The 2026 German Masters (officially the 2026 Machineseeker German Masters)[1] is a professional snooker tournament that is taking place from 26 January to 1 February 2026 at the Tempodrom in Berlin, Germany. Qualifying took place from 5 to 8 January at the Ponds Forge International Sports Centre in Sheffield, England. The 16th consecutive edition of the German Masters since it was revived in 2011, it is the 12th ranking event of the 2025–26 snooker season, following the 2025 Scottish Open and preceding the 2026 World Grand Prix. The tournament is being broadcast by TNT Sports in the United Kingdom and Ireland, by Eurosport in mainland Europe, by local channels in China and elsewhere in Asia, and by WST Play in all other territories. The winner will receive £100,000 from a total prize fund of £550,400.
Zhang Anda made the fifth maximum break of his career during his last-32 match against Hawkins. It was the record-extending 22nd maximum of the season and the fourth maximum in the history of the tournament.
Overview
The tournament originated as the German Open, a ranking event that was held from 1995 to 1997. The inaugural German Open champion was John Higgins, who defeated Ken Doherty 9–3 in the 1995 final.[2] After being staged once in 1998 as the non-ranking German Masters, the tournament dropped off the calendar; it was restored in 2011 as the ranking German Masters and has taken place annually since that time.[3][4] The first winner of the tournament after its revival was Mark Williams, who defeated Mark Selby 9–7 in the 2011 final.[5]
A total of 128 players entered the tournament. Qualifying took place over three rounds, with higher ranked players given byes to later rounds. In qualifying round one, players seeded 65–96 faced those seeded 97–128. In qualifying round two, the 32 first-round winners played those seeded 33–64. In qualifying round three, the 32 second-round winners played the top 32 seeds. The third-round qualifying matches featuring players seeded 17–32 were played in Sheffield. The third-round qualifying matches featuring the top 16 seeds were held over and played at the main venue in Berlin.[10][11]
All matches up to and including the quarter‑finals are played as best of nine frames . The semi‑finals will be the best of 11, and the final will be a best‑of‑19 frame match played over two sessions .[12]
Broadcasters
The qualifying matches played in Sheffield were broadcast in the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, and Austria by Discovery+ and in other European territories by HBO Max. They were broadcast in mainland China by the CBSA‑WPBSA Academy WeChat Channel, the CBSA‑WPBSA Academy Douyin, Huya Live, and Migu[zh]. In all other territories (including Ireland) they were streamed by WST Play.[13]
The matches played at the main venue in Berlin are being broadcast in the UK and Ireland by TNT Sports and Discovery+. They are being broadcast in mainland Europe by Eurosport, with streaming coverage by Discovery+ in Germany, Italy, and Austria and by HBO Max in other European territories. They are being broadcast in mainland China by the same broadcasters as the Sheffield qualifying matches, in Hong Kong by Now TV, in Malaysia and Brunei by Astro SuperSport, in Thailand by TrueSports, in Taiwan by Sportcast, and in the Philippines by TAP Sports. In territories where no other coverage is available, the main stage is streamed by WST Play.[14]
Prize fund
The breakdown of prize money for the event is shown below:[15]
In the third qualifying round, two-time champion Ali Carter advanced to the last 32, making breaks of 104 and 71 as he beat Ricky Walden 5–2. David Gilbert produced breaks of 107 and 61 in the last two frames to defeat Brecel 5–4, while Jack Lisowski made a highest break of 96 as he beat Lan Yuhao 5–1. Stuart Bingham made a century of 124 as he whitewashed Doherty, while Elliot Slessor made a highest break of 104 as he whitewashed Liam Highfield. Leclercq advanced with a 5–3 victory over Yuan Sijun, and Gao also advanced after beating Stephen Maguire in a deciding frame.[19] Fu failed to reach the main stage, losing 2–5 to Jak Jones.[20]
Main stage (Berlin)
Held-over qualifiers
Ronnie O'Sullivan(pictured at the 2015 event) played in the tournament for the first time in nine years. He won his held-over qualifier but lost in the last 32 to Ali Carter.
