The double-start BOYLE Sports World Grand Prix takes place in Leicester from September 28 to October 4 - live on Sky Sports - and our expert Chris Hammer brings you his preview and best bets.
Darts betting tips: World Grand Prix
6pts Luke Littler to win the World Grand Prix at 5/6 (General)
1pt each-way James Wade to win the World Grand Prix at 25/1 (Sky Bet, Paddy Power 1/3, 1,2)
2pts Wessel Nijman to win the second quarter at 5/1 (General)
1pt Chris Dobey to win the third quarter at 11/2 (Sky Bet)
1pt Any player to hit a nine-darter at 5/1 (Boylesports)
The World Grand Prix is almost upon us for its 29th staging as Luke Littler bids to become only the third different player ever to defend the PDC's double-start title.
This format usually takes some getting used to for many players but Littler stormed to glory in just his second attempt, thrashing Luke Humphries 6-1 with an imperious display 12 months ago.
Retaining this particular trophy has always been one of the hardest feats in darts but it would surprise absolutely nobody if Littler is able to join Phil Taylor and Michael van Gerwen in this highly elite group.
Whereas 11-time champion Taylor was able to successfully do so on five separate occasions, MVG only managed it once despite lifting the trophy six times from 2012 to 2022. In the years Taylor failed to win it, he didn't even reach the final - and MVG only finished runner-up once, to Robert Thornton.
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This shows how even the best players of all time can be troubled by the notorious double-start format compared to the other majors, especially in the best-of-three sets opening round which is particularly dicey.
Taylor only lost in the opening round of a PDC major eight times in his incredible career and five of those came in this event – most notably to the unknown Andy Callaby in 2004.
Littler also fell at the first hurdle on his debut, so it's fair to say this is the most unpredictable of all.
That said, the strongest all-round players historically tend to be the ones battling it out at the business end of the tournament so I doubt we'll see an unlikely champion on Sunday October 4.
As usual, I'll run through each section of this year's draw, including my contenders for the title...
Quarter one
- (1) Luke Littler v Luke Woodhouse
- (16) Nathan Aspinall v Kevin Doets
- (8) Danny Noppert v Niko Springer
- (9) Michael van Gerwen v Ryan Joyce
Luke Littler's hopes of completing an unprecedented clean sweep of majors in a calendar year came to an end at the World Series of Darts Finals when Jonny Clayton took advantage of an uncharacteristically poor display of doubling to run out a 10-4 winner in the quarter-finals.
Littler was well below his best all weekend in Amsterdam, averaging around 97 across his three matches and never going above 100, while his mood certainly wasn't helped by an unfavourable crowd trying to put him off his stride.
It's a shame he subsequently opted out of the two Players Championship events in midweek because it's now highly unlikely he'll qualify for the Minehead major at the end of November.
I therefore doubt any of his team have told him about the potential of breaking Phil Taylor's record of 15 successive ranked PDC majors. Littler is currently on six and if he were to win all the ranked majors up to and including next year's European Championship, he'd eclipse one of Taylor's more ridiculous feats!
As far as the World Grand Prix is concerned, I feel a wounded Littler with a point to prove is even more dangerous for his rivals than usual.
You'd like to think he'll also have a far more respectful crowd behind him as well compared to what he was subjected to in Amsterdam and, as we know, the longer the format the more formidable he becomes.
The last time he lost a match that lasted 20 legs or longer was the 2024 World Championship final against Luke Humphries. He's won the other 33 contests he's been involved in!
Nobody is particularly safe in the opening round but if he brushes aside Luke Woodhouse as we'd expect, I really can't see anyone stopping him and at 10/11 in places to retain his title, he's worth a chunky bet.
One other objective on Littler's mind will be to hit a double-start nine-dart finish.
We've only seen it happen in two World Grand Prix editions - the first back in 2012 when Brendan Dolan became the 'History Maker' and then two years later when we remarkably saw both Robert Thornton and James Wade manage it in the same match. Considering how much harder it is to achieve a perfect leg in this format, that feels more ridiculous with every passing year!
It's 5/1 with the sponsors that anyone manages a nine-darter this year and it really wouldn't surprise me to see it happen.
Verdict: Luke Littler to win the quarter and go on and lift the trophy
Quarter two
- (4) Gerwyn Price v Sebastian Bialecki
- (13) Ross Smith v Cameron Menzies
- (5) Jonny Clayton v Krzysztof Ratajski
- (12) Wessel Nijman v Rob Cross
There are four players vying for attention in this quarter; Gerwyn Price, Ross Smith, Jonny Clayton and Wessel Nijman.
