Career High For Newton

WES NEWTON has moved into the top ten of the PDC Order of Merit for the first time, following the weekend's UK Open Qualifiers in Barnsley.

The Fleetwood ace has enjoyed a remarkable rise over the past two years, which has seen him rise from 37th on March 1 2009 to overtake Ronnie Baxter on Sunday and claim tenth place.

He reached two quarter-finals in the weekend's UK Open Qualifiers in Barnsley, meaning he claimed £2,000 prize money to move above Baxter.

Newton has won four Players Championships in the past two years and has also reached four major quarter-finals - including at the 2011 Ladbrokes.com World Darts Championship in his best run in that event.

Four players, John Part, Wayne Mardle, Colin Lloyd and Alan Tabern, have dropped out of the top ten from two years ago, although Lloyd remains in 12th place in the rankings.

Part's Players Championship victory in Derby a week ago had given him a cushion in 32nd place ahead of Steve Brown - who matched his achievement in winning £6,000 for his first PDC ProTour victory on Saturday, closing the gap on the Canadian from 33rd spot to under £3,000.

Michael Smith, the 20-year-old who won Sunday's UK Open Qualifier to claim his first professional title, jumps from 88th to 71st in the PDC Order of Merit following his achievement.

The two tables below show the PDC's top ten from the Order of Merit from two years ago and the current top ten, also showing the rise in prize money over the two-year period.

PDC Top Ten - March 1 2009