2026 PDC World Championship: Betting tips for Friday's action
After an explosive opening night of action, the 2026 PDC World Championship really gets up and running on Friday with eight round one ties taking place across the afternoon and evening sessions.
Our darts expert Matt Hill will be on hand every day to give Odds Now readers his thoughts on the upcoming action and share some of his best betting angles. You can also catch Matt talking through his picks over on the Odds Now YouTube channel!
Matt started his tournament in style with a full house of winners on Thursday evening – advised at 9/4, 8/5 and 13/2 respectively. Can he follow up today?
And if you’re still looking to sharpen your senses ahead of this year’s arrows extravaganza, why not check out Matt and Adam’s bumper 2026 PDC World Championship preview? All 64 round one matches were covered in under an hour!
I’m surprised to see the market put such a disparity between Niels Zonneveld and Haupai Puha in Friday’s opening contest.
There’s no doubt Zonneveld has produced the goods far more consistently than his opponent in 2025. The young Dutchman has had a stellar year on the floor, reaching six quarter-finals from 34 Players Championship events and even making his first Pro Tour final at PC22 – where he squandered a 6-4 lead to lose 8-6 against Sebastien Bialecki.
However, the Dutchman still has to prove he can bring his best level to the big stages. He exited at the first stage in both of his TV majors this term (UK Open and Players Championship FInals), while his Worlds record leaves a lot to be desired. Five Ally Pally games, four losses and his sole win came against Darren Webster two years ago where he stumbled over the line averaging just 79.
Puha’s results on the floor over the last two years probably don’t showcase his capabilities. The Kiwi will lose his Tour Card after this tournament barring a miracle but he’s had a lot to contend with in that period, moving to the other side of the world in pursuit of his dream. I hope he tries to win it back because there’s clearly some talent there.
This year’s two World Series showings suggest to me he actually improves for a big stage. A 6-3 defeat to Luke Humphries averaging 86.29 and a 6-5 loss to Luke Littler averaging 88.29 caught the eye and I think he’ll make this duel with Zonneveld a lot tighter than is being forecast by odds compilers.
I must admit, I’m a big Mervyn King fan – or a Mervert as we prefer to be addressed. It’s great to see the King back at the Palace, given the loss of his Tour Card 12 months ago could easily have put such a scenario to bed once and for all.
King has his reasons for playing on. One may be to help deal with a rather large unpaid tax bill, though I do believe the 59-year-old still feels his game is there too. To repeat his own words during a recent interview: “I can still play darts. I just can’t do it consistently”.
The former semi-finalist has been battling away on the Challenge Tour in 2025 and sneaked into the final Worlds qualifying spot on the last day of action, dramatically pipping Germany’s Michael Unterbuchner. This World Championship is a big chance for King to remind everyone what he can do.
Fellow veteran Ian White stands in his way here. Given Diamond made a Pro Tour final earlier this year (losing 8-5 to Gerwyn Price), you can understand why he’s been instilled as a decent favourite here but his recent form has been nothing short of dire.
The likeable White hasn’t been beyond round three in a Pro Tour event since March, losing 19 of his last 28 matches coming into Ally Pally. It’s hard to put forward a case for backing him at odds-on with any confidence as a result – even more so when you consider how much this game will mean to King as a non-Tour Card holder.
So, even taking personal feelings out of this one, you have to make King a bet at current prices. I've also included a link to Mervyn's nine-darter at the 2009 South African Masters below because... why not?
This year’s draw looks to have handed Ryan Searle a great opportunity to extend his consistent yet unspectacular record at the PDC World Championship. Heavy Metal has played in this tournament seven times and has never exited earlier than round three, nor made it further than round four.
Searle looks set to be the betting favourite in each of his first three matches, before a tie with someone in the ilk of Stephen Bunting or Dirk van Duijvenbode. Again, winnable, but he would likely be priced as an underdog. His talent has never been in question but the same can’t be said for his desire – often admitting he doesn’t have the hunger or the focus of the PDC’s leading lights, which is quite sad given his ability.
Still, Searle should have no issues getting past Chris Landman here. The Dutchman does possess a good top level, which helped him make the WDF World Championship final in 2023, but hasn’t shown anywhere near enough of his best game over the last two years.
The Countryman will lose his Tour Card unless he wins two games at the World Championship. Given he’s made the quarter-finals of just two Pro Tour events in the last two years, that feels unlikely.
