Qualifiers to cash in record riches at unpredictable China Open

Zhou and Saengkham - who both had to win two qualifying matches held in Leicester several weeks ago just to reach the main draw, televised stages in Taiyuan - will face each other in Saturday’s semi-finals of the £1.2 million ranking event.

Competing on home soil in China, 28-year-old Zhou compiled a hat-trick of century breaks in defeating three-time World Champion Mark Williams, 6-3, in the opening round, and followed up with another big scoring performance as he totted up a quartet of tons in eliminating compatriot Liu Hongyu, 6-4, in the last 16.

In the quarter-finals, ‘The Jumping Dragon’ recovered from 3-0 and 5-4 down to pip David Gilbert; emerging from a protracted deciding frame.

Elsewhere in the bottom half of the draw, giant-killer Saengkham has eliminated three of the sport’s biggest star names.

Having defeated world number 19 (at the time) Elliot Slessor in the final qualifying round, in the opening round in Taiyuan Saengkham stunned world number one and newly-minted Shanghai Masters champion Judd Trump, 6-3.

The Thai ace then saw off seven-times World Champion Ronnie O’Sullivan, 6-4, in the last 16, and then the in-form Shaun Murphy, 6-4 in the last eight. Many would have rated recent World Championship runner-up and new record-breaker Murphy as the favourite for the title from the quarter-finals stage.

The next new champion on the pro snooker tour?

In terms of the best player currently on the World Snooker Tour without a ranking title to their name, both Zhou and Saengkham would surely feature on most pundits’ lists, and probably near the top - especially in the case of the former.

Zhou - this will be his 10th ranking event semi - has been to four ranking event finals, but had to settle for silver on each occasion. He came closest to glory at last season’s English Open where he was ousted by Mark Allen in a deciding frame.

As for Saengkham, he is preparing for his seventh final four outing. From his previous six semis, he progressed from only one, at the 2023 Scottish Open where he got the better of John Higgins before being denied by defending champion Gary Wilson who went back-to-back.

Funnily enough, that Scottish Open final in Edinburgh a few years back could have very well been Zhou versus Saengkham, but Zhou suffered heartbreak in the semis when he lost 6-5 despite Wilson having required multiple snookers in the deciding frame.

Life-changing sums, rich rewards

The revived China Open is back on the top-flight for the first time since 2019, and it is offering the biggest first prize ever awarded at a Chinese snooker competition of £250,000; the same amount as the UK Championship over the past few seasons.

Regardless of what else happens this weekend, both Zhou and Saengkham are guaranteed £50,000 for getting to the one-table set-up.

For Saengkham, this equals his highest payday in the sport - he received £50,000 for making a maximum 147 break at the 2024 Saudi Arabia Masters. However, for Zhou, this already represents his most lucrative purse in individual, and ranking play, eclipsing the £45,000 he earned from the aforementioned 2025 English Open.

He did collect his share of $200,000 when he won the 2015 World Cup for China B alongside Yan Bingtao, though.

Not only is the financial reward big for them, but they will also receive a significant rankings boost with prize money won also converted to their rolling two-year totals.

At the time of writing, world number 22 Zhou has already gone up in the provisional standings. If he were to go all the way in the tournament, he would zip up into the world's top 16 for the first time in his career; his current highest ranking is 17th.

As for world number 45 Saengkham - who has been as high as 22nd in the global standings - he has already risen up to 33rd with his semi-final run. A spot in the final would put him comfortably back inside the world's top 32, and the title would place him on the brink of the top 16.

Such weighty amounts will also greatly help their one-year totals, with that particular list being the only way to qualify for the three Players Series events later this season. Merely qualifying for each of those tournaments guarantees at least a further £45,000.

Should either Zhou or Saengkham lift the trophy on Sunday in the Far East, it would be a gigantic breakthrough result, and we’ve seen it before at the China Open with Ding Junhui in 2005 and Judd Trump 2011 winning their maiden ranking crowns.

The title would surely get them into all three Players Series stops, an invite to the Champion of Champions, and perhaps top 16 status that would earn them seeding for major events, and maybe a debut at the Masters.

To view the full draw, results, schedule, and other information from the 2026 China Open snooker, visit our tournament information centre here.