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.
David Grace scored what he described as the best win of his career as he beat John Higgins 5-4 to reach the last 32 of the Shenzhen Open.
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Grace, who first turned pro back in 2008, had lost all of his five previous meetings with Higgins but this time the Englishman turned the tables on his legendary opponent to set up a match with Stephen Maguire on Wednesday at the £850,000 event in the Guangdong province of southern China. If world number 75 Grace wins that tie it will be only the second time he has reached the last 16 of a ranking event in China and first since the 2015 Shanghai Masters.
The result extends a slow start to the season for four-time World Champion Higgins, who has won just four matches in ranking events so far this term, and he joins fellow ‘Class of 92’ members Ronnie O’Sullivan and Mark Williams as opening-round losers this week.
Higgins opened with a break of 116 and soon led 2-0, but Grace then took four frames in a row with runs of 60, 64, 93 and 68. Another century, 101, helped Higgins back to 4-4, but a break of 60 put Grace in charge of the decider and he eventually won it on the pink after his opponent had battled for snookers on the colours.
“It’s probably my best ever win, John is the hardest player of all time to play against,” said Grace. “He has bashed me up so many times, he never gives you anything. I had chances to win 5-3, then John did what he always does and cleared up. At 4-4 I thought I’d had it but fortunately he gave me one more chance and I made a good break.“
Ricky Walden sprang another surprise as he beat Chinese favourite Ding Junhui 5-4, coming from 2-0 down to win with top breaks of 115 and 133. It’s a much-needed victory for three-time ranking event winner Walden as he is 63rd in the projected end of season rankings so the threat of relegation is looming.
“I’m buzzing, it was a good match to be involved in,” said Walden, who now meets English Open champion Ali Carter. “I showed some courage and grit in the end. I have a long way to go to get back to the ranking position that I want, but I have been working hard, my game is good. It’s not easy out there, you run into players in better form than me with more confidence. I have been stuck in the qualifiers which is tough to say the least. I feel I am rebuilding. I feel incredibly low when I’m playing badly and incredibly high when I’m playing well. Results will give me a boost and hopefully things can turn for me.”
World Champion Wu Yize beat Jamie Clarke 5-4 with top breaks of 67, 143, 88 and 123. “I played very well in this match,” he said. “After going 3-0 up, I made two mistakes in the fourth frame and didn’t really react to what was happening, so before I knew it, I was behind. I was a little worried that the situation might affect my confidence, but overall I think I handled it pretty well.”
Kyren Wilson top scored with 100 and 122 in a 5-1 defeat of Sam Craigie while Shaun Murphy saw off Marco Fu by the same scoreline with a top break of 111. Michael Holt edged out Xiao Guodong 5-4 while China Open champion Mark Selby enjoyed a 5-3 success against Andrew Higginson.
The last-32 round got underway in Tuesday’s evening session and Neil Robertson was among those to progress to the last 16 as he beat Lei Peifan 5-1 with a top break of 94. Jiang Jun couldn’t capitalise on yesterday’s win over Ronnie O’Sullivan as he lost 5-3 to Zak Surety, who made breaks of 83 and 118 in the last two frames.
Scott Donaldson knocked out Zhao Xintong on Monday and he followed up with a 5-4 win over Pang Junxu, taking the decider by clearing from the last green to black. Jimmy Robertson was in fine form in a 5-1 defeat of Ben Mertens, compiling runs of 121, 55, 62, 117 and 82.
Chris Wakelin has learned to embrace the opportunity to compete in tournaments in China and his positive attitude was reflected in a 5-0 win over Stuart Bingham to reach the last 16 of the Shenzhen Open.
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World number 12 Wakelin fired breaks of 77, 64, 72 and 65 in a one-sided victory as he set up a meeting with Neil Robertson on Thursday. Another win would give the Englishman a first quarter-final of the season.
Wakelin spent a month in the Far East in July and August, during the ‘China Swing’ of events in Shanghai, Taiyuan and Wuhan. Before the last of those, he visited the city of Cixi and made a new group of friends who even took him on a mountain cycling excursion. “I was probably the heaviest person there by about 40 kilos so you imagine me trying to get to the top!” the 34-year-old joked. “But they really made me feel at home, I met some amazing people and great friends and they are here with me this week.
