How does the Championship League Snooker Invitational tournament format work?

The initial phase of the Championship League Snooker Invitational features seven round robin groups of seven players. Each of these groups has its own fixed two-day slot with two tables (up to the group final) being used throughout.

Everyone in the group plays each other once in a best of five frames match. After the completion of these fixtures (21 matches), the top four finishers qualify for the group playoffs which are played on the evening of the second day, with 1st v 4th and 2nd v 3rd. The winners of those matches then contest the final which immediately follows.

Group standings are determined by the number of matches won. If players are level, it then goes on who won the most frames - if that is also level, then it goes down to who lost the fewer number of frames.

The group playoffs - both the semi-finals and the final - are also the best of five frames.

The winner of the group playoffs final secures a place in the tournament-ending Winners’ Group (more on that below).

The three losing players from the group playoffs and the player who finished 5th in the group all survive and go through to the next ‘regular’ group (if there is one), where they are joined by three completely new players to this year’s event to make seven competitors in total.

As for the players who came 6th and 7th in the group, they are eliminated from this season’s event.

This same process is used for all seven ‘regular’ groups. (In Group Seven, all the players except for the group playoffs winner are eliminated as there are no more regular groups to follow).

It is possible that a player could start out in Group One and then go on to play in all the remaining groups, thus accumulating a lot of prize money in the process.

What is the Winners’ Group in Championship League Snooker?

The Championship League Snooker Invitational Winners’ Group is the real business end of the competition which exclusively consists of the seven ‘regular’ group playoffs winners.

The exact same format from the regular groups is used for the Winners’ Group, except this time the stakes are significantly raised as this is the end game with the overall title, increased prize money payouts, and a invite to the lucrative Champion of Champions all up for grabs.

How many players compete in the Championship League Snooker Invitational?

In total, 25 players are set to feature across a whole staging of a Championship League Snooker Invitational event.

Seven players start in the opening group (7), then three new players join in each of the next six regular groups (18).

However, there have been examples of a player withdrawing midway through the tournament before a new group begins, meaning more than 25 players could play in it.

The top players from the world rankings are invited to the competition, although several players generally elect to skip it, therefore the organisers work their way down the global standings until they fill the spots.

It is believed there is flexibility for Championship League entrants as they are asked when they would prefer to join the event. Not all the highest ranked players start out in Group One.

There are no ranking points attached to the Championship League Snooker Invitational unlike its ranking counterpart that is held in the summer months.