Stage One is nearing its conclusion in Leicester.
Jimmy Robertson beat Joe Perry 3-1 to leapfrog his fellow Englishman into first place in Group 4 of the Championship League on Monday at the Morningside Arena.
Heading into the last round of fixtures, Perry knew that a point would have been enough having previously earned back-to-back victories against Jimmy White and Sean Maddocks.
But Robertson, who also overcame Maddocks before coming from two frames behind to snatch a draw against the Whirlwind, began his contest with Perry with a magnificent 140 total clearance before proceeding to claim another two close frames for a 3-1 victory.
In Group 24, Ashley Hugill joined Jimmy Robertson in the next phase of the Championship League by also accumulating seven points from two triumphs and a tie game.
Hugill began his day by securing a draw against Sunny Akani, but things immediately improved with a 3-1 defeat of group favourite Stephen Maguire.
A 3-0 beating of amateur John Astley in the last match to be completed proved enough to see him through ahead of Akani, with Maguire last on just one point.
On Tuesday, Group 25 takes place involving Yan Bingtao, Jamie Clarke, Louis Heathcote, and amateur Robbie McGuigan, while there’s also action in Group 27 with Matthew Selt, Ashley Carty, Lukas Kleckers, and Fraser Patrick set to participate.
What is the Championship League?
The Championship League has been on the calendar in some way, shape, or form since 2008, but it’s only in the last couple of years that it has been intermittently staged as a ranking event.
On this occasion, there are three stages to the month-long competition with 128 players initially split into 32 round-robin groups comprising four players in each.
The 32 group winners advance to Stage Two, before the next eight group winners determine the competitors who feature in Stage Three, with all matches lasting just four frames.
The two players who win their third and final groups will subsequently contest the outright final, with the winner set to earn £33,000 from the total prize fund.
Where to Watch the Championship League
There will be two tables available to watch on each day of the group stages, with the snooker available across Ireland and the UK on FreeSports in addition to the Matchroom.Live’s snooker streaming service.
There are various other TV broadcast options around the world, which you can view by clicking here.
Click here to view the full draw (Times: CET)
