The 2021–22 snooker season was a series of snooker tournaments played from July 2021 to May 2022, including the professional World Snooker Tour but also featuring events for female, senior, and Q School players. The season saw a record five players claim their first professional ranking titles: David Gilbert, Zhao Xintong, Hossein Vafaei, Fan Zhengyi, and Robert Milkins.[1] Nutcharut Wongharuthai won her first World Women's Snooker Championship, becoming the only player besides Reanne Evans and Ng On-yee to win the women's world title in 19 years.[2] Ronnie O'Sullivan won the World Snooker Championship, equalling Stephen Hendry's modern era record of seven world titles and becoming the oldest world champion in snooker history at the age of 46 years and 148 days.[3] Lee Walker won his first World Seniors Championship.[4]
| Details | |
|---|---|
| Duration | 18 July 2021 – 11 May 2022 |
| Tournaments | 32 (16 ranking events) |
| Triple Crown winners | |
| UK Championship |  Zhao Xintong (CHN) |
| Masters |  Neil Robertson (AUS) |
| World Championship |  Ronnie O'Sullivan (ENG) |
← 2020–21 2022–23 → | |
Neil Robertson, who won four tournaments during the season, was named Player of the Year at the World Snooker Tour Awards. O'Sullivan was named the Snooker Journalists' Player of the Year, while Zhao was the Fans' Player of the Year. O'Sullivan won Performance of the Year for capturing his seventh world title, while Robertson won Magic Moment of the Year for making a maximum break at the Crucible. Evans and Allison Fisher were entered into the Snooker Hall of Fame for outstanding contributions to the growth of snooker.[5]
Players edit
The World Snooker Tour in the 2021–22 season consists of a field of 122 professional players.[6] The top 64 players from the prize money rankings after the 2021 World Championship, and 27 of the players who earned a two-year tour card the previous year automatically qualified for the season. Next, eight places were allocated to the top eight on the One Year Ranking List who had not already qualified for the Main Tour. Another four players came from the CBSA China Tour, and a further 14 places were eligible through the 2021 Q School, four from each of the three events and an additional two from the Order of Merit). Two players from the World Women's Snooker Tour were given tour cards. Andrew Pagett, who won the 2020 EBSA European Championship, had his tour card deferred to this season and was subsequently given a tour card. The last two tour cards were invitational tour cards, given to Marco Fu and Jimmy White.
New professional players edit
All players listed below received a tour card for two seasons.[6]
|
|
Top-up players edit
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic restricting the number of amateur qualification tournaments that could be run and thus the total size of the Main Tour for this season, World Snooker Tour announced that the following six players are guaranteed an invite to all eligible snooker events this season, alongside amateurs appointed by local governing bodies for the Home Nations Series. This was due to their ranking on the Q School Order of Merit:
Calendar edit
The following tables outline the dates and results for all the World Snooker Tour, World Women's Snooker Tour, World Seniors Tour, Q Tour, and other events in the season.[9][10][11]
World Snooker Tour edit
| Ranking event |
| † Non-ranking event |
World Women's Snooker edit
| Start | Finish | Tournament | Venue | Winner | Score | Runner-up | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 Sep | 5 Sep | UK Women's Championship | Northern Snooker Centre in Leeds, England | Reanne Evans (ENG) | 4–0 | Rebecca Kenna (ENG) | [31][32] |
| 27 Nov | 28 Nov | Eden Women's Masters | Frames Sports Bar in London, England |  Ng On-yee (HKG) | 4–3 | Reanne Evans (ENG) | [33][34] |
| 15 Jan | 16 Jan | Women's British Open | The Winchester in Leicester, England |  Nutcharut Wongharuthai (THA) | 4–3 | Reanne Evans (ENG) | [35][36] |
| 11 Feb | 14 Feb | World Women's Championship | Ding Junhui Snooker Academy in Sheffield, England | Nutcharut Wongharuthai (THA) | 6–5 |  Wendy Jans (BEL) | [37][38] |
| 2 Apr | 3 Apr | Winchester Women's Open | The Winchester in Leicester, England | Ng On-yee (HKG) | 4–0 | Nutcharut Wongharuthai (THA) | [39] |
World Seniors Tour edit
| Start | Finish | Tournament | Venue | Winner | Score | Runner-up | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 Jan | 7 Jan | UK Seniors Championship | Bonus Arena in Hull, England | Peter Lines (ENG) | 4–1 | David Lilley (ENG) | [40] |
| 4 May | 8 May | World Seniors Championship | Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England |  Lee Walker (WAL) | 5–4 | Jimmy White (ENG) | [41] |
