The Paul Hunter Classic is a pro-am minor-ranking

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...

 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 :...

 tournament. From 2010 it is part of the 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...

, and is the first of the tour events to take place in mainland Europe.

History

The tournament started in 2004 as the Grand Prix Fürth and was staged in Fürth

Fürth

The city of Fürth is located in northern Bavaria, Germany in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. It is now contiguous with the larger city of Nuremberg, the centres of the two cities being only 7 km apart....

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. After two years as the Fürth German Open, it was renamed the Paul Hunter Classic in 2007 in memory of the late player Paul Hunter

Paul Hunter

Paul Alan Hunter was an English professional snooker player. His media profile developed swiftly and he became known as the "Beckham of the Baize" because of his good looks and flamboyant style....

.

Barry Pinches

Barry Pinches

-External links:**...

 was the first player to win the newly-named title in August 2007, beating Ken Doherty

Ken Doherty

Ken Doherty is an Irish professional snooker player. He is the only player ever to have been world amateur and world professional champion...

 4–0 in the final. The defending champion is Mark Selby

Mark Selby

Mark Anthony Selby is an English professional snooker and pool player. Runner up in the World Snooker Championship 2007, he was the 2006 WEPF World Eight-ball Champion. Selby has won the Masters on two occasions, the Welsh Open and the Shanghai Masters...

, who won the event in 2011.

Winners

Year	Winner	Opponent	Final score	Season
Grand Prix Fürth (non-ranking)
2004	Paul Hunter Paul Hunter Paul Alan Hunter was an English professional snooker player. His media profile developed swiftly and he became known as the "Beckham of the Baize" because of his good looks and flamboyant style....	Matthew Stevens Matthew Stevens Matthew Stevens is a Welsh professional snooker player. Stevens has won two of the game's most prestigious events, the Benson and Hedges Masters in 2000 and the UK Championship in 2003. He has also been the runner-up in the World Snooker Championship on two occasions, in 2000 and 2005...	4–2	2004/05 Snooker season 2004/2005 The snooker season 2004/2005 was a series of snooker tournaments played during the years 2004 and 2005. The following table outlines the results for ranking events and the invitational events.-Calendar:- Official rankings :...
Fürth German Open (non-ranking)
2005	Mark King Mark King (snooker player) Mark King is an English professional snooker player. He has not yet won a ranking tournament, but came close when he was a beaten finalist in the 1997 Regal Welsh Open and the 2004 Irish Masters.- Career :...	Michael Holt Michael Holt (snooker player) Michael Holt is a professional snooker player from Nottingham, England. , he has reached the quarter finals of three ranking tournaments – the 1999 UK Championship, the 2003 LG Cup, and the 2005 Grand Prix.-Career:...	4–2	2005/06 Snooker season 2005/2006 The snooker season 2005/06 was a series of snooker tournaments played during 2005 and 2006. The following table outlines the results and dates for the ranking and major invitational events that took place.-Calendar:- Official rankings :...
2006	Michael Holt Michael Holt (snooker player) Michael Holt is a professional snooker player from Nottingham, England. , he has reached the quarter finals of three ranking tournaments – the 1999 UK Championship, the 2003 LG Cup, and the 2005 Grand Prix.-Career:...	Barry Hawkins Barry Hawkins Barry Hawkins is an English professional snooker player. He has reached three ranking semi-finals, and spent five seasons inside the top 32 of the rankings. He has also played in the World Championship the last six years running.-Early career:Before taking up snooker professionally he was an...	4–2	2006/07 Snooker season 2006/2007 The snooker season 2006/2007 was a series of snooker tournaments played during 2006 and 2007. The following table outlines the results and dates for all the ranking and major invitational events.-Calendar:- Official rankings :...
Paul Hunter Classic (non-ranking)
2007	Barry Pinches Barry Pinches -External links:**...	Ken Doherty Ken Doherty Ken Doherty is an Irish professional snooker player. He is the only player ever to have been world amateur and world professional champion...	4–0	2007/08 Snooker season 2007/2008 The Snooker Season 2007/2008 was a series of snooker tournaments played during 2007 and 2008. The following table outlines the results and dates for all the ranking and major invitational events...
2008	Shaun Murphy Shaun Murphy (snooker player) Shaun Murphy is an English professional snooker player, who won the 2005 World Championship. Nicknamed "The Magician", Murphy is noted for his straight cue action and his long potting. He is known for his dedication and for being a devout Christian.Born in Harlow, England, Murphy turned...	Mark Selby Mark Selby Mark Anthony Selby is an English professional snooker and pool player. Runner up in the World Snooker Championship 2007, he was the 2006 WEPF World Eight-ball Champion. Selby has won the Masters on two occasions, the Welsh Open and the Shanghai Masters...	4–0	2008/09
2009	Shaun Murphy Shaun Murphy (snooker player) Shaun Murphy is an English professional snooker player, who won the 2005 World Championship. Nicknamed "The Magician", Murphy is noted for his straight cue action and his long potting. He is known for his dedication and for being a devout Christian.Born in Harlow, England, Murphy turned...	Jimmy White Jimmy White James Warren "Jimmy" White MBE is an English professional snooker player. Nicknamed the "Whirlwind" and popularly referred to as the "People's Champion", White is a multiple World Championship finalist renowned for losing each of the six finals he contested.White's extensive list of achievements,...	4–0	2009/10 Snooker season 2009/2010 The snooker season 2009/10 was a series of snooker tournaments played during 2009 and 2010. The following table outlines the results and dates for all the ranking and major invitational events.- Calendar :- Official rankings :...
Paul Hunter Classic (minor-ranking)
2010 Euro Players Tour Championship 2010/2011 – Event 1 The Euro Players Tour Championship 2010/2011 – Event 1 minor-ranking snooker tournament took place between 26–29 August 2010 in Fürth, Germany....	Judd Trump Judd Trump Judd Trump is an English professional snooker player from Bristol. He enjoyed considerable success in youth tournaments before turning professional in 2005. On 3 April 2011, Trump won his first ranking title, beating Mark Selby 10–8 in the final of the China Open...	Anthony Hamilton Anthony Hamilton (snooker player) Anthony Hamilton is an English professional snooker player noted for his strong break-building technique and distinctive appearance. He has spent five seasons ranked among the game's top 16, and fifteen in the top 32, reaching a career-high at number #10 in the world in the 1999/2000 season...	4–3	2010/11 Snooker season 2010/2011 The 2010/11 snooker season is a series of snooker tournaments played during 2010 and 2011. The following table outlines the results and dates for all the ranking and major invitational events.- Calendar :-New professional players:...
2011 Players Tour Championship 2011/2012 – Event 4 The Players Tour Championship 2011/2012 – Event 4 minor-ranking snooker tournament took place between 25–28 August 2011 in Fürth, Germany. Some of the preliminary round matches were held in Nürnberg...	Mark Selby Mark Selby Mark Anthony Selby is an English professional snooker and pool player. Runner up in the World Snooker Championship 2007, he was the 2006 WEPF World Eight-ball Champion. Selby has won the Masters on two occasions, the Welsh Open and the Shanghai Masters...	Mark Davis Mark Davis (snooker player) Mark Davis is an English professional snooker player from St. Leonards in Sussex, England. The highlights of his career so far have been winning the Benson & Hedges Championship in 2002 – earning him an appearance at the Masters – and winning the 2009 Six-red World Championship.- Career :Davis...	4–0	2011/12 Snooker season 2011/2012 The 2011/12 snooker season is a series of snooker tournaments played during 2011 and 2012. The following table outlines the results and dates for all the ranking and major invitational events.- Calendar :-New professional players:...