List of snooker tournaments
Encyclopedia
This is a list of professional and alternative format snooker
tournaments. Professional snooker tournaments can take the form of ranking tournamants—which are open to players on the main tour and award ranking points
based on a player's performance—and non-ranking tournaments. A non-ranking tournament may take the form of an invitational event where player participation is conditional on criteria set by the organiser or sponsor or by personal invite. Most tournaments take the form of a 'singles' event, but there are several team formats that have appeared on the calendar over the years.
In recent seasons alternative forms of snooker have proliferated on the calendar. Any event that uses the official rules of snooker but is not completely consistent with them is defined as an "alternative form of snooker", such as six-red snooker which is played with six reds as opposed to the standard fifteen as required by the official rules, and alterations to scoring and fouling. Some tournaments have occupied the middle ground between strict adherence to the official rules and adopting an alternative format by implementing tournament rules that fully complement the official rules of the game, such as adding a shot clock
or ; in such instances, a tournament rule operates in a way that the official rules of the game are still fully observed.
professional snooker
tournaments.
The professional snooker tournaments listed below are non-ranking and invitational events.
professional snooker
tournaments that no longer form part of the snooker calendar.
The professional snooker tournaments listed below were non-ranking and invitational events.
Snooker
Snooker is a cue sport that is played on a green baize-covered table with pockets in each of the four corners and in the middle of each of the long side cushions. A regular table is . It is played using a cue and snooker balls: one white , 15 worth one point each, and six balls of different :...
tournaments. Professional snooker tournaments can take the form of ranking tournamants—which are open to players on the main tour and award ranking points
Snooker world rankings
The snooker world rankings are the official system of ranking professional snooker players to determine automatic qualification and seeding for tournaments on the World Snooker Tour. They are maintained by the sport's governing body, the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association...
based on a player's performance—and non-ranking tournaments. A non-ranking tournament may take the form of an invitational event where player participation is conditional on criteria set by the organiser or sponsor or by personal invite. Most tournaments take the form of a 'singles' event, but there are several team formats that have appeared on the calendar over the years.
In recent seasons alternative forms of snooker have proliferated on the calendar. Any event that uses the official rules of snooker but is not completely consistent with them is defined as an "alternative form of snooker", such as six-red snooker which is played with six reds as opposed to the standard fifteen as required by the official rules, and alterations to scoring and fouling. Some tournaments have occupied the middle ground between strict adherence to the official rules and adopting an alternative format by implementing tournament rules that fully complement the official rules of the game, such as adding a shot clock
Shot clock
A shot clock is used in some sports to quicken the pace of the game. It is normally associated with basketball, but has also found use in sports such as snooker, professional lacrosse, water polo, and korfball....
or ; in such instances, a tournament rule operates in a way that the official rules of the game are still fully observed.
Professional tournaments
This is a list of rankingSnooker world rankings
The snooker world rankings are the official system of ranking professional snooker players to determine automatic qualification and seeding for tournaments on the World Snooker Tour. They are maintained by the sport's governing body, the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association...
professional snooker
Snooker
Snooker is a cue sport that is played on a green baize-covered table with pockets in each of the four corners and in the middle of each of the long side cushions. A regular table is . It is played using a cue and snooker balls: one white , 15 worth one point each, and six balls of different :...
tournaments.
