Players Championship Order of Merit 2026: Dobey Second as Minehead Race Reaches Boiling Point
On this page
- Players Championship Order of Merit: The State of Play After PC32
- The Last-Chance Saloon: Littler, Aspinall, Rock and Wright
- Bubble Watch: Anderson Drops Out as the Cut-Off Bites
- Morris and Manby: The New Faces Climbing
- Dobey’s Gamble: A Brand-New Set, Straight Out of the Wrapper
- What Happens Next: Leicester Decides Everything
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Conclusion
The players championship order of merit has rarely looked this dramatic. With just two events of the 2026 ProTour season remaining, Chris Dobey’s brilliant Den Bosch triumph has catapulted him into second place, Wessel Nijman sits on a lead that looks unassailable, and some of the biggest names in darts — Luke Littler, Nathan Aspinall, Josh Rock and Peter Wright — are staring at the very real prospect of missing the Players Championship Finals altogether. Follow all the latest on World Darts Guide.
Thursday’s Players Championship 32 was the 32nd of 34 floor events this season — the second half of a Den Bosch double-header we previewed as a pivotal weekend in the race for Minehead. The top 64 on the final Order of Merit qualify for Minehead (27–29 November), and with £150,000 of prize money still to be won in Leicester next week, every pound counts. Here is exactly where the race stands.
Players Championship Order of Merit: The State of Play After PC32
Dobey’s 8-4 final victory over Tommy Morris in Den Bosch was worth £15,000 — and it has transformed his season on the floor. The Bedlington man has risen above Kevin Doets into second place on the players championship order of merit, and while Nijman’s advantage remains enormous, Dobey has at least made the Dutchman glance over his shoulder.
The confirmed standings after event 32, in units of prize money won across the 2026 Players Championship series:
- 1. Wessel Nijman — £154,500. The runaway leader. His advantage over Dobey stands at £35,750, and with only two events left, dartsnews described his lead as insurmountable. He is the man everyone else is chasing, and realistically, nobody is catching him.
- 2. Chris Dobey — £118,750. Three titles this season (PC3, PC9, PC32) and now the second-highest earner on the floor circuit. His Den Bosch week could hardly have gone better.
- 3. Kevin Doets — £113,250. Drops to third after Dobey’s surge but remains comfortably clear of the pack behind him.
- 4. Luke Woodhouse — £88,000. A superb floor season has the Englishman fourth and already dreaming of a deep Minehead run.
- 5. Andrew Gilding — £80,750. “Goldfinger” continues to grind out results and prize money.
- 6. Jermaine Wattimena — £80,500. Just £250 behind Gilding in a tight battle for fifth.
- 7. Beau Greaves — £70,000. The women’s world number one keeps proving she belongs at the very top of the men’s floor game.
- 8. Ross Smith — £65,500.
- 9. Karel Sedlacek — £65,250.
- 10. William O’Connor — £62,500. The Irishman’s semi-final run in Den Bosch strengthened an already strong position.
Further down, Charlie Manby’s maiden title has lifted him to 18th on £56,000 in his debut Tour Card season, while Luke Humphries sits 23rd on £52,000 — safe, but a reminder that even world-class players must respect the floor grind.
The Last-Chance Saloon: Littler, Aspinall, Rock and Wright
Here is the story that will dominate the next week of darts. Four of the sport’s biggest box-office names are currently OUTSIDE the provisional qualifying places for Minehead — and time is running out.
Luke Littler — 128th, £10,500. The world champion’s floor season has been almost non-existent. He skipped both Den Bosch events entirely, and dartsnews calculates he must make up more than £20,000 in Leicester to stand any chance. Even winning both remaining events (£15,000 apiece) would only take him to £40,500 — and whether that is enough depends on results elsewhere. It is a staggering situation for the world number one.
Nathan Aspinall — 78th, £26,500. “The Asp” is more than £5,000 short of the provisional cut-off with two events to play. He needs a deep run — at minimum — in Leicester.
Josh Rock — 80th, £26,000. The Northern Irishman is in the same boat as Aspinall: talented enough to win either event, but out of margin for error.
Peter Wright — 86th, £23,750. “Snakebite” needs something close to a miracle week in Leicester. Two-time world champion or not, the numbers do not lie.
They are not alone in the danger zone. Ryan Joyce (91st, £22,500) and Raymond van Barneveld (81st, £25,750) are also outside the provisional top 64, and the clock is ticking for all of them.
There is recent precedent for this kind of drama. In 2025, Littler, Aspinall and even Luke Humphries all had to qualify late for the Finals — and Michael van Gerwen, the sport’s biggest name of the modern era, did not qualify at all. Nobody is too big to miss Minehead. The Players Championship Finals in Minehead could be missing several of its star attractions.
Bubble Watch: Anderson Drops Out as the Cut-Off Bites
If the big-name drama is at the bottom of the table, the tension is just as fierce around the cut-off line itself. The 64th and final qualifying spot is currently held by Wesley Plaisier on £31,750 — and the chasing pack is breathing down his neck.
- 65. Henry Coates — £31,250. Just £500 behind Plaisier. One good day in Leicester flips their positions.
- 68. Gary Anderson — £29,750. The two-time world champion has slipped from 64th to 68th and is now £2,000 adrift of safety. “The Flying Scotsman” skipped Den Bosch, and it has cost him dearly.
- 69. Martijn Dragt — £29,500. Another £250 back, another player who needs results next week.
