All-or-nothing for Dimitri van den Bergh at the UK Open: Former champion defends a third of his prize money with fall in world rankings looming

With the UK Open 2026 approaching, it’s becoming clear who is under the most pressure when it comes to defending prize money for the world rankings. While some can travel to Minehead relatively relaxed, others have a large chunk of their position riding on a repeat of past success.

Topping the list is Dimitri Van den Bergh. The Belgian has a massive £110,000 to defend, accounting for 32.84% of the total prize money on his ranking. That is a huge share. This is because “The Dreammaker” won the UK Open in 2024. For Van den Bergh, an early exit would have immediate and visible consequences for his position on the Order of Merit. Given that the Belgian has been in poor form for months, it seems inevitable that he will drop a significant number of places.

Behind him there’s a big gap. Ricky Evans follows with 15.87% (£30,000), while Keane Barry has 8.35% (£10,000) to defend. Damon Heta (6.88%, £30,000) and Martin Lukeman (6.73%, £15,000) complete the top five.

What stands out most are the relatively low percentages for established names. Luke Humphries only has 4.01% (£50,000) to defend. Rob Cross sits at 3.69% (£15,000) and Peter Wright at 3.32% (£10,000). Dave Chisnall (2.65%), Stephen Bunting (2.40%), and Gary Anderson (1.66%) also fall into that middle bracket.

Even more striking is the list of major champions further down. Michael van Gerwen is on 0.36% (£2,500), Gerwyn Price on 0.43% (£2,500), and James Wade also on 0.43% (£2,500). This mainly stems from the fact that two years ago they were knocked out immediately in the fourth round, where the elite only just enter. In Minehead they can essentially only gain: they don’t have much prize money to defend here.

The 19-year-old world champion Luke Littler also sits relatively low at 0.52% (£15,000). Two years back he lost in the quarterfinals to Damon Heta.

Further down the list, World Darts Championship finalist Gian van Veen is only defending 1.05% (£10,000) of his prize money from two years ago. He has another chance to cement his position as the Dutch number one as he looks to close in on the two Luke's at the top.

Former champion Andrew Gilding failed to defend a large proportion of his winnings last year but only has to stress about 1.57% (£5,000) this year. World number five Jonny Clayton has just 1.55% (£10,000) on the line with the likes of Ross Smith (1.04%), Nathan Aspinall (1.03%) and Chris Dobey (0.91%) all having £5,000 come off their tallies.

The UK Open is known as the “FA Cup of Darts,” a tournament where upsets are always lurking and seeded players receive no protection from early clashes. That’s precisely why these amounts to be defended can carry extra psychological weight.

For Van den Bergh, it’s simple: he has by far the most to lose. For Evans, Barry, Heta, and Lukeman the same applies, albeit to a lesser extent. For the established order, the situation is different. With minimal percentages to defend, they can play with relative freedom.