Searle looks about right as a 2/7 favourite here, so there’s no need to force a bet.
What a stinking 2025 it has been for Rob Cross.
Eight years have nearly passed since Voltage ruled the darting world and the 35-year-old currently looks a shadow of his former self. He suffered first round exits at the Masters, the Matchplay, the European Championship and the Players Championship Finals, failed to make a European Tour semi-final and won just one Pro Tour event – the very first of the campaign, all the way back in February.
Cross’ seventh place finish in the Premier League could well be his last appearance in that competition unless something drastic changes. In the short-term, he just needs to try and get some wins at Ally Pally, given he’s defending £100k of prize money from his semi-final run here two years ago.
Cor Dekker is no mug, however. The big Dutchman, who now represents Norway on an international level, has had an encouraging first year on the Pro Tour circuit. It started slowly, with 17 round one exits in his first 21 floor events, before bursting into life from August onwards.
The peak performance came on the European Tour, when surging to the semi-finals of the Swiss Darts Trophy, beating four former major winners en route.That showed Dekker has plenty of gears and if he brings his best stuff here, opportunity knocks.
At the prices, I think you have to be with Dekker. Cross should prevail but living up to expectations is something the former champion has not done a lot of in recent times.
Ross Smith is one of several players who should be rubbing his hands having landed in a wide-open looking second quarter. There’s no doubt Smudger has the talent to take advantage of a section where Stephen Bunting and Jonny Clayton are the highest-ranked names standing between him and a semi-final run.
However, it’s best not to look too far ahead at the World Championship, as the Kent native found last year. Smith was a 1/10 favourite to take care of Paolo Nebrida in his opener 12 months ago but suffered a crushing 3-0 defeat, forced to sit back and watch as his Filipino opponent checked out at a ludicrous 81% success rate.
Things like that don’t happen too often but it’s fair to say Smith could’ve been handed an easier starter this term than Andreas Harrysson.
The big Swede – unmissable with his towering frame and Viking-like beard – makes his Ally Pally bow having tied up top spot on the Nordic and Baltic Tour this year with two events to spare. Though yet to hold a PDC Tour Card, you feel the 50-year-old could easily pocket one at European Q-School next month should he turn up.
Harrysson is a real showman. He won a Modus Super Series Champions Week title earlier this year beating Cam Crabtree with a bull finish, which rather epitomised his overall game. He also has levels, as displayed by a 107.27 average when dismantling Gian van Veen on the European Tour back in March.
No bet jumps out in this one really, with Smith a worthy favourite but Harrysson a dangerous man to oppose lightly. It should be a cracker for the neutral, though.
Even if it goes to a fifth and final set, this game won’t take long. Two of the game’s speediest operators do battle here as Rapid Ricky Evans takes on Hong Kong qualifier Man Lok Leung – the latter looking to write some more Ally Pally history after a memorable debut two years ago.
Nobody gave Lok Leung a prayer ahead of his World Championship bow. To be fair, he was facing one of the game’s mercurial talents in Gian van Veen. But five sets and 11 180s later, the man known as ‘Hugo’ had forever etched himself into darting folklore – and offered a timely reminder why international qualifiers should not be underestimated.
The Worlds was a poorer place for his absence last year but he looks sure to light up the stage again when facing one of the great entertainers in Evans. It should be said, though, that Evans is starting to slowly elevate himself away from just an early round showman and actually show people what he can do.
A semi-final at last year’s UK Open was an out-of-the-blue best major run for Rapid and he followed that up at last year’s Worlds, making the third round with impressive wins over Gordon Mathers and Dave Chisnall. This year, his highlight was an impressive recent run to the Grand Slam of Darts quarter-finals – another personal best ticked off.
This is a tricky game to call on paper with Evans the more reliable type (not often you say that about Ricky) but Leung clearly possessing a serious A-game. Both players love a maximum so I’d certainly want to be on the overs side of that 7.5 line.
Gian van Veen is third favourite for this year’s PDC World Championship but has yet to win a game at Ally Pally. Quite a remarkable stat, really. That quirk should be put to bed here but veteran Spaniard Cristo Reyes is an intriguing opponent indeed.
