By Alex Moss
22 MAY 2017 • 10:36PM
Jonny Clayton put himself in a provisional spot for the World Matchplay after a successful few days on the PDC Pro Tour at the weekend
The Welshman, who made his debut in the PDC World Championship last December, is in contention to secure a place in July’s World Matchplay for the first time.
Clayton enjoyed runs to the quarter-finals of both the Players Championship events held in Milton Keynes at the weekend, with his results pushing him into a provisional qualifying spot for the major tournament.
The qualifying criteria for the World Matchplay is set at the top 16 on the PDC Order of Merit and then the next 16 highest ranked players on the Pro Tour Order of Merit.
With just three European Tour events and four Players Championship events before the cut off, there is still plenty of time for the chasing pack to hoist themselves into a qualifying spot for the Blackpool tournament.
Darren Webster currently occupies the 16th and final spot up for grabs via the Pro Tour Order of Merit, but the Norwich thrower is only ahead of Chris Dobey on count back.
Robbie Green, Justin Pipe and John Henderson are all within £2,000 of Webster with seven events to go, while Terry Jenkins, a two-time finalist at the World Matchplay, looks set to miss out on a visit to the Winter Gardens for the first time since 2005.
The 53-year-old has not took part in any PDC ranking event since the UK Open in March, but is still only £3,250 adrift of Webster.
PDC Order of Merit (Only top 16 qualify) (as of May 21, 2017)
| Pos | Player | Prize Money |
| 1 | Michael van Gerwen | £1,722,250 |
| 2 | Gary Anderson | £743,000 |
| 3 | Peter Wright | £674,250 |
| 4 | Adrian Lewis | £391,500 |
| 5 | Dave Chisnall | £372,250 |
| 6 | James Wade | £370,500 |
| 7 | Mensur Suljovic | £333,500 |
| 8 | Jelle Klaasen | £330,500 |
| 9 | Phil Taylor | £327,250 |
| 10 | Michael Smith | £321,250 |
| 11 | Raymond van Barneveld | £319,500 |
| 12 | Kim Huybrechts | £295,250 |
| 13 | Ian White | £291,250 |
| 14 | Benito van de Pas | £275,500 |
| 15 | Robert Thornton | £274,750 |
| 16 | Simon Whitlock | £255,250 |
| 17 | Gerwyn Price | £236,250 |
| 18 | Alan Norris | £233,000 |
| 19 | Daryl Gurney | £231,500 |
| 20 | Mervyn King | £178,500 |
PDC Pro Tour Order of Merit (Excluding players already in the top 16 of the PDC Order of Merit) (Only top 16 qualify) (as of May 21, 2017)
| Pos | Player | Prize Money |
| 1 | Alan Norris | £72,500 |
| 2 | Daryl Gurney | £64,500 |
| 3 | Gerwyn Price | £58,500 |
| 4 | Joe Cullen | £52,750 |
| 5 | Stephen Bunting | £49,000 |
| 6 | Rob Cross | £48,750 |
| 7 | Cristo Reyes | £48,500 |
| 8 | Mervyn King | £44,500 |
| 9 | Steve West | £43,250 |
| 10 | James Wilson | £39,250 |
| 11 | Steve Beaton | £39,000 |
| 12 | Kyle Anderson | £38,750 |
| 13 | Christian Kist | £33,000 |
| 14 | Ronny Huybrechts | £31,000 |
| 15 | Jonny Clayton | £30,000 |
| 16 | Darren Webster | £29,250 |
| = | Chris Dobey | £29,250 |
| 18 | Robbie Green | £28,500 |
| 19 | Justin Pipe | £27,500 |
| 20 | John Henderson | £27,250 |
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