Michael van Gerwen

Michael van Gerwen (Dutch: [ˈmɑikəl vɑŋ ˈɣɛrʋə(n)]; born 25 April 1989) is a Dutch professional darts player who competes in Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) events, where he is ranked world number four; he was ranked world number one from 2014 to 2021. He is also a three-time PDC world champion, having won the title in 2014, 2017 and 2019. He is the reigning World Series Finals champion.

Van Gerwen began playing darts at the age of 13. At age 17, he won the 2006 World Masters and threw a televised nine-dart finish at the 2007 Masters of Darts. However, after this initial burst onto the darting scene, Van Gerwen struggled for consistent form, losing the final of the PDC World Youth Championship in both 2011, and 2012, his breakthrough year. Improving from world number 38 at the start of 2012 to number four at the beginning of 2013, he won his first PDC major title at the World Grand Prix and reached the final at the 2013 World Championship. In 2014, at age 24, Van Gerwen became the then-youngest winner of the PDC World Championship.

Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport, Van Gerwen has won 48 PDC major singles titles, placing him second in the all-time list behind Phil Taylor. This includes a record seven Premier League titles, three World Matchplay titles, and six World Grand Prix titles. He is also a three-time PDC World Cup of Darts champion, partnering Raymond van Barneveld for the Netherlands. Van Gerwen has reached seven PDC World Championship finals and is one of only five players to win the title more than once. He holds the record for the highest three-dart average in a televised darts match, with 123.4. As of January 2026, he has won the most PDC Pro Tour events, with 90, and has won a total of 159 PDC titles in his professional career.

Michael van Gerwen was born on 25 April 1989 in Boxtel in the Netherlands. He played football as a defender until he was 12 and began playing darts regularly at 13. He reached the final of the Primus Masters Youth event at the age of 14 in 2003. He then started to amass youth titles in 2006. He also won the Men's events in the Norway and Northern Ireland Opens in the same year that he took the youth titles. Before he became a professional darts player, he worked as a tiler.

Van Gerwen picked up several Open titles and rose up the BDO/WDF World Rankings having climbed to third before his 18th birthday. He reached the semi-finals of the Bavaria World Darts Trophy in 2006. Despite losing to Martin Adams, the Dutch youngster came within one dart of the perfect nine-dart finish, just missing double twelve. He did manage the highest possible checkout of 170 during the tournament.

He managed to eclipse that performance at the 2006 Winmau World Masters by becoming the youngest ever champion. Having trailed 1–4 and 2–5 to Adams, he came back to win the title and took Eric Bristow's record as the youngest ever winner at the age of 17 years and 174 days.

His early career success led to speculation that he would join the other professional circuit of darts, the Professional Darts Corporation. However, during the 2006 World Darts Trophy, Van Gerwen held a press conference to make it clear that he wanted to stay with the BDO/WDF. He also finished top of the DDF (Dutch Darts Federation) Rankings, which would have secured him a place at the PDC World Championship, if he chose to accept. He had already committed to playing at Lakeside, so the place went to Rico Vonck, who finished second in the rankings.

Van Gerwen was the bookmakers' pre-tournament favourite to win the 2007 Lakeside World title, but his hopes were ended in the first round by Gary Robson. On the night of the 2007 BDO World Championship final, it was announced on Dutch television that Van Gerwen, along with Jelle Klaasen and Vincent van der Voort, would be switching to the Professional Darts Corporation.