What professional snooker is being played in September 2026? A look at the competition diary

Following the behind-closed-doors qualifiers, and Championship League Ranking Event - won by Jak Jones - which were held in Leicester earlier this summer, the World Snooker Tour roadshow upped sticks to the Far East for its ‘Chinese swing’ triple-header of big tournaments. Those titles were won by Judd Trump (Shanghai Masters), Mark Selby (China Open), and Chang Bingyu (Wuhan Open).

Now the circuit returns to UK shores for ranking events held in back-to-back weeks, an 11-day stint of qualifying, and then a return to China for another lucrative competition.

2026 British Open (August 31-September 6)

This season’s first televised event in the UK, the 2026 British Open will return to The Centaur at the Cheltenham Racecourse for a fourth successive year.

A world ranking event with a total prize fund of £502,000 - £100,000 of that going to the champion - the British Open uses an ‘FA Cup-style’ random draw formula throughout, meaning there is no seeding or ranking protection for the top players, and anyone can draw anyone at any stage.

Despite this jeopardy - along with best of seven frames matches up to and including the last 16 - since the tournament was revived in 2021, the cream has always risen to the top, with a multiple-time ranking event winner always claiming the crown.

Shaun Murphy is the reigning champion, having defeated Anthony McGill, 10-7, in last year’s final to lift The Clive Everton Trophy.

2026 English Open (September 7-13)

The four-pronged Home Nations Series returns for an 11th consecutive year and will begin at the Brentwood Centre with the English Open.

A tiered draw is used for this event these days, meaning the top 32 seeds have all gone straight through to the round of 64 which will be played in Essex. The opening two rounds featuring the lower ranked participants were played as qualifiers at the Mattioli Arena in Leicester in July.

As well as a top prize of £100,000 on offer, the £150,000 seasonal bonus prize - last term scooped by Jack Lisowski - is back, for the cueist who accumulates the most prize money from across all four Home Nations events.

Mark Allen won The Steve Davis Trophy in a deciding frame final against Zhou Yuelong last year, but he won’t be defending the title having withdrawn due to personal reasons.

2026 Northern Ireland Open, International Championship, Scottish Open qualifying (September 13-23)

The next batch of qualifying action on the World Snooker Tour takes place in the middle of the month, with the Mattioli Arena in Leicester once again hosting.

For both the Northern Ireland Open (September 13-16) and Scottish Open (September 20-23) qualifiers - the second and third stops on the Home Nations Series - the opening two rounds will be played, with 32 players emerging to join the top 32 seeds at the main venues in Belfast (October 18-25) and Edinburgh (December 14-20), respectively.

In between these are the International Championship qualifiers (September 17-19) with contestants trying to book a berth for the main venue, televised stages in Nanjing, China (October 31 - November 7).

It is understood that the International Championship - which has best of 11 frames matches up to and including the quarter-finals - will have the same flat draw system as used in previous years. This means that several of the world’s top 16 players are expected to be at these qualifiers, although certain round one fixtures will be held over to Nanjing.

2026 Shenzhen Open (September 28-October 4)

Towards the end of the month, the World Snooker Tour will be back in Asia for its fourth Chinese tournament of the campaign.

The Shenzhen Open ranking event replaces the Xi’an Grand Prix that was held on the circuit in each of the past two seasons. Home to 17 million people - including 2025 World Champion and new world number one Zhao Xintong - Shenzhen previously held the 2000 China Open that was won by Ronnie O’Sullivan.

Carrying a total purse of £850,000 - with £177,000 reserved for the champion - the Shenzhen Open will be run under the same tournament format as the recent Wuhan Open. This means that the top 16 - who don’t enter the fray until the round of 64 - have had their opening assignments held over to the big stage.

The first two rounds (apart from ties involving amateur wildcards) and round three matches involving players seeded 17-32 were played as qualifiers in Leicester in July.

Winner of last year’s Xi’an Grand Prix, Mark Williams - who in the process became pro snooker’s oldest-ever ranking event champion - will be the number one seed in Shenzhen.