PDC Order of Merit Update: Luke Littler becomes the first player ever to surpass £3 million in the world rankings

PDC
Monday, 27 July 2026 at 13:23
Luke Littler (1)
Luke Littler has not only further strengthened his lead on the PDC Order of Merit after his impressive title win at the World Matchplay. The 19-year-old Englishman also reached a new historic milestone in Blackpool. Littler is the first darts player ever to have more than three million pounds in prize money to his name on the PDC Order of Merit.
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The PDC Order of Merit is compiled based on prize money earned by players over a two-year period at ranking tournaments. After his latest triumph, Littler stands at a total of £3,143,500, making him the first player to break the £3 million barrier.
That milestone was achieved after a dominant week in Blackpool. Littler began his World Matchplay with a 10-6 victory over Niko Springer and then saw off Nathan Aspinall 11-8.
From the quarterfinals onward, the margins only grew. Josh Rock was beaten 16-7, after which Dirk van Duijvenbode was left without a chance in the semifinal at 17-5. In the final, Gerwyn Price also had to give way: 18-9.

Littler shatters Taylor’s record

It wasn’t just the scorelines that impressed. During the tournament, Littler posted three averages over 110 and finished his five matches with a tournament average of 111.04.
That erased a sixteen-year-old record by Phil Taylor from the books. The darts legend achieved a 106.31 average across the entire 2010 World Matchplay. Littler comfortably surpassed that mark in Blackpool.
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In fact, he came close to another record by Taylor long deemed virtually untouchable. During his title win at the 2008 European Championship, Taylor recorded a tournament average of 111.54. With his 111.04, Littler fell just half a point short.
His World Matchplay title also earned Littler £225,000 for the world rankings. That amount could be added in full to his total. Two years ago he lost in the first round in Blackpool and therefore had no prize money to defend this time.
The next threshold is already coming into view. In theory, Littler could break through the £4 million mark this year. To do so, he would have to win the World Grand Prix, the European Championship, the Grand Slam of Darts, the Players Championship Finals, and the World Darts Championship.
Luke Littler holds the trophy firmly
Luke Littler once again received the Phil Taylor Trophy

Price rises, Van Gerwen drops to lowest position since 2012

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Elsewhere in the top ten, movement was limited. Gerwyn Price and Michael van Gerwen were the only two players to change places.
The World Matchplay had major consequences for Van Gerwen. The Dutchman lost 14-12 in the second round to Dirk van Duijvenbode and therefore could not defend his prize money from two years ago. Back then, Van Gerwen reached the final in Blackpool.
The three-time world champion drops three places, from fourth to seventh. It is his lowest ranking on the PDC Order of Merit since 2012.
Price made precisely the opposite move. “The Iceman” reached the final and climbed from seventh to fourth. The Welshman overtook not only Van Gerwen, but also James Wade and Jonny Clayton. That makes Price once again the highest-ranked darts player from Wales.
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Van Veen closes in on Humphries

Meanwhile, Gian van Veen consolidated his third place in the world rankings. The Dutchman reached the semifinals in Blackpool and has closed to within £9,500 of number two Luke Humphries.
Humphries endured a disappointing World Matchplay. The former world champion was surprisingly knocked out in the first round by Cameron Menzies. As a result, the battle for second place behind Littler is wide open.
Just outside the top ten, Gary Anderson took 11th place from Ryan Searle. Wessel Nijman also made gains. Thanks to his spot in the second round, the Dutchman climbed to 13th, at the expense of Chris Dobey.
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Van Duijvenbode the biggest climber

The biggest winner in terms of places gained is Dirk van Duijvenbode. The Dutchman had an excellent tournament and reached the semifinals. His performances earned him £65,000 in prize money.
As a result, Van Duijvenbode jumps five places. He was 28th before the tournament, but after the World Matchplay he can be found in 23rd.
Several other participants also gained ground. Damon Heta rose two places, Cameron Menzies and Dave Chisnall both moved up one spot, and Niko Springer jumped three places.
On the other hand, several players lost ground. Rob Cross dropped three places, while Ryan Joyce slipped one. Andrew Gilding fell two spots and Daryl Gurney had to give up three places.
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Van den Bergh drops seven places

