Thepchaiya Un-Nooh put on a break building masterclass and blitzed to a 5-0 win over world number three Mark Allen at the BetVictor European Masters in Nuremberg.
Victory for Un-Nooh enhances his already strong record against Northern Irishman Allen, with the Thai now leading their head-to-head standings 5-1. Next up he faces a third round clash with Englishman Ashley Carty.
Defeat for Allen ends his hopes of climbing to the world number one spot this week, which he could have achieved by winning the event. However, if World Champion Luca Brecel can make the semi-finals he will overtake current world number one Ronnie O’Sullivan.
When play got underway this morning, Un-Nooh wasted little time hunting down the finish line and needed just 58 minutes to complete the win. Un-Nooh fired in breaks of 85, 92, 128 and 81 as he won four out of the five frames to nil. He only conceded 17 points on his way to victory.
The final frame saw Un-Nooh get into prime position to mount a 147 attempt. However, he agonisingly left the 11th black over the pocket to end his run.
“Mark was a really dangerous player last season and he is number three in the world now. I just had to stay on my game, play attacking and think about winning frames in one visit. I wanted to keep him sitting in his chair and not let him on the table. He is so dangerous,” said 38-year-old Un-Nooh.
“I had a really good chance for a 147 in the last frame. I thought the black was in the pocket. I can’t imagine how it was still on the table. I was so regretful and disappointed about that last black.”
Essex cueman Zak Surety mounted an incredible fightback to beat Chinese rookie Jiang Jun 5-4, having trailed 4-0. Victory for world number 78 Surety continues his recent good form, he defeated Ryan Day to earn his place here in Nuremberg and recently scored a win against Michael White at British Open qualifying. Surety’s next opponent this week will either be James Cahill or Barry Hawkins.
Mark Selby eased to a 5-1 win over Adam Duffy to secure his place in the last 32. The Jester from Leicester compiled breaks of 78, 51 and 75 on his way to the win and will now face either Anthony Hamilton or Louis Heathcote.
David Gilbert scored a 5-1 win over 12-time Women’s World Champion Reanne Evans, while Xiao Guodong registered a 5-3 win over 2015 Crucible king Stuart Bingham.
It was a truly marvellous display by Theppy indeed, and he’s not the only one left wondering how that black did not drop. Mark Allen had no complaints and even joked about it on social media. He explained that WST does send pictures to the players, featuring their best shots, so that the players can use them on their social media and yesterday the “best” WST could find for Mark was a picture of him entering the arena with his cue in hand… 😄. Mark also duly congratulated his victorious opponent.
Jiang Jun defeat from the brink of victory once again shows how the interval can change the course of a match. Jiang is a 17 years old rookie from China and I wonder how often in his young life as a snooker player he had to deal with the challenges that the MSI can bring. He was 4-0 up and certainly didn’t expect to be in that position. Did he get ahead of himself? Did he start seeing problems that weren’t there? Did he just lost his momentum? Only he will know … maybe. This is something he needs to discuss with his coach if he has one, or with more experienced players, maybe practice partners who are or were on tour for some time.
Now… the forgotten matches… Robbie Williams beat Pang Junxu by 5-1. Robbie is a solid player but Pang, after doing well in the 2023 ranking CLS, seems to have lost his ways a bit. Noppon Saengkham beat veteran Mark Davis by 52. Nothing surprising here and at least “Dark Mavis” won his first match, made it to the venue and met his biggest fan again.
Defending BetVictor European Masters champion Kyren Wilson booked a third round berth with a 5-2 win over Alfie Burden on day two in Nuremberg.
Wilson claimed victory just a few miles down the road in Furth 12 months ago, when he thrashed Barry Hawkins 9-3 in the final. Germany is a happy hunting ground for the Warrior, who has won three of his five ranking titles to date in the country.
There were breaks of 65, 68 and 107 for Wilson on his way to this afternoon’s victory. Next up the Kettering cueman faces an intriguing test against China’s Si Jiahui, who made the semi-finals of the World Championship back in May.
