The race for the £150,000 BetVictor Series bonus comes into the final straight this week at the BetVictor Gibraltar Open will 11 players still in contention.
After seven of the eight counting events it’s tight at the top of the BetVictor Series Rankings. The 11 players are:
John Higgins
Tops the list with £98,000, ahead of Mark Allen on countback, so the £150,000 will be his if he reaches the same stage as Allen and no one else overtakes them. Hasn’t won a title in the series but runner-up spots at three of the four BetVictor Home Nations events have boosted his tally. Faces David Grace in the first round in Gibraltar on Friday morning.
Mark Allen
Tied with Higgins on £98,000, largely thanks to his £70,000 top prize at the BetVictor Northern Ireland Open in October, and also reached the semi-finals of the BildBet German Masters. Takes on rival Mark Joyce on Friday in round one.
Fan Zhengyi
Third with £93,500. Leapt into contention by taking the £80,000 top prize at the BetVictor European Masters in February, beating Ronnie O’Sullivan in the final to register one of snooker’s all-time biggest shocks. Ashley Hugill is his first round opponent on Friday. Must reach at least the quarter-finals to have a chance.
Luca Brecel
Tied with Fan on £93,500. The Belgian banked the £70,000 winner’s cheque at the BetVictor Scottish Open in December. Up against Jamie Curtis-Barrett in round one on Thursday.
Neil Robertson
Fifth with £92,000 and must at least reach the semi-finals. Player of the season so far, Robertson won the BetVictor English Open in November. Tough first round match against Liang Wenbo on Thursday.
Ronnie O’Sullivan
Sixth with £90,000. The Rocket is rocking the Rock for the first time, the bonus within his grasp, albeit he must at least reach the final. Runner-up at the BetVictor European Masters and a semi-finalist in two of the BetVictor Home Nations events. Faces Ben Woollaston on Friday.
Zhao Xintong
Seventh with £87,000, must at least reach the final. Breakthrough player of the season, Zhao landed the BildBet German Masters crown in January, worth £80,000. Starts his bid against Jamie Clarke on Thursday.
Hossein Vafaei
Eighth with £83,000, needing at least the final. The Prince of Persia leapt into the race by winning the £50,000 top prize at the BetVictor Shoot Out in January. Plays Jak Jones on Thursday.
Joe Perry
Ninth with £77,000. Perry and those below him must win the title in Gibraltar to take the bonus. Enjoyed the best moment of his career when he took the BetVictor Welsh Open title earlier this month, and £70,000 with it. Opens against Leo Fernandez on Friday.
Judd Trump
Tenth with £71,500. Runner-up to Perry in Wales and a quarter-finalist at three other events in the series. Trump banked the bonus in 2020 and 2021 and won’t give up on his chance of a hat-trick easily. Faces Andrew Higginson on Friday.
Ricky Walden
11th with £57,000. Walden must win the title and hope that none of the other leading contenders reach the final. High level of consistency this season, with semi-final runs in Germany and Belfast. Starts against Dylan Mitchell on Friday.
BetVictor Gibraltar Open prize money
Winner: £50,000
Runner-up: £20,000
Semi-finals: £6,000
Quarter-finals: £5,000
Last 16: £4,000
Last 32: £3,000
Last 64: £2,000
High break: £5,000
Total: £251,000
One half of the draw is played down to the last 16 on Thursday, then the other half on Friday. The last 16, quarter-finals, semis and final are all played on Saturday. Click here for the match schedule, here for ticket details and here to find out how to watch on television or online.