Darts prize money: How much will Michael van Gerwen or Michael Smith get if they win?
MICHAEL VAN GERWEN will go head-to-head with Michael Smith in the World Darts Championship Final on New Years Day, but how much will the winner receive?
‘Mighty Mike’ dispatched Gary Anderson in their semi-final with a convincing 6-1 victory.
The Dutchman looked to be back to his scintillating best as he dominated throughout the match.
Anderson went into the game having beaten Ryan Joyce 5-1 in the quarter-final, having shunned any talk of him having a back injury.
But he was powerless to the dominance of Van Gerwen, who averaged 109 through the first four sets as he performed like a man possessed.
Van Gerwen will face Smith, the tenth-ranked seed, in the final.
It is the first time that the 28-year-old has reached the final, his previous best was a quarter-finals visit in 2016.
Last year, he was defeated by eventual champion Rob Cross.
This year, the prize money has been upped significantly.
A record £2.5million is on offer, which will be shared amongst the finalists.
The prize fund has been increased by £700,000 this year.
How much will Michael Van Gerwen or Michael Smith receive?
The winner will receive £500,000, which is £100,000 more than Cross received last year.
The runner-up will receive £200,000.
Anderson and Nathan Aspinall, who was defeated by Smith in the Semi-Final, will both receive £100,000.
The rest of the field will still receive an increased financial reward.
The four beaten quarter-finalists will receive £50,000 each, while the fourth-round losers get £35,000.
For the 16 third-round losers, each will be given £25,000. Second-round losers get £15,000, and first-round losers £7,500.
Amazingly, Van Gerwen winning tonight would see him DOUBLE his earnings from clinching the world title for the first time in 2014.
Five years ago, Van Gerwen earned a cool £250,000 for toppling Peter Wright 7-4 in the final.
Three years later and he returned to the final oche and edged Gary Anderson 7-3.
Players Championship darts: Van Gerwen scores stunning shot
That year he picked up a cheque of £350,000 but the prize fund has kept on growing.
Phil Taylor was the first person to win £100,000 at the Worlds when beating Peter Manley 7-0 in the 2006 final.
That was not the first time Manley had lost 7-0 to Taylor in the final, having been downed by the same score in 2002 when the prize fund was upped to £50,000.