Stephen Bunting will begin his defence of the Swiss Darts Trophy against Jeffrey de Graaf or Sietse Lap as the race for European Championship qualification continues.

The year’s penultimate European Tour event will take place at St Jakobshalle from October 9-11, with newly crowned World Grand Prix champion Luke Humphries also set to star in the Swiss capital.

Friday’s opening round will see 16 matches take place across the day and then the top 16 players on the PDC Werner Rankings Ladder will enter the tournament in round two on Saturday, as top seed Humphries begins his challenge against Kevin Doets or Nick Kenny.

Following the conclusion of Saturday’s action, the last 16 will return to the stage on Sunday and the tournament then concludes with the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final in a blockbuster evening session.

2026 Swiss Darts Trophy (ET14)

Tournament Draw Bracket – Second Round Onwards
Players seeded based on PDC Ranking position
(6) Josh Rock v Dave Chisnall/Alan Soutar
(11) Wessel Nijman v Sebastian Bialecki/Karel Sedlacek
(3) Jonny Clayton v Raymond van Barneveld/Maik Kuivenhoven
(14) Luke Woodhouse v Rob Cross/Mario Vandenbogaerde
(7) Stephen Bunting v Jeffrey de Graaf/Sietse Lap
(10) Chris Dobey v Niels Zonneveld/Bradley Brooks
(2) Gian van Veen v Niko Springer/Roman Wellinger
(15) Martin Schindler v Joe Cullen/Tom Bissell
(5) Michael van Gerwen v Mensur Suljovic/Gyorgy Jehirszki
(12) Ross Smith v William O’Connor/Jani Haavisto
(4) James Wade v Dirk van Duijvenbode/Bruno Stoeckli
(13) Jermaine Wattimena v Michael Smith/Rob Owen
(8) Danny Noppert v Damon Heta/Alex Fehlmann
(9) Ryan Searle v Cameron Menzies/Cristo Reyes
(1) Luke Humphries v Kevin Doets/Nick Kenny
(16) Krzysztof Ratajski v Andrew Gilding/Stefan Bellmont

Schedule of Play (subject to change)

Friday October 9
Round One
Afternoon Session (1200 BST)
Niels Zonneveld v Bradley Brooks
William O’Connor v Jani Haavisto
Mensur Suljovic v Gyorgy Jehirszki
Sebastian Bialecki v Karel Sedlacek
Niko Springer v Roman Wellinger
Joe Cullen v Tom Bissell
Cameron Menzies v Cristo Reyes
Rob Cross v Mario Vandenbogaerde

Evening Session (1800 BST)
Andrew Gilding v Stefan Bellmont
Jeffrey de Graaf v Sietse Lap
Dave Chisnall v Alan Soutar
Raymond van Barneveld v Maik Kuivenhoven
Dirk van Duijvenbode v Bruno Stoeckli
Michael Smith v Rob Owen
Damon Heta v Alex Fehlmann
Kevin Doets v Nick Kenny

Saturday October 10
Round Two
Afternoon Session (1200 BST)
Krzysztof Ratajski v Gilding/Bellmont
Wessel Nijman v Bialecki/Sedlacek
Luke Woodhouse v Cross/Vandenbogaerde
Martin Schindler v Cullen/Bissell
Ryan Searle v Menzies/Reyes
Ross Smith v O’Connor/Haavisto
Chris Dobey v Zonneveld/Brooks
Jermaine Wattimena v M Smith/Owen

Evening Session (1800 BST)
Josh Rock v Chisnall/Soutar
Stephen Bunting v De Graaf/Lap
James Wade v Van Duijvenbode/Stoeckli
Jonny Clayton v Van Barneveld/Kuivenhoven
Michael van Gerwen v Suljovic/Jehirszki
Luke Humphries v Doets/Kenny
Gian van Veen v Springer/Wellinger
Danny Noppert v Heta/Fehlmann

Sunday October 11
Afternoon Session (1100 BST)
Round Three

Evening Session (1700 BST)
Quarter-Finals
Semi-Finals
Final

Sunday’s games played in Draw Bracket order

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Scotland’s Connor Syme and Grant Forrest both made a five-under-par 66 to share a three-way lead after the opening round of the Open de Espana in Madrid, where Sergio Garcia sits just one shot back.

Starting on the 10th, Syme made a quick start with back-to-back birdies then rolled in a 52-foot putt at the 15th as he headed into the turn five under.

