Q Tour Europe – The Race to Spain | Event 6 Update
The race to top this season’s WPBSA Q Tour Europe will run to the seventh and final tournament at the Landywood Snooker Club later this month, following victory for Ashley Carty in Mons last weekend.
As in previous seasons, the top ranked player following the conclusion of the seventh and final event will earn an automatic two-year WST place for the 2026/27 and 2027/28 campaigns, with a minimum of 16 further players to qualify for the season-end Global Playoffs to contest three further tour cards.
Winners of each Q Tour Europe event are guaranteed a spot in the Global Play-Offs meaning that Peter Lines, Simon Blackwell, Jamie Clarke and now Carty have already secured their places – with event one winner Hammad Miah no longer eligible following his victory at the 2026 World Snooker Federation Championship.
Clarke in Pole Position
Two-time Q Tour Europe event winner Jamie Clarke remains the favourite to secure top spot and with it a return to the World Snooker Tour despite an early exit in Belgium last weekend.
Another deep run at the event could have seen him secure the coveted two-year tour card, but a last 32 defeat to Germany’s Umut Dikme means that the race will continue to Landywood.
With a lead of 4,380 points to second placed Peter Lines, a run to the final of Event 7 would be enough to guarantee Clarke the season-end number one ranking, while a semi-final run would be sufficient unless Lines were to win the title.
Third placed Hammad Miah can already be discounted, with the former professional having already secured his WST return by virtue of his victory at last month’s WSF Championship, meaning that fourth placed Oliver Sykes is the next placed challenger. The 20-year-old must reach at least the final with Clarke losing first match, while the title would be enough for Sykes if Clarke were to lose before the quarter-finals.
The only other two players in with a mathematical chance of overhauling Clarke are Craig Steadman and Stuart Carrington, with both needing the title and hope that the Welshman were to lose before the last 16 and last 64 stages respectively.
The Playoff Race
As in previous seasons, at least 16 places at this season’s Q Tour Global Playoff are up for grabs from this season’s WPBSA Q Tour Europe Rankings.
With top spot and WSF champions Hammad Miah (third) and Michael Larkov (16th) set to be excluded from this list, qualification could therefore go down to the 19th placed player, currently Sean O’Sullivan with 11,520 points heading to the final counting event.
With a guaranteed Play-Off place available to the winner in Landywood, anyone could yet qualify by lifting the final title of the regular season.
The WPBSA Q Tour Europe series concludes with Event Seven at the Landywood Snooker Club from 26 February – 1 March 2026.
