2026 China Open (snooker)
Snooker tournament
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The 2026 China Open (officially the 2026 Satuo China Open) is a professional snooker tournament that is taking place from 8 to 16 August 2026 at the Riverside Sports Centre in Taiyuan, China. Qualifying took place from 10 to 14 June at the Leicester Arena in Leicester, England. The first edition of the revived China Open after it was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it will be the second ranking event of the 2026–27 snooker season, following the 2026 Championship League and preceding the 2026 Wuhan Open. The winner will receive £250,000 from a total prize fund of £1,205,000.
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| |
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 8–16 August 2026 |
| Venue | Riverside Sports Centre |
| City | Taiyuan |
| Country | China |
| Organisation | World Snooker Tour CBSA |
| Format | Ranking event |
| Total prize fund | £1,205,000 |
| Winner's share | £250,000 |
| Highest break |
|
| Defending champion |  Neil Robertson (AUS) |
← 2019 | |
Neil Robertson is the defending champion, having defeated Jack Lisowski 11–4 in the 2019 final.
Overview
The first non-ranking China Masters was held in 1985. Steve Davis won the inaugural edition, defeating Dennis Taylor 2–1 in the final.[1] The first major international tournament played in the Asian country was the China International, held as a non-ranking event in 1997 and as a ranking event in March 1999. It was renamed the China Open for the December 1999 edition, which Ronnie O'Sullivan won by beating Stephen Lee 9–2 in the final.[2][3] It was staged 18 times as a ranking event until it was discontinued due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As of the 2019 edition, the last one to be played before its discontinuation, Mark Selby and Mark Williams were the most successful players, each having won the tournament three times.[3]
The 2026 edition of the tournament is being held from 8 to 16 August at the Riverside Sports Centre in Taiyuan, China.[4][5][3] Qualifying took place from 10 to 14 June at the Leicester Arena in Leicester, England.[6] It is the second ranking event of the 2026–27 snooker season, following the 2026 Championship League and preceding the 2026 Wuhan Open.[7] Neil Robertson is the defending champion, having defeated Jack Lisowski 11–4 in the 2019 final.[8]
The opening ceremony was held in Taiyuan on 7 August. At the ceremony the chairman of the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association, Jason Ferguson said: "Today marks a significant moment for our sport as we celebrate the return of one of snooker's most prestigious and historic tournaments. After a six-year absence, the China Open once again takes its rightful place on the World Snooker Tour calendar, reaffirming its status as the flagship snooker event in China and one of the highlights of our international season."[9]
Format