“It helps me feel a lot more settled. We can go out, make plans and go for nice meals. When I first came to China my diet was Pringles and McDonald’s. It’s still difficult being away from my family but when I am here I want to feel as comfortable as possible and make the most of the opportunities that come my way. There will be a time in a few years when I’ll be begging to be able to come back out here and play snooker in front of all these fantastic people.”
China Open champion Mark Selby boosted his hopes of another title as he made three centuries – 132, 77, 135 and 138 – in a 5-1 win over Jackson Page. “It’s amazing what confidence does, I feel I am going to take chances when I get them, and you have to do that to win tournaments,” said Selby, whose next opponent is Stephen Maguire, a 5-1 winner over David Grace.
Shaun Murphy showed his break-building quality in a 5-1 defeat of Hossein Vafaei, knocking in runs of 132, 76, 64, 78 and 112 as he set up a match with Elliot Slessor.
Michael Holt lost qualifying matches for the International Championship and Scottish Open last week, but has hit back in Shenzhen with wins over Xiao Guodong and Thepchaiya Un-Nooh, beating the latter 5-0 with breaks of 60, 67, 62 and 54. He now meets Kyren Wilson who saw off David Gilbert 5-2.
Holt said: “I had a bad run of results which drained my confidence, so I came here thinking I will have a swing at it and luckily I’m still going. I have qualified for a lot of events this season but have not kicked on at the venues which has been frustrating.“
World Champion Wu Yize came from 2-0 down to beat Xu Si 5-3 with breaks of 132, 126, 87 and 66. Wu is yet to reach a ranking quarter-final this season but will progress to that stage if he beats Ricky Walden. Wu said: “Overall we both played pretty well. Matches like this are enjoyable for both players. I have to say, I’m quite impressed by how difficult snooker is to play at the moment. I feel I’ve played well in both of my matches so far, but both opponents have put me under a lot of pressure. Hopefully I can keep this momentum going in the matches ahead. When I get back into that rhythm of playing regularly, I feel very confident out there.
“Guangdong probably has the best snooker atmosphere of any province in China, so hopefully there will be more tournaments here. The spectators here have made a particularly good impression on me. I personally really enjoy a lively atmosphere, and I really enjoy having lots of people watching me play. Hopefully I can give them a few more matches to watch and perform even better.“
Walden is into the last 16 of a ranking event for the first time since the 2025 English Open. He edged out current English Open champion Ali Carter 5-4 thanks to a break of 61 in the deciding frame. Slessor enjoyed a 5-2 victory over Barry Hawkins, while Yuan Sijun won a Chinese derby against Fan Zhengyi by a 5-1 scoreline to set up a tie with Zak Surety.
Shaun Murphy scored a third consecutive 5-1 victory at the Shenzhen Open, beating Elliot Slessor to set up a quarter-final meeting with Wu Yize – a repeat of their epic Crucible clash five months ago.
Having beaten Marco Fu and Hossein Vafaei 5-1 earlier in the week, Murphy continued the pattern as he comfortably saw off Slessor with a top break of 139. China’s Wu, meanwhile, battled past Ricky Walden 5-3 with a top run of 91 to earn his first ranking quarter-final of the season, giving his home fans a huge fixture to look forward to on Friday at 7.30pm local time.
Back in May, 22-year-old Wu edged out Murphy 18-17 in one of the best World Championship finals of all time. The pair met again in the quarter-finals of the invitational Shanghai Masters at the start of this season, Wu coming out on top again 6-5.
Asked after today’s match to look back on their Crucible clash, Murphy said: “Obviously my over-riding memory of the final is disappointment. I have said many times that I will never get over it. I have to live with it and move on. Whatever happens tomorrow, hopefully the best man comes out on top.
“All matches and tournaments are important, but the World Championship and particularly the final stands above all the others. I’m very grateful to have won it back in 2005, my name is on the trophy. I have lost in four other finals so I could be stood here as a three, four or five time champion – but I’m not. So every time I play one of the players who beat me in a final, of course I’ll remember.”
Wu, reflecting on his tie with Walden, said: “I tried a few things that I haven’t really dared to try much in matches before, such as adding certain side spin to my safety play. I’ve been working on my safety game recently, and in this match I managed to play one or two safety shots that I was really pleased with. I don’t think I was quite strong enough in terms of scoring today, so I want to do better tomorrow.
