Fallon Sherrock has beaten Luke Littler. On Friday 30 October, at Manchester Central, the 32-year-old won the first ‘Beat Luke Littler’ event, broadcast live on Netflix, by defeating the world number one in a single 501 leg. The prize: £501,000, or approximately $671,000.
This is the second-largest cheque ever cashed in the history of darts. Only the World Championship title, worth one million pounds, pays out more. And it was won by a player who has never held a PDC Tour Card.
A bullseye, a 180, and a double 20 at the second attempt
Sherrock was the fifteenth opponent of the evening. She first won the right to throw first by landing her dart closer to the bullseye than the two-time world champion. She then hit a 180, the third maximum of the night, leaving 43 whilst Littler was stuck on 142.
The rest came down to two darts: a 3 to set up the double 20, then the double 20 itself, hit on her second attempt. Fifteen darts in total, and 501,000 pounds in the bank. Sherrock didn’t burst into celebration. She removed her darts from the board, almost calmly, before raising her arms towards the crowd.
Fourteen opponents swept aside, then nothing
Up until then, Littler had sailed through the evening without any real scares. Australian jockey Zac Spain, refuse collector Taylor Forrester, Katie Sheldon, the British player on the women’s circuit, and even 14-year-old Jayden Walker had all been eliminated. The youngster was the only one to give him a real scare, with a leg won in twelve darts. Otherwise, the world number one’s form remained inconsistent: just two 180s, and one leg concluded in 22 darts.
The show’s rules were clear: the evening would end as soon as the star suffered his first defeat. It therefore concluded with Sherrock’s double 20, whilst five contestants had yet to throw a single dart. The unluckiest of all was Pearse Mackle, a 21-year-old student from Ireland, who had the match-winning dart in his hand against Littler before hitting the 9 instead of the bullseye.
“Give me a chance and I’ll take it”
The scene unfolded just a few metres from her son Rory, who was in the hall. “It’s mad. Honestly, I don’t have the words to describe what this means, especially with Rory here. It’s the first time he’s been to a match and he saw me win. It was lovely. I’ll remember this for the rest of my life,” she said into the microphone.
Before adding, referring to her 2019 victories at Alexandra Palace: “Give me a chance and I’ll take it, every time. I don’t know what it is, but I’m really proud of myself.”
A casting process that sparked debate
The show cast its net very wide: 25,000 applications, an initial screening requiring contestants to finish 501 in 24 darts or fewer, followed by an interview in front of Phil Taylor, Barry Hearn and Laura Turner. Sixteen players were selected outright, and the eight most experienced contenders were pitted against each other in a head-to-head vote by Netflix subscribers. Sherrock won the vote hands down against Germany’s Jarod Becker, with 75% of the votes.
Her inclusion ruffled the feathers of some viewers, as Netflix defines an ‘amateur’ as someone who has never held a Tour Card. Sherrock has never held one, but she has won 21 titles on the Women’s Series and, in March, brought an end to Beau Greaves’ run of 114 consecutive wins. Her record at the World Championship remains unique: in 2019, she beat Ted Evetts and then Mensur Suljovic before losing to Chris Dobey, and she was awarded an MBE in 2023. The format of the evening, twenty places and a draw to determine the running order, had been outlined before the show was broadcast.
Littler had promised to donate everything to a charity
The reigning world champion had announced that he would donate the £501,000 to a charity should he complete a perfect run. His reaction after the defeat remained sporting: “Brilliant. That’s exactly what someone had to do: hit the bullseye and finish in fifteen darts, and that’s what Fallon did. When she missed her first double 20, I thought to myself: give me a chance. But she took it. World class.”
He also left the door open for a second edition: “I thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish, the adverts, the photos, everything surrounding the project. Perhaps Netflix and I could do it again next year.”
A show, not a tournament
The evening had all the hallmarks of a proper darts event: Gary Lineker hosting, Lee Mack, Richard Osman, Laura Turner and Barry Hearn as pundits, John McDonald coming out of retirement to announce the scores, referee Huw Ware in charge, and a venue full of people in fancy dress. It was darts, with stakes that exist nowhere else.
But the result carries no weight for the future. No points towards the Order of Merit, no official PDC prize money: just a show cheque, the biggest ever awarded outside the World Championship. Competition resumes on 14 November with the Grand Slam of Darts in Wolverhampton, followed by the Players Championship Finals from 27 to 29 November. As for Sherrock, she walks away with another memorable moment and another line added to a career that is already in a league of its own.