The revived edition will follow a structure similar to that of the UK Championship and the World Championship.[10] 144 players were entered into the tournament, including Chinese wildcards as well as top-up amateurs from the Q School Order of Merit. The top 16 ranked players were seeded through to the final rounds in Taiyuan, while all other players needed to play between 2 and 4 rounds of qualifying in Leicester in order to qualify for the main stage, depending on their seeding.[10]
All matches up to and including the semi-finals will be the best of 11 frames, while the final will be a best-of-19 frames match played over two sessions.[11]
Prize fund
The winner will receive £250,000 from a total prize fund of £1,205,000. The breakdown of prize money is shown below:[3][11]
- Winner: £250,000
- Runner-up: £100,000
- Semi-finalists: £50,000
- Quarter-finalists: £25,000
- Last 16: £15,000
- Last 32: £10,000
- Last 48: £7,500
- Last 80: £5,000
- Last 112: £2,500
- Highest break (qualifying stage included): £15,000
- Total: £1,205,000
Summary
Qualifying rounds
Qualifying round 2
Michael Holt made the first maximum break of his professional career in his 6–1 win over Mark Joyce. It was the first 147 of the current season and the 242nd official maximum.[12]
Qualifying round 3
Xu Si missed the last black in a maximum attempt in the seventh and final frame of his match against Jamie Jones which he won 6–1.[6]
Later rounds
Last 32
David Gilbert beat Ding Junhui 6–1, and Wu Yize defeated Yao Pengcheng 6–5.[13] Zhou Yuelong beat Mark Williams 6–3, and Liu Hongyu defeated Barry Hawkins 6–4.[13]
Xiao Guodong beat Anthony McGill 6–3, and Noppon Saengkham defeated Judd Trump by the same score.[14] Shaun Murphy whitewashed Matthew Selt with century breaks of 132, 103, 139, and 113. With 607 unanswered points, this breaks the record for a professional match, beating the previous record of 556, set by Ronnie O'Sullivan at the 2014 Masters.[15] O'Sullivan beat Jackson Page 6–2.[14][16]
Si Jiahui whitewashed Jiang Jun, and defending champion Neil Robertson defeated Chang Bingyu 6–3.[17] Mark Selby beat Pang Junxu 6–3, and Kyren Wilson defeated Aaron Hill 6–5.[17]
Mark Allen withdrew and so Hossein Vafaei was given a walkover to the last 16.[18] Stuart Bingham beat John Higgins 6–4, making a high break of 140.[19]
Main stages
Wildcard round
A wildcard round—also known as the last 34—was held prior to the last 32, in which two qualifiers from the qualifying rounds were randomly drawn against two Chinese wildcard players. The winner of each wildcard match progressed to the last 32 to play a top 16 seed.[10] The results for these wildcard round matches are below:[11][20]
| Match | Qualifier | Score | Wildcard player |
|---|---|---|---|
| WC1 |  Hossein Vafaei (IRN) (28) |
6–0 |  Liu Linhao (CHN) |
| WC2 |  Anthony McGill (SCO) (38) |
6–0 | Wu Shengguang (CHN) |
Main draw
The results of the main draw are shown below. Numbers in parentheses after the players' names denote the players' seeding and players in bold denote match winners.[11][20]
- Note: w/d=withdrawn; w/o=walkover
Qualifying draw
The results of the qualifying rounds are shown below. Numbers in parentheses denote the players' seeding and an "(a)" denotes amateur players not on the main tour. The match winners are shown in bold.[6][21]