“I’ve always really enjoyed playing against Murphy. He’s one of the best players in the game at the moment, so I’ll just try to enjoy it and hopefully give the spectators something to enjoy as well.“
Judd Trump enjoyed a 5-2 success against Si Jiahui and he’ll meet Mark Selby in another blockbuster quarter-final. Breaks of 80, 71, 53 and 54 helped world number two Trump to reach the last eight of a ranking event for the 113th time in his career – the same tally as Selby.
“I have been to a few quarters and semis this season and been knocked out so it’s important to try to kick on this time,” said Trump. “At this stage there’s always a crucial ball or crucial frame. So far this season and maybe last season I have not been winning those. But that can change at any point, you have just got to keep putting yourself in those positions. When I was winning a lot of titles it was going my way, then there have been periods when I have done the same things but just rattled a ball instead of potting it. You have to keep putting the work in and wait for your turn.”
Selby beat Stephen Maguire 5-3 with a top break of 99. “It was a horrible match, I felt I brought Stephen down a bit. It was just a scrap really,” admitted the China Open champion, looking for a second title in the Far East within seven weeks. “I am always out there fighting, I would love to play one-visit snooker but it doesn’t always happen like that.”
Michael Holt reached his first ranking quarter-final since the 2024 UK Championship as he kept nerves at bay to beat Kyren Wilson 5-2. World number 46 Holt admits that anxiety during matches has held him back during his career, but this time the 48-year-old remained composed to knock out 2024 Crucible King Wilson. Nottingham’s Holt is already guaranteed a payday of £22,350 and if he can beat Yuan Sijun on Friday he’ll be into his first ranking semi-final since he won the Shoot Out in 2020.
“When you play someone at the top they are probably calmer than you at the start, if they miss you have to take your chances, you’ve got to show you are ready for it,” said Holt, who compiled breaks of 126 and 54 in taking a 3-0 lead, then later added two runs of 84 in the last two frames. “If you can get on top of them you have to keep potting. I did that today, I was pretty good.
“Towards the end he came back at me but I stood up to it. If he senses weakness then he can roll over you. I have said it for years but I can play the game properly, it’s just about doing it more consistently. I felt calm and my attitude was good. I just tell myself to be calm in the moment because ultimately that’s what the best players are better at. When they get the chance they can stay in that moment and pot the balls. There are loads of players who can pot the balls, but staying calm in that situation is the key.“
Wilson remains in danger of failing to qualify automatically for the Crucible in the Spring as he is currently 23rd in that race, so may need to win a title over the coming months to climb into the top 16.
Jimmy Robertson enjoyed a 5-0 success against Scott Donaldson to reach the ninth ranking quarter-final of his career. Donaldson had knocked out world number one Zhao Xintong as well as Pang Junxu, but he was no match for Robertson who fired runs of 68, 100, 63 and 75.
“From 2-0 I felt in control, it’s very pleasing to win 5-0,” said world number 45 Robertson. “I rate Scott very highly. We are in similar boats, we are more than capable of beating anyone and having deep runs, but then we can go missing for a while, it’s hard to get the results. At the qualifiers everyone is so strong, if you get on a losing run it’s difficult. But then you get a few wins and you are a danger for anyone. It’s nice to still be in and feeling good.
“I have still got a lot to prove and a lot to learn. If you don’t think you can win tournaments you shouldn’t really be playing. I have had 20 years on the tour now and I used to always look at draws, but I have realised you can’t do that because everyone is tough. If you get to a quarter-final then the chances are you will be up against a top player. I am trying to learn just to play my game rather than worrying about my opponent.”
He will now face Chris Wakelin, who enjoyed a 5-2 victory over Neil Robertson with runs of 86, 80, 72, 77 and 75. Wakelin, ranked 12th, is into his first quarter-final of the season and remains full of self-belief as he chases what would be the biggest title of his career.
“I’m really proud of that performance, especially playing Neil in front of a big crowd on table one,” said the current Scottish Open champion. “I felt I dominated from early on and made the most of my chances. I’ve had a new cue for the past two weeks which was a big change for me because I had used the previous one for 11 years and I really trusted it. But I feel very comfortable with the new one. It’s a big opportunity over the next few days but the only thing I am focussed on is being ready for my next opponent.“
I haven’t watched much at all, so can’t really comment.