| Tournament | Event | Format | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| World Snooker Championship World Snooker Championship The World Snooker Championship is the leading professional snooker tournament in terms of both prize money and ranking points. The first championship was held in 1927; since 1977, it has been played at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, England... |
1927–1940 (BACC) 1946–1952 (BACC) 1964–1968 (BACC) (challenge basis) 1969–present (WPBSA World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association, often abbreviated to the WPBSA, founded in 1968 and based in Bristol, England, United Kingdom is the governing body of professional snooker and English billiards... ) |
Non-ranking |
England |
| Jersey |
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| South Africa |
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| Australia |
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| Ranking |
England |
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| Australia |
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| World Open | Professional Players Tournament |
Ranking | England |
| Grand Prix |
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| LG Cup |
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| Grand Prix |
Ranking | England |
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| Scotland |
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| World Open |
Ranking | Scotland |
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| China |
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| UK Championship UK Championship (snooker) The UK Championship is a professional ranking snooker tournament. It is the second biggest ranking tournament after the World Championship and is one of the Triple Crown events.-History:... |
1977/78–present | Invitational |
England |
| Ranking |
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| Australian Goldfields Open | Australian Masters – |
Invitational | Australia |
| Hong Kong Open |
Ranking | Hong Kong | |
| Australian Open |
Non-ranking | Australia |
|
| Australian Masters |
Invitational | ||
| Australian Goldfields Open |
Ranking | ||
| Welsh Open Welsh Open (snooker) The Welsh Open is a professional ranking snooker tournament. It replaced the Welsh Professional Championship, which started in 1980 and was only open to Welsh players.- History :... |
1991/92–present | Ranking | Wales |
| German Masters | German Open |
Ranking | Germany |
| German Masters |
Invitational |
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| Ranking |
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| China Open China Open (snooker) The China Open is a professional snooker tournament. It is one of a number of ranking tournaments and began in 1997.-History:The first international snooker tournament in China was the China International in September 1997, a non-ranking tournament for the top 16 players and local players. The... |
China International |
Invitational |
China |
| Ranking |
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| China Open |
Ranking | ||
| Shanghai Masters | 2007/08–present | Ranking | China |
| Players Tour Championship Players Tour Championship The Players Tour Championship is a snooker series comprising 12 regular events and a Grand Final. Each event lasts for at least three days, with a qualifying event for amateurs should the event be oversubscribed... |
2010/11–present | Minor-ranking series | England Europe |
| Paul Hunter Classic Paul Hunter Classic The Paul Hunter Classic is a pro-am minor-ranking snooker tournament. From 2010 it is part of the Players Tour Championship, and is the first of the tour events to take place in mainland Europe.-History:... |
Grand Prix Fürth |
Pro-Am | Germany |
| Fürth German Open |
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| Paul Hunter Classic |
Pro-Am |
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| PTC |
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The professional snooker tournaments listed below are non-ranking and invitational events.
| Tournament | Event | Format | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Masters (snooker) The Masters is a professional snooker tournament and the second longest running tournament outside the World Championship. Although not a ranking event, it is regarded as one of the most prestigious tournaments on the circuit, earning the second biggest prize money.-History:The tournament was held... |
1975–present | Invitational | England |
| World Cup | World Challenge Cup |
Invitational | England |
| World Team Classic |
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| World Cup |
Invitational | England |
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| Thailand |
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| Scottish Professional Championship Scottish Professional Championship The Scottish Professional Championship is a professional snooker tournament which is open only for Scottish players.-History:The tournament was first held in 1980. In 1981 six Scottish players turned professional, and the event was held as an eight-man knock-out tournament, with Ian Black defeating... |
1979/80–1988/89 2010/11–present |
Invitational | Scotland |
| General Cup International | 2004/05, 2009/10 2009 General Cup International -Final:-Century breaks:*116, 104 Liang Wenbo*111, 104 Ricky Walden*105, 100 Li Yan-References:... , 2011/12 2011 General Cup International The 2011 General Cup International was an invitational professional snooker tournament. It took place between 4–7 July 2011 at the General Snooker Club in Hong Kong... |
Invitational | Hong Kong |
| Championship League Championship League Championship League is a non-ranking snooker tournament, devised by Matchroom Sport. All tournaments have been held at the Crondon Park Golf Club since its debut in 2008.- History and format :... |
2007/08–present | Invitational | England |
| Lucan Racing Classic | Irish Classic |
Invitational | Republic of Ireland |
| Lucan Racing Classic |
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| Wuxi Classic | Jiangsu Classic |
Invitational | China |
| Wuxi Classic |
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| Beijing International Challenge Beijing International Challenge The Beijing International Challenge is a professional non-ranking snooker tournament organised by 110 Sport. The defending champion is Tian Pengfei.- History :... |
2009/10–present | Invitational | China |
| Hainan Classic | 2010/11 2011 Hainan Classic - Charity exhibition match :-Century breaks:* 142 Jamie Cope* 141 Graeme Dott* 117, 113 Ding Junhui* 111, 109 John Higgins* 101 Neil Robertson* 101 Yu Delu-Notes:... –present |
Invitational | China |
Alternative forms of snooker
A list of tournaments that use an alternative set of rules to the official rules of the game.| Tournament | Event | Format | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Premier League Snooker | Matchroom League |
Invitational | United Kingdom |
| European League |
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| Premier League Snooker |
Invitational |
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| Invitational |
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| International League |
Invitational | Europe | |
| Snooker Shoot-Out | 1990/91 | Invitational | England |
| 2010/11–present | Invitational | England | |
| World Seniors Championship World Seniors Championship The World Seniors Championship is a cue sport tournament, played under a variation of the standard rules of snooker, snooker players over 45. The defending champion is Darren Morgan.- History :... |
1991, 2010/11 | Non-ranking | England |
| 2011/12–present | Non-ranking | ||
| Power Snooker | 2010/11–present | Invitational | England |
Professional tournaments
This is a list of rankingSnooker world rankings
The snooker world rankings are the official system of ranking professional snooker players to determine automatic qualification and seeding for tournaments on the World Snooker Tour. They are maintained by the sport's governing body, the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association...