A tap-in birdie at the fourth saw Syme take the solo lead at Real Club de Campo Villa de Madrid, but he was then not able to save par on the eighth after finding the rough off the tee.

Forrest also started his round on the back nine and after two bogeys, on 13 and then three, he finished strongly with a run of three birdies through the closing six holes.

Eugenio Chacarra made the lowest first round in seven appearances at his national open with a 66, which included two eagles as well as three bogeys, to also share the lead.

However, he is struggling with pain and will assess how he feels over the next 24 hours.

“It’s not good, suffering a lot. It’s been tough, not sure what is going to happen tomorrow,” Chacarra said after his round.

“I need to take care of myself. Obviously, I got a good round but how I feel physically is not great.

“It doesn’t hurt when I’m swinging, so I can still make a score but it’s been really tough to walk.

“The pain I had on the last 12 holes, I don’t know if it is worth it as I have a lot to play the next couple of weeks.

“I’ve got 24 hours to rest and see how it feels in the morning. I’ve got a lot to play for, I’ve got four weeks that are really important to me.”

Garcia, whose stay with LIV Golf appears to be coming to an end, is in a group at four under, with an eagle on the fourth and four birdies offsetting two bogeys.

Daniel Hillier landed the keys to a new BMW iX5 with his first hole-in-one on the DP World Tour at the par-three 17th.

“I wasn’t too happy with the strike,” Hillier said.

“I was telling it to go the whole way, but it kind of hung in the air for a little bit longer than I thought, and then, yeah, heard some cheers – a little bit of disbelief for a while, but it’s nice to see it go in.”

The New Zealander went on to finish in the group alongside Garcia, Spain’s Angel Ayora and Dane Jacob Skov Olesen, whose 67 was blemish-free.

Race to Dubai leader Patrick Reed, though, had a frustrating round on his return from injury, finishing down the field at two over.

The Open de Espana continues on Friday October 9 from 1pm on Sky Sports Golf.

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Georgia Hunter Bell has enjoyed quite the year, winning a hat-trick of gold medals at the World Indoor Championships, for England at the Commonwealth Games, and again for Team GB at the European Championships.

But British female track success in 2025 certainly didn’t stop there. Sprinter Amy Hunt made headlines with a record four-gold display in the Europeans in Birmingham, while Dina Asher-Smith now tops the all-time medal table at the championships after winning her 11th, eight of which are gold.

Among other successes, Keely Hodgkinson claimed World Indoor gold in the 800m in March – in the second-fastest indoor time in history – and set a new British record at that distance in the summer, though she’d be pipped to gold at the Europeans after sitting out the Commonwealth Games due to muscle tightness.

“It’s really cool. just being part of this era. It’s really fun,” Hunter Bell told Sky Sports.

“We all know each other very well. We all travel together, see each other a lot throughout the year, so it’s fun to tune in and be like, ‘Oh, Amy’s racing tonight’.

“We’re locked into everyone’s goals and what they’re trying to do. And when you’re on a team together, someone winning or bringing home a medal, it makes you even more keen to do well because you want to contribute.”

In addition to her statement performances on the track during her record-breaking Europeans, Hunt earned attention for her curated nail art that gave nod to landmarks within Birmingham, like the Bull Ring.

“Everyone knows I love a bit of glam and I love my nails,” Hunt told the BBC at the time.

Hunter Bell says it’s something the GB squad share, as feeling your best self on the start line can provide “that extra one or two per cent” to make you “feel like you can do anything”.

“I enjoy the whole process of getting ready. We get ready like we’re going to a club, we’re quite glammed up,” Hunter Bell said.

“We definitely put effort into it, for sure. We want to look nice.

“It’s about doing whatever you need to feel confident on the start line – and I just think it makes you race better if you’re feeling good about yourself.

“So much of that comes from the training and the lead up, of course. But it’s that extra one or two per cent that makes you stand on the start line and feel like you can do anything, feel like you’re a winner.”

In terms of eye-catching track looks, Hodgkinson dominated the final race of her 2026 season by winning the 800m at Athlos in London last month as she debuted a new full-length, hooded speed suit.

Hodgkinson’s outfit reminded people of Australian Cathy Freeman’s which she won the women’s 400m in at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, and it could be a feature for athletes at the next Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028.

Hunter Bell didn’t rule out being one of them to don the suit.

“The first time you see it, it’s like, ‘Whoa! Haven’t seen that before’,” she said. “It will be interesting to see whether it becomes the norm.

“They do say it’s quicker, so I’m definitely not ruling it out.”