The quarter-finals tomorrow will be interesting. We have two “heavy-weigths” matches as Mark Selby faces Judd Trump and Shaun Murphy faces Wu Yize.
The other two matches feature two players who are lower down the rankings. Jimmy Robertson will play Chris Wakelin. Of course, Chris is a top 16 player, but Jimmy Robertson on form is extremely dangerous. Yuan Sijun will play Michael Holt, who, currently ranked 51st, is the lowest ranked player left in the draw. However, everyone knows how good Michael is when at his best … and when he stays calm and focused 😉
Snooker champion Graeme Dott jailed for seven years for child sex abuse
by Jonathan Geddes, Glasgow and west reporter and Paul O’Hare,at the High Court in Edinburgh
Graeme Dott was sentenced to seven years in jail at the High Court in Edinburgh
Former world snooker champion Graeme Dott has been jailed for seven years after being convicted of child sexual abuse.
Judge Lord Harrower said Dott robbed his victims of “a significant part of their childhood” and said his behaviour bore the hallmarks of grooming.
Dott had denied two charges of lewd and libidinous behaviour towards a girl and a boy between 1993 and 2010 but was found guilty following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.
The 49-year-old Scot, who won the world snooker title in 2006, showed no emotion as he was sentenced, only nodding to someone in the public gallery as he was led away.
Lord Harrower told the High Court in Edinburgh that each of Dott’s victims were vulnerable for reasons beyond their age.
He said Dott rewarded the victims with treats and disguised his abuse as being part of a game.
The former snooker champion was 16 or 17 when he abused the girl, who was about nine when her ordeal began.
There is nothing to add really, only that my thoughts are with Dott’s (ex?)wife and children. There will be very unpleasant consequences for them as well, no doubts, and they have done nothing to deserve it. They will almost certainly face questions from the neighbourhood and/or schoolmates, they maybe be “ostracised”. Where they aware of what Graeme was doing? I hope not. I hope he didn’t abuse his own children as well, something that, alas, can’t be completely excluded, I’m afraid.
A total of 67 cueists, just one less than the record entries for a WSS Tour event, competed in the three-day competition and it was the former world number six and current World Snooker Tour (WST) player who earned the title in Berkshire.
Day began with back-to-back whitewash wins against Kevin Willsher and Matthew Day before a 4-1 defeat of former World Seniors champion Aaron Canavan put him into Sunday’s quarter-finals against Stuart Watson.
A break of 76 from former WSS world number one Watson put him 2-0 ahead of Day in a race to four but the WST player was able to rally and ran out a 4-2 victor. He would then defeat former professional Mark Davis by the same scoreline despite Davis making two century breaks in their semi-final match.
The title match pitched Day against 51-year-old Lavin, who had reached his first WSS Tour event final with a memorable run that saw him defeat former Crucible Theatre qualifiers Wayne Townsend and Daniel Ward before whitewashing Karl Ashmore in the last four.
Lavin made a break of 68 in the second frame to restore parity but, from there, Day hit a break of 91 to regain the advantage and later took the title with a magnificent contribution of 127.
SEMBI IS THE SUPER SENIOR
Bal Sembi beat John Hunter 2-1 to win the first Super Seniors title of his career at The Crucible Club in Reading, England.
The 57-year-old won through a field of 35 cueists on Sunday before overcoming the current Super Seniors world number one Hunter in the title match.
Open to players aged 55 and over, the one-day event saw Semby defeat Andrew Barrett (2-1) and Brian Sharpe (2-0) to reach the quarter-finals where he then whitewashed event one winner Wayne Martin.
A deciding frame victory over Andy Milliard saw Sembi set up a final meeting with Hunter where breaks of 62, 32 and 59 saw him earn a 2-1 victory to take home the title.
Event three of the World Seniors Tour takes place at The Crucible Club in Reading, England on 9-11 October. Enter now via WPBSA SnookerScores.
Ronnie was beaten by Jian Jun in his opening match at the 2026 Shenzhen Open and he wasn’t the only big casualty. In fact, none of the “class of 92” survived their opening match, and, as far as I know, this had never happened before. Lewis I’m sure will correct me if I’m wrong …
Home hero and world number one Zhao Xintong was one of a number of big-name casualties, after losing out 5-4 to Scotland’s Scott Donaldson on the opening day of the Shenzhen Open.
