PDC Form Guide Update: Jonny Clayton excels in a standout statistic as Beau Greaves joins the world’s elite
PDC
Who are the world’s best darts players right now when only recent performances are taken into account? Ahead of the Dutch Darts Championship, PDC statistician Christopher Kempf examined the form of the top players. He assessed their last 200 legs. The figures show that Luke Littler no longer leads in every category, while Jonny Clayton and Beau Greaves stand out in the comparison.
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Kempf’s analysis looks beyond players’ averages to examine their scoring power, checkout percentages and number of big finishes. The results paint an interesting picture: the players with the highest averages do not automatically win their matches most efficiently.
Clayton shines on the doubles
Clayton claimed the title at the Swiss Darts Trophy in Basel last weekend. The Welshman beat Luke Humphries 8-4 in the final, underlining his excellent form.
Notably, Clayton does not top any of the key statistics for scoring or legs won. Yet he remains one of the tour’s most effective players.
Jonny Clayton claimed the title at the Swiss Darts Trophy
That is largely down to his impressive finishing on the doubles. Across his last 200 legs, ‘The Ferret’ recorded a checkout percentage of 43 per cent. That puts him ahead of both Humphries and Littler, and among the top ten Tour Card holders in this category.
His figures on big finishes are even more impressive. Clayton took out a finish of 99 or at least 101 in 21 of his last 200 legs. No other player on the PDC circuit can match that tally right now.
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His average of 96.09 ranks sixteenth among the highest averages. A player averaging around 96 would normally be expected to win about 55 per cent of their legs against ProTour opposition.
Clayton performs even better than that. His so-called OChE rating, which measures a player’s expected performance in legs won, is above 57. That puts him seventh in the PDC rankings.
The Welshman, who recently celebrated his 52nd birthday, shows that a high average is not the only measure of success. His ability to strike at decisive moments makes him particularly difficult to beat.
| Rank | Name | Average | 171–180 scores | Three-dart finishes | Checkout percentage |
| 1 | Gerwyn Price | 100.32 | 66 | 13 | 42.25% |
| 2 | Luke Humphries | 100.12 | 67 | 10 | 42.01% |
| 3 | James Wade | 98.20 | 54 | 11 | 44.88% |
| 4 | Luke Littler | 98.13 | 89 | 11 | 38.17% |
| 5 | Luke Woodhouse | 97.68 | 73 | 14 | 41.29% |
| 6 | Nathan Aspinall | 97.49 | 72 | 13 | 40.68% |
| 7 | Rob Cross | 96.89 | 65 | 6 | 36.92% |
| 8 | Gary Anderson | 96.68 | 69 | 6 | 38.30% |
| 9 | Wessel Nijman | 96.61 | 70 | 9 | 41.68% |
| 10 | Ross Smith | 96.44 | 64 | 16 | 44.73% |
Littler remains the PDC’s leading 180 hitter
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Although Luke Littler has had a few disappointing results recently, the reigning world champion remains among the very best in the world when it comes to scoring. In fact, no player produced more maximums across their last 200 legs than ‘The Nuke’. The Englishman hit 180 a remarkable 89 times in that period.
That tally is below the level Littler reached after the World Matchplay, but it is still enough to top the rankings for most 180s. His doubles tell a less convincing story. Littler ranks only 36th in the PDC in that category.
That creates a clear contrast with James Wade. ‘The Machine’ produces considerably fewer maximums, but makes up for it with his accuracy on the outer ring.
Wade hit 45 per cent of his doubles across his last 200 legs. That puts him ahead of both Littler and Clayton in this category.
Gerwyn Price tops the averages
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The analysis also makes a case for Gerwyn Price as the best-performing player right now. The former world champion currently leads the PDC for three-dart average. He also outperforms Luke Humphries in almost every statistical category.
Humphries holds only a narrow lead in one category: the number of 180s thrown, with the Englishman hitting one more than Price.
However, their head-to-head results show that statistical superiority does not automatically lead to victories. The pair recently met in the World Grand Prix final, where Humphries came from behind to win.
According to Kempf, four players can currently lay claim to the top spot in the form rankings based on their recent performances. Littler, Humphries, Price and Wade each stand out in different areas. However, no player is currently dominating across the board to the extent once expected of Littler.
Beau Greaves impresses against the men
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One of the most striking names in the statistical analysis is Greaves. The Englishwoman has dominated the Women's Series for some time, but her recent figures are also impressive when compared with those of male PDC players. Across her last 200 legs, Greaves averaged 96.35, slightly ahead of Clayton's 96.09.
Greaves also hit 65 maximum 180s during that period. Her numbers are reflected in a particularly strong leg-winning rate. Based on her current level, an average PDC ProTour opponent would be expected to win just 44 per cent of the legs against her.
