Vicky Pruim’s Blackpool debut has quietly become one of the sharpest first-round pressure points in the 2026 Betfred Women’s World Matchplay draw.
The PDC has confirmed Pruim in the eight-player Winter Gardens field after she finished fifth on the final Women’s World Matchplay Race with £8,250, setting up a quarter-final against fourth seed Gemma Hayter on 26 July.
It is not the loudest tie on the board. Beau Greaves opens against Kirsi Viinikainen, Lisa Ashton begins her title defence against Rhian O’Sullivan, and Fallon Sherrock faces Deta Hedman. But Pruim-Hayter carries genuine bracket weight because it sits outside the Greaves-Ashton headline lane and gives one player a clean route into a televised semi-final.
Pruim’s timing changes the Blackpool read
Pruim’s qualification is backed by form rather than sentiment. DartsRankings lists the Belgian-Swedish thrower fifth in the final race table, behind Greaves, Ashton, Sherrock and Hayter, after the June cut-off.
The wider NineDartNews picture has already centred on Ashton’s defence and the Greaves top-seed story, but Pruim’s draw now deserves separate focus. She is no longer chasing a place; she is defending a breakthrough season on the biggest women’s PDC stage.
Hayter’s scoring power still makes her the seed to beat. Pruim’s task is to turn a landmark qualification into proof that her Women’s Series rise can travel under lights.
The field and draw bracket for the 2026 @Betfred Women's World Matchplay has been confirmed!
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) June 21, 2026
Read the official PDC confirmation here, and see the final race table at DartsRankings. For more Blackpool context, NineDartNews has also covered Lisa Ashton’s opening defence.
