Ranking stress in Blackpool: Which players have the most to lose at the 2025 World Matchplay?

This year’s World Matchplay boasts an impressive prize fund of £800,000, set to be shared among all participants. With such a lucrative pot up for grabs, several players have the opportunity to make significant gains on the PDC Order of Merit — while others risk losing large chunks of prize money and sliding down the rankings.

The PDC Pro Order of Merit is based on players’ performances over a two-year rolling period. That means Nathan Aspinall, who lifted the Phil Taylor Trophy in 2023, returns to Blackpool this year defending a hefty £200,000. Should The Asp suffer an early exit, it could see him tumble down the rankings. Currently ranked world number 7, he could, in the worst-case scenario, fall out of the top 20 altogether.

Another player under pressure to defend a large amount is Jonny Clayton. The Ferret reached the final two years ago and is therefore defending £100,000. He’s currently ranked fifth in the world, but a first-round defeat could see the Welshman drop outside the top 10.

Other players with sizable sums to defend include Luke Humphries and Joe Cullen (both £50,000), as well as Chris Dobey, Daryl Gurney, Ryan Searle and Damon Heta (all £30,000). However, for most of them, an early defeat wouldn’t have dramatic consequences. Humphries, for instance, sits comfortably at world number one with a healthy lead, so there’s no real danger for him. For the others, a first-round loss might result in a drop of three or four places — not ideal, but far from disastrous.

On the flip side, some players have little or no money to defend and can only move upwards this year. Luke Littler, for example, wasn’t involved in the World Matchplay two years ago, meaning he has no prize money at risk. A strong run in Blackpool would only see him close the gap on Luke Humphries at the top.

Michael van Gerwen is in a similar position. The Dutchman was knocked out in the first round two years ago and is only defending £10,000. A deep run this time around could see him increase the gap to his nearest rival, Stephen Bunting. But The Bullet is also only defending £10,000, so if he performs well and Van Gerwen falls early, he could close that gap instead.

Rob Cross, Dave Chisnall, Ross Smith and James Wade are also only defending £10,000, giving them all a chance to climb the rankings with a solid showing this week.

Finally, there are a few players who are guaranteed to lose ground on the Order of Merit. Michael Smith, who was the number one seed two years ago, is absent from this year’s line-up. Bully Boy exited in the second round in 2023 and will now see £15,000 drop off his ranking total — the same goes for Dimitri Van den Bergh and Brendan Dolan, who also failed to qualify.

Meanwhile, Krzysztof Ratajski, José de Sousa, Gabriel Clemens and Kim Huybrechts will each lose £10,000 as they also miss out this year. Steve Beaton was part of the field two years ago as well, but The Bronzed Adonis no longer holds a Tour Card, so this has no impact on the rankings.