Order of Merit Players Championship after PC 20 | Ross Smith storms into top 10 after Milton Keynes title as Gian van Veen's Minehead fears grow

The Players Championship series comprises a total of 34 tournaments which take place over Hildesheim, Wigan, Leicester, Milton Keynes and new for 2026, a trip to Den Bosch.

It sees the top names including Luke Littler, Luke Humphries, Michael van Gerwen and Gian van Veen in action over the course of the year with the PDC ProTour being seen as the so-called Bread and Butter tournaments that help towards qualifying for most majors including the PDC World Darts Championship.

But the Players Championship Order of Merit is the one to watch for this series as it sees the top 64 players over the course of the season qualify for the Players Championship Finals which take place in Minehead at the end of November.

It is determined based on total prize money won by each player in the Players Championship events throughout the year. The top 64 qualify and it also spells some issues as it did in 2025 for the likes of Luke Littler, Nathan Aspinall and Luke Humphries who had to qualify late. Michael van Gerwen for instance did not qualify at all.

Ross Smith was the big mover after Players Championship 20, with his Milton Keynes title lifting him to sixth on the Players Championship Order of Merit with £59,250. Smith started the day on £44,250 and added £15,000 with victory over William O’Connor, moving ahead of Beau Greaves, James Wade, Jermaine Wattimena and Jonny Clayton in the top 10.

At the very top, Wessel Nijman remains well clear on £115,500, despite being beaten by O’Connor in the last 16. Chris Dobey stays second on £75,000, with Kevin Doets third on £71,750 and Andrew Gilding fourth on £68,000. Luke Woodhouse completes the top five on £60,250, narrowly ahead of Smith after his title-winning surge.

O’Connor was another major riser after reaching the final, climbing to 16th on £35,750. That puts him level on prize money with Sebastian Bialecki and just behind Dirk van Duijvenbode, Luke Humphries, Stephen Bunting and Danny Noppert in a tightly packed section of the standings.

Further down, the day also strengthened the positions of several players involved in the later rounds. Richard Veenstra moved to 30th on £30,500, while Rob Owen climbed to 33rd on £29,000 after another useful run in his wider Tour Card fight. Henry Coates, despite starting from much lower down, also made a notable jump to 111th on £9,750 after his semi-final run.

The other striking story remains Gian van Veen, who is still only 106th on £10,750 after another early exit. For a World Championship finalist, European champion and Premier League regular, that leaves real work to do in the race to Minehead.

(as of dartsrankings.com)