Snooker

Results: Q Tour Europe Playoff Finals

Steven Hallworth 10-5 Mark Joyce
Florian Nuessle 10-3 Andres Petrov
Liam Highfield 10-3 Iulian Boiko

Hallworth, Nuessle & Highfield get 2 year WST tour cards from the 25/26 season.

Mark Joyce made a 147 in his 6-2 semi final victory over Dylan Emery.

The players that didn't make it this time can have another go at Q School. Joyce, Boiko and Emery will probably continue to get a wildcard invitation anyway to most WST professional tournaments based on merit in the amateur circuit.

You'd struggle to know Joyce and Boiko weren't on the tour, such is that hinterland of players at the lower end.

Ukrainian Julian Boiko regained his professional status after winning the European Snooker and Billiards Association (EBSA) Under 21 tournament. He gets a 2 year tour card from the 2025/26 season.

The main EBSA tournament was won by Liam Highfield who already won a 2 year tour card at the Q Tour. Liam's opponent in the final was 14 year old Polish player Michal Szubarczyk. As Michal is under age he can't be awarded a tour card without consent from his parents, so Michal has been nominated by the WPBSA for a tour card, and if he and his parents accept then he will have the record for the youngest player ever on the tour.

Mink Nutcharut beat Bai Yulu 4-3 in the final of the Womens WSF Championship. This year the WPBSA hoped to have 5 women involved in the World Championship, and created a wildcard invitation for the winner of the Womens WSF Championship, or the runner up if the winner has a tour card. Both have tour cards and it is unknown if an invitation will be extended to one of the losing semi finalists Ng On-Yee or Rebecca Kenna. I think Ng should be invited, after all she will have a tour card from next season.

Chang Bingyu, one of the lesser known of the Chinese players banned in the betting scandal, won the Asia-Pacific Championship. He beat Ryan Thomerson 6-1 in the final. His ban had been served prior to the tournament, so he does get a 2 year tour card from next season.

The WPBSA decided that Bingyu was probably coerced, and an unwilling party in the scandal, and only gave him a 2 year ban in 2023, which expired earlier this year. Although Bingyu's victory comes too late for him to be invited to this year's World Championship, he'll be delighted to be back on the tour so soon after he had served his ban.

Graeme Dott has been suspended by the WPBSA, and won't be able to start his World Championship campaign on Friday. 2006 World Champion Dott is scheduled to be in high court in Scotland accused of child abuse. He is facing accusations of abusing a girl in Glasgow from when she was 10 years old from 1993-1996, and abusing a boy in Lanarkshire from when he was aged 7 from 2006 to 2010. His suspension will initially last until high court proceedings are finished, but could be extended depending on whether or not he's convicted.

Upcoming post-season events:

Asia & Oceania Q School: This event will be held in Bangkok, Thailand, from May 13th to May 24th.
(4 tour cards available)

WWS Womens World Championship 2025: This event will be held in Dongguan, China, from May 20th to May 27th.
(1 tour card available)

Europe Q School: The first event will be held in Leicester, UK, from May 21st to May 26th, and the second from May 27th to June 1st.
(8 tour cards available)

The likes of Alfie Burden, Anthony Hamilton, Stuart Carrington and Alexander Ursenbacher entered the first event of the Europe Q School to get their tour card back after losing it earlier this month, and Tony Knowles was back for another try. Ursenbacher got his tour card renewed after reaching one of the finals and beating Ryan Davies 4-1. The rest will have to try again in event 2.

Liam Pullen and Oliver Brown won 2 of the other finals to get their tour cards back. Polish amateur Mateusz Baranowski beat Patrick whelan 4-2 in the remaining final to became a professional for the first time.

One player who didn't have to enter Q School was Dylan Emery. Emery appealed to the WPBSA that as Zhao Xintong had finished in the top 64 of the World Rankings, his tour card was for that. So the tour card for winning the Q tour defaulted to Emery who finished 2nd. The WPBSA accepted Emery's appeal and awarded him a 2 year tour card.

The final of the Women's World Championship will be between Bai Yulu and Mink Nutcharut again. Baipat Siripaporn had her best tournament since winning the title 2 years ago, but lost 5-1 to Mink. Xia Yuyin beat Reanne Evans on the way to the semi finals, but got thrashed 5-0 by Bai Yulu. Subject to confirmation, Reanne is likely to get her tour card renewed for being the highest ranked female player who hasn't already got one.

I read during the World Champs that Mark Williams said Hamilton had eye surgery and regretted it because it had made things worse.

Bai Yulu defeated Mink Nutcharut 6-4 to retain the Women's World Snooker Championship. Mink looked certain to take the match to a decider when she was 1 point ahead in the 10th frame with only pink and black left on the table, and Bai left her an easy pink. Mink potted the pink, but the cue ball went in off in the middle pocket. Bai now 5 ahead only needed the pink. Bai placed the cue ball in the D and calmly sank the pink on it's spot to claim her 2nd World title.

Q School Event 2

Anthony Hamilton went out in the last 64, Alfie Burdon and Stuart Carrington both lost in the last 32. Alfie has the Champion of Champions to look forward of course, but apart from that all 3 will have to rely on wildcard invitations to enter professional tournaments in the new season unless they can find some other way back on the tour.

David Grace and Ian Burns are back on the tour, they won their respective finals. Irishman Fergal Quinn, and Englishman Connor Benzey were the other 2 final winners, and both gain professional status for the first time.