The snooker schedule continues to gather momentum in the second half of the season with the 2022 German Masters set to commence on Wednesday in Berlin.
After being forced behind closed doors in Milton Keynes a year ago, the popular ranking tournament makes a welcome return to the Tempodrom this year.
Indeed, it marks the first time since early in 2020 that an event will be staged outside the United Kingdom, representing another small sign that things are returning to some sense of normality within the sport.
Two qualifying rounds already took place in December so the tournament will resume at the round of 32 and the remaining competitors battling it out for the top prize.
2022 German Masters Draw and Schedule
Judd Trump is the defending champion having won each of the last two editions of the German Masters, and the world number two has already received a bye through to the last 16 after the withdrawal of Gao Yang.
Trump is one of several players in the 2022 German Masters draw who will not only be hoping to challenge for the title this week but also a spot in the lucrative Players Championship next month.
Only the top 16 players from the one-year rankings list will gain an invitation to that tournament in Wolverhampton, with world number one Mark Selby and World Championship finalist Shaun Murphy among those currently below the cut-off point provisionally.
Selby entertains Barry Pinches in the first round with Murphy in action against Kurt Maflin – the Magician needing to win the German Masters title in order to make the necessary leap up the pecking order.
The likes of Neil Robertson, Mark Williams, Zhao Xintong, and Luca Brecel are also in the German Masters field and already assured of their Players Championship places.
Last 32
(Times: GMT)
Judd Trump w/o Gao Yang
Anthony McGill vs Zhou Yuelong (Wednesday, 2pm)
Tom Ford vs Stephen Maguire (Wednesday, 7pm)
Zhao Xintong vs Mark Williams (Wednesday, 2pm)
Kyren Wilson vs Jimmy Robertson (Wednesday, 2pm)
Michael Georgiou vs Craig Steadman (Wednesday, 7pm)
Zhang Anda vs Luca Brecel (Wednesday, 2pm)
Ricky Walden vs Neil Robertson (Wednesday, 7pm)
Andrew Higginson w/o Liang Wenbo
Liam Highfield vs Fan Zhengyi (Thursday, 9am)
Lyu Haotian vs Mark Allen (Thursday, 9am)
Kurt Maflin vs Shaun Murphy (Thursday, 2pm)
Noppon Saengkham vs Ryan Day (Thursday, 2pm)
Sam Craigie vs Ken Doherty (Thursday, 2pm)
David Gilbert vs Yan Bingtao (Thursday, 2pm)
Barry Pinches vs Mark Selby (Thursday, 9am)
Prize, History, and Format
There’s a top prize worth £80,000 on offer for the 2022 German Masters with the event representing the fifth outing on the ongoing European Series schedule.
The player with the most prize money accumulated following eight events sponsored by BetVictor this term will accrue a tidy bonus of £150,000.
John Higgins currently leads the way on that front, but the Scot lost in the preliminaries and won’t feature at the venue stages of this year’s German Masters.
First staged in its current guise at the Tempodrom in 2011, Trump and Williams are the only two players who have managed to triumphantly emerge with the trophy twice.
Selby, who prevailed in 2015, and 2019 winner Kyren Wilson are the other former champions in the 2022 German Masters draw.
Matches are the best of nine frames for the first three rounds before the format is increased, with eleven frames required for the semi-finals and 17 for Sunday’s final.
Where to Watch the German Masters
Live coverage of the 2022 German Masters schedule will be available in Ireland, Britain, and across Europe via Eurosport.
Other options are available for viewers around the world, which you can view by clicking here.
Featured photo credit: WPBSA
Shootout is rubbish I love most snooker but carnt watch that stupid rules and crowd are very noisey and disrespect players.