Jump to content

2026 Northern Ireland Open

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2026 BetVictor Northern Ireland Open
Part of the Home Nations Series
Tournament information
Dates18–25 October 2026 (2026-10-18 – 2026-10-25)
VenueWaterfront Hall
CityBelfast
CountryNorthern Ireland
OrganisationWorld Snooker Tour
FormatRanking event
Total prize fund£550,400
Winner's share£100,000
Final
Champion 
Runner-up 
Score–
← 2025

The 2026 Northern Ireland Open (officially the 2026 BetVictor Northern Ireland Open) is a professional snooker tournament that is taking place from 18 to 25 October 2026 at the Waterfront Hall in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Qualifying took place from 13 to 16 September at the Leicester Arena in Leicester, England. The 11th consecutive edition of the tournament since it was first staged in 2016, it is the seventh ranking event of the 2026–27 snooker season, following the 2026 Shenzhen Open and preceding the 2026 International Championship. It is the second of four tournaments in the season's Home Nations Series, following the 2026 English Open and preceding the 2026 Scottish Open and the 2027 Welsh Open.

Jack Lisowski was the defending champion, having defeated Judd Trump 9–8 in the 2025 final, but he was beaten by Anthony McGill in the last 32.

Overview

[edit]
The tournament is being held at the Waterfront Hall in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

The Northern Ireland Open was first staged in 2016 at the Titanic Exhibition Centre in Belfast, Northern Ireland.[1] The inaugural winner was Mark King, who defeated Barry Hawkins 9–8 in the final to win his maiden ranking title.[2] The tournament winner receives the Alex Higgins Trophy, named in honour of the two-time World Champion, who died in 2010.[3] At the inaugural edition of the tournament, the trophy was presented by Higgins's daughter Lauren.[2]

The 2026 edition of the tournament—the 11th consecutive staging of the event—is taking place from 18 to 25 October at the Waterfront Hall in Belfast.[4] Qualifying took place from 13 to 16 September at the Leicester Arena in Leicester, England.[5] Sponsored by BetVictor,[6] it is the seventh ranking event of the 2026–27 snooker season, following the 2026 Shenzhen Open and preceding the 2026 UK Championship.[7] It is also the second of four tournaments in the season's Home Nations Series, following the 2026 English Open and preceding the 2026 Scottish Open and the 2027 Welsh Open.[8] Jack Lisowski was the defending champion, having defeated Judd Trump 9–8 in the 2025 final,[9][10] but Anthony McGill beat him 4–1 in the last 32.[11]

Format

[edit]

The tournament uses a tiered format first implemented for the Home Nations Series in the 2024–25 snooker season. In round one, players seeded 65–96 faced those seeded 97 and below, including selected amateurs. In round two, the winners from round one faced players seeded 33–64. The winners from round two face the top 32 seeds.[12] All matches are played as the best of 7 frames until the quarter‑finals, which are the best of 11. The semi‑finals are the best of 11, and the final is a best‑of‑17-frame match played over two sessions.[13][14]

Prize fund

[edit]

The prize fund for the tournament is detailed below.[15]

  • 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
  • Total: £550,400

Summary

[edit]

Qualifying

[edit]

Liam Pullen whitewashed Paul Norris, Yao Pengcheng beat Bai Yulu 4–1, Oliver Sykes whitewashed Alexander Ursenbacher, and Cheung Ka Wai defeated Artemijs Žižins 4–3.[16]

Aaron Hill defeated Ross Muir 4–3, Xu Si beat Jimmy White 4–2, Liam Davies beat Fan Zhengyi 4–1, Ben Mertens whitewashed Iulian Boiko, Mateusz Baranowski beat Yuan Sijun 4–1, and Wang Xinbo beat David Lilley, also by 4–1.[17]

Sykes defeated Zak Surety 4–3, Jordan Brown whitewashed Julien Leclercq, Luca Brecel beat Mitchell Mann 4–1, Yao whitewashed Stan Moody, Liam Highfield beat Jiang Jun, 4–1, Pullen whitewashed Ben Woollaston, and Cheung defeated Oliver Lines 4–3.[18]

Last 64

[edit]

Wu Yize and He Guoqiang withdrew and so Scott Donaldson and Elliot Slessor were given walkovers to the last 32, respectively.[19]

Jordan Brown beat Mark Allen 4–2.[20] It was Allen's first appearance in the 2026–27 season, and he subsequently said that he was considering retirement.[21][22]

Last 32

[edit]

Anthony McGill beat the defending champion Jack Lisowski 4–1.[11]

