PDC Order of Merit Update: World Darts Championship already forces major shifts with Gerwyn Price, Michael Smith & Joe Cullen set for costly drops

Although we have only just reached the Christmas break of the 33rd edition of the PDC World Darts Championship, we can already call this year’s most prestigious tournament nothing short of spectacular. After 96 of the 127 matches, it is also clear that the world rankings will undergo major changes in early January.

That is mainly because the World Darts Championship has a heavy impact on the PDC Order of Merit. A whopping £5 million in prize money is distributed at Alexandra Palace, more than six times as much as, for example, the World Matchplay. The world champion takes home £1 million in prize money.

It is highly likely that Luke Littler will remain world number one after the World Darts Championship. Only Luke Humphries can dethrone Littler by winning the world title, and even then the prize money gained would only be enough if “The Nuke” does not reach the final himself. Below Humphries, the picture is far tighter. In theory, as many as 22 players could take Humphries’ number two spot.

Looking at the live rankings, the top six remains intact for now, but that is unlikely to last. Gian van Veen has already climbed three places virtually and is currently seventh. If Van Veen wins one more match, he will in any case overtake compatriot Danny Noppert. Stephen Bunting and Jonny Clayton are also within striking distance for Van Veen, although Bunting and Clayton are still in the tournament. We should not rule out that Van Veen could suddenly become the highest-ranked Dutchman after the event. A run to the final would guarantee that, and it could happen earlier if Michael van Gerwen exits before the quarterfinals.

James Wade has already dropped one spot in the world rankings after his elimination and is now eighth. Josh Rock is breathing down his neck and needs just one win to pass both Wade and Noppert.

Gerwyn Price and Chris Dobey, ranked ten and eleven, are also out, which opens the door for the lower half of the top 16 to climb further, though there is still ground to make up. The gap between number eleven Dobey and number twelve Nathan Aspinall is £45,250, and Aspinall needs two more wins to erase that deficit. Aspinall is currently already up three places.

That comes at the expense of Ross Smith and Gary Anderson, who have dropped two and one places respectively. Anderson can still make amends, as the Scot has reached the last 32.

Jermaine Wattimena can dream of a debut in the world’s top 16. The Dutchman has moved up to seventeenth and, with a third-round win over Anderson, would leapfrog both Anderson and Smith.

Rob Cross must defend a semifinal appearance from two years ago at this tournament. For now, “Voltage” sits three places lower than when he started the Worlds, but Cross still has a chance to limit the damage. A win over world number 16 Damon Heta would help even more.

Luke Woodhouse has continued his rise in the world rankings and is up three places virtually. “The Shed” is provisionally number 22 in the world and looks set to qualify automatically for the Winmau World Masters. That requires a position in the world’s top 24.

Daryl Gurney (-1 to 23rd), Dimitri Van den Bergh (-2 to 25th) and Michael Smith (-3 to 31st) will inevitably lose ground after their exits. Wessel Nijman, despite his second-round elimination, has climbed from 31st to 28th.

Andrew Gilding has virtually returned to the PDC Order of Merit top 32 after reaching the third round. “Goldfinger” is up two places for now and will make a significant jump if he beats Woodhouse in his next match.

Ricardo Pietreczko (33rd) and Krzysztof Ratajski (35th) also have every chance to get back into the world’s top 32. Pietreczko needs one more win, Ratajski two.

Behind them is a group who have already made progress and could climb further depending on results: Kevin Doets (+3 to 38th), Callan Rydz (+4 to 39th), Niels Zonneveld (+2 to 42nd) and Madars Razma (+1 to 45th).

The same applies to Ricky Evans (40th) and Gabriel Clemens (47th). They have also reached the last 32, but are virtually in the same positions they held before the Worlds. Mensur Suljovic (+7 to 53rd), Ryan Meikle (+8 to 54th) and James Hurrell (+8 to 55th) have boosted their chances in next year’s Tour Card race and are now more secure inside the top 64.

The last 32 features no fewer than five players from outside the world’s top 64. This is particularly relevant for Mario Vandenbogaerde, as the Belgian sits 64th and must hold that position to keep his Tour Card. There may still be an escape route for Vandenbogaerde if number 60 Dom Taylor loses his Tour Card. The Englishman was caught using a banned substance during the Worlds and is awaiting his sanction. This could include forfeiting his Worlds prize money and thus his Tour Card, which might leave Vandenbogaerde safely on the right side of the line even in 65th.

However, it is not out of the question that at least two more players could still overtake ‘Super Mario’. The first threat is Justin Hood, who is enjoying a dream debut at Alexandra Palace. ‘Happy Feet’, who in the second round stunned Danny Noppert, needs just one more win to secure a place in the world’s top 64 in his first Tour Card year. Thanks to his brilliant victory over Gerwyn Price, Wesley Plaisier has already climbed eighteen places virtually on the PDC ranking. The Dutchman now sits 74th and needs two more wins to break into the world’s top 64.

For Andreas Harrysson, Charlie Manby, and Arno Merk, the situation is that they qualified for the World Darts Championship as players without a PDC Tour Card. They can earn a Tour Card without attending Q-School, but only if they reach the quarterfinals at the World Darts Championship. These three players each need two more wins to play themselves into the world’s top 64 based on their World Championship performances.

Stephen Burton, Matt Campbell, Chris Landman, Darren Beveridge, Florian Hempel, Steve Lennon, Matthew Dennant, Andy Baetens, Dylan Slevin, Jose de Sousa, Owen Bates, Adam Hunt, Jim Williams, Haupai Puha, Rhys Griffin, Berry van Peer, Patrick Geeraets, Robert Grundy, Nathan Rafferty, Jitse van der Wal, Radek Szaganski, Jelle Klaasen, Martijn Dragt, Danny Lauby, William Borland, Benjamin Reus, Brett Claydon, George Killington, Michele Turetta, Joshua Richardson, Tim Wolters, and Jules van Dongen have failed to secure a place in the top 64 and have lost their PDC Tour Card. They can try to win it back at Q-School in January.