Overview
The tournament originated as the non-ranking 1981 International Open, staged at the Assembly Rooms in Derby, England. Steve Davis won the event, defeating Dennis Taylor 9–0 in the final. The tournament became a ranking event the following year, the first event after the World Snooker Championship to gain ranking status. Staged annually under various names (with the exception of the three years from 1990 to 1992, when it was not held), the tournament moved to Scotland in 1997 and was first branded as the Scottish Open in 1998. [1] It was discontinued after the 2004 edition, apart from one staging in 2012 as a minor-ranking tournament. [2] The tournament was restored to the calendar as a full ranking event in 2016 as part of the newly created Home Nations Series. [3] Marco Fu won the 2016 edition, recovering from 1–4 behind to beat John Higgins 9–4 in the final; he was presented with the newly named Stephen Hendry Trophy by the seven-time World Champion personally. [4]
The 2025 edition of the tournament—the 10th consecutive staging since its 2016 revival—will take place from 15 to 21 December at the Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh, Scotland. [5] Qualifying took place from 14 to 17 October at the Robin Park Leisure Centre in Wigan, England. [6] It will be the 11th ranking event of the 2025–26 snooker season, following the 2025 Snooker Shoot Out and preceding the 2026 German Masters. [7] It will also be the third of four tournaments in the season's Home Nations Series, following the 2025 English Open and the 2025 Northern Ireland Open and preceding the 2026 Welsh Open. [8] Lei Peifan will be the defending champion, having defeated Wu Yize 9–5 in the 2024 final to win his maiden ranking title. [9]
The tournament uses a tiered format first implemented for the Home Nations Series in the 2024–25 snooker season. In the first qualifying round, players seeded 65–96 face those seeded 97 and under, including selected amateurs. In the second qualifying round, the 32 winners from the first qualifying round face players seeded 33–64. At the last-64 stage, the 32 winners from the second qualifying round face the top 32 seeds. [10] All matches will be played as best of seven frames until the quarter‑finals, which will be the best of nine. The semi‑finals will be the best of 11, and the final will be a best‑of‑17 frame match played over two sessions .
Broadcasters
The qualifying rounds were broadcast by Discovery+ in the UK, Germany, Austria, and Italy; by HBO Max in other European territories; by Huya Live, Migu [ zh ], the CBSA‑WPBSA Academy WeChat Channel and the CBSA‑WPBSA Academy Douyin in China; and by WST Play in all other territories. [11]
Prize fund
The prize fund for the tournament is detailed below. [12] In addition, the player who wins the most cumulative prize money across the season's four Home Nations Series events will receive a bonus of £150,000. [13]
- Winner: £100,000
- Runner-up: £45,000
- Semi-final: £21,000
- Quarter-final: £13,200
- Last 16: £9,000
- Last 32: £5,400
- Last 64: £3,600
- Last 96: £1,000
- Highest break: £5,000
Summary
First qualifying round
Julien Leclercq made breaks of 104, 122, 74, and 68 as he whitewashed amateur player Umut Dikme in a match that lasted only 59 minutes. Liam Highfield also whitewashed 14-year-old Michał Szubarczyk, making a century break of 131 and three other half-centuries in the match. Sam Craigie, who had missed the previous season due to injury, made a century of 136 during his 4–1 win over Florian Nüßle. Two female players were whitewashed in the first qualifying round as Haydon Pinhey beat Mink Nutcharut, the number one ranked player on the women's tour, and Jiang Jun beat Reanne Evans, a 12-time World Women's Champion. [14] However, Bai Yulu, the reigning World Women's Champion, won her third professional match of the season as she whitewashed Kreishh Gurbaxani. Liam Pullen, who had recently reached his first ranking quarter-final at the 2025 Xi'an Grand Prix, progressed with a 4–1 win over Farakh Ajaib, while Alexander Ursenbacher defeated Bulcsú Révész by the same score. [15]
Second qualifying round
Anthony McGill, recently a finalist at the 2025 British Open, made breaks of 85, 54, 89, and 79 during his 4–1 win over Liam Davies. Craigie beat Jamie Jones by the same score, and Ben Mertens defeated Leclercq 4–2. Ben Woollaston made a 91 break in the deciding frame to beat Highfield, and Amir Sarkhosh made three half-century breaks as he defeated Jordan Brown 4–1. [16] Pullen also made three half-century breaks as he whitewashed Daniel Wells, a recent semi-finalist at the 2025 Xi'an Grand Prix. Thepchaiya Un-Nooh made a highest break of 144 as he defeated Chatchapong Nasa 4–1, averaging 17.1 seconds per shot in the match. Robbie Williams whitewashed Bai, and Antoni Kowalski defeated David Lilley 4–2. [17] Robert Milkins lost the first three frames against Iulian Boiko but made breaks of 66, 59, and 104 as he won four frames in a row for a 4–3 victory. [18] The 2023 World Champion Luca Brecel failed to appear for his qualifying match, and his opponent Steven Hallworth received a walkover. [19]
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Lei Peifan (CHN)
