Please note that this is NOT an official website. At this point in time Ronnie O’ Sullivan does not have an official website, nor does he wish to have one.
Ronnie beat Ross Muir by 5-1 in his first round held-over match at the 2026 World Open in Yushan.
Here are the scores for that match:
As you can see, Ronnie played pretty well and scored heavily when in the balls. He didn’t make many mistakes. I can’t say that Ross made many mistakes himself because, more often than not when he made one, it was ruthlessly punished and he didm’t get another chance.
Here are the last two frames of the match shared on Youtube by WST.
Ronnie was due to play Ishpreet Singh Chadah in round 2, but Ishpreet has withdrawn, so, next for Ronnie is a round 3 match against Matt Selt on Wednesday.
Ronnie O’Sullivan eased through his opening clash with Ross Muir at the World Open in Yushan with a 5–1 victory, but afterwards admitted that restoring his game to the level he wants would be the “biggest achievement” of his career.
The Rocket has recently embarked on a quest to rebuild his game in a bid to rediscover his top form before his career is over. Earlier this season he admitted that his one remaining goal in snooker is to win a record breaking eighth World Championship.
O’Sullivan came close to perfection in today’s encounter with Scotland’s Muir. The Englishman deposited 15 reds and 14 blacks in the fifth frame, before going in off with the 15th black to end his run on 113. He went on to fire past the line with 114 in the next to progress. With his last 64 opponent Ishpreet Singh Chadha having withdrawn from the event, O’Sullivan now progresses to the last 32, where he will face Matthew Selt.
“I got here a week early just to do some practising on my own. I’ve been working really hard on my game. I know I haven’t played a lot of tournaments, but I’ve been working because my game has been in such a bad place. It isn’t like I’ve had my feet up while everyone has been playing. I’ve decided I really need to attack this now. I have one last throw of the dice really. The last three years have been awful in terms of confidence. I’m trying to work on that now and see if I can get back to delivering the cue freely,”
“I’ll commit to two years to work on it and try to prolong my career. Cueing how I was cueing, there was going to be no longevity in it. I’ve been working harder than I ever have done, it just hasn’t been on TV. It has been behind closed doors. I’m trying to attack it rather than hope something changes. I’m breaking it down and trying to recoach myself.
“I was saying to a friend the other day that if I manage to get out of this it would be my biggest achievement in snooker. If I can feel how I did six or seven years ago, that would trump anything. Seven World Championships, eight Masters, this would rank higher than any of those achievements. I’m under no illusions how difficult it will be but I’m not going to retire because something I tried didn’t work for me. I’m going to get back to my natural instinct of playing and recoach myself in some sort of way.” said O’Sullivan.
Ronnie has achieved what he has in his career so far BECAUSE he’s a perfectionist, although this constant quest for perfection has also been his undoing at times, and a torture… but he is who he is, it’s his core nature, it won’t change. He has to live with that nature through successes and disappointments, through bliss and despair at times … and we, fans, live it with him.
Mark Selby, Barry Hawkins, Stephen Maguire, David Gilbert, Chris Wakelin, Chris Totten, Ishpreet Singh Chadha and Jak Jones have pulled out of next week’s World Open in China.
Selby was due to face Michael Holt in the last 64 on Tuesday March 17th, instead Holt receives a bye to the last 32.
Hawkins was due to meet Ian Burns on Tuesday so Burns also receives a bye to the last 32.
Maguire was due to face Xu Si on Monday so Xu receives a bye to the last 32.
Gilbert was due to face Matthew Selt on Monday so Selt receives a bye to the last 32.
Wakelin was due to face Artemijs Zizins on Monday so Zizins receives a bye to the last 32.
Singh Chadha was due to face either Ronnie O’Sullivan or Ross Muir on Tuesday so the winner of the match will receive a bye to the last 32.
Jones was due to face Luca Brecel on Monday so Brecel receives a bye to the last 32.
Totten was due to play Judd Trump in a first round heldover match, so Totten is replaced by the highest available player from the Q School top up list, Mark Lloyd.
But those who are there, including Ronnie, were made to feel welcome by the fans today
Yesterday evening, Anton Kazakov from Ukraime defeated Oliver Sykes from England by 5-4 to become the 2026 European Champion. Both players get a 2 years professional tour card.
Kazakov Completes European Double As Sykes Secures WST Debut
Anton Kazakov defeated Oliver Sykes 5-4 to win the 2026 EBSA European Championship title in Gandia, Spain.
