The 2022–23 Q Tour was a series of snooker tournaments that took place during the 2022–23 snooker season. The Q Tour is the second-tier tour, run by the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association, for players not on the main World Snooker Tour.[1]

2022–23 Q Tour
Details
Duration2 September 2022 – 5 March 2023 (2022-09-02 – 2023-03-05)
Tournaments7

A series of six events was played with the leading money-winner gaining a place on the main tour for the 2023–24 snooker season. The 16 highest-ranked players who had not already got a place on the main tour for the 2023–24 season, gained entry to a further event, the WPBSA Q Tour Playoff, the winner of which also got a place.

Martin O'Donnell won two of the six events to be the leading money-winner and gain a place on the main tour. Ashley Carty won the playoff to gain the second place.

Format

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Except for the playoff, events were played over three days. The first day was an open qualifying day with 16 places available. The main draw started on the second day when the 16 qualifiers were joined by the 48 seeded players who qualified based on their rankings in the 2022 Q School Order of Merit to make a first round field of 64 players. There were 3 rounds on the second day and a further three on the final day, to determine the winner of the event. The 48 who qualified directly included the top 32 eligible players from the 2022 UK Q School Order of Merit, the top eight from the 2022 Asia-Oceania Q School Order of Merit, and the eight highest ranked junior players not already qualified.[2][3]

Prize fund

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Each event featured a prize fund of £12,000 with the winner receiving £2,500.

  • Winner: £2,500
  • Runner-up: £1,200
  • Semi-final: £750
  • Quarter-final: £550
  • Last 16: £275
  • Last 32: £150
  • Total: £12,000

Schedule

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The schedule for the six regular events and the playoff is given below.[2]

Date Country Tournament Venue City Field Winner Runner-up Score Ref.
2 Sep 4 Sep   ENG Event 1 North East Snooker Centre North Shields 118   Ross Muir   George Pragnell 5–2 [4]
16 Sep 18 Sep   ENG Event 2 Castle Snooker Club Brighton 120   Martin O'Donnell   George Pragnell 5–1 [5]
14 Oct 16 Oct   BEL Event 3 Delta Moon Mons 90   Farakh Ajaib   Harvey Chandler 5–3 [6]
25 Nov 27 Nov   SWE Event 4 Snookerhallen Stockholm 91   Billy Castle   Andrew Higginson 5–4 [7]
9 Dec 11 Dec   ENG Event 5 Landywood Snooker Club Great Wyrley 103   Daniel Wells   Sydney Wilson 5–2 [8]
6 Jan 8 Jan   ENG Event 6 Northern Snooker Centre Leeds 124   Martin O'Donnell   Ross Muir 5–1 [9]
4 Mar 5 Mar   ENG Playoff Q House Snooker Academy Darlington 16   Ashley Carty   Florian Nüßle 5–2 [10]

Rankings

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Below are listed the leading players in the prize money rankings. Players on equal points were ranked by "countback", with the player having won the most prize money in the latest event played being ranked higher.[11]

Rank Player Event 1 Event 2 Event 3 Event 4 Event 5 Event 6 Total (£)
1   Martin O'Donnell + 150 2,500 275 150 0 2,500 5,575
2   Ross Muir 2,500 150 750 275 150 1,200 5,025
3   Daniel Wells 150 550 550 0 2,500 275 4,025
4   Billy Castle 550 0 150 2,500 0 750 3,950
5   George Pragnell 1,200 1,200 550 550 275 0 3,775
6   Farakh Ajaib 275 150 2,500 550 150 0 3,625
7   Rory McLeod 750 550 150 275 275 150 2,150
8   Liam Davies 0 0 0 750 750 550 2,050
9   Andrew Higginson 275 0 275 1,200 150 150 2,050
10   Harvey Chandler 0 150 1,200 0 275 275 1,900
11   Eden Sharav 550 275 0 150 275 550 1,800
12   Sydney Wilson 0 0 1,200 550 1,750
13   Ashley Carty + 275 750 150 0 550 0 1,725
14   Hamim Hussain 275 550 550 150 0 150 1,675
15   Steven Hallworth 150 0 150 275 275 750 1,600
16   Joshua Thomond 150 275 750 150 275 0 1,600
17   Peter Devlin 150 150 150 150 550 150 1,300
18   Florian Nüßle 275 275 275 150 150 150 1,275
19   Jamie Curtis-Barrett 550 150 550 - 0 0 1,250
20   Luke Simmonds 750 150 0 0 0 275 1,175
+ Qualified for the main tour

Event 1

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The first event took place at North East Snooker Centre, North Shields, from 2 to 4 September 2022. Ross Muir beat George Pragnell 5–2 in the final. Muir lost just five frames in the six rounds of the event.[4] The final-day results are given below.[12]