Q Tour edit
| Start | Finish | Tournament | Venue | Winner | Score | Runner-up | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Nov | 21 Nov | Q Tour 1 | Castle Snooker Club in Brighton, England | David Lilley (ENG) | 5–1 | Si Jiahui (CHN) | [42] |
| 10 Dec | 12 Dec | Q Tour 2 | Terry Griffiths Matchroom in Llanelli, Wales | Si Jiahui (CHN) | 5–4 | Michael White (WAL) | [43] |
| 28 Jan | 30 Jan | Q Tour 3 | The Winchester in Leicester, England | Sean O'Sullivan (ENG) | 5–2 | Julien Leclercq (BEL) | [44] |
| 18 Mar | 20 Mar | Q Tour 4 | Northern Snooker Centre in Leeds, England |  Robbie McGuigan (NIR) | 5–3 |  Michael Collumb (SCO) | [45] |
| 10 May | 11 May | Q Tour Playoff | Q House Snooker Academy in Darlington, England | Julien Leclercq (BEL) | 5–2 | Alex Clenshaw (ENG) | [46] |
Other events edit
| Start | Finish | Tournament | Venue | Winner | Score | Runner-up | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 Sep | 29 Sep | Haining Open | Haining Sports Center in Haining, China | He Guoqiang (CHN) | 5–0 | Huang Jiahao (CHN) | [47] |
World ranking points edit
The 2021–22 snooker season will feature the following points distribution for World Snooker Tour ranking events:
Round Tournament | R144 | R128 | R112 | R96 | R80 | R64 | R48 | R32 | R24 | R16 | QF | R6 | SF | F | W |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Championship League | — | 0 [note 1] | — | 1,000 [note 2] | — | 2,000 [note 3] | — | 4,000 [note 4] | 5,000 [note 5] | 6,000 [note 6] | 8,000 [note 7] | 9,000 [note 8] | 11,000 [note 9] | 23,000 | 33,000 |
| British Open | — | 0 | — | — | — | 3,000 | — | 5,000 | — | 7,000 | 12,000 | — | 20,000 | 45,000 | 100,000 |
| Northern Ireland Open | — | 0 | — | — | — | 3,000 | — | 4,000 | — | 7,500 | 10,000 | — | 20,000 | 30,000 | 70,000 |
| English Open | — | 0 | — | — | — | 3,000 | — | 4,000 | — | 7,500 | 10,000 | — | 20,000 | 30,000 | 70,000 |
| UK Championship | — | 0 | — | — | — | 6,500 | — | 12,000 | — | 17,000 | 24,500 | — | 40,000 | 80,000 | 200,000 |
| Scottish Open | — | 0 | — | — | — | 3,000 | — | 4,000 | — | 7,500 | 10,000 | — | 20,000 | 30,000 | 70,000 |
| World Grand Prix | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5,000 | — | 7,500 | 12,000 | — | 20,000 | 40,000 | 100,000 |
| Shoot Out | — | 0 | — | — | — | 500 | — | 1,000 | — | 2,000 | 4,000 | — | 8,000 | 20,000 | 50,000 |
| German Masters | — | 0 | — | — | — | 3,000 [note 10] | — | 4,000 | — | 5,000 | 10,000 | — | 20,000 | 35,000 | 80,000 |
| Players Championship | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 10,000 | 15,000 | — | 30,000 | 50,000 | 125,000 |
| European Masters | — | 0 | — | — | — | 3,000 | — | 4,000 | — | 6,000 | 11,000 | — | 17,500 | 35,000 | 80,000 |
| Welsh Open | — | 0 | — | — | — | 3,000 | — | 4,000 | — | 7,500 | 10,000 | — | 20,000 | 30,000 | 70,000 |
| Turkish Masters | — | 0 | — | — | — | 3,500 | — | 5,500 | — | 7,500 | 12,500 | — | 20,000 | 45,000 | 100,000 |
| Gibraltar Open | — | 0 | — | — | — | 2,000 | — | 3,000 | — | 4,000 | 5,000 | — | 6,000 | 20,000 | 50,000 |
| Tour Championship | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 20,000 | — | 40,000 | 60,000 | 150,000 |
| World Championship | 0 | — | 5,000 [note 11] | — | 10,000 [note 11] | — | 15,000 | 20,000 [note 11] | — | 30,000 | 50,000 | — | 100,000 | 200,000 | 500,000 |
Notes edit
- ^ First stage fourth-placed
- ^ First stage third-placed
- ^ First stage runner-up
- ^ Second stage fourth-placed
- ^ Second stage third-placed
- ^ Second stage runner-up
- ^ Third stage fourth-placed
- ^ Third stage third-placed
- ^ Third stage runner-up
- ^ Loss in second qualifying round
- ^ a b c Players who lose their first match receive no ranking points.
References edit
- ^ "A Changing Game?". World Snooker. 19 May 2022. Archived from the original on 19 May 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
- ^ "Wongharuthai Wins First World Title". World Snooker. 15 February 2022. Archived from the original on 15 February 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
- ^ "Ronnie O'Sullivan exclusive: World snooker champion on how he beat self-doubt to lift seventh title". Eurosport UK. 10 May 2022. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
- ^ "Snooker results: Lee Walker beats Jimmy White in World Seniors Championship final". www.sportinglife.com. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
- ^ "Robertson Named Player Of The Year". World Snooker. 6 May 2022. Archived from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
- ^ a b "Tour Players 2021/22". World Snooker. 18 June 2021. Archived from the original on 18 June 2021.
