Northern Ireland Open (snooker)

Last updated

Northern Ireland Open
BetVictor Northern Ireland Open Logo.png
Tournament information
Venue Waterfront Hall
Location Belfast
Country Northern Ireland
Established2016
Organisation(s) World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association
Format Ranking event
Total prize fund £555,400
Recent edition 2024
Current championFlag of England.svg  Kyren Wilson  (ENG)

The Northern Ireland Open is a professional ranking snooker tournament held in Belfast as part of the four-event Home Nations Series. The players compete for the Alex Higgins Trophy, named for the late two-time world champion who was born and raised in Belfast. The inaugural edition of the tournament was held in 2016 and was won by Mark King.

Contents

The reigning champion is Kyren Wilson.

History

On 29 April 2015 World Snooker chairman Barry Hearn announced that the "Northern Ireland Open" at a Belfast venue would be added to the main tour in 2016, [1] as part of a new Home Nations Series with the existing Welsh Open and Scottish Open, and the new English Open tournaments. [2] [3]

In 2017, Yan Bingtao became the youngest player to reach a ranking final. Yan came close to breaking Ronnie O'Sullivan's record of being the youngest player to win a ranking event, which had stood for 24 years, but he narrowly lost to Mark Williams 8–9 after having led 8–7. This final also featured one of the biggest age gaps between finalists as Williams was almost 25 years older than Yan. Additionally, Yan also became the first player born in the 2000s to reach the final of a ranking tournament.

In 2018, 2019 and 2020, Judd Trump defeated Ronnie O'Sullivan 9–7 in each final. The 2020 tournament was staged outside Northern Ireland, at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes, because of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom on the 2020–21 snooker season. [4]

In 2021, Mark Allen became the first Northern Irish player to win the event, knocking out defending champion Judd Trump in the quarter-finals and beating John Higgins 9–8 in the final, after trailing 6–8. [5] In 2022, Allen successfully defended the title, coming from 1–4 down to beat Zhou Yuelong 9–4. [6] [7]

In 2023, Judd Trump regained the title for a record-extending fourth time, beating Chris Wakelin 9–3 in the final. [8] Trump reached the final again in 2024 but lost 3–9 to reigning World Champion Kyren Wilson who became the first right-handed player to win the event. [9] [10]

Winners

YearWinnerRunner-upFinal scoreVenueCitySeason
2016 [11] Flag of England.svg  Mark King  (ENG)Flag of England.svg  Barry Hawkins  (ENG)9–8 Titanic Exhibition Centre Belfast, Northern Ireland 2016/17
2017 [12] Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Mark Williams  (WAL)Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  Yan Bingtao  (CHN)9–8 Waterfront Hall 2017/18
2018 [13] Flag of England.svg  Judd Trump  (ENG)Flag of England.svg  Ronnie O'Sullivan  (ENG)9–7 2018/19
2019 [14] Flag of England.svg  Judd Trump  (ENG)Flag of England.svg  Ronnie O'Sullivan  (ENG)9–7 2019/20
2020 [15] Flag of England.svg  Judd Trump  (ENG)Flag of England.svg  Ronnie O'Sullivan  (ENG)9–7 Marshall Arena Milton Keynes, England 2020/21
2021 [16] Ulster Banner.svg  Mark Allen  (NIR)Flag of Scotland.svg  John Higgins  (SCO)9–8 Waterfront Hall Belfast, Northern Ireland 2021/22
2022 [17] Ulster Banner.svg  Mark Allen  (NIR)Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  Zhou Yuelong  (CHN)9–4 2022/23
2023 [18] Flag of England.svg  Judd Trump  (ENG)Flag of England.svg  Chris Wakelin  (ENG)9–3 2023/24
2024 [19] Flag of England.svg  Kyren Wilson  (ENG)Flag of England.svg  Judd Trump  (ENG)9–3 2024/25

See also

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References

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