Quarter-finals

[edit]

Mark Williams recovered from 2–4 behind to beat David Gilbert 6–4, making three century breaks of 104, 115 and 101 in the last four frames.[23][24]

Semi-finals

[edit]

Kyren Wilson recovered from 3–5 behind to defeat Sam Craigie 6–5.[25]

Main draw

[edit]

The draw for the tournament is shown below. Numbers in parentheses after the players' names denote the players' seeding, and players in bold denote match winners.[13][26]

Top half

[edit]
Last 64
Best of 7 frames		Last 32
Best of 7 frames		Last 16
Best of 7 frames		Quarter-finals
Best of 11 frames		Semi-finals
Best of 11 frames
 Jack Lisowski (ENG) (1) 4
 Huang Jiahao (CHN) (110) 1
England Jack Lisowski (1) 1
Scotland Anthony McGill (38) 4
 Stephen Maguire (SCO) (31) 1
 Anthony McGill (SCO) (38) 4
Scotland Anthony McGill (38) 4
Poland Mateusz Baranowski (84) 1
 Si Jiahui (CHN) (16) 2
 Wang Xinbo (CHN) (104) 4
China Wang Xinbo (104) 3
Poland Mateusz Baranowski (84) 4
 Gary Wilson (ENG) (24) 3
 Mateusz Baranowski (POL) (84) 4
Scotland Anthony McGill (38) 1
England Kyren Wilson (9) 6
 Thepchaiya Un-Nooh (THA) (20) 4
 Aaron Hill (IRL) (37) 2
Thailand Thepchaiya Un-Nooh (20) 2
England Kyren Wilson (9) 4
 Kyren Wilson (ENG) (9) 4
 Ben Mertens (BEL) (59) 0
England Kyren Wilson (9) 4
China Pang Junxu (26) 3
 Pang Junxu (CHN) (26) 4
 Alfie Burden (ENG) (98) 2
China Pang Junxu (26) 4
Wales Liam Davies (89) 3
 Shaun Murphy (ENG) (8) 2
 Liam Davies (WAL) (89) 4
England Kyren Wilson (9) 6
England Sam Craigie (70) 5
 Mark Selby (ENG) (5) 2
 Louis Heathcote (ENG) (66) 4
England Louis Heathcote (66) 2
England Matthew Selt (46) 4
 Hossein Vafaei (IRN) (27) 3
 Matthew Selt (ENG) (46) 4
England Matthew Selt (46) 2
England Sam Craigie (70) 4
 Xiao Guodong (CHN) (12) 3
 Sam Craigie (ENG) (70) 4
England Sam Craigie (70) 4
China Xu Si (36) 3
 Ali Carter (ENG) (23) 0
 Xu Si (CHN) (36) 4
England Sam Craigie (70) 6
England Elliot Slessor (22) 2
 Elliot Slessor (ENG) (22) w/o
 He Guoqiang (CHN) (43)[a] w/d
England Elliot Slessor (22) 4
Wales Jamie Jones (60) 1
 Chris Wakelin (ENG) (13) 1
 Jamie Jones (WAL) (60) 4
England Elliot Slessor (22) 4
England Ricky Walden (56) 1
 Joe O'Connor (ENG) (29) 4
 Matthew Stevens (WAL) (48) 1
England Joe O'Connor (29) 3
England Ricky Walden (56) 4
 Neil Robertson (AUS) (4) 1
 Ricky Walden (ENG) (56) 4
Note: w/d=withdrawn; w/o=walkover

