Everything you need to know about one of the most illustrious ranking events on the World Snooker Tour, the World Open, including prize money, dates, venue details, format, who is playing and more.
Dates
The 2026 World Open was played at the Yushan Sport Centre from Monday 16th March 2026 to Sunday 22nd March 2026, with the 2027 edition likely to be played across a similar timeframe in March 2027.
Venue
As has been the case in all of the last four events, the World Open will likely be held at the Yushan Sport Centre in 2027.
Prior to that, from 2016 to 2018, the tournament was staged in Yushan Middle School, while between 2012 and 2014 the event took place at the Hainan International Convention And Exhibition Center in Haikou.
Scotland was home of the competition from 2005 to 2010, with Aberdeen and Glasgow both getting a taste of the event, having previously been held in the likes of Preston and Telford.
The Hexagon Theatre in Reading was one of the original homes of the competition from 1984 until 1993, back when it was also known as the Grand Prix.
Format
The main draw features 64 players and the format will be over best-of-nine frames until the semi-finals, where it will become a best-of-11.
The final will be played over two sessions and will be a best-of-19 encounter.
Prize Money
Winner | £175,000 |
Runner-up | £75,000 |
Semi-final | £33,000 |
Quarter-final | £22,000 |
Last 16 | £14,000 |
Last 32 | £9,000 |
Last 64 | £5,000 |
There was a total of £825,000 in prize money up for grabs in 2026, with the winner taking home £175,000 and the runner-up collecting £75,000, while there is even a highest break prize of £5,000.
Those travelling to the venue are already guaranteed £5,000, whether they are a first-round casualty or not.
Making the second round is worth £9,000, reaching the 16 takes home £14,000 while quarter-finalists receive £22,000.