The victory saw the Ukrainian complete a memorable double, adding to the Under-21 crown he secured earlier in the week with 18 consecutive wins at the Gandia Palace Hotel, while Main event runner-up Oliver Sykes also earned a World Snooker Tour (WST) two-year tour card for the first-time in his career by reaching the final.
A total of 172 players contested the event, organised by the European Billiards & Snooker Association (EBSA), and Kazakov continued his outstanding form to finish top of a group that also featured Under-21 finalist Riley Powell, Belgium’s Nick Demuynck and Jan Laushman from Bulgaria.
A whitewash win over Arsenii Korolev was followed by a 4-1 success against reigning German national champion Simon Lichtenberg to reach the last 16, where he faced former professional Peter Lines.
Lines was able to rally from 3-1 behind to force a decider, but it was the 21-year-old who held his nerve to win through before denying former European Under-16 champion Vladislav Gradinari in the quarter-finals – just as he had done in the Under-21 competition earlier in the week.
The tournament high break of 140 then helped Kazakov comfortably past Finnish former professional Robin Hull to reach a second successive final, where he met Sykes.
The 20-year-old Englishman had been in fine form across the week and a 4-1 defeat of Germany’s Umut Dikme on Saturday morning guaranteed Sykes his place on the WST for the first time from the start of the 2026/27 campaign.
A closely fought title match saw the first eight frames of the match shared with neither player ever leading by more than a one, meaning it all came down to a decider.
It was Kazakov who proved to be the man of the moment once again as he took the ninth and decisive frame by a 62-5 scoreline to complete a memorable double in Gandia.
The final was a good match to watch. Both gave it their all, both played well. It’s just a shame that the live streaming on Youtube was interrupted for several minutes1 at one point.
Anton has been on tour before and he didn’t perform at all. This time however he will know what is expected, and having had this experience, hopefully will be able to play to his true potential. Also, we should not forget that the situation in his country is extremely difficult. It’s hard enough for a very young person to live alone in a foreign country, away from friends and family, just imagine how it must be if , every day, they fear for those they love because their country is at war. I hope that Anton will be made to feel very welcome on tour and that, if needed, he will get the psychological and emotional support, should he need it. We should never forget that behind the “player”, is a human person.
WPBSA Qualifying Criteria Announced for 2026 World Snooker Championship
The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) and World Snooker Tour have today announced the qualification criteria for the 16 amateur places at the 2026 World Snooker Championship in Sheffield in April.
The qualifying rounds will take place in Sheffield from 6-15 April with 16 places at the Crucible Theatre to be won.
Alongside all professionals ranked outside the elite top 16, following the 2026 Tour Championship, and top-ups from the 2025 Q School Order of Merit, will be 16 leading amateur players who have earned their place at the event following their performances at recognised international events across the season.
These include outstanding performers at the World Snooker Federation Championships in Sofia, and the WPBSA Q Tour Global which will reach its conclusion in Spain this March.
The exceptional performance of Alfie Burden who lifted his maiden professional ranking event title at the Shoot Out as an amateur top up player has also been recognised. Burden also won the World Seniors Snooker Championship for the first time in 2025.
Jason Ferguson, WPBSA Chairman said: “We are once again pleased to confirm how 16 WPBSA qualifiers will earn their places at this season’s professional World Snooker Championship in Sheffield.
“In line with previous seasons, the elite performers from recognised WPBSA Tour pathways are once again included and will have the opportunity to contest the biggest title in our sport this spring.
“There can be no better inspiration than the performance of China’s Zhao Xintong, who last year made history as he became the first WPBSA qualifier to lift the trophy at the Crucible Theatre, having begun his campaign in the very first round following his achievements at last season’s WPBSA Q Tour Europe.
“Players hoping to emulate his success a year on will include successful players at the WSF Championships – including our newly crowned junior champion Michael Larkov – as well as the WPBSA Q Tour Global and European Championships.
“We are also delighted to recognise the incredible achievement of Alfie Burden only last month, who became a world ranking event winner for the first time at the Shoot Out, whilst competing as an amateur qualifier.
“I look forward to seeing these players have the opportunity to achieve their dreams and to compete on the biggest stage of all.”
