Luke Humphreys on stress management, anxiety management and dream fulfillment

A proven young winner, Luke Humphries will be diving into the orchestra this year, moving up the darts and following it all.

Cool Hand won the first PDC title for seniors at the Players Championship in February and surprisingly won three European Tour titles in just over four weeks in April and May.

The success of three World Cup quarter-finals so far this season is hardly unexpected, but even one of the sport’s most illustrious stars won four titles in the first six months of the year. More than expected. ..

The dissatisfaction with the quarterfinals was important for the 27-year-old who learned that achieving a big goal was to win the title.

“I think we need experience,” Humphreys said. Metro.es .. “The first few years of my career had come to a quarters with a weird half. I really couldn’t believe I was going to make it to the final.

Last year it was the final, but I was more happy to be there than to focus on winning. It’s just emotion. You dream of playing in the PDC final. Suddenly I’m there, but I don’t really think about winning.

“This year was different, it was completely different. As soon as I got to the first ProTour final, my mind was completely focused on winning it, so that’s all I played in Europe this year. I was on tour. It’s no coincidence that I won the first one and then the other two. That’s why I’m free.”

Humphreys’ excellent mileage in the 2021 UK Open final was like a turning point in his archery journey.

It was also when he showed that he definitely belonged to the elite. The elite defeated Michael Van Garben 11-5 in the semifinals, averaging over 107.

“This was my first PDC final and it opened my eyes to what I could do in sports,” he said. People didn’t expect to play like Michael in the semifinals.

Everyone knew I was a decent player, but I think I’ve shown a lot of people how good I am. I chased him down with some good arrows, did great things, and I think there is more to come.

It may be an irreplaceable experience for Oceano, who brings glory to the Humphreys, or the news that he expects his eldest son to fit into his handsome form later this year.

“I think it made a difference!” Luke said. Once I found out, of course it didn’t bother me because I won all these tournaments.

“I found out in January, three or four days before I won my first ProTour title. Then I heard a boy was born and I won another title three or four days later. It seems to be working.”

The new arrival causes new pressure, but the cow’s strength seems to have been conquered by Coolhand.

His hat-trick in the Alexandra Palace quarter-final proves he can handle the biggest stages and relishes turning heads in front of big people.

“I liked the pressure and I didn’t feel like I was used to it, but the pressure on stage helped me play better,” he said.

“It’s a strange feeling, it’s different, it forces you to always give everything. Sometimes you can sin by not being like you on the court, and that is the key to the stage. I think. I’m really ready. play well every time Like more pressure.

“I’m happy to be a top player, because that’s where I make most of my assessments.”

Humphreys’ success is all the more impressive as he knows that anxiety destroyed him early in his young career, but after speaking out about his mental health, he made it through and he was the one who learned not to affect the arrow.

“This is something I always have to deal with and it will never leave me forever, but it’s definitely easier to deal with,” she explained. “I’m in a much better place than I was a few years ago.

It bothered me, it was hard for me to disconnect, and when you’re alone in the hotel, or when you’re worried, you just think and you can’t.

“It hasn’t gone away but now I can do so much better, the bad episodes don’t bother me anymore, there’s no really bad wave of panic, sometimes just anxiety. But going on stage doesn’t really affect me, it just comes on random moments, but that’s what I have to deal with and I think I’m fine now.

I left because the arrow affected me. A few years ago I was open and honest about it. There was an awkward episode on stage. I was quite scared in front of these people. Not know what to do. Yeah, I just wanted to get off the stage. I am no longer aware of this. This is something I control and it doesn’t stop me from reaching the height of the arrow as expected.

Humphreys sought help from experts to manage the anxiety, but he believes he has mostly found a unique way to manage it, and speaking publicly about it is important to turning the event around.

“I relied on cognitive behavioral therapy, but I think I did most of it myself. You have to embrace the emotions and learn to deal with them in the best way for you. I don’t struggle badly with it anymore. Ever. I learn to deal with it, grasp emotions and identify the root cause when it happens.

“It really helped me to say it out loud. Sometimes I’d go to the Pro Tour and feel like people were looking at me and staring at me when I wasn’t there. It’s everywhere and I just wanted to be open about it.”

“I knew people were doing it in a variety of sports so I wanted to be a bit out of shape with darts and be honest.

‘I thought it was just them, saying that quite a few experts experienced it right away. I was surprised by the number of arrow players who said they also got it. I’m the only one. I thought. We can all understand that we are not alone, it is very common.’

Humphreys, who controlled past battles, moved the title and earned a world ranking of 13th, is ready to continue this wave and hopes for more success in the coming months.

“I’ve always dreamed of being in the top 16 for a day or 30 years, and it would be great to get there,” he said. But will I ever be in the position I am in now? It seems like several years.

“I am happy to be there. I deserve to be there, but I’m not happy to be established. These eight things can be achieved by the end of the year or after the World Cup. I do not think so. “A realistic goal. In this sport the sky is the limit and work and dedication will take as long as you want.

“I’m happy to get my master’s degree again this year. My time is slow but it will come for sure. There’s no guarantee I’ll win a major title. This is another step. If you push or rush, I won’t.” do it, but i will be very happy when it arrives

“I talk a lot about the Premier League, so I want to be involved.”

The Premier League is a bit different from other sporting goals in that most players must try to support attendance at invited events, but that is what CoolHand is happy to do.

“The Premier League can be a bit limited. Some players seem to complain a little bit and complain a lot about fatigue,” he said. This is an integral part of participation in the Premier League. If they make a big impact in the Premier League, they could spend a year sacking other people who are itching to play there.

“I think I will be successful. I will play well against the best players. I want to test myself to see what I am doing on the Premier League stage. I think it is good. But I don’t know until then.” I’m going to get there Top 8 in the book and next year’s Premier League.

Humphreys, now confident but knowing how quickly everything in the ocean changes, desperately wants to use his beautiful form and keep climbing the PDC ladder.

“Darts can be really weird. You can stay up there for a minute and then come back down,” he said. “She came much faster than I expected. I’m very happy with how I played and how it went.”

“There are more tournaments in the future and I will win as many as I can.”

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