“The people in Germany are so warm and welcoming. They absolutely love their snooker so wherever you go, you are appreciated and feel a good buzz about the place. That is going to bring out the best in you,” said 31-year-old Wilson.
“It would be fantastic to defend a title for the first time. It is a new challenge and one I’ve not managed to complete yet. There are lots of things I’d love to tick off in my career and that is obviously one of them. There is a long way to go, but you just have to battle through the conditions and give it your all.”
World Champion Luca Brecel battled hard to beat Indian rookie Ishpreet Singh Chadha 5-3 in an entertaining encounter.
It was Singh who showed his ability in the opener with a break of 51 on his way to moving 1-0 up. From there the Belgian Bullet surged ahead, contributions of 72, 85 and 101 helped him to four on the bounce and a 4-1 lead. Singh clawed his way back into contention with runs of 102 and 72 to reduce his arrears to 4-3, but a break of 74 by Brecel saw him over the line.
Brecel is now through to the third round and requires three more wins to make it to the semi-finals, which would see him become world number one for the first time. He faces Robbie Williams in the next round.
Recent BetVictor Championship League winner Shaun Murphy continued his strong form with a 5-2 win over Daniel Wells. The Magician crafted breaks of 104, 54, 85 and 65 during the win.
Next up Murphy faces Ross Muir, with the winner progressing to meet four-time World Champion John Higgins in the last 16. Higgins scored a 5-2 win over Zhou Yuelong this evening.
Judd Trump and Mark Williams sealed their progressions in contrasting fashion. Trump eased to a 5-0 win over Jordan Brown, while Williams edged through 5-3 against Welsh compatriot Matthew Stevens.
Ishpreet Singh Chadha really gave an excellent account of himself; he’s one rookie to watch this season. Jordan Brown didn’t really challenge Judd Trump.
And, of course, there were many more matches played during those two sessions. The “Sheriff of Pottingham”, Anthony Hamilton, shot down Louis Heathcote beating him by 5-1. Ben Mertens got the better of Sanderson Lam by 5-3. Ashley Hugill outlasted Ali Carter, beating him by 5-4 and finishing with a century (110). It was Ali who made the highest break of the match, a 130. Jimmy Robertson beat Scott Donaldson by 5-0. The first three frames were close though. Andy Hicks beat Peng Ysong by 5-2, Duane Jones beat Allan Taylor by 5-3 and Barry Hawkins beat James Cahill by 5-3. It was 3-1 to Cahill at the MSI in that last match, then Barry found form, won four on the spin, scoring three breaks over 70 in the process.
The psychedelic scoring system was at it again … scores going backwards, digits changing ever odd second and other bizarre and disturbing “features”. Did the developers and WST even test this thing before effectively putting it into production in an actual event ??? I’ll say it again: this is utterly unprofessional.
The first event of the 2023/24 WPBSA Q Tour Global gets underway this Friday (August 25) and runs until Sunday at the North East Snooker Centre.
For all information on the event including the match schedule CLICK HERE
Following two successful seasons based within the UK and mainland Europe, this season’s WPBSA Q Tour Global will for the first time incorporate regional events held around the world, each offering access to an extended Q Tour Playoff at the end of the season.
As in previous seasons, the rebranded WPBSA Q Tour UK/Europe will retain its previous format, with an expanded calendar of seven events to be held across the season.
To include four tournaments within the UK and a further three in mainland Europe, the circuit will once again see players compete to finish the season as the top ranked player and earn a place on the World Snooker Tour.
The next 16-ranked players (to include each event champion) will be guaranteed to qualify for the season-end Q Tour Global Playoff.
Each Q Tour UK/Europe event will carry an increased prize fund of over £14,000 and will be open to players from around the world. As in previous seasons, 48 players (see below) will be seeded through to Saturday’s last 64, to be joined by 16 qualifiers.
