Five individual PDC majors have already been played in 2026, and remarkably, not a single Dutch player has reached a final. The only Dutch success on the big stage came at the World Cup of Darts, where Gian van Veen and Michael van Gerwen teamed up to reach the final before England proved too strong. With 22 PDC Tour Card holders, the Netherlands boasts the largest number of professional players after England this year, yet their results at the major televised tournaments have fallen short of expectations.
Wessel Nijman leads the Dutch charge on the year-to-date ranking in fourth place. The 26-year-old has won eight PDC ranking titles this year, including six Players Championships and two Euro Tours. However, he has been unable to carry that form into the majors. At the World Masters, he reached the main draw with wins over Stefan Bellmont, Niko Springer and Gabriel Clemens, but lost 3-1 to Jonny Clayton in the opening round. He entered the UK Open in the fourth round and impressed with a 10-1 victory over Raymond van Barneveld, only to fall 10-5 to Gerwyn Price one round later. At the World Matchplay, he beat Dave Chisnall 10-5 before losing 14-12 to Gian van Veen in the last 16. At the World Series of Darts Finals, James Wade defeated him 10-7 in the last 16. And at the World Grand Prix, he beat Rob Cross 2-0 in the opening round but was again blocked by Clayton, losing 3-1 in the second round.
Gian van Veen sits second among Dutchmen. The 24-year-old from Poederoijen reached the semi-finals of the World Masters with victories over Ryan Joyce, Nathan Aspinall and James Wade, but lost 5-0 to eventual champion Luke Humphries despite averaging over 100. At the UK Open, he lost his opening match to Rob Cross. In his debut Premier League Darts season, he reached four finals but finished seventh overall. At the World Cup of Darts, he and Van Gerwen defeated Sweden and Germany before beating defending champions Northern Ireland in the semi-finals, only to lose to England in the final. Van Veen also reached the semi-finals of the World Matchplay, losing 17-10 to Gerwyn Price, and the semi-finals of the World Series of Darts Finals, where Ross Smith won 11-8. He reached the quarter-finals of the World Grand Prix, losing to James Wade. Van Veen has admitted he feels he is still winning too few tournaments.
Kevin Doets, who lives in Sweden, sits ninth. He failed to reach the World Masters main draw, losing 3-2 to Madars Razma in the second preliminary round. At the UK Open, he beat Ricardo Pietreczko 6-4 and Jeffrey de Graaf before losing 10-8 to Luke Littler in the fifth round. He made his World Matchplay debut with an average over 104 but lost 10-6 to Ross Smith. At the World Series of Darts Finals, he lost 6-3 to eventual champion Ross Smith in the opening round. He also made his World Grand Prix debut, losing 2-1 to Nathan Aspinall.
Danny Noppert sits eleventh. He reached the quarter-finals of the World Masters, beating Daryl Gurney and Stephen Bunting before losing 4-0 to Luke Humphries. At the UK Open, he defeated Dimitri Van den Bergh 10-4, hitting a nine-darter in that match, then beat Peter Wright and Luke Humphries to reach the quarter-finals, where Luke Littler won 10-6. At the World Matchplay, Rob Cross beat him 10-3 in the opening round. At the World Series of Darts Finals, Littler won 6-4. At the World Grand Prix, he beat Ryan Joyce in the opening round but lost 3-0 to Joyce in the second round.
Jermaine Wattimena is sixteenth. He lost 3-0 to Chris Dobey at the World Masters, 10-5 to Mensur Suljovic at the UK Open, 10-7 to James Wade at the World Matchplay, and 6-4 to Humphries at the World Series of Darts Finals. At the World Grand Prix, he beat Chris Dobey in the opening round for his first major win of the season, but lost 3-0 to Humphries in the second round. The upcoming European Championship will be particularly important, as he reached the final two years ago and has significant prize money to defend.
