How do darts world rankings work?
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The Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) use their own Order of Merit to measure and calculate world rankings.
The rankings are determined by the amount of prize money a player has won from ranking tournaments over a two-year period.
The player who has earned the most money from competitions during that time is ranked number one in the world.
The PDC's eight majors each have at least £100,000 prize money awarded to the winner, but the World Darts Championship is by far the most lucrative with the winner set to pocket £1m in 2026.
That sum is double the amount given to teenager Luke Littler for winning the tournament in 2025.
Littler unseated Luke Humphries to become world number one after winning the Grand Slam of Darts on 16 November.
His earnings over the two-year period that determine the Order of Merit totalled £1,770,500 after making the final, with his victory taking it up to £1,850,000.
Even if Humphries had successfully defended his 2023 Grand Slam title, his potential earnings of £1,769,000 would still have left him short of Littler.
Strong performances at major tournaments have a major impact on rankings, as seen with Mike De Decker. The Belgian won £120,000 alone from the 2024 World Grand Prix and entered the 2025 tournament 20th in the world.
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Does the Order of Merit matter in major tournament qualifying?
Luke Littler (left) and Luke Humphries (right) have been the top two ranked players since the start of 2025
Qualification to play in a number of major tournaments rests largely on world rankings.
For the PDC World Darts Championship, the top 40 players directly qualify for the tournament. The top 24 earn a place in the World Masters, while a top 16 spot is needed for automatic qualification to the World Matchplay, World Grand Prix and all European Tour events.
The pairings for the World Cup of Darts are also decided via the Order of Merit, while all tour card holders are permitted entry into UK Open and Players Championship events.
Rankings on the Pro Tour, Challenge Tour, Development Tour and Women's Series are also used to decided extra qualification places at some tournaments.
When will Littler become world number one?
Teenager Littler first gained a place on the order of merit after his superb debut at the 2024 PDC World Championships.
But this week Littler is likely to become the world number one.
The Warrington-born star will move to the top of the PDC Order of Merit at this week's Grand Slam of Darts, unless Humphries wins the competition.
This is because Humphries won the competition two years ago and is losing £120,000 from the prize money he earned at the 2023 edition.
As Littler did not play at that tournament, he is only adding to his prize money at this year's tournament.
If Littler reaches the final and faces Humphries, the teenager will also claim top spot in the world rankings.
Thanks to Nigel in Surrey for the question.
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