THE DATES
The provisional dates for this season’s Q Tour UK/Europe are:
Q Tour 1 – 25-27 August 2023 – North East Snooker Centre, UK
Q Tour 2 – 15-17 September 2023 – Snookerhallen, SWEDEN
Q Tour 3 – 20-22 October 2023 – Heilbronn, GERMANY
Q Tour 4 – 10-12 November 2023 Landywood Snooker Club, UK
Q Tour 5 – 15-17 December 2023 – Castle Snooker, Brighton, UK
Q Tour 6 – 5-7 January 2024 – Sofia, BULGARIA
Q Tour 7 – 16-18 February 2024 – Northern Snooker Centre, UK
As was the case last season, each weekend tournament will be made up of 64 players comprising the following:
The top 32 eligible players from the 2023 UK Q School Order of Merit eligible to compete.
Iulian Boiko, Haydon Pinhey, Sydney Wilson, Duane Jones, Alfie Davies, Barry Pinches, Rory McLeod, Steven Hallworth, Simon Bedford, Florian Nuessle, Alex Taubman, Jamie O’Neill, Peter Lines, Ryan Davies, Fergal Quinn, Joshua Thomond, Josh Mulholland, Sean McAllister, Daniel Holoyda, Robin Hull, Craig Steadman, Chris Totten, Michael Holt, Zachary Richardson, Umut Dikme, Ben Fortey, Lewis Ullah, Daniel Womersley, Harvey Chandler, Jamie Curtis-Barrett, Martyn Taylor, James Lee
The top 8 from the 2023 Asia-Oceania Q School Order of Merit
Ka Wai Cheung, Lei Peifan, Yu Kiu Chang, Gong Chenzhi, Jefrey Roda, Dhruv, Jatan Patel, Asutosh Padhy, Khalid Ali Alkamali
The eight highest ranked junior players on the 2023 UK Q School Order of Merit, not already qualified.
Bai Yulu, Antoni Kowalski, Liam Davies, Jamie Wilson, Bulcsu Revesz, Oliver Sykes, Vladislav Gradinari, Paul Deaville
Q TOUR GLOBAL
For the first time, the WPBSA Q Tour Global will incorporate regional Q Tour Series’ staged around the world as part of the planned international expansion of Q Tour.
The WPBSA welcomes expressions of interest to stage Q Tour tournaments from recognised organisations and national federations which share our vision for high-quality amateur events.
As part of the WPBSA’s commitment to the international growth of our sport, the leading players from these Regional Q Tour events will qualify to compete at the Q Tour Global Playoff, alongside players from Q Tour UK/Europe.
Players competing in Q Tour events outside of UK/Europe, must be resident for a minimum six months to be eligible to play in these events.
Q TOUR PLAYOFF
The WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff will be relaunched for the 2023/24 season with three places on the World Snooker Tour to be won for the first time.
As in previous seasons, the Playoff will include the winners of Q Tour UK/Europe events, followed the highest ranked remaining players up to 16 players. They will be joined by a further eight players from regional Q Tour events held around the world. Should these places not be taken, they will be filled by additional players from the Q Tour UK/Europe Rankings.
In recognition of the increased status of the Playoff, the event will be held over three days and will be made up of three sections of eight players, meaning qualifiers into this season’s prestigious grand final will only need to win three matches at the Playoff to earn a place on the World Snooker Tour. Quarter-finals will be played over the best of nine frames, semi-finals the best of 11 frames and the finals over the best of 19 frames.
The Playoff will also carry a prize fund of almost £20,000 for the first time, with each tour card winner set to take home £2,000. Each qualifier will be guaranteed to earn at least £500, with prize money increasing to £750, £1,000 and the £2,000 top prize.
“THE ULTIMATE TEST”
Jason Ferguson, WPBSA Chairman said: “Our WPBSA Q Tour has quickly become a key cornerstone in the amateur snooker calendar, offering direct access to the World Snooker Tour and regular competition at high-quality venues.
“We are therefore now delighted to be able to launch the WPBSA Q Tour Global, which for the first time enables players around the world to be able to compete and potentially earn their place on the professional circuit. It is particularly important to add that this new global model will serve players all over the world with life changing opportunities. It is also important to state that our vision includes working with federations and partners around the world who share our vision of a truly open global sport.
