Luke Humphries is in action on Thursday night
Luke Humphries is in action on Thursday night

World Grand Prix darts 2026: Night four predictions, odds, betting tips, accas, order of play & TV times

Darts
Thu October 01, 2026 · 1M ago

The 2026 Boylesports World Grand Prix continues in Leicester on Thursday night so here's Chris Hammer's match-by-match preview and best bets.

World Grand Prix: Thursday October 1

  • TV Coverage: Sky Sports (1900 BST)
  • Second Round: Best of 5 sets. All sets are the best of five legs. There will be no tie-break in any set. All legs must begin and end with a double, meaning that a player must hit a double before he can begin scoring in each leg.

SL Acca: 1pt Zonneveld (+1.5 sets), Wade, Humphries & Searle (+1.5 sets) all to win at 6/1 with Sky Bet

Niels Zonneveld v Gary Anderson

SELECTION: 2pts over 8.5 180s in the match at 5/4 (Boylesports)

The World Grand Prix is one of the few majors Gary Anderson hasn't managed to win during his illustrious career and he'll have plenty of belief that he can make a deep run in Leicester this year.

However he's got a tricker match than most would expect against Niels Zonneveld, who produced a fine performance to see off Josh Rock on Tuesday night thanks largely to prolific finishing of over 53%.

The statistics ahead of Niels Zonneveld v Gary Anderson

Zonneveld hasn't won any titles yet in his career but he's becoming more and more consistent with several deep runs this year, including a couple of semi-finals on the European Tour, and his triumph over Rock on a major stage will do him the world of good.

He's got what it takes to push Anderson all the way and given their respective 180 per leg stats, if we see four or five sets then over nine maximums stands a very high chance.

Scoreline prediction: 3-2

Gian Van Veen v Ryan Searle

Gian van Veen caught fellow Dutchman Dirk van Duijvenbode on one of his off nights in round one as he coasted to a 2-0 victory for the loss of just two legs and shouldn't expect to be as fortunate when he faces Ryan Searle.

Not to take too much away from van Veen - although he was well below his best with an average of 86, one maximum and just 32% on his finishing doubles - but van Duijvenbode only managed eight attempts at doubles and didn't really apply any pressure until it was too late in the second set.

The statistics ahead of Gian van Veen and Ryan Searle

Van Veen, who was at least clinical when it came to starting doubles (80%), isn't producing the kind of darts we saw from him for most of 2025 and Searle will fancy his chances of matching his best ever run in this event with victory.

The pair are very similar on seasonal averages and their maximum per leg ratios are almost identical, so it promises to be a hard-fought match that is closer than the bookies anticipate.

Scoreline prediction: 2-3

Luke Humphries v Jermaine Wattimena

SELECTION: 2pts Luke Humphries to win and hit most 180s at 6/5 (Sky Bet, Paddy Power)

Luke Humphries branded his 2-0 victory over Dave Chisnall as one of his worst performances on the World Grand Prix stage and it was hard to argue with that assessment considering he averaged only 80.41 and only hit 26% of his finishing doubles.

However, Chizzy was also very poor (75.38) and I think it was just one of those random examples of when two players just bring each other down to their lowest levels.

The statistics ahead of Luke Humphries v Jermaine Wattimena

It certainly wasn't a fair indication of where he's at generally and now it's out of the way I expect a much more polished performance against a player he knows he can't take lightly in the slightest.

Back in 2024, Wattimena knocked him out of the European Championship when the draw had really opened up for Cool Hand and it's still on his list of majors he's yet to win.

This year he's beaten the Machine Gun in all three of their encounters, including the final of Players Championship 17 and the recent World Series of Darts Finals, so he's firmly put that mishap in the past.

His 180 hitting is more prolific and if he's back to the levels we know he's capable of, then I'd be confident of him delivering the match double.

Scoreline prediction: 3-1

James Wade v Stephen Bunting

SELECTION: 1pt James Wade to win and hit 4+ 180s at 9/4 (Sky Bet)

James Wade claimed that he's the second-best player of all time 'by a country mile' when it comes to longevity and it's hard to argue when he's playing this well and competing in his 22nd successive World Grand Prix.

Wade, who first played in a PDC major back in 2003, has lifted this trophy twice and I fancy him to go close to completing the hat-trick this week having enjoyed a superb season on multiple levels.