2026 EBSA Under-18 European Championship Winner (Runner-up if already qualified) – (Vladislav Gradinari – because the winner Michal Sbubarczyk is a pro)
2026 EBSA Under-21 European Championship Winner (Runner-up if already qualified) – (Anton Kazakov )
Highest ranked eligible player on the Q Tour Europe rankings
Exceptional Performance – Amateur winning a professional world ranking event (Alfie Burden)
All players selected will appear subject to acceptance of their place and any travel restrictions in place. Any replacement players for these 16 places will be selected from the final WPBSA Q Tour Europe ranking list this season.
Any current professional players who do not enter the tournament will be replaced from the 2025 Q School Order of Merit.
The players continued to play… of course, we just couldn’t watch them. ↩︎
The “2026 EBSA main event European Championship Winner” didn’t feature in that list, which is quite strange, but it doesn’t matter that much now as Anton Kazakovhad already qualified, but, of course, Oliver Sykes, the runner-up, may/will feel robbed and, no matter how you look at it, it isn’t logical, nor rigth. I hope he gets the call.
Also Wang Xinbo has qualified twice as a runner-up so I’m not sure what happens there …
As they say in all good series … to be continued in the next episode
Selby, Hawkins And Totten Withdraw From World Open
Mark Selby, Barry Hawkins and Chris Totten have pulled out of next week’s World Open in China, all for medical reasons.
Selby was due to face Michael Holt in the last 64 on Tuesday March 17th, instead Holt receives a bye to the last 32.
Hawkins was due to meet Ian Burns on Tuesday so Burns also receives a bye to the last 32.
Totten was due to play Judd Trump in a first round heldover match, so Totten is replaced by the highest available player from the Q School top up list, Mark Lloyd.
The tournament runs from March 16-22 in Yushan.
As for Ronnie, going by pictures shared on Weibo, he’s already in China … where he’s probably safer than in Dubai right now.
2026 European Championships in Gandia, Spain.
This is a “set” of four events: Under-16, Under-18, Under-21 and Main Championship. The first three of those have been played to a conclusion.
The Under-16 event was won by Krzysztof Czapnik, a 15 years old from Poland. In the final, he beat Tadija Matijasevic, 15, from Serbia.
The Under-18 event was won by Michał Szubarczyk, 15 years old from Poland, In the Final he beat Valdislav Gradinari, 17, from Moldova.
The Under-21 event was won by Anton Kazakov, 21 years old from Ukraine. In the Final, he beat Riley Powells, 17, from Wales. This earned Anton a 2 years professional tour card, starting next season. Anton has been a pro before and his results were pretty poor. He was probably too young and not ready. Hopefully he does better this time. Also, the situation in Ukraine is rather worrying and that surely did not help young Anton.
As you can see, only one of the six junior finalists is British. So much for the myth that the UK centric nature of the World Snooker tour is somehow “justified” by the fact that the UK has the best players. They certainly DO NOT have the best young players and these are the future of the sport. I have said this before, The World Championship should travel the World, the Masters should probably move around as well and no more than five other events, the UK Championship and the home Nations, should be played in the UK. Mainland Europe deserves to have at least as many events as the UK. I know that part of the issue is the sponsoring, but it’s up to WST to work on that, and for that to succeed they will have to distance themselves from the “Betting Sphere”. Betting BTW should NEVER been promoted as it ruins lives, as surely as alcohol does. The life stories of the late Willie Thorne and John Virgo, as well as Mark King’s, are prime examples of what betting addiction can do to people. 1
Some questioned Michał Szubarczyk right to play in these events, as he is currently a pro. But the events he entered didn’t clash with any WST event and didn’t “carry” a tour card for the winner. These are probably the reasons why he was allowed to play in them. He din’t participate in the Under-21 event, that did carry a tour card for the winner.
Me, personally, I have lost three colleagues to suicide during my professional life. One, a young woman, had been left disfigured and was in constant pain following a terrible car accident. The other two, young men, took their own life over betting debts. One of these two left behind a wife and three young children … ↩︎
We now have quite a gap in the professional snooker calendar as the next event, the 2026 World Open, only starts on the 16th of March, i.e nearly two weeks from now. Such a big gaps was quite common in the 90th but now they are a rarity other than during the “spring/summer break” after the World Championship.
But there is plenty of snooker being played at amateur level, and some of these amateur events have already yielded results.
Jamie Clarke has secured a two-year World Snooker Tour (WST) tour card via the 2025/26 WPBSA Q Tour Europe ranking list.