“I am hugely excited by the potential of Q Tour and in particular now the Global Playoff, with long frame formats, I can only speak on this as a former snooker player, when I say this is the ultimate test for players aiming to take the next step with a full-time career on the World Snooker Tour.
“We will soon be writing to our many partners and friends around the world, inviting them to join us in this truly global plan.”
Three thoughts about this …
The part “Q-Tour Global” is very interesting. I want to be optimistic and hope that this can develop in a true global secondary tour, making the Q-School obsolete. I know that the Q-School is probably a big cash-cow for WST but it’s not the right way to select future pros. It has produced very little new faces and has mainly be a re-qualifying route for older former pros. That’s not the way forward for our sport. Older former pros deserve a proper, funded Seniors Tour, featuring events throughout the season. I know that Jason Francis is doing everything in his power to get that running in a sustainable way… but he needs to be better supported by WPBSA/WST.
And both the Q-Tour and the Seniors Tour need to be “visible” to fans, which means streamed in high quality or televised. You can’t grow nor can you generate profit if nobody can see you.
Finally … why on earth – to put it in a polite way – isn’t WST using the system WPBSA, WSF, WWS, WDBS and the Seniors tour all use ??? It has everything that’s needed and very importantly … IT ACTUALLY WORKS.
3 thoughts on “Day 2 at the 2023 European Masters and Q-Tour News”
It was a shame we didn’t get to see Wu Yize against Liu Hongyu, even if only on Table 6. I heard from Liu that his VISA problem was because his priority was to play in the Pro-Am events in China, which left him insufficient time to apply to go to Germany.
I’m seeing quite a difference in playing conditions between the main tables and the outside tables, which aren’t nice. Quite a few players have been upset when their white has come up short.
What’s happening exactly with the Seniors Tour? Besides their World Championship at the Crucible on the BBC, their last televised non-WC event was the 2022 UK Seniors Championship, over 18 months ago! Pre-Covid, they had at four televised events.
I like the idea of a secondary tour, and the possibility to qualify to the main tour from there. I do realize that the Qschool is brutal, in a way chancy and maybe pros who fall off the main tour should not get the chance to immediately requalify through it: there are a few notorious ones who don’t leave any impression during their time on the tour, fall off and then immediately requalify to continue to do nothing. But I can see why the Senior Tour would not excite someone as much as the main tour does and often feels like a pensioners’ club, so they would try everything to get back to the real thing. A QTour can make one think they are up and coming, moving to the right direction. A senior tour will give the impression you are over and done with.
On s different note: what was wrong with the previous WST scoring system that they went for this overhaul to the worse? 🙁
Ronnie O'Sullivan 
It was a shame we didn’t get to see Wu Yize against Liu Hongyu, even if only on Table 6. I heard from Liu that his VISA problem was because his priority was to play in the Pro-Am events in China, which left him insufficient time to apply to go to Germany.
I’m seeing quite a difference in playing conditions between the main tables and the outside tables, which aren’t nice. Quite a few players have been upset when their white has come up short.
What’s happening exactly with the Seniors Tour? Besides their World Championship at the Crucible on the BBC, their last televised non-WC event was the 2022 UK Seniors Championship, over 18 months ago! Pre-Covid, they had at four televised events.
I like the idea of a secondary tour, and the possibility to qualify to the main tour from there. I do realize that the Qschool is brutal, in a way chancy and maybe pros who fall off the main tour should not get the chance to immediately requalify through it: there are a few notorious ones who don’t leave any impression during their time on the tour, fall off and then immediately requalify to continue to do nothing. But I can see why the Senior Tour would not excite someone as much as the main tour does and often feels like a pensioners’ club, so they would try everything to get back to the real thing. A QTour can make one think they are up and coming, moving to the right direction. A senior tour will give the impression you are over and done with.
On s different note: what was wrong with the previous WST scoring system that they went for this overhaul to the worse? 🙁