The first phase of the new event is finally nearing its conclusion.
Mark Selby won six out of his seven league encounters to top Group E of the WST Pro Series on Sunday in Milton Keynes.
The former world number one lost only four frames throughout the day’s action, with a 2-0 reverse against Soheil Vahedi the only blip in an otherwise perfect outing.
Selby will be joined in the second stage of the WST Pro Series later this week by Stuart Carrington, who left it late before snatching second spot in the standings.
Carrington needed a victory over Vahedi in his last match to deny the Iranian, and he duly obliged courtesy of a 2-0 triumph.
Vahedi was squeezed out of the promotion places into third place on frame difference, with Matthew Selt and Joe O’Connor among the others who were eliminated.
What is the WST Pro Series?
The format for the WST Pro Series is quite similar to that which was utilised for two out of the three editions of the Championship League that were staged during 2020.
There are 16 groups comprising eight players in each, with a round-robin phase determining the top two who will advance to the second group stage.
Eight groups in the first stage already took place in January, while the outcome from the remaining eight groups will be determined over the coming days.
Shaun Murphy, Kyren Wilson, Stuart Bingham, and Jack Lisowski are among the bigger names who have already made it through.
The 32 players who progress to stage two will be split into four more groups of eight, with the top two again moving forward from each to contest the final group.
That remaining set of eight players will subsequently battle it out in the same fashion to become the overall champion.
There is a total tournament prize fund of £420,500, broken down in various ways throughout the three group stages.
The winner, however, stands to collect at least £30,000 in an event that incorporates a sprint best-of-three frames format throughout.
What’s Next?
On Monday, Group I will take place with world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan, Tom Ford, Lyu Haotian, Mark Joyce, Chen Zifan, David Lilley, Ben Hancorn, and Jamie Wilson set to be involved.
Live coverage will be available via an account with several online bookmakers, as well as around the world through the Matchroom.Live streaming service.
Click here to view the full draw (Times in CET)