The Welshman, who previously competed on the WST between 2018 and 2025, arrived at the Landywood Snooker Club in pole position to earn a return to the professional ranks and has confirmed his place with a run to Sunday’s quarter-final stage.
Clarke, a winner of Q Tour titles in both Leeds and Sofia, initially required reaching the final to guarantee his tour card, but an early exit for Peter Lines at the hands of Antony Parsons meant a last eight place would be enough for the 31-year-old.
Victories over Rory McLeod (4-0) and Jamie Wilson (4-1) saw Clarke through to the last 16 stage on Saturday afternoon.
There, he faced Belgium’s Sybren Sokolowski and the Welshman held his nerve under pressure to complete a 4-0 victory and earn a tour card for the next two seasons.
Following his victory over Sokolowski, Clarke said: “I’m relieved to be honest! I’ve found the Q Tour a really pleasant experience this year, but I’m pleased to get the job done sooner rather than later.
“Playing in the World Championship, UK Championship and all the big tournaments is brilliant but you’re already on a bit of prize money and ranking points so you can be a bit more relaxed. As strange as it sounds, at tournaments such as Q Tour or Q School it feels like ‘all or nothing’ and so in a way the pressure is even higher.”
Looking ahead to the next two seasons and beyond, Clarke added: “I’ve got two years on the Tour now and I’ve got a new outlook on the sport. I have my own academy now in Llanelli where I help out some of the youngsters, as well as having my own practice facility now, so I think think I will have a totally different approach this time around. I’ll just enjoy it, try my best and see how it goes.”
Jamie has always been well liked by the fans and I’m sure many will rejoice to see him back on tour.
The Englishman won the first Q Tour title of his career to secure his place at the Global Play-Offs on the same weekend that fellow former professional Jamie Clarke earned a two-year World Snooker Tour (WST) tour card by finishing at the summit of the series ranking list.
The leading narrative heading into the seventh and final Q Tour Europe event of the 2025/26 season was the race to finish in top spot on the ranking list to earn an automatic two-year WST tour card.
Clarke led the race prior to the event in Walsall and knew that a run to the title match would guarantee himself a return to the professional ranks after being relegated from the Tour at the end of last season.
Ultimately, an early exit for leading chaser Peter Lines meant that a 4-0 quarter-final victory for Clarke over Belgium’s Sybren Sokolowski, with contributions of 131 and 104, earned the Welshman the series title and tour card.
Hugill, whose best run this season prior to this weekend was semi-finals in both Vienna and Mons, was already out of the running for top spot before the event but made his way to the final day with wins over Yaron Bodor (4-1), Harvey Chandler (4-2) and Oliver Sykes (4-2).
Sunday began strongly for the 31-year-old as he whitewashed Luke Pinches before setting up a title match meeting with Davies by downing Thailand’s Nattanapong Chaikul, the victor over Clarke in the last eight, by a 4-2 scoreline.
It was the former professional who took the opening two frames of the final with breaks of 64 and 97, but Davies hit back to restore parity at 2-2 with help from a visit of 77 in the third.
Hugill remained undeterred, however, and took two tightly contested frames to get over the line as a 4-2 victor and lift his maiden Q Tour crown.
Reflecting on the victory, Hugill said: “I’m relieved – I was desperate to win one of these this season so I’m happy to have done it. I knew if I won my first game then I was guaranteed to be in the Play-Offs, so that was a bit nervy, but after that I went from strength to strength.”
Looking ahead to the Q Tour Global Play-Offs later this month, he added: “I’m really looking forward to the Play-Offs in Spain, it’s a nice part of the world to be in March!”
“It would be great to get back on the Tour – I’ve been away for two years away now but I know that I am more than good enough to be on the Tour and I think it’s time I was back on there.”
The WPBSA Q Tour Global Play-Offs will take place on 15-17 March in Gandia, Spain. Further information including the draw and schedule will be available in due course.
But there is much more happening in Gandia, Spain, before those playoffs. Indeed there is an under-16 event, an under-18 event, an under-21 event, and the main championship to follow. You can follow it all here. Some matches are shown live on Youtube.
As you can see Michal Szubarczyk is playing in both the under-16 and under-18 events and, so far has won all his matches without losing a single frame…
Hawkins Beats Lisowski To Land Fifth Ranking Title
Barry Hawkins reached the milestone of five ranking titles with a 9-5 victory over Jack Lisowski in the final of the BetVictor Welsh Open in Llandudno.