Bottom half

[edit]
Last 64
Best of 7 frames		Last 32
Best of 7 frames		Last 16
Best of 7 frames		Quarter-finals
Best of 11 frames		Semi-finals
Best of 11 frames
 Zhao Xintong (CHN) (3) 2
 Gao Yang (CHN) (73) 4
China Gao Yang (73) 3
England David Gilbert (32) 4
 David Gilbert (ENG) (32) 4
 Oliver Sykes (ENG) (100) 1
England David Gilbert (32) 4
Hong Kong Cheung Ka Wai (106) 2
 Ronnie O'Sullivan (ENG) (15) 3
 Cheung Ka Wai (HKG) (106) 4
Hong Kong Cheung Ka Wai (106) 4
England Stuart Bingham (19) 0
 Stuart Bingham (ENG) (19) 4
 Yao Pengcheng (CHN) (74) 2
England David Gilbert (32) 4
Wales Mark Williams (10) 6
 Zhang Anda (CHN) (18) 4
 Liam Pullen (ENG) (65) 2
China Zhang Anda (18) 2
Wales Mark Williams (10) 4
 Mark Williams (WAL) (10) 4
 Robbie Williams (ENG) (53) 2
Wales Mark Williams (10) 4
England Martin O'Donnell (55) 0
 Lei Peifan (CHN) (25) 1
 Luca Brecel (BEL) (39) 4
Belgium Luca Brecel (39) 2
England Martin O'Donnell (55) 4
 Judd Trump (ENG) (6) 3
 Martin O'Donnell (ENG) (55) 4
Wales Mark Williams (10)
Wales Jak Jones (30)
 John Higgins (SCO) (7) 4
 Liam Highfield (ENG) (68) 1
Scotland John Higgins (7) 2
Wales Jak Jones (30) 4
 Jak Jones (WAL) (30) 4
 Tom Ford (ENG) (34) 1
Wales Jak Jones (30) 4
Wales Daniel Wells (50) 2
 Barry Hawkins (ENG) (11) 2
 Daniel Wells (WAL) (50) 4
Wales Daniel Wells (50) 4
Wales Ryan Day (41) 3
 Chang Bingyu (CHN) (21) 3
 Ryan Day (WAL) (41) 4
Wales Jak Jones (30) 6
Scotland Scott Donaldson (64) 5
 Zhou Yuelong (CHN) (17) 1
 Michael Holt (ENG) (47) 4
England Michael Holt (47) 3
Northern Ireland Jordan Brown (63) 4
 Mark Allen (NIR) (14) 2
 Jordan Brown (NIR) (63) 4
Northern Ireland Jordan Brown (63) 2
Scotland Scott Donaldson (64) 4
 Noppon Saengkham (THA) (28) 4
 T.Tirapongpaiboon (THA) (108) 3
Thailand Noppon Saengkham (28) 1
Scotland Scott Donaldson (64) 4
 Wu Yize (CHN) (2)[b] w/d
 Scott Donaldson (SCO) (64) w/o
Note: w/d=withdrawn; w/o=walkover

Final: frame scores

[edit]
Final: Best of 17 frames. Referee:
Waterfront Hall, Belfast, Northern Ireland, 25 October 2026
Kyren Wilson (9)
 England		 –
Afternoon:
Evening:
Highest break
Century breaks

Qualifying rounds

[edit]

The results of the qualifying matches 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.[27]

