A jackpot worth £150,000 is on offer this weekend for the winner of the BetVictor European Snooker Series.
On Thursday, the Gibraltar Open gets under way at the Europa Point Sports Complex, with a handsome champion’s cheque worth £50,000 up for grabs.
But in addition to that, several players are striving for an even bigger prize as the European Series enters its final leg of the season.
Seven events on the series have already taken place this term – the four Home Nations tournaments, the German Masters, the Shoot Out, and the European Masters.
The player who can earn the most money from all eight events will receive the lucrative sum worth £150,000.
Judd Trump has landed the windfall on each of the previous two occasions the European Series has been contested.
The Englishman appeared to be out of the running this year after a string of substandard performances, but a run to the final of the Welsh Open in March has brought him back into contention for the hat-trick.
Trump will need to win the Gibraltar Open, a feat he managed to do in both 2020 and 2021.
In all, there are eleven players competing in Gibraltar who have an opportunity of earning the hefty bonus.
John Higgins and Mark Allen lead the way on £98,000, but they both will know that their elevated position will be in jeopardy if any of the chasing pack can capture the Gibraltar Open title.
Fan Zhengyi, Luca Brecel, Neil Robertson, Zhao Xintong, Hossein Vafaei, and Joe Perry – all winners of European Series events this season – are in the mix.
So too are Ronnie O’Sullivan and Ricky Walden, the former set to participate in Gibraltar for the first time in his career as he chases the payday.
Yan Bingtao was also in the running but made the unusual decision to not enter the Gibraltar Open this year.
It will certainly be an interesting subplot of the competition over the coming few days.
BetVictor European Snooker Series Standings
Position | Name | Earnings |
1 | John Higgins | £98,000 |
2 | Mark Allen | £98,000 |
3 | Fan Zhengyi | £93,500 |
4 | Luca Brecel | £93,500 |
5 | Neil Robertson | £92,000 |
6 | Ronnie O’Sullivan | £90,000 |
7 | Zhao Xintong | £87,000 |
8 | Hossein Vafaei | £83,000 |
10 | Joe Perry | £77,000 |
11 | Judd Trump | £71,500 |
12 | Ricky Walden | £57,000 |
Featured photo credit: WST
Unless Yan has a really serious personal reason then find his absence utterly bizarre. He’s not only denying himself an opportunity to win the European Series but also a possible place in the Tour Championship. He could even jeopardise his seeding position for the World Championship.