LONDON -- After all the talk about the nerve-shredding pressure that would accompany history's first £1 million dart, there was no hesitation, not even a pregnant pause. For Luke Littler, that one dart at double 15 rolled off the fingertips the same as any other.
After it landed, however, there was a release. Despite the 7-1 score, it still took actual blood, sweat and tears to get over the line and claim the record prize. His opponent, Gian van Veen, left claret on the board after somehow cutting his hand on a toilet cubicle door during a break in play and Littler cried while slumped on the drinks table after his moment of triumph.
The emotion from Littler, though, was brought forth from an altogether more righteous source. He always maintained this tournament was about becoming just the third player to go back-to-back, a feat that now accomplished, carves his face into the Mount Rushmore of darts.
The expected takeaway from Saturday's final -- contested by an 18-year-old and a 23-year-old -- was of darts' changing of the guard. But by the end of it, it was a question of just how remorselessly one of the new guards had pummelled the other new guard.
"Tonight he was unplayable. He was really, really good," a gracious Van Veen admitted to reporters afterwards. "Even though he's 18 years old, he's got so much experience. He knows what it takes to pick up the world title, and that's what he showed today. He was unbeatable today."
Van Veen, with his stiff black quiff and thin-rimmed glasses, wouldn't look out of place in archive footage of NASA's mission control. Nevertheless, he was billed as one of the few men alive able to pick his way through the cascade of trebles, doubles, legs and sets, that Littler can, and will, churn out during a longer format match such as this. By the end of it, though, the Dutchman was left like all the rest, smirking in disbelief at the sight of Littler in full flight.
In fairness, the challenge Van Veen was tasked with couldn't have been much more daunting. Littler has only lost one match on that stage in his life. As you climb up the hill towards the Alexandra Palace, you can't miss the fact that this is very much Littler's home. He enters the arena to Pitbull's "Greenlight" and, thanks to the tournament's sponsors, the Grade II-listed structure is bathed in them.
Van Veen knew he would get hit hard by Littler at some point during the contest; the question to be answered was whether he could withstand the force. The pre-match signs were good: Van Veen's first dart of this tournament had strayed into the single one segment but he eventually discovered a rich vein of form that allowed him to dismantle world No. 2 Luke Humphries and two-time champion Gary Anderson.
And so, under a Wolf supermoon in north London, they met. Littler, supported by stars in the VIP section -- YouTuber Angryginge passing a black marker to Hollywood actor Jason Sudeikis so he could scribble words of support on the back of a green 180 sign -- and Van Veen, hugging at least three generations of his family during his walk-on.
The first set is often the only moment where Littler appears a mere mortal, most evidently made of flesh of blood, and so it proved again as Van Veen capitalised after the reigning champion inexplicably missed three darts at the outer ring.
Van Veen had a dart for the second set but bent the wire of double eight while trying to round off a 137 checkout. And that, effectively was that. Littler came back to level the scores and then moved through the gears with an almost inhuman level of consistency.
"Luke Humphries and Gary Anderson, the players they are, they always put you under pressure, but Luke Littler is different pressure," Van Veen sighed.
The opening leg of the fifth set offered hope of a comeback as Van Veen hit tops, tops for a 137 finish. Littler, though, stepped forward and hit a nerveless 180 in his next visit, quickly blocking Van Veen's last route back into the contest.
"Any dart player can come back. I felt it a few times tonight," said Littler. "When I was in the lead, Gian was just throwing with a bit of freedom. I could see it from him. I just said to myself, 'don't let him throw with freedom and get back into the match.' So I had to punish him even more."
Van Veen spoke this week of his need to keep up with Littler's scoring to stand a realistic chance of dethroning him. He managed a more than respectable 99.92 but Littler's 106.02 left him gasping for air, unable to fight the rising tide.
The Ally Pally wasp's return offered only a momentary respite from the sight of Littler's darts following his orders to the millimetre.
There has been more than a sense of inevitability about Littler at this year's World Championship. The draw was kind -- he didn't face any of the top nine seeds in the entire tournament -- and his closest rivals fell by the wayside. As in 2024, he didn't even bother to put up a practice board in the London house he rented with his family for these few weeks over Christmas and the New Year.
With this victory, he travels back home with his No. 1 ranking effectively untouchable in the medium term. In truth, a decent share of the £1 million he collected here was carved off his own flank. The Luke Littler effect has turbocharged this sport's transformation from a pub pastime to a global spectacle and made rewards such as this one possible.
But what's next for the boy king?
"I want to dominate everything," Littler said, furrowing his brow. "I obviously want to try and win everything, but obviously the Masters, the Europeans, they're the two ones that I really want to go for this year. And I'm going to come hunting them down."
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ESPN's darts page has all the latest breaking news, features and reaction to the big moments in this year's PDC World Darts Championship.