On February 21, 2022, Beijing time, the World Snooker European Masters will officially kick off. Due to the ongoing ravages of the coronavirus, the European Masters will once again be held in Milton Keynes. The event was originally held in Fuerte, Germany, but due to the rising incidence of the new crown virus, the World Snooker Tour announced that it would be relocated to the Marshall Stadium. Selby, the defending champion, was better than Martin Gould in last year's breathtaking final, winning the spectacular final. The qualifying round for the event was completed last October, although the top four were postponed.
Introduction to the Format and Timing of the European Masters
The European Masters will take place between 21 February and 27 February, with the final winner receiving a prize of £80,000. From the start of the first round to the quarter-finals, the European Masters have a 9-set, 5-win format. Once in the semi-finals, the tournament will be played in a 6-win format of 11 innings. After reaching the final, the tournament will follow a 9-win format of 17 innings. On February 21, the top four matches, on February 22, the top 64 began to compete to win the top 32, and on February 27, the final will officially open. And this race is very important for world number one Selby and world number three Trump, because it will mean whether they qualify for the top eight locked tour tournaments of the season.
European Masters prize money distribution and tournament history
The prize pool for the 2022 UEFA Masters totals £407,000, with £3,000 for reaching the round of 64 and £4,000 for the round of 32. You can get £6,000 in the round of 16, £11,000 in the quarterfinals, and £17,500 in the final four. You get £35,000 for the runner-up, and £80,000 for the winner. The winner of the highest single score of this tournament will receive a prize of £5,000 exclusively. The European Masters have existed in the form of a ranking tournament since 2016, but its earliest history dates back to the inaugural European Open won by John Parrott in 1989. Previously also known as the Irish Open and malta cups. Hendry is a four-time champion, Parrott is a three-time champion, O'Sullivan, Higgins and Mark Williams have won one each, and Trump and Murphy have won twice.
Detailed list of European Masters matches at a glance
At this Year's European Masters, Selby, O'Sullivan, Trump and Robertson will be postponed to qualify at the beginning of the tournament. Details of the matchup after reaching the Round of 32 are as follows: Jordan Brown vs Selby or Serte, Xiao Guodong vs Hicks. Zhou Yuelong vs Gao Yang, Dot vs Mark Davis. Brechel vs Gary Wilson, Page vs Sonsava. O'Neill vs Ryan Day, Wahdi vs Carty, Karen Wilson vs Jamie Jones. Aaron Hill vs Fan Zhengyi, Yan Bingtao vs Li Xing. Joe Perry vs Cao Yupeng, Hayfield vs Gilbert. Hawkins vs Hamilton, Xu Si vs Pang Junxu. Alfie Burton vs Neil Robertson or Ray Peifan, O'Sullivan or Bond vs Anda Zhang, Yize Wu vs O'Brien. Lisovsky vs Hugel, Carter vs Maddox. Heathcote vs Martin Gould, Zhang Health vs Patrick. Burns vs Tom Ford, Clark vs Higgins. Murphy vs Sancham, Liang Wenbo vs Duane Jones. Sijun Yuan vs Carrington, Wharton vs Stevens. Tatchaia vs Mitchell Mann, Wafi vs McGill. Higginson vs. Maflin, Jack Jones vs Trump or Michael George. This is the entire list of matches at this Year's European Masters.