- ^ "2020/2021 Season Points". snooker.org. 17 April 2021.
- ^ "Jimmy White Awarded New Invitational Tour Card". wst.tv. 11 April 2021. Archived from the original on 11 April 2021.
- ^ "Calendar 2021/2022 (Provisional)" (PDF). wst.tv. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
- ^ "Calendar 2021/2022". snooker.org. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
- ^ "Calendar 2021/2022". WWS. Retrieved 8 November 2021.
- ^ Gilbert Secures First Ranking Title. World Snooker Tour. 13 August 2021.
- ^ Williams Lands 24th Ranking Crown. World Snooker Tour. 22 August 2021.
- ^ "Allen Lands Belfast Glory". World Snooker Tour. 17 October 2021. Archived from the original on 18 October 2021.
- ^ "Robertson Downs Higgins in Classic Clash". World Snooker Tour. 7 November 2021. Archived from the original on 8 November 2021.
- ^ "Trump Crowned Champion of Champions". World Snooker Tour. 21 November 2021. Archived from the original on 21 November 2021.
- ^ "Sensation Zhao is UK Champion". World Snooker Tour. 5 December 2021. Archived from the original on 5 December 2021.
- ^ "Brilliant Brecel Claims Second Ranking Crown". World Snooker Tour. 12 December 2021. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021.
- ^ "Ronnie O'Sullivan Produces Stirring Evening Fightback To Beat Neil Robertson To Win Final". Eurosport. 19 December 2021. Archived from the original on 20 December 2021.
- ^ "Thunder Strikes For Second Masters Title". World Snooker Tour. 16 January 2022. Archived from the original on 16 January 2022.
- ^ "Vafaei Makes History As First Iranian Champion". World Snooker Tour. 23 January 2022. Archived from the original on 23 January 2022.
- ^ "Zhao Destroys Yan In Berlin Final". World Snooker Tour. 30 January 2022. Archived from the original on 30 January 2022.
- ^ "Higgins In A League Of His Own". World Snooker Tour. 4 February 2022. Archived from the original on 4 February 2022.
- ^ "Robertson Lands Maiden Players Crown". World Snooker Tour. 13 February 2022. Archived from the original on 13 February 2022.
- ^ "China's Fan Stuns O'Sullivan In Dramatic Final". World Snooker Tour. 27 February 2022. Archived from the original on 27 February 2022. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
- ^ "Perry Claims Welsh Open Glory". World Snooker Tour. 6 March 2022. Archived from the original on 6 March 2022. Retrieved 6 March 2022.
- ^ "Magnificent Trump Reigns In Turkey". World Snooker Tour. 13 March 2022. Archived from the original on 13 March 2022. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
- ^ "Robertson Recovery Stuns Higgins". World Snooker Tour. 3 April 2022. Archived from the original on 3 April 2022.
- ^ "Milkman Rules The Rock With First Ranking Crown". World Snooker Tour. 26 March 2022. Archived from the original on 26 March 2022.
- ^ "O'Sullivan Beats Trump For Magnificent Seventh". World Snooker Tour. 2 May 2022. Archived from the original on 3 May 2022. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
- ^ "Perfect Ten For Evans At UK Championship". WWS. 6 September 2021.
- ^ "Perfect Ten For Evans". World Snooker Tour. 6 September 2021. Archived from the original on 6 September 2021.
- ^ "Ng Comeback Claims Masters Title". WWS. 29 November 2021.
- ^ "Ng Comeback Seals Masters Title". World Snooker Tour. 29 November 2021. Archived from the original on 1 January 2022.
- ^ "Magic Mink Is British Open Champion". WWS. 17 January 2022.
- ^ "Wongharuthai Beats Evans In British Final". World Snooker Tour. 17 January 2022. Archived from the original on 17 January 2022.
- ^ "Wongharuthai is World Women's Snooker Champion". WWS. 15 February 2022.
- ^ "Wongharuthai Wins First World Title". World Snooker Tour. 15 February 2021. Archived from the original on 15 February 2022.
- ^ "Ng Claims The Winchester Crown". WWS. 3 April 2022.
- ^ "The 2021 WSS UK Championship is on". 9 December 2020.
- ^ "'A dream come true' – Lee Walker hits back to deny Jimmy White in World Seniors final". Eurosport. 9 May 2022.
- ^ "Lilley Crowned King of the Castle at Q Tour". WPBSA. 21 November 2021.
- ^ "Success for Si at WPBSA Q Tour". World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 12 December 2021. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021.
- ^ "O'Sullivan Storms to Q Tour Success". World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 30 January 2022. Archived from the original on 30 January 2022.
- ^ "Comeback King McGuigan Takes Q Tour Title". World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 20 March 2022. Archived from the original on 20 March 2022.
- ^ "Leclercq wins playoff to earn WST place". WPBSA. 11 May 2022.
- ^ He On A High In Haining. WPBSA. 30 September 2021.