professional snooker
Snooker
Snooker is a cue sport that is played on a green baize-covered table with pockets in each of the four corners and in the middle of each of the long side cushions. A regular table is . It is played using a cue and snooker balls: one white , 15 worth one point each, and six balls of different :...
tournaments that no longer form part of the snooker calendar.
| Tournament | Event | Format | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Players Championship Players Championship (snooker) The Players Championship was a professional snooker tournament. It is the most recent name of the ranking tournament held in Scotland every year. The tournament has had a bewildering number of name changes in its history. Until recently it was commonly known as the Scottish Open, and prior to that... |
International Open |
Non-ranking |
England |
| Ranking |
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| Matchroom Trophy |
Ranking | ||
| International Open |
Ranking | England |
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| Scotland |
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| Scottish Open |
Ranking | Scotland | |
| Players Championship |
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| Classic Classic (snooker) The Classic was a professional snooker tournament, which began in 1980 and ended in 1992. It was originally a non-ranking event, but became ranking in 1984. Steve Davis has won the event six times and was the last champion.-History:... |
1979/80 – 1991/92 | Invitational |
England |
| Ranking |
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| British Open British Open (snooker) The British Open was a professional snooker tournament. It was a ranking tournament from 1985. The tournament has not been held since the 2004/2005 season.... |
British Gold Cup |
Invitational | England |
| Yamaha Organs Trophy |
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| International Masters |
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| British Open |
Ranking | ||
| Canadian Masters | 1985/86 – 1988/89 | Invitational |
Canada |
| Ranking |
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| Malta Cup Malta Cup The Malta Cup was a professional snooker tournament that has been on the World Snooker calendar since the 1988/89 season. It was previously known as the European Open as the sole ranking tournament in Europe, outside the British Isles.- History :Prior to the 1988/89 season, there were no ranking... |
European Open |
Ranking | Europe |
| Irish Open |
Ranking | Republic of Ireland | |
| European Open |
Ranking | Malta | |
| Malta Cup |
Ranking |
Malta | |
| Invitational |
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| Dubai Classic | Dubai Masters |
Invitational | Dubai |
| Dubai Classic |
Ranking | ||
| Thailand Classic |
Ranking | Thailand | |
| Asian Classic |
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| Thailand Masters | Thailand Masters |
Invitational | Thailand |
| Asian Open |
Ranking | Thailand |
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| China |
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| Thailand Open |
Ranking | Thailand | |
| Thailand Masters |
Ranking |
Thailand | |
| Invitational |
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| Strachan Challenge | Strachan Open |
Ranking | England |
| Strachan Challenge |
Minor-ranking series |
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| Non-ranking |
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| Malta Grand Prix | 1994/95 – 2000/01 | Invitational |
Malta |
| Ranking |
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| Irish Masters | Benson & Hedges Ireland Tournament |
Invitational | Republic of Ireland |
| Irish Masters |
Invitational |
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| Ranking |
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| Northern Ireland Trophy Northern Ireland Trophy - History :First contested in 1981 and named Northern Ireland Classic. It was an invitational event held at Ulster Hall, Belfast, and Jimmy White beat Steve Davis in the final.... |
Northern Ireland Classic |
Invitational | Northern Ireland |
| Northern Ireland Trophy |
Invitational |
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| Ranking |
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| Bahrain Championship | 2008/09 2008 Bahrain Championship The 2008 Bahrain Championship professional ranking snooker tournament took place between 8 November and 15 November 2008 at the Bahrain International Exhibition Centre, Manama, Bahrain... |
Ranking | Bahrain |
The professional snooker tournaments listed below were non-ranking and invitational events.