| Round 1 (Last 144) Best of 11 frames | Round 2 (Last 112) Best of 11 frames | Round 3 (Last 80) Best of 11 frames | Round 4 (Last 48) Best of 11 frames | |||||||||||
| Zhao Hanyang (CHN) (81) | w/o | Xu Yichen (CHN) (80) | 6 |  Jack Lisowski (ENG) (17) | 6 | |||||||||
| Xu Jiarui (CHN) (a) | w/d | Zhao Hanyang (CHN) (81) | 4 | Xu Yichen (CHN) (80) | 4 | Jack Lisowski (ENG) (17) | 1 | |||||||
| Deng Haohui (CHN) (124) | 6 |  Matthew Stevens (WAL) (49) | 6 | Chang Bingyu (CHN) (48) | 6 | Chang Bingyu (CHN) (48) | 6 | |||||||
| Zhou Yichen (CHN) (a) | 0 | Deng Haohui (CHN) (124) | 2 | Matthew Stevens (WAL) (49) | 4 | |||||||||
 Sahil Nayyar (CAN) (96) | 6 | Jiang Jun (CHN) (65) | 6 | Jak Jones (WAL) (32) | 3 | |||||||||
| Liu Yang (CHN) (126) | 1 | Sahil Nayyar (CAN) (96) | 1 | Jiang Jun (CHN) (65) | 6 | Jiang Jun (CHN) (65) | 6 | |||||||
 Mahmoud El Hareedy (EGY) (97) | 2 |  Jordan Brown (NIR) (64) | 6 | Jimmy Robertson (ENG) (33) | 6 | Jimmy Robertson (ENG) (33) | 4 | |||||||
| Daniel Womersley (ENG) (a) | 6 | Daniel Womersley (ENG) (a) | 1 | Jordan Brown (NIR) (64) | 4 | |||||||||
| Bai Yulu (CHN) (112) | 3 | Fan Zhengyi (CHN) (57) | 6 | Stan Moody (ENG) (40) | 3 | |||||||||
| Peter Lines (ENG) (a) | 6 | Peter Lines (ENG) (a) | 4 | Fan Zhengyi (CHN) (57) | 6 | Fan Zhengyi (CHN) (57) | 4 | |||||||
 Alexander Ursenbacher (SUI) (89) | 5 | Dylan Emery (WAL) (72) | 6 | Pang Junxu (CHN) (25) | 6 | Pang Junxu (CHN) (25) | 6 | |||||||
| Duane Jones (WAL) (a) | 6 | Duane Jones (WAL) (a) | 1 | Dylan Emery (WAL) (72) | 0 | |||||||||
| Hammad Miah (ENG) (105) | 6 | Robbie Williams (ENG) (56) | 4 |  Aaron Hill (IRL) (41) | 6 | |||||||||
 Mykhailo Larkov (UKR) (125) | 2 | Hammad Miah (ENG) (105) | 6 | Hammad Miah (ENG) (105) | 1 | Aaron Hill (IRL) (41) | 6 | |||||||
| Connor Benzey (ENG) (88) | 3 | Steven Hallworth (ENG) (73) | 6 | Gary Wilson (ENG) (24) | 6 | Gary Wilson (ENG) (24) | 5 | |||||||
| Huang Jiahao (CHN) (107) | 6 | Huang Jiahao (CHN) (107) | 0 | Steven Hallworth (ENG) (73) | 2 | |||||||||
 Mateusz Baranowski (POL) (85) | 3 | Ian Burns (ENG) (76) | 6 | Stuart Bingham (ENG) (21) | 6 | |||||||||
| Simon Blackwell (ENG) (a) | 6 | Simon Blackwell (ENG) (a) | 1 | Ian Burns (ENG) (76) | 4 | Stuart Bingham (ENG) (21) | 6 | |||||||
| Anton Kazakov (UKR) (115) | 4 | Oliver Lines (ENG) (53) | 4 |  Luca Brecel (BEL) (44) | 6 | Luca Brecel (BEL) (44) | 0 | |||||||
| Jamie Clarke (WAL) (101) | 6 | Jamie Clarke (WAL) (101) | 6 | Jamie Clarke (WAL) (101) | 4 | |||||||||
| Oliver Brown (ENG) (92) | 6 |  Marco Fu (HKG) (69) | 6 | Hossein Vafaei (IRN) (28) | 6 | |||||||||
 Nattanapong Chaikul (THA) (a) | 3 | Oliver Brown (ENG) (92) | 1 | Marco Fu (HKG) (69) | 3 | Hossein Vafaei (IRN) (28) | 6 | |||||||
 Artemijs Žižins (LAT) (118) | 5 | David Lilley (ENG) (60) | 6 | Ryan Day (WAL) (37) | 4 | David Lilley (ENG) (60) | 1 | |||||||
| Gong Chenzhi (CHN) (113) | 6 | Gong Chenzhi (CHN) (113) | 4 | David Lilley (ENG) (60) | 6 | |||||||||
| Julien Leclercq (BEL) (114) | 6 | Lyu Haotian (CHN) (61) | 6 | Tom Ford (ENG) (36) | 6 | |||||||||
| Ashley Hugill (ENG) (108) | 4 | Julien Leclercq (BEL) (114) | 3 | Lyu Haotian (CHN) (61) | 3 | Tom Ford (ENG) (36) | 6 | |||||||
