t have time to go home just yet. I don’t think I will be going home until Sunday. I have a lot of things to do.
"It’s all part and parcel of being a world champion. Not a bad thing to have to do.
"I am going to be really busy over the next couple of days.
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"I won’t get the chance to celebrate for maybe a week. I will do when I get a chance."
Humphries won three majors in the back end of 2023 – the World Grand Prix in Leicester, Grand Slam of Darts in Wolverhampton and Players Championship Finals in Minehead.
These were the first major trophies of his career and he has banked a whopping £890,000 in prize money since October 2.
His next appearance on the oche will be the Bahrain Darts Masters on January 18-19 when he will be announced by MC John McDonald for the first time in his walk-on as a "world champion".
Humphries said: "This feels incredible. I have worked incredibly hard to put myself in this position. It’s a privilege to be the flagbearer for the sport.
"It is going to be very tough for me to be in that World No1 spot. But it’s exciting times. I have achieved so much in such a short period of time.
"I am excited about the prospect of winning many more titles."
Meanwhile, Littler was gracious in defeat as he reflected on his run to the final.
He said: "I have gained a lot of experience.
"A lot of people know me now, they look up to me, I am happy. I am happy with getting to the final. It has been a rollercoaster."
On Thursday morning, Littler appeared on Good Morning Britain where he discussed girlfriend Eloise, 21, his love of kebabs and the surprising amount of time he spends practising.
