WDF Lakeside Race Update: 27 players including top favourite Mitchell Lawrie — already assured of places at 'home of World Darts'
WDF
The contours of the WDF World Championship 2026 are coming into sharper focus. After the Philippines Open, 27 players are now assured of a place at the Lakeside World Championship. A large part of the field remains open, however: dozens of spots for the Open qualifiers still need to be filled. Several spots in the women’s and youth events are also still up for grabs.
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The WDF World Championship will be played from 27.11.2026 to 06.12.2026 at the iconic Lakeside Country Club in Frimley Green. It is the precursor also to the PDC World Darts Championship as one of two main title tilts this season.
Many familiar names already qualified
In the men’s field, sixteen players currently sit on a qualifying path via the provisional Open Race Ranking. Mitchell Lawrie, winner of the Denmark Open, leads that list. Behind the Scot are, among others, Jenson Walker, Paul Krohne, Moreno Blom, Corne Groeneveld, Ross Montgomery, James Beeton, and Leonard Gates.
Chris Lim is also certain of Lakeside. The American secured his spot by winning the World Masters. In addition, Neil Duff, Kaya Baysal, Andras Borbely, Mursel Yavuz, Jarno Bottenberg, Daniel Zapata, and Belgian Brian Raman currently complete the top sixteen.
Several players are also in thanks to victories at key WDF events. David Davies, Jason Brandon, Jack Drayton, Jeff Smith, Ryusei Azemoto, Mark Cleaver, Blake Hatchett, and Terry Jun Hao Tan have booked their tickets. The winner of the Hungarian Masters will likewise receive a direct place.
The regional ranking tables will add more qualifiers. Among those currently on course are Ryuta Arihara, Christian De Los Reyes, Raymond Smith, Declan Bailey, Jean-Michel Legault, Franko Giuliani, Haupai Puha, and Caleb Hope.
Berry Pater has qualified, as has Stefan Schröder is also on track for Lakeside. Liam Maendl-Lawrance is among the players currently in position via the last-chance qualifier.
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Lakeside Qualification Men
| Rank | Player | Country |
| 1 | Mitchell Lawrie | SCO |
| 2 | Jenson Walker | ENG |
| 3 | Paul Krohne | GER |
| 4 | Moreno Blom | NED |
| 5 | Corne Groeneveld | NED |
| 6 | Ross Montgomery | SCO |
| 7 | James Beeton | ENG |
| 8 | Leonard Gates | USA |
| 9 | Chris Lim | USA |
| 10 | Neil Duff | NI |
| 11 | Kaya Baysal | ENG |
| 12 | Andras Borbely | HUN |
| 13 | Mursel Yavuz | TUR |
| 14 | Jarno Bottenberg | NED |
| 15 | Daniel Zapata | CAT |
| 16 | Brian Raman | BEL |
| 17 | David Davies | WAL |
| 18 | Jason Brandon | USA |
| 19 | Jack Drayton | ENG |
| 20 | Jeff Smith | CAN |
| 21 | Ryusei Azemoto | JPN |
| 22 | Mark Cleaver | NZL |
| 23 | Blake Hatchett | AUS |
| 24 | Terry Jun Hao Tan | MLY |
| 25 | Hungarian Masters winner | |
| 26 | Ryuta Arihara | JPN |
| 27 | Christian De Los Reyes | PHI |
| 28 | Raymond Smith | AUS |
| 29 | Declan Bailey | AUS |
| 30 | Jean-Michel Legault | CAN |
| 31 | Franko Giuliani | AUT |
| 32 | Haupai Puha | NZL |
| 33 | Caleb Hope | NZL |
| 34 | Petri Rasmus | FIN |
| 35 | Dennis Nilsson | SWE |
| 36 | Ethan De Veyra | USA |
| 37 | Scott Robertson | SCO |
| 38 | Alex Spellman | USA |
| 39 | Alex Williams | WAL |
| 40 | Stefan Schroder | NED |
| 41 | Matthew Edgar | ENG |
| 42 | Carsten Hoffmann | GER |
| 43 | Anthony Brown | ENG |
| 44 | Matt Clark | ENG |
| 45 | Berry Pater | NED |
| 46 | Liam Maendl-Lawrance | GER |
| 47 | Q3 | |
| 48 | Q4 |
Women’s field taking shape as well
Twelve of the 24 spots in the women’s event are now filled. Deta Hedman tops the provisional qualifying list. The Englishwoman won the WDF World Championship 2025 and several major WDF events in 2026.
Priscilla Steenbergen, Maria Carli, Rhian O'Sullivan, Paula Jacklin, Kirsi Viinikainen, Gemma Hayter, and Nicole Regnaud are also set.
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Among the regional qualifiers we currently find Joanne Hadley, Jitka Cisarova, Cali West, and Dutch player Lerena Rietbergen. Aileen de Graaf, Irina Armstrong, Emine Dursun, Paula Murphy, Anca Zijlstra, and Eve Watson are also on qualifying pace.