Round 1 (Last 128)
Best of 7 frames		Round 2 (Last 96)
Best of 7 frames
 Reanne Evans (ENG) (82)1 Liu Hongyu (CHN) (54)2
 Huang Jiahao (CHN) (110)4 Huang Jiahao (CHN) (110)4
 Connor Benzey (ENG) (91)1 Anthony McGill (SCO) (38)4
 Liu Yang (CHN) (118)4 Liu Yang (CHN) (118)1
 Liam Graham (SCO) (86)1 David Lilley (ENG) (58)1
 Wang Xinbo (CHN) (104)4 Wang Xinbo (CHN) (104)4
 Mateusz Baranowski (POL) (84)w/o Yuan Sijun (CHN) (33)1
 Gong Chenzhi (CHN) (111)[c]n/s Mateusz Baranowski (POL) (84)4
 Ross Muir (SCO) (81)4 Aaron Hill (IRL) (37)4
 Andrew Higginson (ENG) (105)1 Ross Muir (SCO) (81)3
 Iulian Boiko (UKR) (71)4 Ben Mertens (BEL) (59)4
 Luo Zetao (CHN) (112)3 Iulian Boiko (UKR) (71)0
 Fergal Quinn (NIR) (94)1 Jimmy Robertson (ENG) (45)1
 Alfie Burden (ENG) (98)4 Alfie Burden (ENG) (98)4
 Liam Davies (WAL) (89)4 Fan Zhengyi (CHN) (52)1
 Hammad Miah (ENG) (102)3 Liam Davies (WAL) (89)4
 Louis Heathcote (ENG) (66)4 Lyu Haotian (CHN) (61)2
 Craig Steadman (ENG) (116)2 Louis Heathcote (ENG) (66)4
 Oliver Brown (ENG) (87)1 Matthew Selt (ENG) (46)4
 Antoni Kowalski (POL) (113)4 Antoni Kowalski (POL) (113)0
 Sam Craigie (ENG) (70)4 Ishpreet Singh Chadha (IND) (57)1
 Anton Kazakov (UKR) (115)1 Sam Craigie (ENG) (70)4
 Jimmy White (ENG) (96)4 Xu Si (CHN) (36)4
 Sean O'Sullivan (ENG) (114)1 Jimmy White (ENG) (96)2
 Zhao Hanyang (CHN) (80)4 He Guoqiang (CHN) (43)4
 Mahmoud El Hareedy (EGY) (107)2 Zhao Hanyang (CHN) (80)3
 Xu Yichen (CHN) (79)4 Jamie Jones (WAL) (60)4
 Mina Awad (EGY) (126)2 Xu Yichen (CHN) (79)2
 Marco Fu (HKG) (69)4 Matthew Stevens (WAL) (48)4
 Joel Connolly (NIR) (a)0 Marco Fu (HKG) (69)1
 Ian Burns (ENG) (75)4 Ricky Walden (ENG) (56)4
 Stuart Carrington (ENG) (120)0 Ian Burns (ENG) (75)3
Round 1 (Last 128)
Best of 7 frames		Round 2 (Last 96)
Best of 7 frames
 Gao Yang (CHN) (73)4 Long Zehuang (CHN) (49)2
 Panchaya Channoi (THA) (124)0 Gao Yang (CHN) (73)4
 Alexander Ursenbacher (SUI) (90)0 Zak Surety (ENG) (42)3
 Oliver Sykes (ENG) (100)4 Oliver Sykes (ENG) (100)4
 Artemijs Žižins (LVA) (95)3 Oliver Lines (ENG) (51)3
 Cheung Ka Wai (HKG) (106)4 Cheung Ka Wai (HKG) (106)4
 Yao Pengcheng (CHN) (74)4 Stan Moody (ENG) (40)0
 Bai Yulu (CHN) (125)1 Yao Pengcheng (CHN) (74)4
 Liam Pullen (ENG) (65)4 Ben Woollaston (ENG) (44)0
 Paul Norris (ENG) (123)0 Liam Pullen (ENG) (65)4
 Sahil Nayyar (CAN) (92)1 Robbie Williams (ENG) (53)4
 Michael Larkov (UKR) (121)4 Michael Larkov (UKR) (121)1
 Liu Wenwei (CHN) (83)3 Luca Brecel (BEL) (39)4
 Mitchell Mann (ENG) (97)4 Mitchell Mann (ENG) (97)1
 Chatchapong Nasa (THA) (93)4 Martin O'Donnell (ENG) (55)4
 Darragh Gallagher (NIR) (a)1 Chatchapong Nasa (THA) (93)1
 Liam Highfield (ENG) (68)4 Jiang Jun (CHN) (62)1
 Phil O'Kane (ENG) (119)1 Liam Highfield (ENG) (68)4
 David Grace (ENG) (76)4 Tom Ford (ENG) (34)4
 Deng Haohui (CHN) (117)2 David Grace (ENG) (76)0
 Dylan Emery (WAL) (67)4 Daniel Wells (WAL) (50)4
 Jamie Clarke (WAL) (101)0 Dylan Emery (WAL) (67)0
 Lan Yuhao (CHN) (78)2 Ryan Day (WAL) (41)4
 Ashley Hugill (ENG) (122)4 Ashley Hugill (ENG) (122)2
 Florian Nüßle (AUT) (88)3 Michael Holt (ENG) (47)4
 Ng On-yee (HKG) (103)4 Ng On-yee (HKG) (103)0
 Michał Szubarczyk (POL) (77)1 Jordan Brown (NIR) (63)4
 Julien Leclercq (BEL) (109)4 Julien Leclercq (BEL) (109)0
 Steven Hallworth (ENG) (72)1 Jackson Page (WAL) (35)2
 T. Tirapongpaiboon (THA) (108)4 T. Tirapongpaiboon (THA) (108)4
 Leone Crowley (IRL) (85)4 Scott Donaldson (SCO) (64)4
 Ashley Carty (ENG) (99)1 Leone Crowley (IRL) (85)3
Note: n/s=no show; w/o=walkover

Century breaks

[edit]

Main stage centuries

[edit]

A total of 45 century breaks have been made during the main stage of the tournament in Belfast.[28][d]

Qualifying stage centuries

[edit]

A total of 18 century breaks were made during the qualifying stage of the tournament in Leicester.[29]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ↑ He Guoqiang withdrew and so Elliot Slessor was given a walkover to the last 32.[19]
  2. ↑ Wu Yize withdrew and so Scott Donaldson was given a walkover to the last 32.[19]
  3. ↑ Gong Chenzhi did not show up for his match with Mateusz Baranowski and so Baranowski was given a walkover.[5]
  4. ↑ The WST match sheet for the Stuart Bingham v Yao Pengcheng match gives Yao a 118 break in the third frame. This is not correct. The break was 52.
    Actual frame scores: 99(68)‍–‍1; 56‍–‍19; 9‍–‍119(52); 0‍–‍94(94); 72‍–‍28; 76‍–‍62.[13]

