This week’s batch of qualifiers continues on Thursday with the preliminary phase of the Northern Ireland Open taking place at the Mattioli Arena.
The first Home Nations Series event of the 2025/26 snooker season will be the English Open starting next week in Brentwood.
But before that over the coming few days, the opening couple of rounds of the Northern Ireland Open will be conducted in Leicester.
Who is playing in the qualifiers?
As has become the norm with the Home Nations Series tournaments, the top 32 players from the official world rankings list have been seeded through to venue stages.
The rest of the World Snooker Tour professionals and a few amateur top-ups will be attempting to join them in Belfast across the next four days.
Players seeded from 65 to 128 in the draw will enter the Northern Ireland Open qualifiers in the opening round.
That includes the likes of Jimmy White and Ken Doherty who each meet Chinese opposition in the form of Huang Jiahao and Yao Pengcheng respectively.
An in-form Reanne Evans will look to continue her recent period of success on the main tour when she takes on Stan Moody in round two having already received a bye from round one following the withdrawal of Mohammed Shehab.
Elsewhere, women’s world champion Bai Yulu encounters David Grace, and there’s an intriguing clash between two of Northern Ireland’s own in Robbie McGuigan and Fergal Quinn.
The list of early entrants also includes Marco Fu, Sam Craigie, Mink Nutcharut, and Liam Pullen – the latter with confidence high after his shock defeat of John Higgins in the Xi’an Grand Prix qualifiers on Tuesday.
Those seeded from 33 to 64 will subsequently enter the fray in round two of the qualifying competition, duly facing the winners from round one.
Luca Brecel, who withdrew mid-match against Sunny Akani in the Xi’an qualifiers, and Ryan Day are prominent names involved here with the pair having slid down the rankings of late.
Jordan Brown will be hoping to win his qualifier to safeguard his return to his home event where he could have a crack at landing the Alex Higgins Trophy.
The likes of Ricky Walden, Anthony McGill, and Matthew Stevens are other familiar names who will be hoping to secure their spots at the venue stages.
Those venue stages for the 2025 Northern Ireland Open, meanwhile, are scheduled for October 19th to 26th at the Waterfront Hall.
Northern Ireland Open qualifiers draw
Round of 128 (bo7)
Ken Doherty vs Yao Pengcheng
Allan Taylor vs Chatchapong Nasa
Antoni Kowalski vs Zak Sheldon
Chris Totten vs Liam Graham
Julien Leclercq vs Florian Nuessle
Farakh Ajaib vs Oliver Brown
Haris Tahir vs Connor Benzey
Haydon Pinhey vs Ian Burns
Ben Mertens vs Liam Pullen
Sunny Akani vs Xu Yichen
Lan Yuhao vs Mahmoud El Hareedy
Amir Sarkhosh vs Marco Fu
Jonas Luz vs Kreishh Gurbaxani
Reanne Evans w/o Mohammed Shehab
Dylan Emery vs Liam Highfield
Bai Yulu vs David Grace
Iulian Boiko vs Alexander Ursenbacher
Steven Hallworth vs Ross Muir
Chang Bingyu vs Jiang Jun
Sam Craigie vs Joel Connolly
Liam Davies vs Ng On Yee
Cheung Ka Wai vs Mink Nutchat
Huang Jiahao vs Jimmy White
Louis Heathcote vs Sahil Nayyar
Robbie McGuigan vs Fergal Quinn
Gao Yang vs Liu Wenwei
Michal Szubarczyk vs Patrick Whelan
Wang Yuchen vs Mateusz Baranowski
Artemijs Zizins vs Zhao Hanyang
Bulcsu Revesz vs Leone Crowley
Hatem Yassen vs Ashley Hugill
Mitchell Mann vs Umut Dikme
Round of 96 (bo7)
Oliver Lines vs Doherty/Yao
Ryan Day vs Taylor/Nasa
Scott Donaldson vs Kowalski/Sheldon
He Guoqiang vs Totten/Graham
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh vs Leclercq/Nuessle
Mark Davis vs Ajaib/Brown
Lyu Haotian vs Tahir/Benzey
Sanderson Lam vs Pinhey/Burns
Long Zehuang vs Mertens/Pullen
Daniel Wells vs Akani/Xu
Michael Holt vs Lan/El Hareedy
Jamie Jones vs Sarkhosh/Fu
Jimmy Robertson vs Luz/Gurbaxani
Stan Moody vs Evans/Shehab
Xu Si vs Emery/Highfield
Gong Chenzhi vs Bai/Grace
Anthony McGill vs Boiko/Ursenbacher
Matthew Stevens vs Hallworth/Muir
Ishpreet Singh Chadha vs Chang/Jiang
Martin O’Donnell vs Craigie/Connolly
Luca Brecel vs Davies/Ng
Liu Hongyu vs Cheung/Nutcharut
Robbie Williams vs Huang/White
Duane Jones vs Heathcote/Nayyar
Zak Surety vs McGuigan/Quinn
Aaron Hill vs Gao/Liu
Robert Milkins vs Szubarczyk/Whelan
Ben Woollaston vs Wang/Baranowski
Fan Zhengyi vs Zizins/Zhao
David Lilley vs Revesz/Crowley
Ricky Walden vs Yassen/Hugill
Jordan Brown vs Mann/Dikme
Click here for the updated draw and results (snooker.org)
How to watch the Northern Ireland Open qualifiers?
Live coverage of the Northern Ireland Open qualifiers will be available on various platforms depending on your location in the world.
As per the World Snooker Tour website, these are the other available options:
Europe
discovery+ in the UK, Germany, Italy, and Austria.
HBO Max in other European territories.
China
Huya.com
Migu
CBSA-WPBSA Academy WeChat Channel
CBSA-WPBSA Academy Douyi
Other Territories
WST Play
Featured photo credit: WST