The statistics ahead of James Wade v Stephen Bunting

He's won three titles in 2026 - including a recent one on the European Tour and also on the World Series Tour - while he's also reached the quarter-finals or better of all four major tournaments he's been apart of.

His scoring power is also a lot stronger than in recent years and should comfortably be able to reach four 180s against Stephen Bunting considering he managed three in just three sets in round one.

The Bullet is obviously a dangerous opponent but his performances on the big stage haven't been great over the last 12 months and a confident Wade should see him off.

Scoreline prediction: 3-1

2026 World Grand Prix Draw & Results

Round One

  • (1) Luke Littler 1-2 Luke Woodhouse
  • (16) Nathan Aspinall 2-1 Kevin Doets
  • (8) Danny Noppert 2-1 Niko Springer
  • (9) Michael van Gerwen 1-2 Ryan Joyce
  • (4) Gerwyn Price 2-0 Sebastian Bialecki
  • (13) Ross Smith 2-1 Cameron Menzies
  • (5) Jonny Clayton 2-1 Krzysztof Ratajski
  • (12) Wessel Nijman 2-0 Rob Cross
  • (2) Luke Humphries 2-0 Dave Chisnall
  • (15) Chris Dobey 0-2 Jermaine Wattimena
  • (7) Josh Rock 1-2 Niels Zonneveld
  • (10) Gary Anderson 2-1 Damon Heta
  • (3) Gian van Veen 2-0 Dirk van Duijvenbode
  • (14) Ryan Searle 2-1 William O’Connor
  • (6) James Wade 2-1 Joe Cullen
  • (11) Stephen Bunting 2-1 Andrew Gilding

Round Two

  • Luke Woodhouse 0-3 Nathan Aspinall (16)
  • (8) Danny Noppert 0-3 Ryan Joyce
  • (4) Gerwyn Price 3-0 Ross Smith (13)
  • (5) Jonny Clayton 3-1 Wessel Nijman (12)
  • (2) Luke Humphries v Jermaine Wattimena
  • Niels Zonneveld v Gary Anderson (10)
  • (3) Gian van Veen v Ryan Searle (14)
  • (6) James Wade v Stephen Bunting (11)

Daily Schedule

Thursday October 1 (1900 BST)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
Second Round matches (Best of 5 sets)

  • Niels Zonneveld v Gary Anderson
  • Gian Van Veen v Ryan Searle
  • Luke Humphries v Jermaine Wattimena
  • James Wade v Stephen Bunting

Friday October 2 (1900 BST)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
Quarter-Finals (Best of seven sets)

  • Four matches

Saturday October 3 (2030 BST)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
Semi-Finals (Best of seven sets)

  • Two matches

Sunday October 4 (2000 BST)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
Final (Best of nine sets)

  • Winner SF 1 v Winner SF 2

What TV channel is the World Grand Prix on?

The World Grand Prix will be broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK, through the PDC's worldwide broadcast partners including DAZN and Viaplay, and on PDCTV (excluding UK, Germany, Austria & Switzerland based subscribers).

World Grand Prix Prize Money

  • Winner - £150,000
  • Runner-up - £80,000
  • Semi-finalists - £50,000
  • Quarter-finalists - £35,000
  • Second round - £20,000
  • First round - £7,500

Tournament Format

  • All Sets are the best of five legs. There will be no tie-break in any set.
  • All legs must begin and end with a double, meaning that a player must hit a double before he can begin scoring in each leg.
  • First Round - Best of three sets
  • Second Round - Best of five sets
  • Quarter-Finals - Best of five sets
  • Semi-Finals - Best of seven sets
  • Final - Best of nine sets

World Grand Prix History

World Grand Prix Most Titles

  • Phil Taylor - 11
  • Michael van Gerwen - 6
  • James Wade - 2
  • Luke Littler - 1
  • Mike de Decker - 1
  • Luke Humphries - 1
  • Jonny Clayton - 1
  • Gerwyn Price - 1
  • Daryl Gurney - 1
  • Colin Lloyd - 1
  • Alan Warriner - 1
  • Robert Thornton - 1

Darts: Related content

Like what you've read?
Share
Tweet
Email
Link

MOST READ

Join for Free
Image of stables faded in a gold gradientGet exclusive Willie Mullins insight, plus access to premium articles, expert tips and Timeform data, plus more...
Log in
Discover Sporting Life Plus benefitsWhite Chevron
Sporting Life Plus Logo

Next Off

Fixtures & Results

Fetching latest games....