The underdog’s name will ring a bell for those of a certain vintage. The Spartan qualified (and competed well) at six straight PDC World Championships between 2015 and 2020. Reyes even briefly held the record for highest losing average at the Worlds when posting 106.07 in defeat to Michael van Gerwen (it was bettered a few days later by Raymond van Barneveld, also losing to MVG, posting 109.34).
Then, Reyes disappeared. He’s not even been playing regional tours for the last few years. But a couple of months ago, he posted a video to social media of him hitting a nine-dart leg in his bedroom. A few weeks later, Reyes rocked up at the Mediterranean qualifier and duly ran through the field, posting several 90+ averages along the way.
This shouldn’t be enough to scare Van Veen. But if there are any nerves around picking up that first win on this famous stage, then Reyes is a player capable of capitalising. The Spaniard picking up a set is not out of the question, though quotes of 4/1 last week were more attractive than the 5/2 on offer now. Therefore, this one looks a watching brief at current prices.
Damon Heta hit a nine-darter at last year’s World Championship, which would make you think he’s getting more comfortable on the game’s biggest stages. And yet, the likeable Aussie still has a TV record to make you wince.
An elite performer away from the brightest lights, Heta has picked up another two Pro Tour titles in 2025, as well as making a second career European Tour final in early June. But after a promising start at the World Masters (quarter-final) and UK Open (sixth round), those major woes have reared their head again since.
First round exits at the World Matchplay, World Grand Prix, European Championship, Grand Slam of Darts and Players Championship Finals have added further fuel to the fire for his detractors, who argue Heta lacks the bottle to perform on the biggest stages. I don’t agree with that assessment – but there’s no doubt he’s feeling the Heat at the moment.
In my opinion, Heta is too good not to enjoy better success in the majors over the coming years. Sure, it’s hard to back him with confidence right now, but I also wouldn’t oppose him lightly. A couple of wins in the early rounds and he could become a very different proposition in this tournament.
I get that some will want to take him on with Steve Lennon but it’s not for me. The Irishman hasn’t had a great couple of years and only a run to the last 16 would save his Tour Card status. I think Heta wins this one with a degree of comfort, though there’s no need to play it at the prices. I’ll just will him on!
2pts - Haupai Puha to beat Niels Zonneveld - 5/2
2pts - Mervyn King to beat Ian White - 6/5
2pts - Cor Dekker to beat Rob Cross - 21/10
2pts - Ricky Evans vs Man Lok Leung over 7.5 180s - EVS
0.5pt four fold on above selections - 44/1 (Bet365)
Total staked - 8.5pts
Matt Hill is Odds Now's Head of Content and leads our digital operation, while also offering his insight as a tipster across darts and football.
Having worked in the industry for the best part of a decade, including extended stints with Betfred and LiveScore, Matt joined the project in May 2024 with the sole aim of making Odds Now a key player in the betting content space.
He has also forged a reputation as a respected darts tipster, landing numerous three-figure outright winners over the years, while his love for lower league football also helps him pick out the odd obscure winner in that space.
When not at the editorial desk, Matt enjoys travelling the country supporting his beloved Carlisle United FC, chucking a few arrows and spending time with his young family.
Matt Hill is Odds Now's Head of Content and leads our digital operation, while also offering his insight as a tipster across darts and football.
Having worked in the industry for the best part of a decade, including extended stints with Betfred and LiveScore, Matt joined the project in May 2024 with the sole aim of making Odds Now a key player in the betting content space.
He has also forged a reputation as a respected darts tipster, landing numerous three-figure outright winners over the years, while his love for lower league football also helps him pick out the odd obscure winner in that space.
When not at the editorial desk, Matt enjoys travelling the country supporting his beloved Carlisle United FC, chucking a few arrows and spending time with his young family.
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THE SUPER SWEDE AT THE SUPER SERIES!!!!!🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
@CristoReyes180 poco a poco cogiendo el ritmo! #9
🚨 FULL HOUSE! 🎯 Some start from our darts tipster @Matt_Hill93 at Ally Pally! 9/4 winner ✅ 8/5 winner ✅ 13/2 winner ✅ 👀 Don’t miss Matt’s Friday picks, live on site soon!
🎯 PDC WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP - THURSDAY TIPS 🤩 The biggest darts tournament of the year gets going this evening with four games to kick things off at Ally Pally! ✍️ Our arrows expert @Matt_Hill93 marks your card ahead of the opening night's action...👇 oddsnow.com/darts/darts-be…