Zhao, who became China’s first World Champion in 2025, shot to the summit of the Johnstone’s Paint World Rankings for the first time earlier this season. The 29-year-old went on to be runner-up at the Wuhan Open, losing out to compatriot Chang Bingyu in the title match. A huge crowd of over 3,500 fans watched on this evening, hoping for Shenzhen cueman Zhao to win, but they left disappointed.
World number 66 Donaldson has had a slow start to the season, but showed sparks of his form at the recent qualifiers, earning places in the final stages of the Northern Ireland Open and the Scottish Open.
A break of 77 in the third frame tonight gave Donaldson a 2-1 lead, before runs of 51 and 82 helped Zhao en route to two in a row and a 3-2 lead.
Donaldson replied emphatically and breaks of 105 and 62 took him to the verge of victory at 4-3. He had the first opportunity to clinch the win in the eighth but broke down on 50, before a run of 79 from Zhao forced a decider. Both players spurned chances but crucially it was a run of 46 from Donaldson which gave him a momentous win. He will face Pang Junxu in the next round.
“I don’t think he turned up to the level he can today, but I felt that I was the best I’ve been this season. I’m just happy that all the work I’ve put in is reaping the rewards,” said 32-year-old Donaldson.
“I know what it feels like. When I play the Scottish Open, I don’t want it to feel different but I do. If he got through that match he might have gone on to win the tournament, but I got through and I’m very happy.
“You can only control how you feel out there. Just because you are losing games doesn’t mean you are doing anything wrong. It is a brutal sport and I just want to keep feeling alright.“
Two-time ranking quarter-finalist Jiang Jun scored a stunning 5-2 win over seven-time World Champion Ronnie O’Sullivan.
Despite having made the semis of the Wuhan Open earlier this season, O’Sullivan has been openly critical of his form in recent times. Earlier this season, he suggested the 2028 World Championship could mark the end of his playing career.
This evening’s encounter was the first-ever meeting between the pair, with 21-year-old Jiang expressing his delight at a maiden win over the 41-time ranking event winner. His reward is a meeting with Zak Surety in the next round.
Jiang said: “O’Sullivan is a legendary player. I’ve watched him and learned from him since I was a kid. I had never played against a top player like him before, so this was my first time. If I get the opportunity in the future, I hope I can play against players like him more often and learn from them.
“I’ve played against Ding Junhui twice before, and I felt the atmosphere was probably quite similar to this. I didn’t specifically look at the crowd, but I felt there might have been even more people this time. During my matches, I don’t look at how many spectators there are because I know it could affect my mentality.“
Mark Williams, who won this event last year when it was staged in Xi’an, suffered an early end to his title defence with a 5-4 loss against Fan Zhengyi.
Williams was runner-up at the recent English Open, but bows out at the first hurdle this week. After potting what appeared to be a match-ball pink in the decider, the white went in-off. Fan stepped up and deposited the pink to seal victory. He now plays Yuan Sijun.
Judd Trump required just 54 minutes to beat Huang Jiahao 5-0 in a blistering display. Breaks of 109, 69, 67, 67 and 54 saw him sprint to the line this afternoon. He now gets a bye to the last 16 after Anthony McGill was forced to withdraw due to medical reasons.
Here are the scores for Ronnie’s match
And some more images of that match
As well as some videos, shared on Youtube by WSt and TNT:
Top snooker stars have ‘massively unfair advantage,’ says Chris Wakelin
World number 12 Chris Wakelin feels in too privileged a position (Picture: Getty Images)
Chris Wakelin says he is feeling the benefit of a ‘massively unfair advantage’ as a top 16 player in the current snooker landscape.
The 34-year-old is firmly inside that elite group at number 12 in the world, havign won last season’s Scottish Open and produced a string of other good runs in ranking events.
It is a great time to be in the top 16 as many tournaments have moved to tiered draws, meaning lower-ranked players have to qualify to join the top stars at the main venues of events.
That set-up sees lots of matches being played behind-closed-doors at Leicester’s Mattioli Arena for the lesser lights of the tour as they attempt to earn their spots alongside the brightest stars.
