Luke Humphries raised eyebrows and prompted worry among fans when he stepped up to the oche at the Mattioli Arena in Leicester on Tuesday evening sporting a sizeable scab on his forehead.
The former world champion was competing in the opening round of the World Grand Prix against Dave Chisnall, and while he secured a comfortable 2-0 victory, it was the prominent mark on his head that got everyone talking.
Naturally, curiosity was rife about what had happened to the 31-year-old, and Humphries was happy to address the situation in his post-match press conference.
It turns out the explanation was far less dramatic than some might have hoped. Humphries revealed he’d been filming for the classic ITV gameshow Bullseye, and woke up the following morning with a nasty rash that only got worse before scabbing over.
Luke Humphries revealed he woke up with a rash after appearing on ITV’s Bullseye
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“I really wanted to bring up some amazing story about how I fought five guys off, they come off worse than me,” he joked in a press conference captured by Oche180.
He believes the culprit was the cosmetics applied during the TV shoot.
“I got an allergic reaction to it. Unfortunately there is no great story to tell, that is what I think it is but I don’t know,” he said.
“I haven’t seen a doctor or anything like that but it just looks like I’ve had an allergic reaction to stuff they’ve put on my head and face. I’m fully well.”
Beyond the scar, Humphries also had something to say about Luke Littler’s surprise first-round defeat to Luke Woodhouse on Monday night — and he wasn’t pleased about it.
Rather than celebrating the departure of his biggest rival, the 31-year-old admitted he was genuinely annoyed.
Luke Humphries said he thinks the make-up at ITV gave him a rash
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“I hate it when he loses because I want to play him in finals,” Humphries said. “I want to beat him in finals. I don’t want to lose to him in finals, but I like playing in finals because it gets me up for it.”
Littler, the reigning champion who demolished Humphries 6-1 in last year’s final, will now miss out on the £150,000 top prize.
Humphries was refreshingly honest about the dynamic Littler’s absence creates. Without the world number one in the draw, he feels the spotlight shifts squarely onto his own shoulders — and that’s not necessarily a good thing.
“When he loses, I’m not like jumping for joy. It puts all the pressure on myself and maybe sometimes it doesn’t help me,” he admitted.
In an ideal world, Humphries would love Littler to remain in the tournament soaking up all the attention as the favourite. “I’d rather him still be in the tournament and be the favourite and then I can just backdoor it to the final!” he said.