 
Quarter-finals
Best of 7 frames
Semi-finals
Best of 7 frames
Final
Best of 9 frames
 
          
 
 
 
 
  Jamie Curtis-Barrett0
 
 
 
  Ross Muir4
 
  Ross Muir4
 
 
 
  Rory McLeod1
 
  Rory McLeod4
 
 
 
  Eden Sharav2
 
  Ross Muir5
 
 
 
  George Pragnell2
 
  Stan Moody0
 
 
 
  George Pragnell4
 
  George Pragnell4
 
 
 
  Luke Simmonds2
 
  Billy Castle1
 
 
  Luke Simmonds4
 

Event 2

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The second event took place at Castle Snooker Club, Brighton, from 16 to 18 September 2022. Martin O'Donnell beat George Pragnell 5–1 in the final, having won his quarter and semi-final matches in the deciding frame.[5] The final-day results are given below.[13]

 
Quarter-finals
Best of 7 frames
Semi-finals
Best of 7 frames
Final
Best of 9 frames
 
          
 
 
 
 
  Hamim Hussain3
 
 
 
  George Pragnell4
 
  George Pragnell4
 
 
 
  Gao Yang3
 
  Rory McLeod1
 
 
 
  Gao Yang4
 
  George Pragnell1
 
 
 
  Martin O'Donnell5
 
  Jack Haley2
 
 
 
  Ashley Carty4
 
  Ashley Carty3
 
 
 
  Martin O'Donnell4
 
  Martin O'Donnell4
 
 
  Daniel Wells3
 

Event 3

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The third event took place at the Delta Moon Club, Mons, Belgium from 14 to 16 October 2022. Farakh Ajaib beat Harvey Chandler 5–3 in the final. Chandler took a 2–0 lead before Ajaib won the next four frames, with a 45 clearance in frame 6 after Chandler had made a break of 60.[6] The final-day results are given below.[14]

 
Quarter-finals
Best of 7 frames
Semi-finals
Best of 7 frames
Final
Best of 9 frames
 
          
 
 
 
 
  Harvey Chandler4
 
 
 
  Jamie Curtis-Barrett3
 
  Harvey Chandler4
 
 
 
  Josh Thomond1
 
  Josh Thomond4
 
 
 
  Hamim Hussain3
 
  Harvey Chandler3
 
 
 
  Farakh Ajaib5
 
  Daniel Wells3
 
 
 
  Ross Muir4
 
  Ross Muir3
 
 
 
  Farakh Ajaib4
 
  George Pragnell1
 
 
  Farakh Ajaib4
 

Event 4

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The fourth event took place at the Snookerhallen Club, Stockholm, Sweden from 25 to 27 November 2022. Billy Castle beat Andrew Higginson in the deciding frame of the final, on a re-spotted black.[7] The final-day results are given below.[15]

 
Quarter-finals
Best of 7 frames
Semi-finals
Best of 7 frames
Final
Best of 9 frames
 
          
 
 
 
 
  George Pragnell2
 
 
 
  Andrew Higginson4
 
  Andrew Higginson4
 
 
 
  Brian Ochoiski2
 
  Brian Ochoiski4
 
 
 
  Kuldesh Johal1
 
  Andrew Higginson4
 
 
 
  Billy Castle5
 
  Billy Castle4
 
 
 
  Farakh Ajaib1
 
  Billy Castle4
 
 
 
  Liam Davies1
 
  Robin Hull1
 
 
  Liam Davies4
 

Event 5

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The fifth event took place at Landywood Snooker Club, Great Wyrley, from 9 to 11 December 2022. Daniel Wells beat Sydney Wilson 5–2 in the final. Wells lost the first three frames of his semi-final against Michael Georgiou, but won the next four to reach the final.[8] The final-day results are given below.[16]

 
Quarter-finals
Best of 7 frames
Semi-finals
Best of 7 frames
Final
Best of 9 frames
 
          
 
 
 
 
  Jamie Wilson1
 
 
 
  Michael Georgiou4
 
  Michael Georgiou3
 
 
 
  Daniel Wells4
 
  Haydon Pinhey1
 
 
 
  Daniel Wells4
 
  Daniel Wells5
 
 
 
  Sydney Wilson2
 
  Ashley Carty3
 
 
 
  Liam Davies4
 
  Liam Davies1
 
 
 
  Sydney Wilson4
 
  Sydney Wilson4
 
 
  Peter Devlin0
 

Event 6

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The sixth event took place at the Northern Snooker Centre, Leeds, from 6 to 8 January 2023. The final was between Ross Muir and Martin O'Donnell. Both had won a Q Tour event earlier in the season and the points situation was such that the winner of the match would head the rankings and gain a place on the main tour for the following season. In the final O'Donnell won the opening frame with a break of 142 and went on to win the match by five frames to one.[9] The final-day results are given below.[17]