Let's start with Price, who is favourite in this section despite finishing runner-up to Smith in the recent World Series of Darts Finals.
The Iceman has surprisingly not won a major title since 2022 and that was his third final defeat in that time. He clearly isn't far away from ending his drought if he's able to string his best performances together.
Unfortunately for Price, he didn't get close to his usual standards against Smith and it'll feel like a golden opportunity missed considering Littler was knocked out in the quarter-finals by Clayton.
The Ferret did everybody's dirty work by brilliantly winning six of the last seven legs against Littler to run out a comfortable winner but couldn't make it count as he bowed out a few hours later to Price.
Smith has a tough opening round test against Cameron Menzies, who won another Pro Tour title in midweek, and that's why I'd rather take the 5/1 on Nijman to advance through this section.
He crashed out on debut in the first round 12 months ago but that's nothing to be ashamed about considering how many players struggle on their first attempt.
He's grown into a much stronger player since then and having bagged eight titles in 2026, he'll be relishing another opportunity to show what he can do on the major stages.
It didn't go quite according to plan for him at the World Series but he bounced back with a string of 100 averages on the Pro Tour this past week and I expect him to cause some damage.
Verdict: Wessel Nijman to win the quarter
Quarter three
- (2) Luke Humphries v Dave Chisnall
- (15) Chris Dobey v Jermaine Wattimena
- (7) Josh Rock v Niels Zonneveld
- (10) Gary Anderson v Damon Heta
Luke Humphries is still regarded as Luke Littler's main rival having finished runner-up to him in four of the last 10 majors played dating back to last year's World Grand Prix final although 'only' two of those have happened in 2026.
Early exits at the World Matchplay and World Series Finals have allowed other players to step up and challenge the phenomenal teenager on the biggest stages, which may well have been temporarily good for the game purely due to the amount of times their paths crossed in the Premier League.
Humphries will be determined to renew his biggest rivalry once again but to do that he'll have to negotiate a tricky section including Josh Rock, Gary Anderson and 'double-start specialist' Chris Dobey.
Now we brand Dobey this every 12 months due to his background in the North East where this format is more popular than in many other regions, and Hollywood has backed this label up in the past with a semi-final run on debut and a couple of quarter-final appearances.
However, he has also crashed out in the first round on three occasions - including the last two - so he evidently isn't immune from double-start frustrations like everyone else.
We also haven't seen him perform too well on the major stages over the past couple of seasons but there is cause for optimism that things may improve this autumn and winter having picked up a couple of Players Championship titles this season, while his seasonal average of 97.53 is the fifth highest behind Littler (101.24), Humphries (100.42), Price (99.16) and Anderson (98.21).
At 11/2, he's worth a shout to spring a surprise against Humphries in the early rounds before negotiating his way through the quarter.
Verdict: Chris Dobey to win the quarter
Quarter four
- (3) Gian van Veen v Dirk van Duijvenbode
- (14) Ryan Searle v William O’Connor
- (6) James Wade v Joe Cullen
- (11) Stephen Bunting v Andrew Gilding
Gian van Veen could quite easily be described as one of the unluckiest players in World Grand Prix history having averaged a record 106.47 in last year's first-round defeat to Luke Littler, meaning he's still without a double-start win to his name.
Dirk van Duijvenbode is obviously an easier opponent on paper but Aubergenius did reach the final here on debut back in 2020 while 12 months ago he put Michael van Gerwen to the sword en route to the quarter-finals.
He's also been in very good form in the majors this year, reaching the World Matchplay semi-finals and the last eight of the World Series - where he of course dumped out Luke Humphries in round two.
However, his run was eventually ended by van Veen following a hard-fought contest so I wouldn't feel confident backing either player to come through with much conviction.
James Wade is the player whose name therefore leaps off the page in this section as he too has enjoyed a superb campaign that has seen him reach the UK Open final and the quarter-finals of the three other majors that he's competed in.
On top of that, he won his maiden World Series title in Australia back in August - a tournament in which he averaged 112.73 in one of his matches - while he's also triumphed on the Players Championship Tour and European Tour.
Wade, a two-time World Grand Prix champion, has more double-start experience than anyone in this field having competed in every edition since 2005 and although he hasn't reached a final here since 2014, this could be the year a revitalised Machine challenges for honours again.
He's quite a short price to win the quarter so instead I'll back him each-way for the title at 25/1.
