WPBSA Qualifiers Announced for Cazoo World Championship
The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) and World Snooker Tour have announced the qualification criteria for the 16 amateur qualifiers who have earned the right to compete at the Cazoo World Snooker Championship in Sheffield next month.
This year’s qualifying rounds will return to the English Institute for Sport, Sheffield from 3-12 April 2023. The field will include professionals ranked outside of the world’s top 16 following the Duelbits Tour Championship and amateur top ups from the 2022 Q School Order of Merit.
They will be joined by 16 leading amateur players, based upon their achievements at recognised international competitions during the current season. These include the World Snooker Federation Championships, the WPBSA Q Tour and the World Women’s Snooker Championship.
Jason Ferguson, WPBSA Chairman said: “It is always an honour to be able to announce our WPBSA qualifiers who will compete at this year’s World Snooker Championship in Sheffield.”
“This year’s field contains an exciting array of talent, from some of the most talented juniors in the world. These include our WSF champions Hai Long Ma and Stan Moody, as well as vastly experienced former ranking event semi-finalists Martin O’Donnell and Daniel Wells, who throughout a period off tour have demonstrated that they can still compete at the very highest level.”
“The strength of these qualifiers reflects the current strength of the amateur game globally and the prestige of each of the qualifying pathways. The WPBSA has a robust and well-developed global system, which provides direct access to the World Snooker Tour for elite performers.
“There can be no prouder moment for these players, their families and their supporters, than to see that through their exceptional performances they will join snooker’s greatest stage, the Cazoo World Snooker Championship.”
Full WPBSA Qualifiers list:
- Hai Long Ma – 2023 WSF Championship Winner
- Stan Moody – 2023 WSF Junior Championship Winner / 2023 WSF Championship Runner-up
- Liam Davies – 2023 WSF Championship Semi-Finalist
- Yang Gao – 2023 WSF Championship Semi-Finalist
- Liam Pullen – 2023 WSF Junior Championship Runner-up
- Iulian Boiko – 2023 WSF Junior Championship Semi-Finalist
- Filips Kalnins – 2023 WSF Junior Championship Semi-Finalist
- Martin O’Donnell – 2023 WPBSA Q Tour Winner
- Liam Graham – 2023 EBSA European Under-21 Championship Winner
- Bulcsú Révész – 2023 EBSA European Under-18 Championship Winner
- Siripaporn Nuanthakhamjan – 2023 World Women’s Snooker Champion
- Ross Muir – 2023 WPBSA Q Tour No.2
- Daniel Wells – 2023 WPBSA Q Tour No.3
- Billy Castle – 2023 WPBSA Q Tour No.4
- George Pragnell – 2023 WPBSA Q Tour No.5
- Farakh Ajaib – 2023 WPBSA Q Tour No.6
All players selected will appear subject to acceptance of their place and any travel restrictions in place. Any replacement players will be selected from a reserve list to include performances at World Snooker Federation, Q Tour and recognised regional events.
Any current professional players who do not enter the tournament will be replaced from the 2022 Q School Order of Merit.
