WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff: What is it, how does it work, draw, date, venue, previous winners & more

Everything you need to know as the 2025 WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff takes place this week offering 24 of the world's leading amateur players an opportunity to secure a spot on the prestigious, and lucrative World Snooker Tour.

What is the WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff?

The WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff is a tournament which offers 24 of the world's leading amateurs the opportunity of securing one of three available World Snooker Tour cards for the 2025/26 and 2026/27 seasons.

Players secure their spots at the Global Playoff via performances on the Q Tour throughout the season, with 18 of the 24 players being made up by Q Tour Europe qualifiers.

A series of seven Q Tour Europe events are played throughout the campaign, with the leading money-winner (Zhao Xintong, 2025) automatically gaining a two-year WST card.

Eighteen additional players - the tournament winners and the highest-ranked players who had not already secured a place on the main tour for the 2025/26 season - subsequently qualify for the WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff.

They will be joined by up to seven players from the Q Tour Global - a series of qualifying events held in the Americas, Asia-Pacific and Middle East regions - as well as the player who finishes third in the China Billiards and Snooker Association’s CBSA Tour (top two automatically gain two-year World Snooker Tour cards).

WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff - Format

How does the WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff work?

All 24 qualifiers are split into three groups of eight, with three straight knockout tournaments being held to determine the three players who secure a two-year World Snooker Tour card.

Players are seeded for the three events with players ranked one, two and three on the Q Tour Europe rankings (Dylan Emery, Liam Highfield and Ryan Thomerson) being the top three seeds

Quarter-final matches are played over a best-of-nine format before expanding to a best-of-11 for the semi-finals.

The three finals take on an even longer format, with matches played over 19 frames, with the three victors being awarded tour cards.

WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff - Qualifiers

Who has qualified for the 2024/25 WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff?

The following 18 players have qualified via Q Tour Europe:

• Dylan Emery
• Liam Highfield
• Ryan Thomerson
• Andres Petrov
• Craig Steadman
• Ryan Davies
• Steven Hallworth
• Iulian Boiko
• Sean O'Sullivan
• Florian Nüßle
• Harvey Chandler
• Mark Joyce
• Alex Clenshaw
• Joshua Thomond
• Ehsan Heydari Nezhad
• Oliver Sykes
• Kuldesh Johal
• Connor Benzey

One player has qualified via the Q Tour Asia-Pacific:

• Vinnie Calabrese

One player has qualified via the China Billiards and Snooker Association’s CBSA Tour:

• Luo Honghao

Two players have qualified via the Q Tour Middle East:

• Ali Gharahgozlou
• Habib Humood

Two players have qualified via the Q Tour Americas:

• Vito Puopolo
• Dhiones Moraes Arent

WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff - Draw

What is the draw for the WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff?

Quarter-Finals
Dylan Emery v Ali Gharahgozlou
Conor Benzey v Mark Joyce
Steven Hallworth v Luo Honghao
Kuldesh Johal v Ryan Davies
Liam Highfield v Habib Subah Humood
Dhiones Moraes Arent v Harvey Chandler
Iulian Boiko v Alex Clenshaw
Vinnie Calabrese v Craig Steadman
Ryan Thomerson v Ehsan Heydari Nexhad
Joshua Thomond v Florian Nußle
Sean O'Sullivan v Oliver Sykes
Vito Puopolo v Andres Petrov

Semi-Finals
Emery or Gharahgozlou v Benzey or Joyce
Hallworth or Honghao v Johal or Davies
Highfield or Humood v Arent or Chandler
Boiko or Clenshaw v Calabrese or Steadman
Thomerson or Heydari Nexhad v Thomond or Nußle
O'Sullivan or Sykes v Puopolo or Petrov

Finals
Emery / Gharahgozlou / Benzey or Joyce v Hallworth / Honghao / Johal or Davies
Highfield / Humood / Arent or Chandler v Boiko / Clenshaw / Calabrese or Steadman
Thomerson / Heydari Nexhad / Thomond or Nußle v O'Sullivan / Sykes / Puopolo or Petrov

Three final winners will secure a two-year WST card.

Is Zhao Xintong in the WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff?

By virtue of earning the highest amount of prize money throughout the 2024/25 Q Tour Europe series, Zhao Xintong has automatically earned a two-year tour card, meaning he will not feature in the WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff.

The 2021 UK Championship winner won four of the seven seasonal events, securing him top spot in the Q Tour European rankings (£12,000), ahead of second-place Dylan Emery (£5,600) and third-place Liam Highfield (£5,000).

WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff - Dates

The 2025 WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff will take place between Tuesday 11th March and Thursday 13th March, 2025.

Quarter-final matches take place on Tuesday, semi-finals are staged on Wednesday and the three finals are played on Thursday.

WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff - Location & Venue

Where is the WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff being held?

The 2025 WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff will be staged at the Pine Beach Belek Hotel in Antalya, Turkey.

WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff - Previous winners

• 2023/24 - Duane Jones, Amir Sarkhosh & Mohammed Shebab
• 2022/23 - Ashley Carty
• 2021/22 - Julien Leclercq

Who qualified from the WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff last year?

Welshman Duane Jones, Iranian Amir Sarkhosh and United Arab Emirates star Mohammed Shebab were the three players to secure WST Tour Cards in 2024.

All thee players are now eligible to compete on the professional circuit until at least the end of the 2025/26 season.

WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff - Prize Money

How much do players earn from the WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff?

A £20,000 prize pot will be available for the 2024/25 WPBSA Q Tour Global Playoff with, £6,000 being allocated to the three winners (£2,000 each).

All 24 competitors are guaranteed a cash prize, with quarter-final losers taking home £500, semi-finalists £750 and the three losing finalists earning £1,000.

• 3x Playoff Winners - £2,000
• 3x Playoff Runners-Up - £1,000
• 6x Semi-Final Losers - £750
• 12x Quarter-Final Losers - £500