Darts’ World Grand Prix: Format, results and prize money
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The 2026 Darts World Grand Prix starts on Monday, 28 September and is one of the Professional Darts Corporation’s major titles.
Unlike the rest of the sport’s majors, the tournament uses a ‘double in, double out’ format.
The 32 players featuring are made up of the 16 best-ranked players from the PDC’s Order of Merit, and the best 16 from the past 12 months via the Order of Merit who had not already qualified.
A total prize fund of £750,000 is up for grabs, with the winner earning £150,000.
Teenager and current world number one Luke Littler was the winner in 2025, cruising to a 6-1 victory over Luke Humphries in the final.
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What is ‘double in, double out?’
The ‘double in, double out’ darts format presents a big twist to the gameplay.
It means that a player must start all legs on a double, rather than on any scoring zone on the board.
The use of ‘double in, double out’ has been in use in the World Grand Prix since its inaugural year in 1998.
How many sets are in each match?
The format is in set play, with each set being the best of five legs.
The first round is a best-of-three-sets match, increasing to five sets in the second round.
The quarter-finals stay at the best of five sets, before an increase to nine sets in the semi-finals.
The final is a best-of-11 match, also described as a race to six sets.
Schedule, results & order of play
First round
Monday, 28 September (18:00 BST)
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(8) Danny Noppert 2-1 Niko Springer
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(13) Ross Smith 2-1 Cameron Menzies
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(16) Nathan Aspinall 2-1 Kevin Doets
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(5) Jonny Clayton 2-1 Krzysztof Ratajski
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(4) Gerwyn Price v Sebastian Bialecki
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(9) Michael van Gerwen v Ryan Joyce
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(1) Luke Littler v Luke Woodhouse
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(12) Wessel Nijman v Rob Cross
Tuesday, 29 September (18:00 BST)
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(15) Chris Dobey v Jermaine Wattimena
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(14) Ryan Searle v William O’Connor
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(7) Josh Rock v Niels Zonneveld
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(6) James Wade v Joe Cullen
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(10) Gary Anderson v Damon Heta
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(3) Gian van Veen v Dirk van Duijvenbode
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(2) Luke Humphries v Dave Chisnall
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(11) Stephen Bunting v Andrew Gilding
Second round
Wednesday, 30 September (19:00 BST)
Order of play TBC
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Littler/Woodhouse v Nathan Aspinall (16)
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(8) Danny Noppert v Van Gerwen/Joyce
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Price/Bialecki v Ross Smith (13)
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(5) Jonny Clayton v Nijman/Cross
Thursday, 1 October (19:00 BST)
Order of play TBC
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Humphries/Chisnall v Dobey/Wattimena
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Rock/Zonneveld v Anderson/Heta
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Van Veen/Van Duijvenbode v Searle/O’Connor
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Wade/Cullen v Bunting/Gilding
Quarter-finals
Friday, 2 October (19:00 BST)
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Four matches
Semi-finals
Saturday, 3 October (20:00 BST)
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Two matches
Final
Sunday, 4 October (20:00 BST)
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One match
What is the prize money?
The prize money for the whole tournament has increased to £750,000 this year, an increase of 25% from last year’s £600,000.
The winner will take home £150,000 instead of the £120,000 jackpot 12 months ago. Barring the prize money given to players who lose in the first round, every other value has also increased.
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Winner – £150,000
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Runner-up – £80,000
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Semi-final loser – £50,000
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Quarter-final loser – £35,000
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Second round loser – £20,000
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First round loser – £7,500
Who has previously won the World Grand Prix?
Image source, Getty ImagesPhil Taylor is the most successful player in World Grand Prix history, winning the tournament 11 times.
Michael van Gerwen is the next most successful player with six titles, with James Wade (twice) being the only other player to win it multiple times.
The World Grand Prix has produced six different winners in the last six years.
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2025 – Luke Littler
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2024 – Mike De Decker
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2023 – Luke Humphries
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2022 – Michael van Gerwen
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2021 – Jonny Clayton
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2020 – Gerwyn Price
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2019 – Michael van Gerwen
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2018 – Michael van Gerwen
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2017 – Daryl Gurney
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2016 – Michael van Gerwen
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2015 – Robert Thornton
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2014 – Michael van Gerwen
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2013 – Phil Taylor
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2012 – Michael van Gerwen
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2011 – Phil Taylor
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2010 – James Wade
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2009 – Phil Taylor
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2008 – Phil Taylor
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2007 – James Wade
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2006 – Phil Taylor
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2005 – Phil Taylor
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2004 – Colin Lloyd
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2003 – Phil Taylor
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2002 – Phil Taylor
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2001 – Alan Warriner
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2000 – Phil Taylor
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1999 – Phil Taylor
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1998 – Phil Taylor
This article is the latest from BBC Sport’s Ask Me Anything team.
