Sean O’Sullivan has regained his main tour snooker card after the fourth event on the Q Tour concluded on Sunday.
After the last event of the amateur series, O’Sullivan held onto second spot in the standings despite a qualifying-round defeat to Patrick Whelan.
The Storm’s victory in Q Tour Event 3 proved the vital difference as he held off the challenge from behind.
The main tour snooker card was supposed to go to the player ranked first in the order of merit, but Si Jiahui already earned his right to compete on the professional circuit through his triumph at the WSF Championship.
As a result, O’Sullivan will receive the first of two cards that are on offer from the inaugural staging of the Q Tour this term.
The second spot is still up for grabs, with the following 16 competitors in the rankings set to compete in a potentially lucrative play-off competition.
Robbie McGuigan captured glory in Q Tour Event 4 with a 5-3 victory over Michael Collumb, and the Northern Irishman will be the top seed in the play-offs having ranked in third overall.
The likes of David Lilley, Michael White, Daniel Wells, and Michael Georgiou are other familiar names who will compete for the additional pro ticket.
There was an additional motivation to play well in Q Tour Event 4, as the series provided a gateway to compete in this year’s World Snooker Championship qualifiers.
The top five in the Q Tour rankings will earn an invite, but as Si has already gained an invitation as the WSF champion, the spots go to those ranked from second through to sixth.
That’s good news for O’Sullivan, McGuigan, Lilley, Ben Mertens, and Collumb, who will each take part in the World Championship preliminaries next month.
Four wins will separate them from a spot at the Crucible, and you can bet online on the sport’s blue-riband tournament with the likes of Judd Trump and Ronnie O’Sullivan among the favourites involved.
Q Tour Rankings
(Green: already qualified for the Main Tour; Blue: receives first card via Q Tour; Yellow: enter play-offs for second card via Q Tour)
| 1 | Si Jiahui |
| 2 | Sean O’Sullivan |
| 3 | Robbie McGuigan |
| 4 | David Lilley |
| 5 | Ben Mertens |
| 6 | Michael Collumb |
| 7 | Simon Beckford |
| 8 | Julien Leclercq |
| 9 | Michael White |
| 10 | Alex Millington |
| 11 | Alex Crenshaw |
| 12 | Harvey Chandler |
| 13 | Daniel Wells |
| 14 | Brandon Sargeant |
| 15 | Liam James Davies |
| 16 | Alfie Lee |
| 17 | Michael Georgiou |
| 18 | Hamim Hussain |
Featured photo credit: WPBSA
Yes, it was a fine win by Robbie McGuigan, a promising young player. I believe that the top few qualifiers for those play-offs also get a place in the World Championship. Ryan Thomerson was missing from the final event, which cost him the chance to get into the play-offs. Nevertheless he made up for it by winning the Oceania Championship, gaining his tour card that way!
Yes five in total for the World qualifiers. Si already has an invite, so I make it to be O’Sullivan, McGuigan, Lilley, Mertens, and Collumb who’ll be invited from the Q Tour.