By Aiden Boyer
The 2026 PDC World Championship offered up the largest amount of prize money we’ve ever seen in the sport of darts, and as a result, the Order of Merit (OOM) saw its biggest shakeup, but who benefited the most?
Gian van Veen
The most notable move up the rankings came from tournament finalist Gian van Veen. The Dutchman now sits third in the OOM, up seven places from 10th. This not only guarantees him a place in the upcoming Premier League, but also means he is now the highest ranked player from The Netherlands, a title that three-time World Champion Michael van Gerwen held for over a decade.
It is clear to see that Gian is one of the stars of the sport now, and a good year could easily see the Giant move up to second, as Luke Humphries, who currently occupies that spot, has a lot of money to defend in 2026.
Gary Anderson
Despite losing to van Veen in the semi-final, it was certainly a successful tournament for Gary Anderson. The two-time World Champion has returned to the elite, climbing up eight places from 14th to sixth.
His form in this tournament, alongside his status within the sport would make him a shoe-in for a Premier League place, but based on previous years, it is unlikely the Flying Scotsman would accept an invite due to the amount of travelling involved.
Ryan Searle
One of the surprises of the tournament, Ryan Searle made his first World Championship semi-final, finding the form we saw from Heavy Metal a few years ago. Thanks to his run at Ally Pally, the 38-year-old now finds himself inside the world’s top ten for the first time, climbing from 20th to eighth.
If he can continue this form, 2026 could be a standout year for Searle, and could be the solidification of himself as a top-tier darts player.
Krzysztof Ratajski
It was a shock to see Krzysztof Ratajski come into the 2026 World Championship unseeded. The Polish Eagle has spent a long time inside the top 32, but after struggling with form, coinciding with the Pole needing multiple major brain surgeries, he found himself lower down the rankings that most would expect.
Despite this, Ratajski performed exceptionally well, making the quarter-finals before falling to eventual tournament winner Luke Littler. From this, Ratajski now finds himself back in the top 32, climbing nine places from 37th to 28th.
James Hurrell
This World Championship was all about the underdog stories, and one player that exceeded expectations was James Hurrell. The 41-year-old came into the tournament 63rd in the world, but he left impressing the world, after reaching the fourth round, knocking out major winner and fourth seed Stephen Bunting in the process.
This strong run saw the Englishman climb 15 places in the OOM up to 48th. Secure on the tour for another year, now is the time for Hurrell to continue his good form to climb towards that all important top 32.
Justin Hood
Finally, we have the story of the tournament – Justin Hood. Happy Feet won over not just the people in attendance, but the whole world with his positivity, entertaining walk-on and incredible darting ability. Hood reached the quarter-finals of the Worlds on debut, an impressive feat as it is, but especially incredible when you realise this is his first year as a professional player.
The man with the dream of opening a Chinese restaurant, Hood is now 50th in the world, climbing 36 places in the OOM from 86th, and with another year of his current tour card remaining, and no money to defend, we could see Hood continue to climb the rankings at a rapid pace. Remember the name, because we could be seeing a lot more of Justin Hood on our television screens in the next few years.