Sporting Life
Luke Littler (Picture: Kieran Cleeves/PDC)
Luke Littler (Picture: Kieran Cleeves/PDC)

UK Open 2026: Free darts betting tips, predictions and preview for the ITV4-televised major in Minehead

By Chris Hammer
Darts
Thu March 05, 2026 · 1h ago

The Ladbrokes UK Open takes place this weekend, live on ITV4, and our Chris Hammer brings you his tournament tips.

Darts betting tips: UK Open

5pts Luke Littler to win the UK Open at 11/4 (General)

1pt each-way Ross Smith to win the UK Open at 40/1 (General)

1pt each-way Danny Noppert to win the UK Open at 40/1 (General)

1pt each-way Ryan Searle to win the UK Open at 40/1 (General)

Sky Bet odds | Paddy Power | Betfair Sportsbook

The ‘FA Cup of Darts’ has a reputation for being one of the toughest majors to call. The open draw before each round and the switch between main stage and outer boards all combine to level the playing field.

Andrew Gilding’s 100/1 success a couple of years ago only reinforced the idea that anyone in the field can put a run together, while Nathan Aspinall was also sent off at three-figure odds before lifting the title in 2019, prior to establishing himself among the elite.

Danny Noppert wasn't the big name he is today when taking the crown in 2022 and he did so despite posting sub-90 averages in his final two matches, while not many would have predicted Dimitri Van den Bergh to get the better of Luke Humphries in the 2024 final.

Last year, Luke Littler became the first pre-tournament favourite to win the title since Michael van Gerwen in 2020 although he did have to survive a deciding leg against Peter Wright in his first match despite averaging a massive 108.

The Nuke hardly looked back after that, storming to glory with a series of stunning displays that culminated in an 11-2 mauling of James Wade in the final so if he's in this kind of mood again, then he won't be bothered who gets thrown in his direction.

He's also developing an incredible record in Minehead having also won the Players Championship Finals that are staged there in November. In total he's won his last 12 matches at the Butlin's Resort, averaging well over 100 in all but one of them, while he's gone above 106 in half of them.

However, his start to the season has been strangely inconsistent. There's been plenty of occasions where he's been undeniably the best player on the planet such as at the World Masters and the Poland Darts Open, but we've also seen him struggle in the Premier League.

His form - together with the tournament format - means his price of 11/4 is bigger than it will be for the other majors but considering he enters at the fourth round when the match lengths extend to best of 19 legs, it's going to take something special to knock him out on the Main Stage, where all his matches will be played.

When we look at other options, we must bear in mind that each-way terms pay four places, and it's worth remembering that the likes of Adam Gawlas, Keane Barry, William O'Connor and Ricky Evans have all made the semi-finals in the past four years. That alone tells you there’s value to be found among the so-called outsiders.

That said, trying to pick the one huge priced semi-finalist out of the dozens who have half a claim is like finding a needle in a haystack - and last year all of the last four were big guns in Littler, Jonny Clayton, Wade and Josh Rock - so with that in mind, I’ll now focus on a handful of the plausible contenders at chunky odds.

ROSS SMITH - 40/1

Ross Smith has got off to a flying start this year both from results and performance level perspective.

The 2022 European champion has already picked up the eighth ranking title of his PDC career thanks to a string of impressive displays at Players Championship 5 back in February while his 2026 average of 97.80 puts him inside the top six.

Smith has posted nine 100+ averages in his 24 matches so far while it also looks as though he's rediscovered his ruthless prolificacy on the 180s front.

Smudger was 'only' sixth on 180s per leg in 2025 but he's back above the 0.40 levels once again and that puts him second only to Luke Littler.

If he can take this firepower and confidence to Minehead and gets a little luck with the draw then a semi-final run is definitely a possibility.

DANNY NOPPERT - 40/1

Danny Noppert will catch the eye of many darts fans at 40/1 when you consider he reached the semi-finals of four majors last season while he did of course win this major as an underdog back in 2022 when defeating Michael Smith in the final.

Noppie played some fantastic darts on the big stages in 2025 thanks to his ever improving firepower and nerveless finishing, while he could have easily found himself in the Premier League had he not ran into an inspired Justin Hood so early on at the World Championship.

That result - and the knock-on effect - may have contributed to a slow start to the campaign but we known from last year that he brings his A-game to the majors rather than the floor tournaments, which he hasn't tasted success in since early in 2024.

Noppert looked pretty sharp during the opening major of the season at the World Masters when taking out Daryl Gurney and Stephen Bunting with ease until Luke Humphries thumped him 4-0 in the quarter-finals.

Interestingly the Dutchman has been knocked out of the last eight ranked majors by either Humphries or Littler so he might be extra hopeful about his chances in an event where he could avoid both until the final!

RYAN SEARLE - 40/1

Ryan Searle makes a habit of starting seasons well and picked up Pro Tour titles in the February of 2023, 2024 and 2025, while this year he reached a semi-final.

Of course this followed on from a superb World Championship in which he reached the semi-finals for the first time in his career and although he crashed out in the opening round of the World Masters, he's recovered his form on the floor with some pretty decent results.

The Somerset thrower has revelled as the home favourite in Minehead on a few occasions in the past - most notably when reaching the climax of the 2021 Players Championship Finals, while his best in the UK Open came in 2022 when reaching the sixth round.

During his run to the last four at the Ally Pally, Searle enjoyed a period where he won 17 sets in a row and spoke about how he's worked extra hard on improving his focus, putting in more effort on the practice board and also making a pivotal change in his equipment.

I'm not sure he's ready to win a big major yet given the stiff competition around him but I'm hoping he can avoid the bigger names and show enough quality to get to the semi-finals.

Posted at 09:00 GMT on 05/11/26

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