That means Greaves would statistically win around 56 per cent of the legs against an average ProTour player. Her current performances therefore rank above the recent form of players including Gian van Veen and Stephen Bunting.
Beau Greaves is enjoying an excellent debut year as a PDC Tour Card holder
Greaves can compete with the big names
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Greaves's performances do not automatically make her a favourite in matches against players such as Littler and Humphries. The balance of power is different at the very top.
Her statistics do show, however, that she has reached a level where she can compete with a large part of the professional circuit. Her numbers are comparable to those of Ross Smith, winner of the World Series of Darts Finals, and Clayton, who claimed the Swiss Darts Trophy last weekend.
With the 2027 World Darts Championship on the horizon, this is an intriguing development. Greaves has firmly put herself in the spotlight with her performances on the Women's Series, and her recent form shows she can also compete against strong opponents.
FORM GUIDE 📈 PDC Stats Analyst @ochepedia assesses the sport's top ten stars - based on their last 200 legs played - ahead of the 2026 Dutch Darts Championship 👀 📝 https://t.co/Oq99f7gBtJ https://t.co/H1DeJiYz5G
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) October 14, 2026
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Kempf's analysis makes clear that the leading players are currently very closely matched. Littler continues to excel in hitting maximums, Wade is especially accurate on the doubles, Price has the highest average, and Clayton stands out for his high finishes.
Those differences make it difficult to name one player as the clear form leader. With the Dutch Darts Championship and the remaining major televised tournaments of 2026 coming up, the leading players will have the chance in the coming weeks to turn their recent numbers into more titles.
Lucas MichaelDarts Journalist
Lucas Michael is a darts journalist and reporter based in Cambridge, UK, and has been part of the DartsNews team since 2025. He covers professional darts through reports, analysis, round-ups, and live coverage, with a focus on clear context and accurate reporting across the PDC calendar.
A key part of his work is liveblogging major tournaments throughout the year, providing real-time updates, match coverage, and contextual reporting across the professional circuit. He also reports regularly from events on site and has covered the PDC World Darts Championship from the venue, delivering first-hand insight throughout the tournament.
Within the newsroom, Lucas works closely with the editorial team and supports coverage alongside Chief Content Officer Samuel Gill and reporter Kieran Wood.
Lucas holds a BA (Hons) in Sports Journalism. In his work, he places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating content promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- In the absence of a report regarding the death of Stefan Lord, I'll assist. An excellent player in the late 70s and early 80s, he actually won the now defunct 3rd place match at two World Championships and a couple of the News of the World Championships. A fabulous player and easily the best Swedish player ever. Rest peacefully Stefan.richieburnettrocks16-10-2026
- Joking aside, it is the second most watched sport on sky (more than golf, F1 etc) behind football only, and in participation is second to only football and swimming. It doesn't get the attention or sponsorship of "bigger" sports because it's not as sexy, but it's right up there.BandB13-10-2026
- i love darts but you can't seriously believe it's the second most popular sport in the uk. even top five is pushing it. it may be the fastest growing, though.colt13-10-2026
- I'm a big Clayton fan, but he's got this completely wrong. Qualification criteria exists for a reason - so just as failing to make the top 32/64 for the Euro championships/PT Finals means you miss out, so does not lifting a title for this one.26sForFun12-10-2026
- The players who deliberately slow the game down are usually boring and win very little in the way of silverware. Horrible to watch.MrYnyslas197112-10-2026
- [“The Gentle” then used a sweeping and questionable phrase...] You anglocucks are hilariously finished in every sense of the word.Critical99911-10-2026
- I love Jonny but I disagree. The Grand Slam was always supposed to be "champion of champions" type competition. If the top 16 are guaranteed participation in everything there will be so much less jeopardy involved in qualifying and each major tournament will lose its unique flavour which the PDC has worked hard trying to develop. I enjoy following the qualification races towards the end of the year, and while consistency should have its rewards, the truth is Jonny hasn't reached a major final all year or won a single event on the Pro Tour. Being consistent is one thing, but that alone should have consequences as the sport's elite should not be prepared to accept consistently strong performances, their foremost motivation should be to win and this should be what separates them from the rest, not the consistency of their performances. Jonny is expecting that losing should be enough; it shouldn't be, at least not as far as the Grand Slam is concerned.Deduce635811-10-2026
- Well being honest,it doesn't matter what level you play at, there's always someone who slows it down to suit themselves,and extra swig of water, replacing flights, asking the ref what the score is. It happens wherever. I'm not saying it's professional,but I'm sure we've all seen it beforerick6711-10-2026
- Agree completely. Not sure how a ranking event can have a criteria not based on rankings. And he right on popularity. In the UK second only to football.BandB11-10-2026
- Doesn't matter who's in it,it's boringrick6710-10-2026
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