| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Scunthorpe (2017–2018) Crucible Theatre, Sheffield (2019–present) |
| Country | England |
| Established | 1991 |
| Organisation(s) | WPBSA (1991, 2010–2016, 2019–present) Snooker Legends (2017–2018) |
| Format | Seniors event |
| Total prize fund | £50,000 [1] |
| Current champion |  Igor Figueiredo (BRA) |
The World Seniors Championship is an invitational seniors snooker tournament which has been played under different formats. As of 2020 the minimum age is 40, but it was 45 in 2011 and 2012.
The event was first held in 1991 with 16 players aged over 40. It took place at the Trentham Gardens in Stoke-on-Trent with the sponsorship of Matchroom. The final was contested between the two highest ranked players, with Cliff Wilson defeating Eddie Charlton 5–4 to become the inaugural champion. [2] The event was revived in 2010, but the field was reduced to 9 players and was played in Bradford. [3] The event was sponsored by Wyldecrest Park Homes, who remained the sponsor until 2012. [2] [4]
In 2011 event the minimum age for competitors was increased from 40 to 45 years, [5] and it was moved to the East of England Showground in Peterborough. [6] All matches were best of 3 frames, a 30-second shot clock was introduced after ten minutes of play, and the miss rule was altered so ball-in-hand was awarded anywhere on table after the third miss. The field was increased to 16 players, with 12 being invited and four coming through qualifying. [5] [7] In 2012 the event was moved to the Mountbatten Centre in Portsmouth. [8] In 2013 the number of qualifying spots was reduced to two, [9] and the event was sponsored by 888casino.com. [10] Stephen Hendry became eligible to compete at tournament, because he turned 45 during the 2013/2014 season. [11] In the 2014/2015 season the event was moved to the second half of the season, and held at Circus Arena in Blackpool. [12] The minimum age for the event returned to 40 years. All former World Seniors Champions and World Snooker Champions, who registered for the event, were seeded through to Blackpool, and the remaining places were filled through a qualifying event. [13]
In 2017 and 2018 it was held for non-tour players aged 40 or over at the beginning of the year. [14] [15]
From 2019 the tournament was opened back up to players on the main tour who were over 40 but ranked outside the top 64 in the world rankings. The tournament was played at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.
For 2024-25, the minimum age for players on the main tour but outside the top 64 was reverted to 45 years. The minimum age for amateurs was retained at 40 years.
| Name | Nationality | Winner | Runner-up | Finals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jimmy White |  England | 4 | 2 | 6 |
| Steve Davis | England | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Darren Morgan |  Wales | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Nigel Bond | England | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Ken Doherty |  Ireland | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Total: 23 (as of 2024 Championship)
James Warren White is an English professional snooker player who has won four seniors World titles. Nicknamed "The Whirlwind" because of his fluid, swift and attacking style of play, White is the 1980 World Amateur Champion, 2009 Six-red World champion, a record four-time World Seniors Champion, 2019 Seniors 6-Red World Champion and 1984 World Doubles champion with Alex Higgins.
The Welsh Open is a professional ranking snooker tournament that has been held annually since 1992. It replaced the Welsh Professional Championship, which ran annually from 1980 to 1991 and was open only to Welsh players. The Welsh Open is now the longest running ranking event after the World Championship and the UK Championship. Since the 2016–17 season, it has been one of four tournaments in the Home Nations Series, alongside the Northern Ireland Open, the Scottish Open, and the English Open. Since 2017, the winner of the event has received the Ray Reardon Trophy, named after the Welsh six-time world champion. Reardon himself presented the newly named trophy to 2017 winner Stuart Bingham.
The Masters is a professional invitational snooker tournament. Held every year since 1975, it is the second-longest-running professional snooker tournament after the World Championship. It is one of the three Triple Crown events, along with the UK Championship and the World Championship. Although not a ranking event, it is regarded as one of the most prestigious tournaments on the World Snooker Tour. The reigning champion is Ronnie O'Sullivan, who won his eighth Masters title in 2024, defeating Ali Carter 10–7.
The 2011 World Snooker Championship was a professional snooker tournament that took place between 16 April and 2 May 2011 at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England. It was the 35th consecutive year that the World Snooker Championship had been held at the Crucible and was the last ranking event of the 2010–11 snooker season. The event was organised by the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association and had a total prize fund of £1,111,000, with £250,000 going to the winner of the event. The tournament was sponsored by sports betting company Betfred.
The 2010–11 snooker season was a series of snooker tournaments played between 20 May 2010 and 2 May 2011. The German Masters was the first ranking tournament in Germany since the 1997/1998 season. The Grand Prix was renamed to World Open, and the format of the tournament was changed with 32 amateurs joining the Main Tour professionals. The Players Tour Championship minor-ranking series was introduced to the calendar. These events were open to amateurs and professionals with a separate Order of Merit. The top 24 in the Order of Merit qualified for the Finals, which was a ranking event. The Premier League was for the first time part of the Main Tour. The Jiangsu Classic was renamed to the Wuxi Classic, and other events were introduced to the calendar: the new cue sport Power Snooker, the World Seniors Championship, and Snooker Shoot Out. The Scottish Professional Championship was held for the first time since 1989.
