Luke Littler moved top of the Premier League Darts table with his fifth nightly win as he came from behind to beat rival Luke Humphries 6-5 in the Night 13 final in Aberdeen.
Remarkably, it was the first final played out between the world's top two in this year's tournament, with Humphries appearing in his first since Night Six in Nottingham.
He lost out on that occasion to Jonny Clayton, who was leapfrogged by Littler into first place in Aberdeen as the 19-year-old secured a second-straight nightly win despite again being on the receiving end of boos from the crowd.
Littler started the final in some style with an 11-dart leg, with quality darts from both him and Humphries in the early exchanges.
Humphries tied things up at two legs apiece with a 130-checkout, while he appeared to claim a crucial break of throw with a 10-dart leg for a 4-3 lead.
A hold of throw had 'Cool Hand' one leg away from victory, only for Littler to come storming back and claim three legs on the bounce to take the match 6-5.
"I always want to be on the top," Littler told Your Site. "Jonny [Clayton], I don't know if he's much bothered about it, but I want to chase and hopefully break my own record [of six nightly wins from 2025].
"I was just comfortable tonight. Practice was going well and I'm obviously glad to bring it on the stage.
"The crowd were okay tonight, but definitely not the loudest. I think we need another Scottish player in the Premier League to bring the atmosphere up a little bit!
"I can't wait for [Leeds] next week."
Clayton, beaten 6-2 in his quarter-final with Gian van Veen, has already qualified for Finals Night at The O2 on May 28, along with Littler, leaving two spots up for grabs.
Van Veen's victory boosted his hopes, as he closed the gap on Van Gerwen, albeit his 6-3 semi-final loss to Humphries means they both now trail MVG by two points with three nights remaining.
Van Gerwen also lost 6-3 to Humphries in a crucial quarter-final clash earlier in the night, in which he could have increased his advantage over the chasing pack.
Gerwyn Price did just that, claiming two points for his 6-5 quarter-final victory over Stephen Bunting, who along with bottom-of-the-table Josh Rock looks to be out of contention for Finals Night.
Rock was handily beaten 6-3 by Littler in the opening match of the night, while the world No 1 then crushed Price 6-1 in their semi-final - a 15th win in his last 16 against the Welshman.
Your Site Darts' Wayne Mardle:
"Before the Premier League started, Littler had four wins in year one, six in year two, and surely it was going to be seven, eight, nine here, but then it kind of stalled for a little bit.
"But the way he's dealt with it the last two weeks - that final was not a coast, it was a hard game.
"He gets through all the pressurised moments better than anyone else. That's the difference.
"No one handles stressful situations on a dartboard better than Luke Littler right now. That's why he wins.
"When you are 5-3 up in the final, that's a missed opportunity for Humphries.
"If you've got the throw to win a tournament or a night, you feel like you've had the opportunity.
"Unfortunately, Luke Littler decided 'I'm not going to give you a chance to win'
"Humphries broke Littler in 10 darts, but he didn't take the opportunity afterwards due to the brilliance of Littler.
"He's in a way better spot than he was before the night began, it's three welcome points. He's got to believe he can somehow still make the Play-Offs, but tonight will still be bitterly disappointing for him."
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