- 62. Bradley Brooks — £32,500 and 63. David Sharp — £32,500 sit just above the line after Brooks’s nine-darter and deep Den Bosch run — but neither can relax.
Even Gerwyn Price (58th, £34,000) is, in dartsnews’s words, “not completely out of the woods yet” — only £2,250 above the cut-off with two £150,000 events to come. Deep runs in Den Bosch for Scott Williams (55th, £35,750) and Michael Smith (56th, £35,750) have boosted their chances and squeezed everyone below them.
Michael van Gerwen, meanwhile, sits 31st on £48,750 — safe for now, but a far cry from his dominant years, and his early exit to Morris in Den Bosch did his seeding no favours.
Morris and Manby: The New Faces Climbing
While the established stars sweat, the season’s breakthrough stories keep rising. Tommy Morris, the 34-year-old Challenge Tour player who reached his first PDC ranking final in Den Bosch, has climbed to 45th on £39,250 — and dartsnews reports his Minehead spot is now all-but confirmed. From outsider to qualifier in one unforgettable Thursday: his run also strengthened his case for a World Championship debut at Alexandra Palace, a race you can follow in our World Darts Championship schedule and seedings guide.
Charlie Manby is the other name on everyone’s lips. The 21-year-old’s maiden ranking title on Wednesday has him 18th on £56,000 — an extraordinary return from a debut Tour Card season that also brought a World Championship last-16 run. His Den Bosch triumph also sealed a debut at the Grand Slam of Darts in Wolverhampton.
And spare a thought for the player Dobey beat in the final reckoning of the averages: the “new darts” story of the week.
Dobey’s Gamble: A Brand-New Set, Straight Out of the Wrapper
The most charming detail of Dobey’s Den Bosch triumph is how unlikely it should have been. Speaking to the PDC after the final — in quotes carried by Sky Sports, Sporting Life and several other outlets — Dobey revealed he had changed his equipment just days before travelling.
“I was saying yesterday that I just need a bit of consistency back,” he admitted. “I’ve changed darts. I’ve gone to a brand new barrel this week. I took them out of the wrapper at home the day before I travelled, and I’ve felt great and produced some good stuff.”
New darts, straight out of the wrapper, the day before a tournament — and then a 103.15 tournament average, the three highest averages of the day, and a third title of the season. It is the kind of gamble that looks genius only in hindsight, and it has fired Dobey to second in the players championship order of merit with his Minehead seeding looking stronger by the week.
What Happens Next: Leicester Decides Everything
The mathematics are brutally simple. Players Championship 33 and 34 take place in Leicester on 4 and 5 November — the final two ProTour events of the 2026 season, each carrying a £150,000 prize fund with £15,000 to the winner. When the last dart is thrown next Wednesday night, the 64-man Minehead field will be confirmed, and the seedings will be set.
For Littler, Aspinall, Rock and Wright, Leicester is the last-chance saloon — win big or miss Minehead. For Anderson, Coates, Dragt and the rest of the bubble boys, it is two days that will define their autumns. For Nijman, it is a victory lap. And for Dobey, it is a chance to keep the pressure on and arrive at the Players Championship Finals as the form horse of the field.
After Leicester, the road runs through the Grand Slam of Darts (14–22 November, Wolverhampton) and then to Minehead (27–29 November) — the last major before the World Championship. The Order of Merit has set the table; now the players must eat.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who leads the Players Championship Order of Merit?
Wessel Nijman leads the 2026 Players Championship Order of Merit on £154,500 after 32 of 34 events. Chris Dobey is second on £118,750 following his Players Championship 32 title, with Kevin Doets third on £113,250.
How do players qualify for the Players Championship Finals?
The top 64 players on the final Players Championship Order of Merit — ranked by total prize money won across the 34 Players Championship events of the season — qualify for the Players Championship Finals in Minehead (27–29 November 2026).
Can Luke Littler still qualify for the Players Championship Finals?
It is possible but unlikely. Littler is 128th on £10,500 and must make up more than £20,000 across the final two events in Leicester (4–5 November). Even winning both events might not be enough depending on other results.
Who is on the bubble for Minehead qualification?
Wesley Plaisier holds the 64th and final qualifying spot on £31,750. Henry Coates (£31,250), Gary Anderson (£29,750) and Martijn Dragt (£29,500) are the closest chasers, while Bradley Brooks and David Sharp (£32,500 each) sit just above the line.
When are the last Players Championship events of 2026?
Players Championship 33 and 34 take place in Leicester on 4 and 5 November 2026. After these two £150,000 events, the Minehead field is confirmed.
What did Chris Dobey say about his darts after winning PC32?
Dobey revealed he switched to a brand-new barrel the week of the tournament: “I took them out of the wrapper at home the day before I travelled, and I’ve felt great and produced some good stuff.” He then averaged 103.15 across seven matches to win the title.
Conclusion
The players championship order of merit after 32 events tells two stories at once. At the top, it is a coronation-in-progress: Wessel Nijman’s £154,500 lead looks unassailable, and Chris Dobey’s rise to second — via three titles and a last-minute equipment gamble — confirms him as the floor player of the autumn. At the bottom, it is a thriller: Littler, Aspinall, Rock and Wright are all outside the top 64, Gary Anderson has slipped out of the qualifying places entirely, and a £500 gap separates the last man in from the first man out.
Leicester, on 4 and 5 November, will settle it all. Two tournaments, £300,000 of prize money, and 64 tickets to Minehead. The last-chance saloon is open — and the biggest names in darts are drinking in it.