The biggest drop is for Dimitri Van den Bergh. The Belgian failed to qualify for the World Matchplay this year, having reached the quarterfinals two years ago. As a result, the prize money from that run has fallen off his ranking.
Van den Bergh tumbles seven places and sits 46th on the world rankings after the World Matchplay. That makes the situation worrying for ‘The Dreammaker’. In the coming months he risks slipping further, and the former World Matchplay champion may even have to fear for the retention of his Tour Card.
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PDC Order of Merit

Rank +/- Name Prize money (in units of £1,000)
1   Luke Littler 3143.5
2   Luke Humphries 1008
3   Gian van Veen 998.5
4 +3 Gerwyn Price 725
5   Jonny Clayton 684.5
6   James Wade 657.25
7 -3 Michael van Gerwen 643
8   Josh Rock 639.5
9   Stephen Bunting 618.25
10   Danny Noppert 604.25
11 +1 Gary Anderson 601.75
12 -1 Ryan Searle 597.25
13 +1 Wessel Nijman 577.25
14 -1 Chris Dobey 570.5
15   Ross Smith 535.25
16   Nathan Aspinall 531.75
17   Jermaine Wattimena 510.25
18   Luke Woodhouse 492
19   Martin Schindler 447.75
20   Krzysztof Ratajski 430.5
21 +2 Damon Heta 430.25
22   Mike De Decker 428
23 +5 Dirk van Duijvenbode 425.75
24 -3 Rob Cross 424
25 -1 Ryan Joyce 396.25
26 +1 Cameron Menzies 385.75
27 -2 Andrew Gilding 364.25
28 +1 Dave Chisnall 361.75
29 -3 Daryl Gurney 353.5
30   Kevin Doets 343.5
31   Joe Cullen 316
32   Ritchie Edhouse 298.75
33 +1 Peter Wright 280.75
34 +1 Ricardo Pietreczko 277.25
35 -2 Michael Smith 251.5
36   Niels Zonneveld 249
37   William O'Connor 246.75
38   Martin Lukeman 214.25
39 +3 Niko Springer 209.25
40 +1 Callan Rydz 200.5
41 -1 Raymond van Barneveld 198.75
42 +1 Madars Razma 193.25
43 +1 Mickey Mansell 188.75
44 +1 Gabriel Clemens 187.5
45 +1 Connor Scutt 184
46 -7 Dimitri Van den Bergh 183.5
47   Justin Hood 180.5
48   Scott Williams 171.5
49   Ricky Evans 171
50   James Hurrell 168
51   Jeffrey de Graaf 167.25
52 +1 Kim Huybrechts 162.75
53 +1 Mensur Suljovic 158.25
54 -2 Brendan Dolan 155.25
55   Ian White 154.75
56   Keane Barry 146
57   Alan Soutar 139.75
58   Richard Veenstra 139.5
59   Karel Sedlacek 139.25
60   Sebastian Bialecki 130
61   Rob Owen 128.25
62   Ryan Meikle 124.5
63   Lukas Wenig 123.5
64   Nick Kenny 121.25
65   Thibault Tricole 118.25
66   Max Hopp 105
67   Mario Vandenbogaerde 104
68   Bradley Brooks 103.75
69   Cam Crabtree 98.75
70   Wesley Plaisier 90.25
71   Adam Lipscombe 78.75
72   Maik Kuivenhoven 74.75
73   Cristo Reyes 71
74   Tom Bissell 66.25
75   Cor Dekker 64.5
76   Dominik Gruellich 62.25
77   Darryl Pilgrim 62
78   Beau Greaves 57.5
79   Christian Kist 55.25
80   Andy Boulton 51.75
81   Jim Long 47.5
82   Tom Sykes 47
83   Charlie Manby 40
83   Leon Weber 40
85   Thomas Lovely 38.5
86   Oskar Lukasiak 37.5
87   Tavis Dudeney 36
88   Jimmy van Schie 35.75