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ Petrie, Richard (17 October 2024). "Northern Ireland Open: All you need to know about the 2024 tournament in Belfast". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 4 November 2025. Retrieved 13 October 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Northern Ireland Open: Mark King ends 25-year wait for ranking title". BBC Sport. 20 November 2016. Archived from the original on 21 November 2016. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  3. ↑ "Alex Higgins: NI trophy named after two-time world champion". BBC Sport. 27 September 2016. Archived from the original on 22 April 2026. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  4. ↑ "Tournaments 2025–26". World Snooker Tour. Archived from the original on 5 December 2025. Retrieved 13 July 2025.
  5. 1 2 "Northern Ireland Open Qualifiers 2026". snooker.org. Retrieved 14 May 2026.
  6. ↑ "BetVictor Northern Ireland Open 2026". World Snooker Tour. Retrieved 29 April 2026.
  7. ↑ "Calendar 2026/2027". snooker.org. Retrieved 29 April 2026.
  8. ↑ Caulfield, David (19 May 2026). "2026/27 snooker season calendar released by WST". SnookerHQ. Archived from the original on 28 May 2026. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
  9. ↑ "Lisowski wins maiden title in epic Belfast final". World Snooker Tour. 26 October 2025. Archived from the original on 11 December 2025. Retrieved 26 October 2025.
  10. ↑ Petrie, Richard (17 October 2026). "Northern Ireland Open 2026 – all you need to know". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 October 2026.
  11. 1 2 "BetVictor Northern Ireland Open 2026 day three evening". World Snooker Tour. 20 October 2026. Retrieved 21 October 2026.
  12. ↑ "Tiered format for Home Nations and German Masters in 2024/25". World Snooker Tour. 5 April 2024. Archived from the original on 5 April 2024. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  13. 1 2 3 "BetVictor Northern Ireland Open". snooker.org. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  14. ↑ "Home nations quarter–finals change to best of 11". World Snooker Tour. 26 June 2026. Retrieved 21 October 2026.
  15. ↑ "BetVictor Northern Ireland Open". World Snooker Tour. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  16. ↑ "BetVictor Northern Ireland Open qualifying day two". World Snooker Tour. 14 September 2026. Retrieved 14 September 2026.
  17. ↑ "BetVictor Northern Ireland Open qualifiers day three". World Snooker Tour. 14 September 2026. Retrieved 15 September 2026.
  18. ↑ "BetVictor Northern Ireland Open qualifiers day four". World Snooker Tour. 16 September 2026. Retrieved 17 September 2026.
  19. 1 2 3 "Wu and He withdraw from BetVictor Northern Ireland Open". World Snooker Tour. 16 October 2026. Retrieved 16 October 2026.
  20. ↑ McCabe, Jana (20 October 2026). "Allen exits NI Open with Brown loss on return". BBC Sport. Retrieved 21 October 2026.
  21. ↑ "BetVictor Northern Ireland Open 2026 day three afternoon". World Snooker Tour. 20 October 2026. Retrieved 21 October 2026.
  22. ↑ McCabe, Jana (20 October 2026). "Allen considers retirement after NI Open exit". BBC Sport. Retrieved 21 October 2026.
  23. ↑ "Vintage Williams beats Gilbert with ton trio". World Snooker Tour. 23 October 2026. Retrieved 24 October 2026.
  24. ↑ Petrie, Richard (23 October 2026). "Wilson and Williams through to NI Open semi-finals". BBC Sport. Retrieved 24 October 2026.
  25. ↑ "Wilson beats Craigie in Belfast drama". World Snooker Tour. 24 October 2026. Retrieved 24 October 2026.
  26. ↑ "BetVictor Northern Ireland Open 2026 matches". World Snooker Tour. Retrieved 17 September 2026.
  27. ↑ "BetVictor Northern Ireland Open 2026 qualifiers matches". World Snooker Tour. 16 September 2026. Archived from the original on 18 September 2026. Retrieved 18 September 2026.
  28. ↑ "Centuries: Northern Ireland Open – 44". snookerinfo.co.uk. Retrieved 24 October 2026.
  29. ↑ "Centuries: Northern Ireland Open Qualifiers – 18". snookerinfo.co.uk. 16 September 2026. Archived from the original on 17 September 2026. Retrieved 17 September 2026.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2026_Northern_Ireland_Open&oldid=1381762292"