 
Quarter-finals
Best of 7 frames
Semi-finals
Best of 7 frames
Final
Best of 9 frames
 
          
 
 
 
 
  Ross Muir4
 
 
 
  Liam Davies0
 
  Ross Muir4
 
 
 
  Billy Castle3
 
  Billy Castle4
 
 
 
  Sydney Wilson2
 
  Ross Muir1
 
 
 
  Martin O'Donnell5
 
  Eden Sharav1
 
 
 
  Steven Hallworth4
 
  Steven Hallworth2
 
 
 
  Martin O'Donnell4
 
  Simon Bedford1
 
 
  Martin O'Donnell4
 

Playoff

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The final event, the WPBSA Q Tour Playoff, was held at the Q House Snooker Academy in Darlington on 4 and 5 March. The event saw the 16 highest ranked players, excluding the player already qualified for the main tour, competed for a further place on that tour. Daniel Wells withdrew on medical grounds and was replaced by Florian Nüßle.[18] Two rounds were played each day with matches over 7 frames except for the final which was over 9 frames. The draw was seeded, based on the final rankings.[19][20] Ashley Carty beat Florian Nüßle 5–2 in the final. Carty lost the first three frames in his opening match against Farakh Ajaib but recovered to win 4–3. He was two frames down in his semi-final match against top seed Ross Muir but again won four frames in a row to win 4–2.[10]

 
Last-16
Best of 7 frames
Quarter-finals
Best of 7 frames
Semi-finals
Best of 7 frames
Final
Best of 9 frames
 
              
 
 
 
 
  Ross Muir4
 
 
 
  Peter Devlin2
 
  Ross Muir4
 
 
 
  Harvey Chandler1
 
  Andrew Higginson2
 
 
 
  Harvey Chandler4
 
  Ross Muir2
 
 
 
  Ashley Carty4
 
  Farakh Ajaib3
 
 
 
  Ashley Carty4
 
  Ashley Carty4
 
 
 
  Hamim Hussain1
 
  George Pragnell3
 
 
 
  Hamim Hussain4
 
  Ashley Carty5
 
 
 
  Florian Nüßle2
 
  Billy Castle1
 
 
 
  Steven Hallworth4
 
  Steven Hallworth4
 
 
 
  Sydney Wilson1
 
  Rory McLeod2
 
 
 
  Sydney Wilson4
 
  Steven Hallworth1
 
 
 
  Florian Nüßle4
 
  Liam Davies4
 
 
 
  Eden Sharav0
 
  Liam Davies3
 
 
 
  Florian Nüßle4
 
  Florian Nüßle4
 
 
  Joshua Thomond0
 

References

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  1. ^ "WPBSA Q Tour 2022/23". WPBSA. 8 July 2022.
  2. ^ a b "WPBSA Q Tour 2022/23 – UK qualifying rounds open for entry". WPBSA. 27 July 2022.
  3. ^ "WPBSA Q Tour 2022/23 – Pathway to the World Snooker Tour" (PDF). WPBSA. Retrieved 22 August 2022.
  4. ^ a b "Ross is the boss at Q Tour event one". WPBSA. 4 September 2022.
  5. ^ a b "O'Donnell downs Pragnell for Q Tour title". WPBSA. 18 September 2022.
  6. ^ a b "Ajaib over the Moon at Q Tour". WPBSA. 16 October 2022.
  7. ^ a b "Billy is King of the Castle in Sweden". WPBSA. 27 November 2022.
  8. ^ a b "Wells wins at Landywood". WPBSA. 11 December 2022.
  9. ^ a b "O'Donnell earns main tour return". WPBSA. 8 January 2023.
  10. ^ a b "Playoff Champion Carty Returns to the World Snooker Tour". WPBSA. 5 March 2023.
  11. ^ "World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association - 2022/23 WPBSA Q Tour Ranking List". WPBSA.
  12. ^ "World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association - 2022/23 Q Tour - Event One - Matches". WPBSA. Retrieved 4 September 2022.
  13. ^ "World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association - 2022/23 Q Tour - Event Two - Matches". WPBSA. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  14. ^ "World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association - 2022/23 Q Tour - Event Three - Matches". WPBSA. Retrieved 16 October 2022.
  15. ^ "World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association - 2022/23 Q Tour - Event Four - Matches". WPBSA. Retrieved 27 October 2022.
  16. ^ "World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association - 2022/23 Q Tour - Event Five - Matches". WPBSA. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  17. ^ "World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association - 2022/23 Q Tour - Event Six - Matches". WPBSA. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  18. ^ "Draw change". WPBSA. 3 March 2023 – via Twitter.
  19. ^ "WPBSA Q Tour 2023 - Play-offs information". WPBSA. 13 February 2023.
  20. ^ "2022/23 Q Tour - Playoff - Matches". WPBSA. Retrieved 5 March 2023.