The final day of the 2019 Snooker Shootout takes place on Sunday with 32 players still baying for the title in Watford.
Each remaining contender has won a couple of ten-minute frames to get to this point but five more victories are needed in order claim the £32,000 top prize.
Three out of the half dozen top 16 players who entered are still in the hunt for glory at the Colosseum and bidding to become the first from the elite bracket to secure Snooker Shootout success in the tournament’s history.
As luck would have it, two of them have been paired together in the third round of the random draw as Kyren Wilson and former runner-up Stuart Bingham go head-to-head in Sunday’s opening tie.
Fifth seed Luca Brecel, the finalist from 2016, meets Zhao Xintong, who is the last remaining cueist in with a chance of qualifying for next month’s Players Championship.
The top 16 on the one-year money list will qualify for Preston in a few weeks and the young Chinese needs to bag a maiden ranking title today if he’s to deny Stephen Maguire from the potentially lucrative invitation.
Elsewhere, Jimmy White is still in the race to capture an 11th ranking title and will fancy his chances of progressing further against Rory McLeod.
Teenage wildcard Ryan Davies meets Akani Songsersawad and there are five other amateurs in with a shout of contention too.
With the Snooker Shootout just as much about timing and luck as it is about talent and skill, there’s every chance that a non-professional could be etching his name onto the trophy in what is sure to be a dramatic conclusion.
Two players who understand what it takes to deal with the boozed-up and boisterous crowds are Welsh pair Dominic Dale and Michael White, who triumphed in 2014 and 2015 respectively.
Graeme Dott, twice a runner-up including twelve months ago when he lost a tight finale with Michael Georgiou, faces Rod Lawler.
Live coverage continues on Eurosport.
2019 Snooker Shootout (Last 32 Draw)
- Stuart Bingham vs Kyren Wilson
- Daniel Wells vs Luke Simmonds
- Jimmy White vs Rory McLeod
- Jamie Clarke vs Oliver Lines
- Li Hang vs Lukas Kleckers
- Adam Duffy vs Alan McManus
- Ryan Davies vs Akani Songsermsawad
- Zhao Xintong vs Luca Brecel
- Laxman Rawat vs Sam Baird
- Michael White vs Jak Jones
- Barry Pinches vs Michael Holt
- Dominic Dale vs Allan Taylor
- Gary Wilson vs Steven Hallworth
- Thepchaiya Un-Nooh vs Mike Dunn
- Zhang Anda vs Tian Pengfei
- Rod Lawler vs Graeme Dott
Click here to view the full Snooker Shootout draw (Times: CET)
💬 “You need your wits about you.”
Dominic Dale is a shrewd competitor in the quickfire @BetVictor Shoot Out format.
Having won the event in 2014, can the Spaceman claim the title for a second time this weekend? 👨🚀#ClockIsTicking pic.twitter.com/IHlB73GEbv
— World Snooker (@WorldSnooker) February 23, 2019