Over the last week-and-a-half there have been qualifiers for the Northern Ireland Open, International Championship in Nanjing and Scottish Open, all held at the Mattioli, meaning that if you’ve had a bad few days then your calendar looks pretty bare in the coming weeks.
Wakelin does not have to deal with many of these qualifiers, but did have to play a match to reach the main stage of the International Championship and he feels he is in too privileged a position to avoid as he avoids that fate more often than not.
It’s something that needs to be addressed for sure,’ Wakelin told Metro. ‘From my perspective it’s a massively unfair advantage, being in the top 16 and not having to go to these qualifiers. It’s not the most lively of places, a little bit soulless and playing in front of nobody.
I understand why they have to do things in that manner, but for the guys that are having to go to qualifiers and they’re never actually seeing the inside of a proper venue, it’s not really the dream a lot of people had when they turned professional, to play in front of nobody.’
With the tiered system, top players can win one match at the venue and earn more money – and therefore ranking points – than their opponent has for winning multiple matches to get there.
This has long been the case in some tournaments, most notably the World Championship, but Wakelin feels it is not a fair system to be used across the tour.
‘We all know qualifying is an important part of progressing in the sport, but being in the 16 is such a massive advantage at the moment,’ he said. ‘I’ve only won four or five matches so far this season, while there’s players that have won 10, maybe 15 matches that still haven’t got the same number of ranking points that I’ve accrued.
It’s a nice position to be in from my point of view, but I don’t think it’s fair on the other players that are trying to make progress up the rankings.’
Wakelin spent over a decade on tour before cracking the top 16, so even though he doesn’t think it warrants the rewards he is now enjoying, he knows just how much work it takes to get there.
‘I’ve served my apprenticeship. I did 10 years of not really achieving a great deal,’ he said. ‘To be in this position now, I feel very, very fortunate.
‘There’s a lot of players that graft their whole careers and don’t manage to get into the top 16 and for me only a couple of years ago it seemed impossible.
‘But look at the points that you need over two years to get into the top 16. It’s a massive challenge. If you’re in the top 16 you’ve won some big matches, you’ve gone deep in a lot of tournaments.’
At next week’s Shenzhen Open, Wakelin takes on a player who has been in rampant form in the qualifiers, Liam Davies.
The 20-year-old from Wales is in the situation Wakelin has described, winning a huge amount of matches compared to his higher-ranked rivals, but without receiving the same rewards.
As Davies beat Long Zehuang in Scottish Open qualifying on Wednesday, he picked up his 19th win of the season in ranking events. Wakelin has won eight but sits ahead of him on the one-year ranking list.
Wakelin says the youngster may even go in as favourite when they meet in China, given the amount of games he has been winning.
‘He’s a smashing lad, smashing talent,’ said Wakelin. ‘He’s got the potential now to go deep in pretty much every tournament he plays in and good luck to the kid.
‘I want to see these guys doing well, I’m a big advocate of the youngsters from this side of the world. They’re learning how to win matches against people that have been doing it since before they were born.
‘The likes of Liam, Liam [Pullen], Liam [Graham] and Stan [Moody]. Antek [Kowalski] and [Iulian] Boiko, they’re all making their way up.
‘Last season I think Liam Davies struggled to really find his feet, but I’m buzzing for him now that he has done.
‘If anything, I’d say he probably goes into the match in Shenzhen as favourite because he’s done really well in recent tournaments. Obviously found himself comfortable in these big arenas and big tournaments and I’m sure it’ll be a good game, whoever wins.’
Following that interview, Phil Haigh also spoke to Jason Ferguson, who expressed his point of view:
Jason Ferguson on tiered tournaments
WPBSA chairman Jason Ferguson spoke to Metro about wanting a balance between tiered and flat draws.
‘If you want my personal opinion, it’s not necessarily an opinion of the company, but my personal opinion is a balance is correct,’ he said. ‘I don’t want to see all events going to tiered structures. I still want to see some events retain open draw, flat draw structures where talent can progress quite easily.’
He added: ‘One of my concerns with this structure is the amount of downtime that certain amounts of the membership are now feeling.
‘We’re looking long and hard at that at the WPBSA in terms of the structure of the tour and whatever else needs to happen to make sure players can keep busy.