Verdict: James Wade to win the quarter and go on to reach the final
World Grand Prix Draw
- (1) Luke Littler v Luke Woodhouse
- (16) Nathan Aspinall v Kevin Doets
- (8) Danny Noppert v Niko Springer
- (9) Michael van Gerwen v Ryan Joyce
- (4) Gerwyn Price v Sebastian Bialecki
- (13) Ross Smith v Cameron Menzies
- (5) Jonny Clayton v Krzysztof Ratajski
- (12) Wessel Nijman v Rob Cross
- (2) Luke Humphries v Dave Chisnall
- (15) Chris Dobey v Jermaine Wattimena
- (7) Josh Rock v Niels Zonneveld
- (10) Gary Anderson v Damon Heta
- (3) Gian van Veen v Dirk van Duijvenbode
- (14) Ryan Searle v William O’Connor
- (6) James Wade v Joe Cullen
- (11) Stephen Bunting v Andrew Gilding
2026 World Grand Prix Schedule
Monday September 28 (1800 BST)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
First Round (Best of 3 sets)
- Danny Noppert v Niko Springer
- Ross Smith v Cameron Menzies
- Nathan Aspinall v Kevin Doets
- Jonny Clayton v Krzysztof Ratajski
- Gerwyn Price v Sebastian Bialecki
- Michael van Gerwen v Ryan Joyce
- Luke Littler v Luke Woodhouse
- Wessel Nijman v Rob Cross
Tuesday September 29 (1800 BST)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
First Round (Best of 3 sets)
- Chris Dobey v Jermaine Wattimena
- Ryan Searle v William O’Connor
- Josh Rock v Niels Zonneveld
- James Wade v Joe Cullen
- Gary Anderson v Damon Heta
- Gian van Veen v Dirk van Duijvenbode
- Luke Humphries v Dave Chisnall
- Stephen Bunting v Andrew Gilding
Wednesday September 30 (1900 BST)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
Second Round matches (Best of 5 sets)
- Littler/Woodhouse v Aspinall/Doets
- Noppert/Springer v Van Gerwen/Joyce
- Price/Bialecki v Smith/Menzies
- Clayton/Ratajski v Nijman/Cross
Thursday October 1 (1900 BST)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
Second Round matches (Best of 5 sets)
- Humphries/Chisnall v Dobey/Wattimena
- Rock/Zonneveld v Anderson/Heta
- Van Veen/Van Duijvenbode v Searle/O'Connor
- Wade/Cullen v Bunting/Gilding
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
- Final scores in sets
- 1998 - Phil Taylor 13-8 Rod Harrington
- 1999 - Phil Taylor 6-1 Shayne Burgess
- 2000 - Phil Taylor 6-1 Shayne Burgess
- 2001 - Alan Warriner 8-2 Roland Scholten
- 2002 - Phil Taylor 7-3 John Part
- 2003 - Phil Taylor 7-2 John Part
- 2004 - Colin Lloyd 7-3 Alan Warriner
- 2005 - Phil Taylor 7-1 Colin Lloyd
- 2006 - Phil Taylor 7-4 Terry Jenkins
- 2007 - James Wade 6-3 Terry Jenkins
- 2008 - Phil Taylor 6-2 Raymond van Barneveld
- 2009 - Phil Taylor 6-3 Raymond van Barneveld
- 2010 - James Wade 6-3 Adrian Lewis
- 2011 - Phil Taylor 6-3 Brendan Dolan
- 2012 - Michael van Gerwen 6-4 Mervyn King
- 2013 - Phil Taylor 6-0 Dave Chisnall
- 2014 - Michael van Gerwen 5-3 James Wade
- 2015 - Robert Thornton 5-4 Michael van Gerwen
- 2016 - Michael van Gerwen 5-2 Gary Anderson
- 2017 - Daryl Gurney 5-4 Simon Whitlock
- 2018 - Michael van Gerwen 5-2 Peter Wright
- 2019 - Michael van Gerwen 5-1 Dave Chisnall
- 2020 - Gerwyn Price 5-2 Dirk van Duijvenbode
- 2021 - Jonny Clayton 5-1 Gerwyn Price
- 2022 - Michael van Gerwen 5-3 Nathan Aspinall
- 2023 - Luke Humphries 5-2 Gerwyn Price
- 2024 - Mike de Decker 6-4 Luke Humphries
- 2025 - Luke Littler 6-1 Luke Humphries
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
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