The 2022 Nirvana Turkish Masters commences on Monday with the likes of Judd Trump and John Higgins in the snooker draw.
A welcome change of pace sees the tour travel outside the UK for only the second time since the start of 2020.
The Turkish Masters, which takes place at the Nirvana Cosmopolitan Hotel in Antalya, is the newest ranking event on the schedule.
Prize, History, and Format
As it’s the inaugural staging of the Turkish Masters, there are obviously no previous champions in the draw.
It’s a new destination for the snooker tour, so everything including the conditions will be alien to the players.
There is a substantial prize on offer, though, with the champion set to earn a lucrative £100,000 cheque next Sunday.
There are also various ranking permutations ongoing at this time of the season that will be impacted.
Indeed, it’s one of the last chances to earn vital money in the tour survival standings and the top 16 race, where an automatic berth at the Crucible is at stake.
There are also several players scrambling for the remaining spots in the prestigious eight-player Tour Championship.
John Higgins and Ricky Walden currently possess the seventh and eighth spots, but Hossein Vafaei and Yan Bingtao are within striking distance.
There’s a traditional format for the first Turkish Masters, with nine-frame matches until the best-of-11 semi-finals, and a title decider played over 19 frames.
Turkish Masters Snooker Draw
A qualifying round already took place earlier this year with the likes of Higgins, Mark Williams, Zhao Xintong, and Yan Bingtao sealing spots in the last 64.
The top four seeds had their matches held over to the venue stages, but both Mark Selby and Neil Robertson have since withdrawan.
The pair has been replaced by top-up amateurs, so it’s a pity for the inaugural staging of the competition to lose such high-profile protagonists.
Fan favourite Ronnie O’Sullivan already opted not to enter the event, meaning three from world’s top four will be absent this week.
Trump, who lost the Welsh Open final to Joe Perry on Sunday, takes on Michael Georgiou while Kyren Wilson encounters Rory McLeod.
Two Turkish wildcards were granted entry as well, with Enes Bakirci in action against Hossein Vafaei and Ismail Türker up against Thepchaiya Un-Nooh.
In the last 64, Higgins faces Dylan Emery, Williams takes on Matthew Stevens in an all-Welsh battle, and Zhao encounters Michael White.
Shaun Murphy, Mark Allen, and Jack Lisowski, and Joe Perry are other notable names set to feature.
Last 128 (Held over matches) (Scheduled times in GMT) Haydon Pinhey vs Wu Yize (Mon, 5pm) Thepchaiya Un-Nooh vs Ismail Türker (Mon, 8am) Kyren Wilson vs Rory McLeod (Mon, 12:30pm) Simon Blackwell vs Iulian Boiko (Tues, 12:30pm) Hossein Vafaei vs Enes Bakirci (Tues, 8am) Judd Trump vs Michael Georgiou (Tues, 5pm) Last 64 Pinhey/Wu vs Aaron Hill (Wed, 8am) Lu Ning w/o Zak Surety Jack Lisowski vs Martin O'Donnell (Mon, 8am) Martin Gould vs David Grace (Mon, 8am) Ashley Hugill vs Jordan Brown (Mon, 8am) Un-Nooh/Türker vs Stephen Maguire (Tues, 12:30pm) Alexander Ursenbacher vs Matthew Selt (Mon, 12:30pm) Michael White vs Zhao Xintong (Mon, 12:30pm) John Higgins vs Dylan Emery (Mon, 5pm) Lukas Kleckers vs Michael Holt (Mon, 12:30pm) Jackson Page vs Simon Lichtenberg (Mon, 12:30pm) Graeme Dott vs Scott Donaldson (Mon, 5pm) Anthony Hamilton vs Tom Ford (Mon, 5pm) Si Jiahui vs Anthony McGill (Mon, 5pm) Robert Milkins vs Ding Junhui (Tues, 8am) Tian Pengfei vs Wilson/McLeod (Tues, 12:30pm) Blackwell/Boiko vs Andrew Higginson (Wed, 12:30pm) Xiao Guodong vs Oliver Lines (Tues, 8am) Yan Bingtao vs Joe O'Connor (Tues, 8am) Andy Hicks vs Elliot Slessor (Tues, 12:30pm) Ben Woollaston vs Vafaei/Bakirci (Wed, 8am) Jak Jones vs Mark Allen (Wed, 12:30pm) Jimmy Robertson vs Cao Yupeng (Tues, 5pm) Lyu Haotian vs Shaun Murphy (Tues, 5pm) Mark Williams vs Matthew Stevens (Wed, 8am) Ali Carter vs Jamie Jones (Wed. 12:30pm) Yuan Sijun vs Mark Davis (Tues, 5pm) Ricky Walden vs Sam Craigie (Tues, 5pm) Fan Zhengyi vs Zhou Yuelong (Tues, 8am) Stuart Carrington vs Luca Brecel (Tues, 12:30pm) Joe Perry vs Liang Wenbo (Wed, 8am) Chris Wakelin vs Trump/Georgiou (Wed, 12:30pm)
How to Watch the Turkish Masters
The tournament will be covered in its entirety by Eurosport and the Eurosport App.
Other options are available around the world, which can be viewed over on the WST website by clicking here.