‘The problem with qualifiers after qualifiers is it’s very easy to get on a downward spiral. You lose one close match and you’ve played well, you’re still going downhill quickly. Before you know it, you’re thinking about saving your season rather than winning events. It’s a different mindset when you’ve got lots of qualifying rounds and I absolutely get it. I remember it well from my own career and I don’t like many qualifiers one after the other. I really don’t like to see that.’
For me, both raise very valid points, notably the fact that those qualifiers are “grouped” in the calendar, leaving some players with very little to do for long periods. But the big issue is elsewhere … the really big issue is the money list ranking system itself.
I have written about this in the past, I have explained why an ELO type of rating system has my preference and I won’t repeat it all. Instead I will just point why it’s unfair with an example: in the current money list system player A could play player B twice in the season, both times they play a best of nine, both times in the last 32, both time the score is the same 5-3, A wins the first match, B wins the second. It’s clearly the same effort from both and yet they may well end up in very different positions ranking wise, simply because one tournament carries much more money than the other one. THAT is where things are unfair and it could be the reason why one stays on tour and the other is relegated at the end of the season.
The 35-year-old from Malta had never previously advanced beyond the last 16 stage of a Q Tour but managed to win through seven matches to make history for his nation by becoming the first ever Maltese event winner.
Despite falling at the final hurdle, it was an unforgettable coming of age performance 17-year-old Edward Jones from England as he reached the title match at a Q Tour competition for the first time – his previous best run being the last 64.
A total of 109 players from 24 nations contested the four-day tournament, which was hosted alongside the 2026 European Billiards & Snooker Association (EBSA) European Championships in Bulgaria.
Busuttil was perhaps not one of the tournament favourites upon arrival in Sofia but he swept aside cueists from six different countries to earn a maiden title match appearance.
Victories over Bulgaria’s George Petrunko (4-2) and France’s Niel Vincent (4-0) put the Maltese player into a last 32 contest against former Q Tour event finalist Patrick Whelan.
A top break of 95 earned Busuttil a 4-1 win against Whelan to equal his best run and he then beat Matvei Lagodzinschii, who had earlier made the tournament high break of 137, to reach the final day in Sofia.
Busuttil’s dream run continued as he dropped just a single frame across the quarter and semi-finals – overcoming Riley Powell (4-1) and Sybren Sokolowski (4-0) to reach the final.
Awaiting him was teenager Jones, who had never previously made it beyond the last 64 but had earned a place in the title match with outstanding performances to defeat former professionals Peter Devlin and Dean Young among others.
It was Busuttil’s day, however, as he managed to complete a 4-0 victory over Jones to make history as the first Maltese Q Tour champion.
Reflecting on his success, Busuttil said: “I’m over the moon, I can’t believe it to be honest. I was just playing one frame at a time from the very beginning and this happened!”
“I won the European Six-Reds Championship earlier in the week which gave me some confidence. I wasn’t doing anything different specifically, I just kept going”
Speaking about his final opponent, Busuttil said: “I think Edward (Jones) is unbelievable. I saw some of his matches before the final and he was hitting some big breaks. I think he started off better than me but the first frame was crucial.”
Looking ahead, he added: “I feel confident going forward – I’m aiming for the number one spot now.”
The 2026 Scottish Open Qualifiers were played over the four previous days and, hereafter, you will find the reports shared by WST as well as the full list of results. Ronnie has not entered that event, which was probably the sensible thing to do … It was certainly a better decision than entering and withdrawing again. Anyway…
Scottish amateur wild cards Jack Borwick and Steven Wardropper both scored superb wins in the first qualifying round of the Scottish Open, needing one more victory to reach the final stages in Edinburgh.
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Borwick, age 19 (pictured), enjoyed a 4-1 success against Ross Muir, highlighted by breaks of 54, 50 and 78. The teenager now meets Stan Moody on Tuesday with the winner to progress to the televised stages in December.
Wardropper, age 18, edged out Xu Yichen 4-3, compiling a run of 54 in the decider to set up a match with Jordan Brown.
Austria’s Florian Nuessle fired breaks of 133 and 112 in a 4-3 win over Deng Haohui, while China’s in-form Yao Pengcheng saw off Hammad Miah 4-2. Antoni Kowalski came from 2-0 and 3-2 down to edge out Sam Craigie 4-3. Last season’s Rookie of the Year Michal Szubarczyk notched his first win of the current campaign, beating Ka Wai Cheung 4-2 with a top break of 84.
