Michael van Gerwen rose to sixth on the PDC Werner Rankings Ladder after reaching the semi-finals at the 2026 Czech Darts Open in Prague last weekend. Van Gerwen reached a 64th career European Tour semi-final at the PVA Expo, defeating Mario Vandenbogaerde, Wessel Nijman and Jonny Clayton to reach the last four. The Dutch […]
Michael van Gerwen rose to sixth on the PDC Werner Rankings Ladder after reaching the semi-finals at the 2026 Czech Darts Open in Prague last weekend.
Van Gerwen reached a 64th career European Tour semi-final at the PVA Expo, defeating Mario Vandenbogaerde, Wessel Nijman and Jonny Clayton to reach the last four.
The Dutch darting icon claimed a £10,000 payday as a result, jumping above James Wade to sixth, having previously fallen to his lowest world ranking since 2012 after crashing out in round two at the World Matchplay.
The 37-year-old has the opportunity to make up more ground in upcoming Premier events after struggling at the latter end of 2024, but his run to the 2024/25 World Championship final means Van Gerwen will be defending £200,000 at Alexandra Palace in December.
Apart from the World Matchplay, the Dutch number two’s semi-final run also marked his best payday since winning Players Championship 15 in May.
Recent Hungarian Darts Trophy champion Ross Smith continued his ascent in the world rankings after reaching the quarter-finals in Prague, rising to 14th in the world.
Smith overtook Chris Dobey after scooping £8,000 for his run to the last eight, with the former European Champion earning over £250,000 since the start of the year – the fourth most in the sport.
One of the few players to earn more than Smith in 2026 is Wessel Nijman, whose £292,000 can only be bettered by world number one Luke Littler.
Nijman rose to 12th after reaching the last 16 at the Czech Darts Open, overtaking World Championship semi-finalist Ryan Searle.
The Dutch star has now risen a remarkable 17 spots since the turn of the year, in large part thanks to claiming a whopping eight ProTour titles, with consistent results at Players Championship and European Tour events surging him up the world rankings.
Jeffrey de Graaf jumped two spots to 46th at the expensive of Gabriel Clemens, after picking up a round one win over Niels Zonneveld in Prague.
The Swedish number one picked up his first win on the European Tour since 2024, adding to his Players Championship 19 success in June – his second ranking title.
Keane Barry also rose two spots, overtaking Mensur Suljovic and Ian White to move into 54th in the world rankings after reaching the last 16.
The Irish star has now climbed four spots since the start of the year, thanks to a run to the last 16 of the UK Open and a semi-final run at Players Championship 7.
Stephen Bunting fell one place to 10th after losing in his opening match to Luke Woodhouse, being overtaken by Gary Anderson.
The former Masters winner has fallen from world number seven since January, picking up just four wins in his most recent nine European Tour appearances.