Monday lunchtime, and pool's busiest fortnight of the autumn is about to start. Mosconi Cup places will be decided in Manila this week, Doha's qualifiers are already under way, and Belfast has another seed out before Ronnie O'Sullivan's first match.
Quezon City — the last chance to make Orlando
The Roobet Philippines Open breaks off tomorrow at Gateway Mall, and the stakes are higher than one trophy. The World Nineball Tour has confirmed it is the qualification cut-off for the Mosconi Cup. When it finishes on Saturday, the top three Americans and the top three Europeans in the rankings are on the plane to Orlando. Two wildcards complete each five-player team.
- Where and when: Caribe Royale Resort, Orlando, 27–30 November
- Captains: Niels Feijen for Europe, Johan Ruijsink for the USA
- The streak: Europe have won the last six and are chasing a seventh in a row
Feijen and Ruijsink have been friends for more than 30 years. "I've known Johan since I was 16," Feijen said when he was named captain. "We're both incredibly competitive, so going up against each other as captains is going to be intense and fun." He also said the level in Europe is rising as the cut-off gets closer: "It's been a crazy year for European players."
David Alcaide defends the title. US Open champion and Reyes Cup MVP Francisco Sánchez Ruiz arrives straight from Makati, and world champion Carlo Biado leads the home challenge. All four tables are live on WNT TV, and in the Philippines it's on One Sports. Sessions run from noon to 9pm Manila time, which is 5am to 2pm UK time.
Doha — the 10-ball qualifiers break off
The Qatar World Cup 10-Ball started this morning at the Ezdan Palace Hotel. The Stage 1 qualifiers run until Thursday: four single-elimination events, races to 7, alternate break. Only 16 players get through to the 128-player main stage, which starts on Saturday 24th. The final is on Thursday 29th.
- Prize fund: $450,000, with $100,000 for the winner and $40,000 for the runner-up (per QNA)
- Field: local reports put it at a record 256 players from 44 countries
- Hosts: five Qataris are already in the main stage, and Doha is in year three of a five-year deal running to 2028
The Qatar News Agency's list of headline names includes Joshua Filler, Fedor Gorst, Albin Ouschan, Jayson Shaw, Sánchez Ruiz and Alcaide. Qualifying runs 10am to 10pm local, which is 8am to 8pm UK time. The tournament even has a mascot: Qabqoub, a blue crab from the Gulf.
Belfast — Jones takes out another seed
The first result of Monday at the Northern Ireland Open (per snooker.org) was another upset. Jamie Jones beat Chris Wakelin 4–1, so Wakelin, seeded 13th, joins Selby, Robertson, Murphy and Carter on the way home. Pang Junxu led Alfie Burden 3–2 at last look.
Today's card (UK times, per BBC Sport):
- 1pm: Lei Peifan v Luca Brecel, Barry Hawkins v Daniel Wells
- 3pm: Ronnie O'Sullivan v Cheung Ka Wai, Kyren Wilson v Ben Mertens, David Gilbert v Oliver Sykes
- 7pm: Judd Trump v Martin O'Donnell, Stuart Bingham v Yao Pengcheng, Jak Jones v Tom Ford
- 9pm: John Higgins v Liam Highfield, Zhang Anda v Liam Pullen
Every match is streamed. Depending on where you are, that means TNT Sports, Eurosport, HBO Max or WST Play.
Sydney — the semi-finals are set
Anupama Ramachandran finished off Cheung Yee Ting 3–1 in the last quarter-final (scores on WPBSA SnookerScores). That sets up tonight's semi-finals at the Australian Women's Open, both at midnight UK time:
- Mink Nutcharut v Anupama Ramachandran
- Reanne Evans v Ng On Yee
The final is at around 4am UK time on Tuesday.
Goyang — the 16-year-old keeps going
Lee Seung-hee, the youngest player on the LPBA, is through to the last 64 at KINTEX again. She beat Ko Eun-kyung 22–20 in 25 innings on Monday (per Billiards & Sports). At the last event she knocked out Lim Jung-sook, Kim Jung-mi and Baek Min-ju on the way to her first professional last 16. Next up is Park Jung-hyun, who finished off Kim Anna 25–12 in 17 innings with a high run of 8.
Lee Mi-rae is looking for a title a week after losing the fourth-event final 4–2 to Jung Su-bin. "This runner-up finish will be a turning point for me," she told the same outlet. She plays Jung Da-hye in the last 64. The PBA men start their last 128 tomorrow.
Elsewhere
- Landywood: the World Billiards Championship started this morning, with Causier chasing a third straight title. Shruthi L defends the women's title on Wednesday against a five-player field. Table one is on the World Billiards YouTube channel. No day-one scores had been published as we went to press.
- Gandia: the EPBF European Championships for seniors and ladies opened today at the Hotel Gandia Palace with straight pool. The ladies' 10-ball starts on Wednesday, and the championships finish on the 27th.
- Heathrow: the WPA Blackball World Championships start tomorrow at the Thistle Hotel.
Feature image: “MC2008 M15 056 - Niels Feijen” by Christian Werner, via Wikimedia Commons, licensed CC BY 3.0.