89   Joe Hunt 34.75
90   Marvin van Velzen 34
91   Darius Labanauskas 33.75
92   Viktor Tingstrom 32.5
93   Shane McGuirk 31
94   Alexander Merkx 29
95   Kai Gotthardt 28.5
96   Adam Warner 27.5
96   Dennie Olde Kalter 27.5
98   Mervyn King 27
98   Adam Paxton 27
100   Greg Ritchie 26.75
101   Adam Gawlas 25.75
102   David Sharp 25.5
103   Jeffrey Sparidaans 23.75
104   Owen Bates 23.25
105   Jeffrey De Zwaan 23
105   Tommy Morris 23
107   Scott Waites 22.5
108   Jurjen van der Velde 22.25
109   Niall Culleton 21.5
110   Benjamin Pratnemer 21.25
111   Chris Landman 20.75
112   Stephen Burton 20.5
113   Martijn Dragt 20.25
114   Tyler Thorpe 19.5
115   Jack Tweddell 19.25
116   Arno Merk 17.75
116   Derek Coulson 17.75
118   Tommy Lishman 17.5
118   Maximilian Czerwinski 17.5
120   Adam Leek 17.25
121   Rhys Griffin 16.75
122   Sietse Lap 16.25
123   Tytus Kanik 15
124   Stephen Rosney 14.5
125   Henry Coates 13.75
126   Nathan Potter 13
126   Harry Ward 13
128   Stefan Bellmont 12.75
129   Stefaan Henderyck 11.75
130   Yorick Hofkens 11.25
130   Steve Lennon 11.25
132   Pascal Rupprecht 11
133   Rusty-Jake Rodriguez 10
134   Samuel Price 9.5
134   Paul Krohne 9.5
136   Carl Sneyd 8.5
136   Boris Krcmar 8.5
138   Daniel Klose 8.25
138   Marvin Kraft 8.25
140   Andy Baetens 8
141   Daniel Ayres 7.75
142   Michael Unterbuchner 7.5
143   Jan Schmidt 7
143   Patrik Kovacs 7
145   Pero Ljubic 6.5
146   Dragutin Horvat 5.5
146   Marcel Hausotter 5.5
148   Lewis Pride 4.5
149   Johan Engstrom 4
149   Finn Behrens 4
149   Callum Goffin 4
149   Anton Ostlund 4
153   Aden Kirk 3.75
153   Christopher Wickenden 3.75
153   Filip Bereza 3.75
153   Scott Campbell 3.75
157   Valters Melderis 3.5
158   Jack Aldridge 3.25
159   Oliver Mitchell 3
159   Patrik Williams 3
161   Graham Hall 2.5
162   Jaimy Van de Weerd 2
162   Michal Smejda 2
162   Mio Varila 2
162   Adrian Dudek 2
162   Gabriel Varaljay 2
162   Jan Sliacky 2
162   Juraj Holub 2
162   Peter Kelemen 2
162   Jason Riedtke 2
162   Nandor Major 2
162   Teemu Harju 2
162   Gyorgy Jehirszki 2
162   Liam Maendl-Lawrance 2
162   Aaron Hardy 2
162   Nick Zwittnigg 2
162   Zoran Lerchbacher 2
162   Michael Hurtz 2
162   Petr Krivka 2
162   Robin Masino 2
162   Kevin Troppmann 2
162   Francois Schweyen 2
162   Jani Haavisto 2
162   Pascal Devroey 2
162   Florian Hempel 2
162   Florian Preis 2
162   Jonas Masalin 2
162   Wojciech Brulinski 2
162   Sam Spivey 2
162   Andreas Harrysson 2
162   Dawid Robak 2
162   Krzysztof Kciuk 2
162   Miroslaw Grudziecki 2
162   Piotr Maciejczak 2
195   Danny Trueman 1.25
195   Ted Evetts 1.25
195   Matthias Ehlers 1.25
195   Jack Todd 1.25
195   Jamai van den Herik 1.25
195   Oliver King 1.25
195   Ron Meulenkamp 1.25
195   Samuel Whittaker 1.25
203   Danny van Trijp 0.75
203   Jesus Salate 0.75
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