The 2026 Boylesports World Grand Prix continues in Leicester on Tuesday night so here's Chris Hammer's match-by-match preview and best bets.
World Grand Prix: Tuesday September 29
- TV Coverage: Sky Sports (1800 GMT)
- First-Round Format: Best of 3 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 Humphries to win 2-0 & Zonneveld, Anderson & Wade to win at 13/2 with Sky Bet
Chris Dobey v Jermaine Wattimena
SELECTION: 2pts Chris Dobey to win and hit most 180s at 7/4 (Sky Bet)
We brand Chris Dobey a 'double-start specialist' 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).
Jermaine Wattimena doesn't have much double-start pedigree apart from reaching the quarter-finals back in 2019 and he's not impressed me enough this year to suggest he'll go on a deep run here.
Scoreline prediction: 2-1
Ryan Searle v William O’Connor
Ryan Searle is enjoying a fairly decent year in which he's managed to pick up a Players Championship title for the sixth season in a row, but he's not enjoyed much success on the big stage since reaching the World Championship semi-finals.

His double-start record isn't particularly strong despite a quarter-final run back in 2021 but he should still be expected to come through this against William O'Connor, who has lost all four of his appearances in this event - with the last coming way back in 2015.
Scoreline prediction: 2-0
Josh Rock v Niels Zonneveld
SELECTION: 2pts Over 5.5 180s in the match at 5/4 (bet365)
This clash between two prolific 180 hitters promises to be one of the entertaining matches of the night and it's also tough to pick a winner.
Josh Rock may have endured a difficult debut Premier League campaign earlier in the year and he's not averaging quite as high as he's managed in previous campaigns but that didn't stop him reaching the quarter-finals or better in the four other major tournaments played so far and he also picked up a European Tour title back in May.

Niels Zonneveld is still without a title in his career but he's certainly becoming more consistent with several deep runs including a couple of semi-finals on the European Tour and his stats suggest he can give Rock a real run for his money.
I do expect three sets and if that's the case then I'm going high on the maximum count.
Scoreline prediction: 1-2
James Wade v Joe Cullen
James Wade was one of my big-priced each-way tips to win the World Grand Prix before a dart was thrown and he's now a very realistic title contender following the exit of Luke Littler.
The Machine 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 one of the biggest majors again.
There's not been much for Joe Cullen to write home about this season and he'll need one of those 'silence the doubters' style performances to advance to round two.
Scoreline prediction: 2-0
Gary Anderson v Damon Heta
SELECTION: 2pts Gary Anderson to win and hit most 180s at 2/1 (Sky Bet)
It seems harsh to think Gary Anderson's days of winning major titles may well be behind him when he still boasts one of the highest seasonal averages on the circuit and is also throwing 180s at a more prolific rate than most other top pros.
Nevertheless, it's been eight years since his last major title and five since his last final - so it just feels that he runs out of steam in the latter stages.

However, when it comes to shorter format darts, Anderson is as dangerous as anyone and I expect him to blow Damon Heta away - especially when you consider the Aussie has lost all five of his double-start matches since his debut in 2021.
Scoreline prediction: 2-0
Gian van Veen v Dirk van Duijvenbode
SELECTION: 2pts Dirk van Duijvenbode to win and hit most 180s at 5/2 (Sky Bet)
Gian van Veen got the better of Dirk van Duijvenbode at the recent World Series of Darts Finals in Amsterdam but it was closely fought affair and Aubergenius will be eager for revenge.

Van Veen hasn't been quite the force he was 12 months ago and has yet to add to his title tally in 2026 while Van Duijvenbode is boasting better stats despite not lifting any kind of silverware either.
He's been far more prolific than van Veen on the 180s front and I feel he'll hit more maximums tonight in a hard-fought victory.
Scoreline prediction: 1-2
Luke Humphries v Dave Chisnall
SELECTION: 2pts Luke Humphries to win, hit most 180s and highest checkout at 7/4 (Unibet)
Luke Humphries shot to World Grand Prix favouritism last night without even playing following Luke Littler's shock exit at the hands of Luke Woodhouse and there could be a little bit of extra pressure on his shoulders as he looks to make the most of it.
Cool Hand hasn't won a major title since the 2025 Premier League and was unable to capitalise in the three majors since that Littler didn't win.

Nevertheless he's still enjoyed a pretty decent season having reached two major finals, winning the US Darts Masters and also picking up four other ranking titles including one on the European Tour.
His average is second only to Littler and his 180 hitting is much more prolific than Dave Chisnall these days, with the latter struggling to challenge for any kind of honours.
I expect a convincing start from the 2024 champion.
Scoreline prediction: 2-0
Stephen Bunting v Andrew Gilding
It seems like a long time ago since Stephen Bunting contended for major honours while he's also not managed to pick up a regular title in 2026.
That's in stark contrast to 2025 when he added another four to his bulging collection so I think it's fair to say that Andrew Gilding isn't meeting a prime Bullet tonight.

Goldfinger may not have shone on the big stage since last year's run to the World Matchplay quarter-finals but he has reached three Pro Tour finals this season, winning one of them back in May.
I'm siding with Gilding in this one but it should be close.
Scoreline prediction: 1-2
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 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
Daily Schedule
Wednesday September 30 (1900 BST)
TV Channel: Sky Sports
Second Round matches (Best of 5 sets)
- Danny Noppert v Ryan Joyce
- Jonny Clayton v Wessel Nijman
- Gerwyn Price v Ross Smith
- Luke Woodhouse v Nathan Aspinall
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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