Michael van Gerwen has lost ground on the PDC Order of Merit following the two Players Championship events in Den Bosch. The three-time world champion drops two places, overtaken not only by Josh Rock but also by compatriot Danny Noppert. Van Gerwen endured mixed results across the two floor events: at Players Championship 29 his run ended in round one, while a day later he reached the quarter-finals at Players Championship 30. That still wasn’t enough to protect his world ranking. The PDC Order of Merit is calculated on prize money earned over two years, and Van Gerwen won a Players Championship around this time two years ago. That payout has now dropped off his ranking, and he did not replace it sufficiently this week.
The result is a two-spot slide for Van Gerwen, with Josh Rock climbing to seventh on the world list. Noppert also leapfrogs his compatriot, rising two places to eighth. That means Van Gerwen is no longer the second Dutchman on the PDC Order of Merit. There were more shifts further down the top 16: Gary Anderson has taken tenth from Stephen Bunting, with ‘The Bullet’ dropping two places. Nathan Aspinall also made gains, climbing to 15th and moving ahead of Chris Dobey.
The two titles in Den Bosch this week went to Cameron Menzies and Karel Sedlacek. Menzies took Players Championship 29, while Sedlacek made Czech darts history by winning Players Championship 30 the following day. The £15,000 top prize surprisingly doesn’t move Menzies higher in the world rankings; the Scot stays 26th for now, though his title significantly cuts the gap to 25th. Sedlacek’s title is reflected immediately: the Czech started the week 57th, gains four places, and is now 53rd. Sebastian Bialecki also steps forward, climbing three places from 58th to 55th, while Max Hopp rises from 68th to 66th.
The current ranking may not stay the same for long. The coming weeks feature several key ranking events with far more prize money on offer than regular Players Championships. The next major date is the World Grand Prix, where there will again be substantial ranking money at stake, while players must also defend prize money from two years ago. The margins at several spots on the PDC Order of Merit are small, so the balance of power could shift again after the major.
At the top of the PDC Order of Merit, Luke Littler leads with 3139, followed by Luke Humphries on 1014.5 and Gian van Veen on 1005.75. Gerwyn Price sits fourth on 728, with Jonny Clayton fifth on 677 and James Wade sixth on 667.25. Josh Rock is seventh on 624, Danny Noppert eighth on 610, and Michael van Gerwen ninth on 608.5. Gary Anderson is tenth on 594.25, Stephen Bunting 11th on 592.25, Wessel Nijman 12th on 578.5, Ryan Searle 13th on 571.75, Ross Smith 14th on 563.75, Nathan Aspinall 15th on 554, and Chris Dobey 16th on 553.25.
