With just two more events to go before the cut-off for one of the most prestigious events in darts, it is time to focus on who will make it in 2026. The 2026 World Grand Prix will be hosted in Leicester for a sixth year running, beginning on the 28th September, through to the 4th October.
The Grand Prix consists of an exciting component only seen in this event in PDC darts, the double-in double-out format. This allows for a lot of early upsets and potential underdog runs, such as the Mike De Decker title in 2024, as well as the Dirk van Duijvenbode final in 2020 and the only major title for Robert Thornton.
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The final two events in the qualification process for the 2026 event are the Czech Darts Open and the Flanders Darts Trophy, European Tour events played over the next two weekends.
The qualification format is simple, the top 16 in the Main Order of Merit on the fourteenth September qualifies as the seeded players, joined by the top 16 unqualified players from the ProTour Order of Merit on that same date. As it stands, there are five people in spots that could potentially drop out and be replaced.
The likes of Cameron Menzies, Niko Springer, Joe Cullen and Cristo Reyes are all in the region of £1,500-£7,500 above the current cut-off, but will all be at both of the remaining European Tours to potentially add to their prize money. The names directly below them, Sebastian Bialecki (£1.5k away), and Kim Huybrechts (£2.5k away), are both only at one of the remaining European Tours, so the potential to gate crash into the top 16 is minimal.
The next two down is where the chances ramp up. Karel Sedlacek sits £7.75k away from Reyes in sixteenth, and currently will only play at ET13 in Antwerp, but will have the opportunity to qualify for Prague through the Host Nation Qualifier on Thursday evening. Martin Schindler sits £10,000 away from the cut-off, but will be in both remaining events, as will Beau Greaves and Jeffrey de Graaf, sitting around £15k away from the cut-off.
Further names could gatecrash the field but would need to win the title to do so: Daryl Gurney, Mickey Mansell, Rob Owen (above), Keane Barry, Connor Scutt, Callan Rydz. While Stephen Burton would have to win both ET12 and ET13.
While this is all simple, the one outcome that is hard to predict is that of Dave Chisnall. Chizzy currently sits in twelfth on the ProTour Race, £7k clear of the cut-off. This puts him above the likes of Menzies, Springer, Cullen and Reyes previously mentioned, but he has failed to qualify for either of the remaining two European Tour events.
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While Chisnall’s run to the Last 16 in Budapest has certainly given him a shot, he will be relying on the players around his falling short over the coming weeks, with the risk of missing out on the Grand Prix for just a second time in his career looming large.
PDC World Grand Prix Darts 2026 – Current Qualifying Positions
(Main Order of Merit as of 31 August 2026)
Qualified & Seeded (Top 16)
| Pos | Player | Prize Money |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luke Littler | £3,125,500 |
| 2 | Luke Humphries | £1,015,500 |
| 3 | Gian van Veen | £1,005,250 |
| 4 | Gerwyn Price | £722,500 |
| 5 | Jonny Clayton | £682,500 |
| 6 | James Wade | £647,250 |
| 7 | Michael van Gerwen | £641,000 |
| 8 | Josh Rock | £626,000 |
| 9 | Stephen Bunting | £614,250 |
| 10 | Gary Anderson | £611,750 |
| 11 | Danny Noppert | £601,750 |
| 12 | Ryan Searle | £585,750 |
| 13 | Wessel Nijman | £575,250 |
| 14 | Chris Dobey | £559,250 |
| 15 | Ross Smith | £555,750 |
| 16 | Nathan Aspinall | £545,000 |
Pro Tour Race Zone (places 17-32)
| Pos | Player | Prize Money |
|---|---|---|
| 17 | Jermaine Wattimena | £527,250 |
| 18 | Luke Woodhouse | £497,500 |
| 19 | Martin Schindler | £441,750 |
| 20 | Krzysztof Ratajski | £433,000 |
| 21 | Dirk van Duijvenbode | £430,750 |
| 22 | Rob Cross | £430,000 |
| 23 | Damon Heta | £414,750 |
| 24 | Mike De Decker | £413,500 |
| 25 | Ryan Joyce | £397,000 |
| 26 | Cameron Menzies | £367,250 |
| 27 | Andrew Gilding | £362,250 |
| 28 | Kevin Doets | £356,500 |
| 29 | Dave Chisnall | £355,000 |
| 30 | Daryl Gurney | £340,500 |
| 31 | Joe Cullen | £305,000 |
| 32 | Ritchie Edhouse | £298,500 |
Key (with dartsdatabase.co.uk)
- Top section = currently qualified and seeded
- Lower section = still in the Pro Tour Order of Merit race for the remaining 16 spots
Images: PDC