A pro since 1996, Hawkins has had a disappointing strike rate at the business end of ranking events over the years, losing eight of his 12 previous finals as well as 22 defeats in semi-finals. But this time the 46-year-old Londoner was clinical from the start, winning six frames in a row from 1-1 then fending off a late flurry from his opponent to clinch the result.
He becomes the 23rd player to reach the landmark of five ranking crowns, moving level with Zhao Xintong, Stephen Lee and Ray Reardon on the all-time list. The former World Championship finalist earns a first title since 2023, lifting the Ray Reardon Trophy for the first time and banking £100,000.
Hawkins cements his place among the elite top 16, moving up from 14th to ninth, and also jumps from 15th to eighth on the Sportsbet.io One Year Rankings, almost certainly earning him a place in the Sportsbet.io Tour Championship in Manchester which starts in four weeks.
A week ago Hawkins arrived on the North Wales coast with minimal expectations, suffering from lower back pain after pulling a muscle during a gym session. He struggled through his opening match, a narrow 4-3 success against David Lilley, and then grew in confidence as the pain subsided and his renowned all-round game blossomed. The Englishman took scalps including Mark Williams, Neil Robertson and Wu Yize to reach the final before an excellent display to beat Lisowski, making two centuries and four more breaks over 50.
In beating John Higgins 6-5 in a thrilling semi-final last night, Lisowski won the £150,000 BetVictor Home Nations Series bonus, and was clearly elated after the match. Having climbed that mountain, the 34-year-old seemed low on energy today, and let the tie slip away from him in the first session. The Gloucestershire cueman missed the chance to double his tally of ranking titles having captured his first with a dramatic 9-8 success against Judd Trump at the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open in October, and has now lost seven of his eight finals. He climbs four places in the Johnstone’s Paint World Rankings from 22nd to 18th.
Trailing 7-1 after the first session, Lisowski swiftly cut the gap tonight with breaks of 112 and 102 to close to 7-3. Frame 11 lasted 47 minutes and Lisowski led 22-18 when a sizzling long red set him up for a run of 37 to draw within three frames. Early in the 12th, Hawkins enjoyed a fluked red when attempting safety and went on to make 68 to regain his momentum at 8-4.
After the interval, Hawkins missed a tricky red to centre and Lisowski’s run of 53 kept his hopes alive at 8-5. But in the 14th, Hawkins made 32 before running out of position, then got back in with a thundering long red and added 33 to cue the celebrations.
“It means the world, I came close last season to a couple of big titles, I feel I deserved this one because I have been knocking on the door for a while,” said Hawkins, who lost 9-7 in the final of this event against Higgins in 2018. “I am so relieved because playing Jack is scary, he pots balls from everywhere and when he gets going he’s a hard man to stop. At 7-1 it’s for you to lose, things start going through your head like it could be the biggest collapse of all time. People were getting excited but I know it’s never over until it’s over. I was feeling it out there. He came out all guns blazing tonight, I knew that might happen and I had to stay calm.
“It’s massive to climb the rankings, I knew I needed to have a run in something to qualify for Manchester but I didn’t expect to win this one. To be in that event with only 12 players, you know you are doing something right, to be involved in it will be amazing. I want to thank the crowd here, they have supported us so well all week and that brings the best out of the top players.
“My dad is going through a lot at the moment so hopefully this will give him a boost.”
Lisowski said: “I was gone in the first session, I was very poor. I was trying my best but maybe there was a bit of a hangover from last night because I went through a lot. Barry was by far the better player today. He’s a great guy and I’m happy for him. I couldn’t sleep last night. The semi-final was like a final for me, I was so relieved to win and the way I won, to beat John. But that takes nothing away from Barry today, there are no excuses and I gave it my best. “
Not much to add really. Jack was indeed very poor in the first session. His quotes about possible fatigue after the late evening semi-finals’ win are not “excuses”. This is the reality: players are human. And it’s not just the fatigue … after an important match, there is tension and adrenaline in the body. Even if they are tired they might struggle to fall asleep before their body, and mind, find some calm. He’s not the first, and won’t be the last to experience that “hangover” feeling. He made a match of it in the evening, but the deficit was too big.
As for Barry … he’s a very likeable character and I can’t think of anyone who wouldn’t be happy for him … except probably a few who had a bet on Jack to win 😎.