 Florian Nüßle (AUT) (93) | 6 | Liam Highfield (ENG) (68) | 6 | Stephen Maguire (SCO) (29) | 1 | Liam Highfield (ENG) (68) | 5 | |||||||
| Allan Taylor (ENG) (a) | 2 | Florian Nüßle (AUT) (93) | 2 | Liam Highfield (ENG) (68) | 6 | |||||||||
| Ashley Carty (ENG) (106) | 6 | Martin O'Donnell (ENG) (52) | 6 | Daniel Wells (WAL) (45) | 6 | |||||||||
| Stuart Carrington (ENG) (102) | 0 | Ashley Carty (ENG) (106) | 3 | Martin O'Donnell (ENG) (52) | 3 | Daniel Wells (WAL) (45) | 4 | |||||||
| Ross Muir (SCO) (84) | 6 | Michał Szubarczyk (POL) (77) | 5 | Zhang Anda (CHN) (20) | 6 | Zhang Anda (CHN) (20) | 6 | |||||||
| Cheung Ka Wai (HKG) (110) | 3 | Ross Muir (SCO) (84) | 6 | Ross Muir (SCO) (84) | 2 | |||||||||
| Liu Wenwei (CHN) (83) | 1 | Lan Yuhao (CHN) (78) | 6 | Elliot Slessor (ENG) (19) | 6 | |||||||||
| Oliver Sykes (ENG) (116) | 6 | Oliver Sykes (ENG) (116) | 2 | Lan Yuhao (CHN) (78) | 3 | Elliot Slessor (ENG) (19) | 1 | |||||||
| Wang Xinbo (CHN) (117) | 3 | Michael Holt (ENG) (51) | 6 | Noppon Saengkham (THA) (46) | 6 | Noppon Saengkham (THA) (46) | 6 | |||||||
| Mark Joyce (ENG) (a) | 6 | Mark Joyce (ENG) (a) | 1 | Michael Holt (ENG) (51) | 3 | |||||||||
| Jimmy White (ENG) (94) | 6 | Louis Heathcote (ENG) (67) | 6 | Yuan Sijun (CHN) (30) | 6 | |||||||||
| Sean O'Sullivan (ENG) (104) | 2 | Jimmy White (ENG) (94) | 2 | Louis Heathcote (ENG) (67) | 5 | Yuan Sijun (CHN) (30) | 3 | |||||||
| Antoni Kowalski (POL) (109) | 6 | Ben Mertens (BEL) (62) | 6 | Jackson Page (WAL) (35) | 6 | Jackson Page (WAL) (35) | 6 | |||||||
| Paul Norris (ENG) (121) | 4 | Antoni Kowalski (POL) (109) | 2 | Ben Mertens (BEL) (62) | 4 | |||||||||
| T. Tirapongpaiboon (THA) (119) | 6 |  Ishpreet Singh Chadha (IND) (59) | 6 | Anthony McGill (SCO) (38) | 6 | |||||||||
| Joshua Thomond (ENG) (a) | 3 | T. Tirapongpaiboon (THA) (119) | 2 | Ishpreet Singh Chadha (IND) (59) | 2 | Anthony McGill (SCO) (38) | 6 | |||||||
| Chatchapong Nasa (THA) (91) | 6 | Sam Craigie (ENG) (70) | 6 | Joe O'Connor (ENG) (27) | 6 | Joe O'Connor (ENG) (27) | 2 | |||||||
| Liam Davies (WAL) (111) | 5 | Chatchapong Nasa (THA) (91) | 2 | Sam Craigie (ENG) (70) | 1 | |||||||||
| Phil O'Kane (ENG) (120) | 1 | Ricky Walden (ENG) (54) | 6 | Matthew Selt (ENG) (43) | 6 | |||||||||
| Wang Yuhang (CHN) (a) | 6 | Wang Yuhang (CHN) (a) | 4 | Ricky Walden (ENG) (54) | 2 | Matthew Selt (ENG) (43) | 6 | |||||||
| Leone Crowley (IRL) (86) | 4 | Gao Yang (CHN) (75) | 6 | Ali Carter (ENG) (22) | 6 | Ali Carter (ENG) (22) | 5 | |||||||
| Andrew Higginson (ENG) (99) | 6 | Andrew Higginson (ENG) (99) | 2 | Gao Yang (CHN) (75) | 4 | |||||||||
| Liam Graham (SCO) (87) | 5 | David Grace (ENG) (74) | 2 | Zhou Yuelong (CHN) (23) | 6 | |||||||||
| Mitchell Mann (ENG) (100) | 6 | Mitchell Mann (ENG) (100) | 6 | Mitchell Mann (ENG) (100) | 3 | Zhou Yuelong (CHN) (23) | 6 | |||||||
| Panchaya Channoi (THA) (123) | 4 | Scott Donaldson (SCO) (55) | 5 | Zak Surety (ENG) (42) | 1 | Chen Ruifu (CHN) (a) | 3 | |||||||
| Chen Ruifu (CHN) (a) | 6 | Chen Ruifu (CHN) (a) | 6 | Chen Ruifu (CHN) (a) | 6 | |||||||||
| Fergal Quinn (NIR) (90) | 3 | Iulian Boiko (UKR) (71) | 6 | Lei Peifan (CHN) (26) | 2 | |||||||||