Dirk van Duijvenbode sits eighteenth. He lost 3-1 to Beau Greaves in the first preliminary round of the World Masters and lost his opening match at the UK Open to Gary Anderson. At the World Matchplay, he beat Chris Dobey 13-11, eliminated Michael van Gerwen 14-12, beat Anderson to reach the semi-finals, and then lost 17-5 to Luke Littler. At the World Series of Darts Finals, he beat Viktor Tingström 6-4 and Humphries 10-9 before losing 10-8 to Van Veen in the quarter-finals. At the World Grand Prix, he lost 2-0 to Van Veen in the opening round.
Niels Zonneveld sits two places below Van Duijvenbode. He reached the World Masters main draw with wins over Jesus Salate, Henry Coates and Kim Huybrechts, then lost 3-2 to Gary Anderson. At the UK Open, he beat Tom Bissell but lost 10-7 to Daryl Gurney. In his World Matchplay debut, he missed match darts and lost 13-12 to Stephen Bunting. At the World Grand Prix, he beat Josh Rock and Gary Anderson to reach the quarter-finals, where Luke Humphries proved too strong.
Michael van Gerwen is only 22nd on the year-to-date ranking. The 37-year-old from Vlijmen lost 3-1 to Damon Heta at the World Masters. At the UK Open, he beat Nathan Aspinall and Kai Gotthardt before losing 10-3 to James Wade in the last 16. In the Premier League Darts, he failed to reach the play-offs, finishing fifth. At the World Cup of Darts, he and Van Veen reached the final, losing to England. At the World Matchplay, he beat Andrew Gilding but lost 14-12 to Dirk van Duijvenbode in the last 16. At the World Series of Darts Finals, as defending champion, he lost 6-5 to Daryl Gurney in the first round. At the World Grand Prix, he lost 2-1 to Ryan Joyce in the opening round.
Richard Veenstra sits 43rd. He failed to reach the World Masters main draw, losing in the second preliminary round. At the UK Open, he beat Alan Soutar but lost 10-9 to Gabriel Clemens in the fourth round. He failed to qualify for the other individual majors but has secured places at the Players Championship Finals and the World Darts Championship.
Maik Kuivenhoven is just behind Veenstra. He appeared only at the UK Open, losing 6-5 to Michael Unterbuchner. He has qualified only for the Players Championship Finals and the World Darts Championship this autumn.
Jimmy van Schie sits 64th. After winning the WDF World Championship late last year, he secured his PDC Tour Card. He reached the World Masters main draw through the preliminaries, losing 3-1 to Ross Smith. At the UK Open, he lost 6-2 to Tom Bissell. He failed to qualify for other majors but will have an opportunity at the World Darts Championship.
Christian Kist is 67th and has yet to win a match at a major this year. He has provisionally qualified for the Players Championship Finals and the World Darts Championship. Alexander Merkx sits 73rd. He appeared only at the UK Open, beating Jannis Barkhausen, Marvin van Velzen and Sam Spivey before losing to Jonny Clayton in the fourth round. He can look forward to the Players Championship Finals and the World Darts Championship.
Raymond van Barneveld is 79th. The five-time world champion missed the World Masters. At the UK Open, he beat Karel Sedlacek but then suffered a heavy 10-1 defeat to Wessel Nijman. He never came into contention for qualification for the World Matchplay or World Grand Prix. Now 59, he has secured only a place at the World Darts Championship.
Jeffrey de Zwaan exited in the World Masters preliminary rounds and failed to win a match at the UK Open. Wesley Plaisier also exited in the World Masters preliminaries and lost immediately at the UK Open, with his PDC Tour Card in serious danger. Jurjen van der Velde missed the World Masters and did not progress beyond the second round at the UK Open, but recently qualified for the World Darts Championship. Chris Landman sits 92nd and has yet to win a match at a major this year. Jeffrey Sparidaans won two matches at the UK Open before losing to Connor Scutt. Sietse Lap beat Ted Evetts at the UK Open before losing 6-1 to Cristo Reyes. Marvin van Velzen and Dennie Olde Kalter have neither won a match at a major this year nor qualified for an event this autumn, and both risk losing their PDC Tour Cards.