The 2010 World Seniors Championship was a snooker tournament that took place between 5–7 November 2010 at the Cedar Court Hotel in Bradford, England.
The 2011 Welsh Open was a professional ranking snooker tournament that took place between 14 and 20 February 2011 at the Newport Centre in Newport, Wales. This was the first time that the Welsh Open was sponsored by Wyldecrest Park Homes.
The 2011 World Seniors Championship was a snooker tournament that took place between 5–6 November 2011 at the East of England Showground in Peterborough, England. The age criterion was raised from 40 to 45 compared to 2010.
The 2012 World Snooker Championship was a professional snooker tournament that took place from 21 April to 7 May 2012 at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England. It was the 36th consecutive year that the World Snooker Championship had been held at the Crucible and the last ranking event of the 2011–12 snooker season. The event was broadcast in the United Kingdom by the BBC, and in Europe by Eurosport.
The 2012–13 snooker season was a series of snooker tournaments played between 16 May 2012 and 6 May 2013. The season featured two new ranking events: the Wuxi Classic and the International Championship. The tour had a record five ranking events in China, and three new PTC events in Asia. The tour also visited Bulgaria for the first time in its history, and returned to Poland, Belgium and Australia. Before the start of the season World Snooker requested every player to sign a players contract, that would allow players to choose which events they want to enter – no player was forced to play in any event. At the end of the season Mark Selby was named the World Snooker Player of the Year, the Snooker Writers' Player of the Year and the Fans' Player of the Year and Ian Burns the Rookie of the Year. Ronnie O'Sullivan received the "Performance of the Year" for winning his fifth World title after playing just one competitive match during the season. Jimmy Robertson's 57 break in just 130 seconds at the Snooker Shoot Out received the "Magic Moment of the Year" award. Terry Griffiths, Joe Johnson, Peter Ebdon, Ken Doherty, Graeme Dott, Shaun Murphy and Neil Robertson were inducted into the Hall of Fame.
The 2012 World Seniors Championship was a professional non-ranking snooker tournament that took place between 27 and 28 October 2012 at the Mountbatten Centre in Portsmouth, England.
The 2013–14 snooker season was a series of snooker tournaments played between 6 June 2013 and 5 May 2014. From this season every qualifying match was held open to the public at various venues in the United Kingdom, replacing the World Snooker Academy in Sheffield. The number of wild-card players at the Chinese ranking events, except the Shanghai Masters, was reduced from eight to four and former Main Tour players were excluded. A professional player could not be selected for more than one wild-card match during the season.
The 2014–15 snooker season was a series of snooker tournaments played between 8 May 2014 and 4 May 2015. The Riga Open was the first professional snooker tournament held in Latvia. The season also saw the first professional tournament in Portugal as the Lisbon Open took place.
The 2013 World Seniors Championship was a snooker tournament that took place between 19 and 20 October 2013 at the Mountbatten Centre in Portsmouth, England.
The Players Championship is a professional ranking snooker tournament. Held as the Players Tour Championship Finals from 2011 to 2016, it was rebranded as the standalone Players Championship in 2017. One of three events in the Players Series, it features the top 16 players on the one-year ranking list. Mark Allen is the reigning champion, having won the 2024 event.
The 2014 Players Tour Championship Grand Final was a professional ranking snooker tournament that took place between 25 and 29 March 2014 at the Guild Hall in Preston, England. It was the tenth ranking event of the 2013/2014 season.
The 2015 World Seniors Championship was a snooker tournament that took place between 2–3 March 2015 at the Circus Arena in Blackpool, England.
The 2016–17 snooker season was a series of professional snooker tournaments played between 5 May 2016 and 1 May 2017.
The 2017–18 snooker season was a series of professional snooker tournaments played between 4 May 2017 and 7 May 2018. The season began with the pro–am Vienna Snooker Open in May 2017 and ended with the 2018 World Snooker Championship in April the following year. Ronnie O'Sullivan earned a joint-record five ranking titles in the season. He joined Stephen Hendry (1990/1991), Ding Junhui (2013/2014), and Mark Selby (2016/2017) in winning five ranking titles in the same season.
The 2019 UK Seniors Championship was a snooker tournament, that took place at the Bonus Arena in Kingston upon Hull, England, from 24 to 25 October 2019. It was the second event of the 2019–20 World Seniors Tour, following the 2019 and preceding the 2020 editions of the World Seniors Championship. The event featured a total prize fund of £24,500 with the winner receiving £10,000.
Active professional snooker tournaments | |
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| Ranking events |
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| Non-ranking events | |
| Seniors events |
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| Tours and series | |
| Related lists | |