| Zhang Yang (CHN) (a) | 6 | Zhang Yang (CHN) (a) | 1 | Iulian Boiko (UKR) (71) | 6 | Iulian Boiko (UKR) (71) | 0 | |||||||
| Craig Steadman (ENG) (103) | 6 | Liu Hongyu (CHN) (58) | 6 | Ben Woollaston (ENG) (39) | 2 | Liu Hongyu (CHN) (58) | 6 | |||||||
| George Pragnell (ENG) (a) | 3 | Craig Steadman (ENG) (103) | 1 | Liu Hongyu (CHN) (58) | 6 | |||||||||
| Alfie Burden (ENG) (98) | 6 | Jamie Jones (WAL) (63) | 6 | Xu Si (CHN) (34) | 6 | |||||||||
| Patrick Whelan (ENG) (a) | 0 | Alfie Burden (ENG) (98) | 1 | Jamie Jones (WAL) (63) | 1 | Xu Si (CHN) (34) | 2 | |||||||
| Ng On-yee (HKG) (95) | 4 | Liam Pullen (ENG) (66) | 6 | David Gilbert (ENG) (31) | 6 | David Gilbert (ENG) (31) | 6 | |||||||
| Ryan Thomerson (AUS) (a) | 6 | Ryan Thomerson (AUS) (a) | 5 | Liam Pullen (ENG) (66) | 4 | |||||||||
| Luo Zetao (CHN) (122) | 4 | Long Zehuang (CHN) (50) | 6 | He Guoqiang (CHN) (47) | 6 | |||||||||
| Robert Milkins (ENG) (a) | 6 | Robert Milkins (ENG) (a) | 3 | Long Zehuang (CHN) (50) | 1 | He Guoqiang (CHN) (47) | 2 | |||||||
| Reanne Evans (ENG) (82) | 6 | Yao Pengcheng (CHN) (79) | 6 | Thepchaiya Un-Nooh (THA) (18) | 3 | Yao Pengcheng (CHN) (79) | 6 | |||||||
| Alfie Davies (WAL) (a) | 4 | Reanne Evans (ENG) (82) | 1 | Yao Pengcheng (CHN) (79) | 6 | |||||||||
- Note: w/d=withdrawn; w/o=walkover
Century breaks
Main stage centuries
A total of 20 century breaks have been made during the main stage of the tournament in Taiyuan.[22]
- 140 – Stuart Bingham
- 139, 132, 113, 103 – Shaun Murphy
- 134, 133, 115 – Zhou Yuelong
- 132 – Xiao Guodong
- 120 – Noppon Saengkham
- 118, 111 – Liu Hongyu
- 114 – Neil Robertson
- 113, 110 – David Gilbert
- 110 – Chris Wakelin
- 106, 100 – Wu Yize
- 101 – Yao Pengcheng
- 100 – Ronnie O'Sullivan
Qualifying stage centuries
A total of 80 century breaks were made during the qualifying stage of the tournament in Leicester.[23]
- 147, 119 – Michael Holt[12]
- 140, 110, 104 – Xu Si
- 140 – Chen Ruifu
- 138 – George Pragnell
- 137, 120 – Joe O'Connor
- 137 – Zhou Yuelong
- 137 – Artemijs Žižins
- 136, 102 – Matthew Selt
- 135, 133 – Liu Hongyu
- 135, 106, 103 – Liam Highfield
- 134, 133 – Ali Carter
- 134 – Marco Fu
- 134 – Long Zehuang
- 133, 105 – Lyu Haotian
- 133, 101, 100 – Tom Ford
- 132, 126, 119 – Hossein Vafaei
- 132 – Chang Bingyu
- 130 – Steven Hallworth
- 130 – Anthony McGill
- 129 – Alfie Burden
- 127, 118 – Lan Yuhao
- 125, 125 – Sam Craigie
- 125, 107 – Hammad Miah
- 123, 113 – Andrew Higginson
- 123, 107, 100 – Jackson Page
- 122, 118, 103 – Florian Nüßle
- 122, 116 – Jamie Jones
- 121 – T. Tirapongpaiboon
- 120 – Zhang Anda
- 119 – Ben Mertens
- 117 – David Gilbert
- 116, 116 – Fan Zhengyi
- 116 – Ian Burns
- 115 – He Guoqiang
- 114, 112, 108, 105 – Liam Pullen
- 114, 112, 101 – Jiang Jun
- 114 – Liam Davies
- 114 – Duane Jones
- 114 – David Lilley
- 114 – Robert Milkins
- 112 – Mark Joyce
- 112 – Jimmy White
- 107 – Luca Brecel
- 104 – Stuart Bingham
- 104 – Liu Yang
- 103 – Mateusz Baranowski
- 102 – Jamie Clarke
- 100 – Julien Leclercq
- 100 – Mitchell Mann
- 100 – Matthew Stevens
- 100 – Ricky Walden
Notes
- Mark Allen withdrew and so Hossein Vafaei was given a walkover to the last 16.[18]