The 2025 Snooker Shoot Out may not have caused an earthquake in the rankings, but a handful of small shifts could still carry significant consequences later in the season.
Alfie Burden became only the second player in history with amateur status to emerge victoriously from a full ranking event after his Shoot Out success on Saturday.
The Londoner, who turned 49 a day later, had represented the 20th reserve but received the call-up to participate on the opening morning of the competition.
Burden duly won all seven of his single-frame matches to capture his maiden ranking title more than 30 years after he first turned professional on the World Snooker Tour.
Let’s take a look at how the recent action at the Tower Circus in Blackpool affected the two main snooker rankings lists.
Top 16 and other movers
The reality of the Snooker Shoot Out is that it boasts one of the lowest prize funds on the calendar, so its impact on the rankings is limited.
As a result, and with only a handful of top players competing, there was just one change inside the top 16 with Zhao Xintong and Mark Allen swapping places in ninth and tenth.
Above them, it’s as you were with Judd Trump out in front as the world number one ahead of Kyren Wilson, Neil Robertson, and Mark Williams.
John Higgins remains in fifth ahead of Mark Selby, Shaun Murphy, and Ronnie O’Sullivan who complete the top eight.
Further down lie Xiao Guodong, Ding Junhui, and Wu Yize with Barry Hawkins, Si Jiahui, and Gary Wilson occupying the other top 16 positions.
A little below that, the £20,000 that Stuart Bingham pocketed for reaching the final has helped the former world champion rise above Jak Jones into 18th.
At the crucial top 64 cut-off point for tour survival, Mark Davis lies just inside the safety line with Ishpreet Singh Chadha £1,100 adrift and Shoot Out quarter-finalist Ben Mertens another place further back in 66th.
A maiden semi-final appearance in a ranking event for Iulian Boiko sees the Ukrainian jump six places to a career-high 83rd.
| Official 2-Year World Rankings | Dec 15, 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Judd Trump | £1,755,550 |
| 2 | Kyren Wilson | £1,365,000 |
| 3 | Neil Robertson | £1,120,850 |
| 4 | Mark Williams | £980,000 |
| 5 | John Higgins | £848,950 |
| 6 | Mark Selby | £818,750 |
| 7 | Shaun Murphy | £683,900 |
| 8 | Ronnie O’Sullivan | £664,850 |
| 9 | Zhao Xintong | £612,750 |
| 10 | Mark Allen | £596,750 |
| 11 | Xiao Guodong | £571,900 |
| 12 | Ding Junhui | £565,350 |
| 13 | Wu Yize | £534,900 |
| 14 | Barry Hawkins | £528,950 |
| 15 | Si Jiahui | £484,000 |
| 16 | Gary Wilson | £476,800 |
| — | — | — |
| 17 | Chris Wakelin | £440,200 |
| 18 | Stuart Bingham | £384,300 |
| 19 | Jak Jones | £372,800 |
| 20 | Ali Carter | £356,050 |
| 21 | Elliot Slessor | £349,250 |
| 22 | Jack Lisowski | £338,100 |
| 23 | Zhang Anda | £305,950 |
| 24 | David Gilbert | £299,500 |
| 25 | Stephen Maguire | £290,550 |
| 26 | Tom Ford | £276,550 |
| 27 | Pang Junxu | £269,700 |
| 28 | Joe O’Connor | £266,100 |
| 29 | Zhou Yuelong | £253,950 |
| 30 | Lei Peifan | £251,400 |
| 31 | Yuan Sijun | £241,400 |
| 32 | Hossein Vafaei | £231,300 |
1-year snooker rankings
Once again, the one-year snooker rankings will determine qualification for three lucrative events later in the campaign.
The fields for the 32-player World Grand Prix, the 16-field Players Championship, and the 12-strong Tour Championship all come from these standings.
Neil Robertson remains first on the back of his glory at the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters while all of the top 16 members from the official two-year list are safely inside the top 32 here.
This week’s Scottish Open represents the last opportunity for players to secure qualification for February’s World Grand Prix in Hong Kong.
Burden, meanwhile, is up to 38th in the one-year rankings courtesy of his £50,000 windfall.
The veteran Englishman looks well-placed to benefit from the four tour cards that are usually awarded to the highest-placed players on this list at the end of the season who otherwise haven’t secured their professional status.
| 1-Year Snooker Rankings | Dec 15, 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Neil Robertson | £589,300 |
| 2 | Mark Selby | £365,750 |
| 3 | Shaun Murphy | £304,500 |
| 4 | Mark Williams | £294,400 |
| 5 | Wu Yize | £242,300 |
| 6 | Ronnie O’Sullivan | £231,350 |
| 7 | Judd Trump | £194,350 |
| 8 | Elliot Slessor | £164,500 |
| 9 | Mark Allen | £162,350 |
| 10 | Xiao Guodong | £159,400 |
| 11 | Jack Lisowski | £150,000 |
| 12 | Barry Hawkins | £148,400 |
| 13 | Gary Wilson | £146,900 |
| 14 | John Higgins | £139,200 |
| 15 | Stephen Maguire | £122,800 |
| 16 | Chris Wakelin | £119,800 |
| 17 | Zhou Yuelong | £116,400 |
| 18 | Ding Junhui | £103,850 |
| 19 | Zhao Xintong | £102,750 |
| 20 | Si Jiahui | £100,800 |
| 21 | Kyren Wilson | £93,700 |
| 22 | Ali Carter | £90,250 |
| 23 | Stuart Bingham | £88,900 |
| 24 | Yuan Sijun | £80,300 |
| 25 | Anthony McGill | £77,200 |
| 26 | Thepchaiya Un-Nooh | £74,500 |
| 27 | Aaron Hill | £70,700 |
| 28 | Jak Jones | £70,000 |
| 29 | Joe O’Connor | £69,850 |
| 30 | Zhang Anda | £67,400 |
| 31 | Pang Junxu | £66,300 |
| 32 | Oliver Lines | £60,600 |
| — | — | — |
| 33 | Daniel Wells | £60,200 |
| 38 | Alfie Burden | £56,000 |
| 46 | David Gilbert | £45,350 |
| 89 | Luca Brecel | £17,800 |
When is the next snooker event?
The next – and last – snooker event in 2025 on the World Snooker Tour is the Scottish Open, which began on Monday in Edinburgh.
Sunday, December 21st will see the last champion of the year get crowned with more details for the tournament available as usual here on SnookerHQ.com during this week.
Photos credit: WST
Looking at the 2 year list, it appears anyone in the top 32 could make a living playing snooker, although travel costs etc probably strain their budgets.
Obviously the gap to the top players is huge, but I guess they all aspire to get there.
How much does an experienced snooker referee make? Ben Woollaston doesn’t do too badly, but his wife also works as a referee.