The defending champion and recent 2026 Masters winner Kyren Wilson made breaks of 75, 63, 119, and 65 as he defeated Robert Milkins 5–1. Mark Williams beat Sanderson Lam by the same score, and commented afterward that he was undecided about whether to proceed with laser eye surgery. "I'm postponed until March at the moment," he commented. "They will probably ring me back then and I'll postpone again until after the [ 2026 World Championship]. I just don't know what to do. It was alright in patches tonight. I potted some good long ones and had a couple of breaks in there. I just need to get a few more wins." Ishpreet Singh Chadha recovered from 1–3 behind to defeat Chris Wakelin in a deciding frame , while Shaun Murphy beat Zak Surety 5–2, and Mark Allen advanced with a 5–3 win over Oliver Lines.[21] The previous year's runner-up Barry Hawkins made back-to-back centuries of 132 and 105 in his 5–2 victory over Mark Davis.[22]
Ronnie O'Sullivan featured in the tournament for the first time in nine years, having last appeared at the 2017 edition. He made breaks of 63, 55, and 93 as he defeated the world number 54 Long Zehuang 5–1. "I felt the tables were unbelievably fast," commented O'Sullivan, who had prepared for the event in Ireland. "I just couldn't control the ball. I haven't played on tournament tables that much. You have to hit [shots] differently, you have to strike them more pure, more confidently." Having recently turned 50, he added that his remaining goal in his professional career was to win an eighth world title.[23]Judd Trump, the world number one, made a highest break of 73 as he recorded a whitewash victory over Cheung Ka Wai. "A lot of times this season I feel like I've been the best player or one of the best going into the semi-finals and the final," said Trump, who had not won a title in over a year. "I've just not got over the line. I've given myself as many opportunities as I do in other seasons, I just haven't been as clinical under the utmost pressure." Zhao Xintong, the reigning World Champion, attempted a maximum break in the last frame of his whitewash victory over Jiang Jun, but he missed the penultimate red, ending the break on 104. John Higgins, recently runner-up at the 2026 Masters, advanced with a 5–1 victory over Jamie Jones.[24]Scott Donaldson won five consecutive frames to defeat the 15th seed Gary Wilson by the same score.[25]
Kyren Wilson lost the first frame against McGill but then won five consecutive frames with breaks of 65, 99, 52, 56, and 106 for a 5–1 victory.[26] Murphy beat Leclercq by the same score, making breaks of 87, 117, 73, 55, and 103, while Leclercq made a century of 124 in frame three.[27] Chadha, the number one ranked player in India, defeated Slessor 5–3.[24]Zhang Anda made the fifth maximum break of his career in the first frame of his match against Hawkins. It was the record-extending 22nd maximum of the season, the 239th in professional snooker history, and the fourth in the history of the German Masters.[28] Zhang went on to win the match 5–2. "Making a maximum at the German Masters is really special, and doing it in the opening frame makes it even better," Zhang said afterwards. "To be honest, I wasn’t really thinking about a maximum in the early part of the break. It only came into my mind later on. I think the crowd already realized what I was trying to do. The atmosphere was fantastic. I really enjoyed that moment." Neil Robertson made three centuries of 108, 100, and 106 as he defeated Pang Junxu, also by a 5–2 scoreline.[29]Jimmy Robertson defeated Williams 5–3.[30]
Two-time German Masters champion Carter made a century of 128 in the opening frame against O'Sullivan and went on to take a 3–0 lead. O'Sullivan tied the scores at 3–3, but Carter won the last two frames for a 5–3 victory.[31] It was only the second time Carter had beaten O'Sullivan in their 22 professional meetings. Speaking afterwards about the longstanding rivalry between the two players, Carter said: "We are fine now, there is no animosity at all. It is all heat of the moment stuff between two sportsmen and he is the best snooker player of all time. It is great to be on the table with him and competing. Getting the odd win over him is a feather in my cap." Trump produced three century breaks of 102, 102, and 127 as he beat Ryan Day 5–0, his second consecutive whitewash victory in the tournament. Day made a highest break of just 14 in the match. Higgins defeated Zhou Yuelong 5–3, Bingham beat Donaldson 5–2, and Xiao Guodong advanced with a 5–1 win over Lisowski. Si Jiahui defeated Gilbert in a deciding frame. Tom Ford came from 1–3 down against Zhao to win four consecutive frames, defeating the World Champion 5–3.[29][32]Mark Selby lost the first three frames to Xu Si but recovered to win four in a row for a 4–3 lead. However, Xu took the last two frames for a 5–4 victory.[33]
Murphy produced breaks including 125, 74, 75, and 62 as he whitewashed Allen, commenting afterwards that: "5–0 wins over Mark Allen don't come along every day. It was a really good match, certainly from my point of view. I thought the conditions caught us both out. It was the quickest table I've ever played on in my life. Controlling the cue ball isn't always easy. Mark missed a few shots and that gave me the chance to get used to the speed quicker." Murphy also commented on his recent first-round defeat to Wu Yize as the defending champion at the 2026 Masters, saying: "I was very disappointed after the Masters, not just because of the loss but how I played. It was totally inexplicable. My preparation was second to none and I worked very hard on my game. I've come here this week feeling the same as I did for [the Masters] but thankfully I've strung a few wins together."[34]
The defending champion Wilson lost the first two frames against Zhang but then won five in a row for a 5–2 victory. Wilson, who was also attempting to improve his standing on the one-year ranking list in hopes of defending his title at the 2026 Players Championship, commented: "I'm definitely chasing the points. That is for sure. There is a little bit of pressure on me this week. I'm coping well so far." Neil Robertson and Carter advanced with whitewash victories over Chadha and Xu respectively. Jimmy Robertson defeated Jak Jones, Bingham beat Ford, and Trump defeated Si, all by 5–2 scorelines. Xiao and Higgins played a lengthy evening match that finished after midnight, with Xiao eventually securing a 5–3 win.[34]
Quarter-finals
Murphy made breaks of 78, 101, 68, and 58 as he won the first four frames against Wilson, the defending champion. Wilson produced a total clearance of 139 to take frame five, but Murphy won frame six on the colours to secure a 5–1 victory. "These results have been totally unexpected," Murphy said afterwards. "Whether I win 5–4 on the black or 5–0, it doesn't matter to me. I'm just happy to still be in this great tournament. It is one of the few events which I haven't won during my career. It would mean a lot to go on and lift the trophy on Sunday night. I've come here on a bit of a mission." Carter, winner in 2013 and 2023 and runner-up in 2017, made a highest break of 137 as he secured a 5–1 victory over Bingham.[35]
Main draw
The results of the main draw are shown below. Numbers in parentheses after the players' names denote the top 32 seeded players. Players in bold denote match winners.[12][36]
The results of the qualifying rounds are shown below. Numbers in parentheses after the players' names denote the players' seeding, an "a" indicates amateur players who were not on the main World Snooker Tour, and players in bold denote match winners.[7][37][36]
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Zhang Anda (CHN) (147)
