The China Championship is ongoing in Guangzhou but let’s have a quick recap of everything in the world of snooker from the last week.
Champions from China to Coventry
The China Championship is reaching its climax with only a few players left in the hunt for glory in Guangzhou.
Mark Williams and Hossein Vafaei have already booked semi-final spots after winning their respective last eight ties against David Gilbert and Joe Perry.
The pair will meet on Saturday, with the other last four clash comprising two from the quartet of reigning champion Mark Selby, Barry Hawkins, Shaun Murphy, and Kurt Maflin.
One interesting thing worth noting is that none of the competitors remaining in the field have yet managed to qualify for the upcoming Champion of Champions invitational.
Therefore, whoever manages to etch his name on the trophy this Sunday will not only bag a £150,000 top prize but also a potentially lucrative trip to Coventry in November to boot.
Ronnie in English Open Field
The line-up of players for next month’s 19.com English Open is now complete, with crowd favourites Ronnie O’Sullivan and Judd Trump in the field.
The tournament at K2 Crawley is in October with 128 players all starting in a flat draw.
It’s the first Home Nations event of the season, followed by tournaments in Belfast, Glasgow and Cardiff, with a £1 million bonus available for any player who can win all four.
Ding, Mark Selby, Neil Robertson, Mark Allen, Shaun Murphy, and Mark Williams are among some of the other high-profile names taking part.
A spokesman for World Snooker said: “It’s an incredibly strong field and it’s going to be a fantastic experience for the fans who are lucky enough to get a ticket to watch it live.”
“The coveted Steve Davis Trophy is up for grabs as well as a top prize of £70,000, and the winner will go to the second Home Nations event in Northern Ireland dreaming of the massive £1 million bonus.
“For anyone who loves live sport this is an opportunity not to be missed.”
Jake Nicholson Wins Challenge Tour 2
The second Challenge Tour snooker event of the season took place last weekend in Newbury with Jake Nicholson emerging as the champion.
Nicholson won £2,000 for his display, which puts him in a good position on the Challenge Tour Order of Merit.
The Leeds man overcame former professional Andrew Pagett 3-1 in the final, completing the success with a break of 101.
The player who tops the standings after all ten tournaments will gain an automatic berth on the Main Tour, while those ranked from second through to ninth will enter a play-off for one additional place.
WDBS Growth Continues
Another event that took place last weekend was the UK Disability Snooker Championship.
There was plenty of silverware won in Northampton as the latest World Disability Billiards and Snooker (WDBS) weekend was staged.
Almost 70 competitors cued up to take part as the WDBS tour continues to grow.
Among the winners were Nigel Coton, Tony Southern, Mohammed Faisal Butt, and Shabir Ahmed.
Anything Else?
World Snooker has made two important announcements in the last couple of days.
First, there will be a new mini European Series that consists of four ranking tournaments between January and March of next year. Read more here.
The second was the confirmation that there will be a new venue on the calendar this season, with the Waterfront in Southport set to stage the next edition of the Players Championship.
What’s Coming?
Immediate attention will be on the conclusion of the China Championship this weekend.
Next week, all the professional players will return to the Barnsley Metrodome for the qualifying round for the World Open.
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