2026 UK Open R6 Preview

James Punt had an up and down afternoon but did manage to land a couple of winners. His 2026 UK Open R6 preview and tips are below.

2026 UK Open R5 Reflections

This afternoon’s matches saw a -1.62 point loss, leaving us -1.68 for our tournament match bets to date. We also lost one of our outright selections, with Ross Smith losing to Daryl Gurney. That leaves us with Littler, MVG and Clayton going into the last sixteen stage this evening.

Again, I do not know the match order yet so the preview won’t match the order of play later. I need to get this written up…and get to eat a bit food at some point!

Gary Anderson vs. Luke Littler

The match of the session. Anderson has played the best darts of the tournament so far, averaging 106.61 across his first two matches.

Littler has not averaged above 95 in his two matches and he was lucky to get a win against Doets earlier. He won 10-8 but Doets was the better player. Littler put that down to the fact that he hates playing in the afternoon. He didn’t play well last night either, so he may just be a bit out of sorts. Whatever it is, he is likely to need to find his A game to beat an in-form Anderson.

Their H2H record extends to just one match. That was a 16-15 win for Littler in the 2024 Grand Slam semi-final.

Littler is the better player, but is he the better player this weekend? Not so far.

Gary Anderson is the 3.00 outsider, Littler 1.40. I think that the crowd might just be on Anderson’s side, and that could be important. I am happy to hedge with Anderson.

2026 UK Open R6 Tip: 1 point over 16.5 legs @ 1.91 with Boylesports

2026 UK Open R6 Tip: 1 point Gary Anderson to win @ 3.00 with Ladbrokes, Livescorebet

Stephen Bunting vs. Josh Rock

Bunting dispatched Mensur Suljovic 10-2 this afternoon, averaging 98.53. He has won seven of his last ten matches and while he hasn’t been entirely consistent, he is playing mostly good darts.

Josh Rock won a tight match with William O’Connor 10-9 yesterday and played very well. Today he was not great in a 10-7 win over Dominik Grüllich. Rock has lost six of his last ten matches, and not all in the PL.

Bunting is the 2.10 outsider, which surprises me. Bunting is playing better, more often. He is also 5-1 against Rock.

2026 UK Open R6 Tip: 1 point Stephen Bunting to win @ 2.10 with Betfair

Martin Lukeman vs. Jonny Clayton

I would say that the ferret has got a good draw here. Martin Lukeman will be delighted to have made the last sixteen and pick up at least £12500. He has been struggling for form and has resorted to hypnosis and acupuncture in an attempt to get back on track.

Lukeman’s seasonal win rate is just 29% and he has lost five of his last six matches. He beat Madars Razma 10-3 this afternoon, but Razma was as bad as that sounds. Lukeman averaged just 88.77 and in his last ten matches he has averaged under 90 eight times and his highest was 91.31. He even had a couple of sub 80 averages, so he really is struggling.

Jonny Clayton beat Daryl Pilgrim 10-7 today and averaged 96.69. I would say that Pilgrim was a tougher task than what he will face tonight.

Their H2H record is 5-1 to Clayton. Three matches required a deciding leg, including a fourth round match here in 2022. Lukeman can be a very dangerous player when he is in good form. He just isn’t in good form, despite all his efforts to find his A-game.

Clayton is the 1.17 favourite, Lukeman 6.00. We are on Clayton outright and that is enough interest for me in what looks like a one-sided match up.

2026 UK Open R6 Tip: No Bet

Daryl Gurney vs. Rob Cross

Rob Cross survived a match dart against him in a 10-9 win over Mike De Decker this afternoon. He played well enough, averaging 96.39, but he was not the same player that beat Gian van Veen yesterday.

Daryl Gurney beat Ross Smith 10-8 but it was a poor match with Gurney averaging just 88.74. Smith missed a lot of doubles and Gurney was good enough to take his chances. Superchin has won seven of his last ten matches but he has played quite a few weak opponents. He has played some decent darts, but not his best.

Their H2H record is 17-9 to Rob Cross and they used to be big rivals, going H2H in the Premier League and Major Championships. It is fair to say that both players have seen better days. Cross plays the better darts on the whole, while Gurney has found a level in the mid-twenties in the world rankings. They have only played four times in the last three years and it is 2-2 in that time.

Cross is the 1.67 favourite, Gurney 2.30. I can’t see any value in this one. No bet.

2026 UK Open R6 Tip: No Bet

Gerwyn Price vs. Keane Barry

Barry obviously likes playing in Minehead. He was a semi-finalist here in 2022 and also reached this stage in 2024. Price has played six sixth round matches here and won them all.

Price beat Wessel Nijman 10-5 this afternoon, with both players averaging over the ton. Nijman just folded, as is his way on TV. Price has won eight of his last ten matches and he is 7-0 vs. Barry.

Price is the 1.17 favourite but I guess this is about by which margin of victory he wins by. They have met on TV twice with Price winning 6-1 (legs) and 3-0 (sets).

2026 UK Open R6 Tip: 1 point Gerwyn Price to win -4.5 legs @ 2.02 with Livescorebet

Michael van Gerwen vs. James Wade

MVG was only OK in his 10-6 win over Kai Gotthardt today. He was never in any real bother but was a bit slow to get going. He has won six of his last ten matches and is playing well enough.

James Wade beat Gabriel Clemens 10-2 in a poor match. Wade didn’t get out of first gear, he didn’t have to. The Machine has won seven of his last ten matches and he is playing OK, but not great.

Their H2H record is 52-21 to MVG, but Wade beat Van Gerwen 7-6 in a Players Championship semi-final last month. That ended a run of four straight wins for Van Gerwen.

The Dutchman should have too much firepower for wade.

2026 UK Open R6 Tip: 1 point Van Gerwen to win -1.5 legs @ 1.80 generally available

Ryan Searle vs. Krzysztof Ratajski

Searle struggled to a 10-9 win over Michael Smith today, Ratajski had an easy 10-3 win over Oskar Lukasiak. He looked very pleased with himself and he has been playing some good darts recently. He has been scoring well and consistently but not quite getting the results that his performances deserved.

Searle has played a light schedule recently and is playing at much the same level as Ratajski. Their H2H record is 5-3 to Ratajski. They have never played on TV before but Ratajski is 2-0 on stage.

2026 UK Open R6 Tip: 1 point Krzysztof Ratajski to win @ 2.00 with Boylesports

Luke Humphries vs. Danny Noppert

Humphries smashed in another big ton plus average in his 10-4 win over Dave Chisnall. Noppert averaged 99.97 in a 10-2 demolition of Peter Wright. That was an uptick on some pretty average form of late.

Their H2H record is 10-4 to Humphries and he has won their last five in a row, including a 4-0 win at this year’s World Masters.

Humphries is the 1.38 favourite and I can’t argue with the odds. No bet.

2026 UK Open R6 Tip: No Bet

-JamesPunt