Lakeside Qualification – Women's
| Rank | Player | Country |
| 1 | Deta Hedman | ENG |
| 2 | Priscilla Steenbergen | NED |
| 3 | Maria Carli | CAN |
| 4 | Rhian O'Sullivan | WAL |
| 5 | Paula Jacklin | ENG |
| 6 | Kirsi Viinikainen | FIN |
| 7 | Gemma Hayter | ENG |
| 8 | Nicole Regnaud | NZL |
| 9 | Mayumi Ouchi | JPN |
| 10 | Christine Richardson | AUS |
| 11 | Lovely Mae Orbeta | PHI |
| 12 | Hungarian Masters winner | |
| 13 | Joanne Hadley | AUS |
| 14 | Jitka Cisarova | CZE |
| 15 | Cali West | USA |
| 16 | Lerena Rietbergen | NED |
| 17 | Aileen de Graaf | NED |
| 18 | Irina Armstrong | GER |
| 19 | Emine Dursun | TUR |
| 20 | Paula Murphy | USA |
| 21 | Anca Zijlstra | NED |
| 22 | Eve Watson | WAL |
| 23 | Sophie McKinlay | SCO |
| 24 | Q2 |
Lawrie leads boys again
The youth will also take to the big Lakeside stage. In the boys’ event, Mitchell Lawrie and Benjamin Dopfer are already in as winners of the World Championship and World Masters respectively. Kaya Baysal, Kai Burger, Jack Nankervis, Mason Teese, Mika Donnevert, and Zsolt Csajbok are likewise on course to qualify.
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Baysal set for Lakeside again.
In the girls’ event, Zehra Gemi and Ruby Grey are assured of participation. Paige Pauling and Macy Gibbons currently hold the two places via the ranking.
The qualifying battle is far from over. The WDF ranking calendar continues at full pace in the coming weeks. From 10.09 to 13.09, new ranking events are scheduled in India, Canada, Hungary, Italy, New Zealand, and the United States.
Read also
The WDF will keep updating the provisional entry list weekly until the end of the season on 02.11. After that, it will be clear who will travel to the legendary Lakeside to contest the world titles.
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Samuel GillChief Content Officer
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of DartsNews.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy across professional darts coverage. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces, playing a central role in the development and daily operation of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has extensive experience in darts media and has been closely involved in coverage of the professional darts circuit for several years. Within the UK darts community, he is a recognised figure known for his consistent editorial output and ongoing reporting on major tournaments and developments across the PDC calendar.
In his current role, Samuel works closely with editors and writers to ensure content meets clear journalistic standards, with a focus on source verification, editorial consistency, and timely updates when new, confirmed information becomes available.
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- Well,I suppose if you don't play the tournaments ,then why should any player qualify? There are players who enter every tournament,and if they don't win it,they carry on, spending money they haven't won,yet certain players seem to think they should qualify. Winners only I thinkrick6714-11-2026
- Everyone knows what a fantastic champion Taylor was,but his performances in the seniors were poor. He wouldn't throw littler off stage,as he'd miss these days!!rick6712-11-2026
- He produced some impressive numbers in that qualifying campaign. I'm excited to see him compete at the World Championship once again, even if it will be difficult to replicate last year's success even with an improved performance, with the draw playing a huge role in determining his fortunes.Deduce635811-11-2026
- I often think about this very question. I think they should revive the format. They could even invite representatives from MODUS Super Series, with four series winners from the past year, and the ADC, with finalists from the Global Championship and perhaps other events. Why not throw in eligible representatives from the JDC and even the soft-tip game too?Deduce635811-11-2026
- So what if littler missed out, he doesnt have to enter everythingant10-11-2026
- Good, absolutely no loss if we never see this dancing goof ever again......no that is not fair. He absolutely cannot and has never been remotely able to dance!richieburnettrocks10-11-2026
- Yes Phil,now the money in the game is bigger than ever,you'd play littler. Well so would I! Retire on your memory Phil,and your successful careerrick6709-11-2026
- And why should he listen to you?Deduce635807-11-2026
- Ultimately it is a bye for whoever draws Barney. It will be another stroppy and sulky performance once he goes behind. Barney was excellent but really must completely call it a day now.richieburnettrocks07-11-2026
- I'm disappointed he was not able to secure a spot at the Grand Slam. With Carl Sneyd taking care of Daryl Gurney, he would have had to beat Andy Boulton before facing the winner of Sneyd vs Mensur Suljović for a Grand Slam spot. Unfortunately, after beating Filip Bereza comfortably, he succumbed to Boulton, and the board would ultimately be won by the highly inconsistent Carl Sneyd. Since he could instead have been drawn against the likes of Cristo Reyes, Dirk van Duijvenbode and Stephen Bunting, I think once Gurney was out of the picture he would have been favourite to win his board, and it seems like a massive missed opportunity to put 5 grand on his ranking and seal another major TV appearance ahead of the Worlds. The highs and lows of following Raymond van Barneveld!Deduce635806-11-2026






