Michael van Gerwen now facing previously unthinkable scenario as PDC issue World Grand Prix rankings update

Michael van Gerwen is facing the prospect of dropping out of the top 16 of the PDC rankings for the first time in 14 years - barring a particular set of results between now and the end of the season.

Van Gerwen lost 2-1 to Ryan Joyce in the first round of the World Grand Prix in Leicester.

It was a tournament he recognised he had to target in terms of ranking points, with £150,000 on offer for the winner of the event. But his failure to win a match could present him with a tricky scenario at the World Darts Championship later this year.

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Michael van Gerwen facing nightmare ranking scenario

Van Gerwen currently sits in ninth place in the PDC Order of Merit, with £608,500 in prize money, after the World Grand Prix.

He holds a relatively comfortable advantage over 17th-placed Chris Dobey, who is on £537,250. With the Players Championship Finals and European Championship still to play, Van Gerwen has the opportunity to extend that gap further.

But a key issue will arise at the World Championship. That is because the PDC Order of Merit covers the last two years of darts, meaning that, after Ally Pally this year, results from the 2025 World Championship will be wiped from the records.

And Van Gerwen is defending £250,000 in prize money, earned by being runner-up to Luke Littler in 2025.

The significant increase in prize money from the 2026 edition has carried over to this year, meaning a good run to at least the fourth round should secure the three-time champion a spot in the top 16 for the start of the 2027 season.

But an early exit could see Van Gerwen looking nervously over his shoulder as the rest of the action unfolds at Alexandra Palace.

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'I have to look towards my ranking...' - Michael van Gerwen addresses top 16 fears

Speaking before last month's World Series Finals defeat to Daryl Gurney, Van Gerwen spoke openly about how his World Grand Prix campaign would take on increasing importance due to his ranking situation - and the fact that two previous consecutive first-round exits meant he was not defending any prize money in Leicester.

"The World Grand Prix is a lot more important for me than this tournament, because I also have to look towards my ranking," Van Gerwen told Oche180.

"For me now, it's the time to produce some good darts on the ranking tournaments. People only talk about, 'Oh, you have to defend this, you have to defend that', but in this tournament I don't have anything to defend. So for me, that's the time I have to produce some good darts.

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"If you do well in one tournament, the rankings look totally different. I don't look into that to be honest. If that's the case, it's the case. You have to work harder, keep battling, to come back even stronger. That's the way it is. As long as I keep doing everything I can now towards the year, and after, I think I can hold myself to not go outside of the top 16.

"We all know I had a tough past 18 months, and then it's no rocket science that the ranking [is worse]."