| Tournament | Event | Format | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Irish Professional Championship | 1947–1972 (challenge basis) 1977/78 – 1992/93 (except 1983/84, 1989/90–1990/91) 2005/06 – 2007/08 |
Invitational | Ireland |
| News of the World Championship News of the World Championship The News of the World Championship was the premium snooker tournament of the 1950s and widely considered as being more important than the world championship due to the involvement of Joe Davis.-History:... |
1950–1959 | Invitational | England |
| World Matchplay World Matchplay (snooker) The World Matchplay professional non-ranking snooker tournament was established in 1952 as an alternative to the World Snooker Championship and last held in 1992.-History:... |
Non-ranking | England | |
| World Professional Match-Play Championship |
Non-ranking | Australia | |
| World Matchplay |
Invitational | England | |
| Pot Black Pot Black Pot Black was a British series of snooker tournaments televised by BBC, that played a large part in the popularisation of the modern game, from 1969 to 1986. The event was revived in the form of several one-off tournaments throughout the 1990s and up to 2007... |
1969–1986 1991–1993 2005/06 – 2007/08 |
Invitational | England |
| Tolly Cobbold Classic Tolly Cobbold Classic The Tolly Cobbold Classic was a non-ranking snooker tournament staged between 1979 and 1984. It was held at the Corn Exchange in Ipswich and sponsored by local brewers Tolly Cobbold... |
1978/79 – 1983/84 | Invitational | England |
| Welsh Professional Championship Welsh Professional Championship The Welsh Professional Championship was a professional snooker tournament which was open only for Welsh players. It was the first of the four home countries to revive its national professional championship on a regular basis.- History :... |
1979/80 – 1990/91 | Invitational | Wales |
| Scottish Masters | 1981/82 – 2002/03 | Invitational | Scotland |
| World Doubles Championship | 1982/83 – 1987/88 | Non-ranking | England |
| World Series of Snooker World Series of Snooker The Sportingbet.com World Series of Snooker was a series of invitational snooker tournaments set up as a complement to the WPBSA's tour Its first season was played in 2008/2009, consisting of four two-day tournaments in St... |
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Invitational | International |
| World Series of Snooker |
Pro-Am | Europe | |
| Masters Qualifying Event | Benson & Hedges Championship |
Non-ranking |
United Kingdom |
| Minor-ranking |
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| Masters Qualifying Event |
Non-ranking | ||
| World Masters World Masters The World Masters, known for sponsorship reasons as the Mita/Sky World Masters, was a snooker tournament held in January 1991. Conceived by promoter Barry Hearn, the tournament had a similar format to the Grand Slam events in tennis, with men's singles, men's doubles, women's singles, women's... |
1990/91 | Non-ranking Men/Ladies/Junior |
England |
| Champions Cup Champions Cup (snooker) The Champions Cup was a professional non-ranking snooker tournament held in England that ran for eight seasons starting in the 1994/1995 season and was originally known as the Charity Challenge.-History:... |
Charity Challenge |
Invitational | England |
| Champions Cup |
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| Nations Cup Nations Cup (snooker) The Nations Cup was an invitational snooker tournament created in 1999, and the second team tournament after the World Cup. The annual contests featured team of four players representing their country against other such teams.-History:... |
1998/99 – 2000/01 | Invitational | England |
| Tournament | Event | Format | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Challenge Tour Challenge Tour (snooker) The Challenge Tour was a series of professional snooker tournaments that ran from the 1997/1998 season until the 2004/2005 season. The tour was immediately below the level of the WPBSA Main Tour... |
UK Tour |
Non-ranking | United Kingdom |
| Challenge Tour |
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| International Open Series International Open Series The International Open Series , was a series of snooker tournaments that ran from the 2001/2002 season until the 2009/2010 season... |
Open Tour |
Non-ranking |
United Kingdom |
| Pro-am |
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| Amateur |
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| International Open Series |
Amateur | Wales |
Alternative forms of snooker
A list of tournaments that use an alternative set of rules to the official rules of the game.| Tournament | Event | Format | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Six-red World Championship | Six-red Snooker International |
Invitational | Thailand |
| Six-red World Grand Prix |
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| Six-red World Championship |
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| Six-red World Championship | 2009/10 2009 Six-red World Championship The 2009 Six-red World Championship was a six-red snooker tournament, held 14 to 18 December 2009 at the INEC, Killarney, Republic of Ireland.... |
Pro-am | Republic of Ireland |