I am very pleased with Michal Szubarczyk win … but I would have preferred if it had come over another opponent as I like Cheung as well.
Onyee Ng scored a tremendous 4-0 victory in a Hong Kong derby against three-time ranking event winner Marco Fu in the first qualifying round of the BetVictor Scottish Open.
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Three-time World Women’s Champion Ng will face Xu Si on Wednesday with the winner to go through to the final stages in Edinburgh in December.
Ng and Fu, Hong Kong’s most decorated snooker stars, have played three times in ranking events within the past ten months, and Fu won the first two of those but today Ng dominated, making top breaks of 66 and 53.
Jimmy White followed up on last week’s win over Matthew Stevens in the International Championship qualifiers by beating Leone Crowley 4-2 with a top run of 69. The Whirlwind now meets Liu Hongyu.
Liam Davies top scored with 77 in a 4-1 defeat of Julien Leclercq, while Thanawat Tirapongpaiboon fired runs of 74, 80, 79 and 121 in a 4-0 victory over Paul Norris. Jamie Clarke came from 3-0 down to beat Fergal Quinn 4-3 with a top break of 98.
Oliver Sykes edged out Reanne Evans 4-3, while Liam Graham beat Bai Yulu by the same scoreline. Connor Benzey notched his second win of the season with a 4-3 defeat of Anton Kazakov.
Chatchapong Nasa will have the chance to reach for the stars when he takes on defending champion Chris Wakelin in the televised stages of the BetVictor Scottish Open, having beaten Louis Heathcote 4-3 in the final qualifying round.
Thailand’s Nasa won just two matches during his debut pro season in 2025/26, but the much-improved 28-year-old has already won six in the current campaign. Having beaten Allan Taylor 4-1 earlier in the week, he edged out Heathcote today despite seeing a 3-0 lead reduced to 3-3. After taking a 35-minute deciding frame on the colours, Nasa will head to Edinburgh in December to play Wakelin in the last 64.
Iulian Boiko edged out Ben Mertens 4-3 with a top break of 84 and will face John Higgins in Scotland. Aaron Hill was in magnificent form in a 4-2 win over Antoni Kowalski, firing runs of 139, 121, 56 and 100.
Perth’s Scott Donaldson qualified for his home tournament as he saw off Mitchell Mann 4-2, while Matthew Stevens won the deciding frame on the final black to beat Florian Nuessle 4-3. Luca Brecel made it three wins out of three in the current set of qualifiers as he beat Gong Chenzhi 4-0 with a top run of 71. Stan Moody top scored with 83 in a 4-1 win over Jack Borwick.
Regarding Florian Nuessle defeat to Matthew Stevens … it surely is a difficult one to take because Florian had battled very hard to come back from 2-0 down and 3-1 down to force the decider, only to lose it on the final black 💔 … and he also had made the highest break of the match, an 88.
Anthony McGill secured a place in his home tournament by beating Wang Xinbo 4-2 in the final qualifying round of the BetVictor Scottish Open.
Glasgow’s McGill will meet Si Jiahui in the televised stages in Edinburgh in December. Tour rookie Wang was on a run of four consecutive qualifying wins and took the opening frame today with a break of 77, before two-time ranking event winner McGill went 2-1 up with runs of 64 and 60. Wang’s superb 132 made it 2-2 but McGill won the last two frames with a top break of 72 to progress to the last 64.
In-form Liam Davies edged out Long Zehuang 4-3 and has now won 19 matches on the tour this season. Robbie Williams top scored with 100 in a 4-3 defeat of Thanawat Tirapongpaiboon while Mateusz Baranowski enjoyed a 4-1 success against Ricky Walden.
Matthew Selt top scored with 92 in a 4-1 win over Scotland’s Liam Graham, while Liam Pullen enjoyed a 4-0 success against Artemijs Zizins.
As a fan, born and living in mainland Europe, I (almost)1 always “support” the mainland Europe players and there were quite a few “satisfying” results in those qualifiers. 😄 The big shame was that Boiko and Mertens had to play each other is the final round… 😕
This might seem bizarre but the exception is Luca Brecel. Yes, he is Belgian, like me, but far too often his attitude has not been great and he has not done his fantastic talent justice at all. ↩︎
