Riyadh Season Snooker Championship 2024: Draw, results, gold ball 167 break, prize money, how to watch

This year has seen the emergence of Saudi Arabia as a powerful force in the world of snooker. Having hosted its first professional event with the inaugural edition of this tournament back in March, this latest offering will be the third World Snooker Tour competition to be held in the kingdom in 2024.

Initially titled the World Masters of Snooker during its maiden outing (now renamed to the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship), Ronnie O’Sullivan defeated then reigning world champion Luca Brecel 5-2 in the final to claim the trophy. The Rocket is scheduled to return to the Saudi capital city to defend the title.

As well as it being Saudi Arabia’s first venture into hosting top tier snooker, the event drew significant press coverage due to the big-money prize fund and the use of a gold ball which meant players could make a maximum 167 break and collect a huge bonus prize. Both of these concepts return (further details below).

This will be the final trophy to be lifted on the professional circuit in 2024.

What is the format for the 2024 Riyadh Season Snooker Championship, how does the draw work?

The Riyadh Season Snooker Championship is a 12-player invitational event. There are no ranking points on offer, but there is a lot of prize money.

The top 10 professionals from the official world rankings following the 2024 UK Championship all earned an invite to the tournament. They will be joined by two local amateur wildcards

There are five rounds to the event; the exact same format from the first staging will be used again.

Professionals seeded 9 and 10 will face the amateur wildcards in round one. The winners of these matches will then play seeds 7 and 8 in round two.

The two winners from round two will then line-up for the quarter-finals when seeds 1 to 6 begin their campaigns.

The draw bracket has been made as per the seeding positions, with title holder O’Sullivan being the number one seed.

All matches in all rounds are the best-of-seven frames (with no intervals), except for the best-of-nine frames final (mid-session interval after four frames).

Who is playing at the 2024 Riyadh Season Snooker Championship? Which players have been invited?

There really is a star cast on show in Riyadh, with all the top players accepting their invites to the big-money spectacle.

Ronnie O’Sullivan will be trying to successfully defend the title, while reigning Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters champion and world number one Judd Trump will be aiming for back-to-back accolades in the country.

Current World Champion Kyren Wilson will be making his debut having not qualified for the first outing several months ago.

Mark Selby, Mark Allen, Mark Williams, Luca Brecel, Shaun Murphy, Ding Junhui and Zhang Anda are the other top 10 players to have been invited. Like Wilson, Zhang will be playing in the tournament for the first time.

Having played in the inaugural edition, Ali Carter and John Higgins both miss out on this occasion.

Amateur players Abdulraouf Saigh and Ahmed Aseeri are the local wildcards for the event. There were nominated after winning a competition at the Ronnie O’Sullivan Snooker Academy in Riyadh.

What is the gold ball and how can you make a maximum 167 break?

The Riyadh Season Snooker Championship will be played to traditional matchplay snooker rules, although there is a one big twist with the addition of a gold ball - officially known as the ‘Riyadh Season ball’.

This gold ball begins the frame touching the baulk cushion in line with the brown spot. The ball is worth 20 points, but can only be legally potted should a player complete a 147 break.

If a player is on for a 147 break, they will need to play for position on the gold ball as they play and pot the final black. If they pot the black for the 147 and then the gold ball immediately afterwards, they will have completed a ‘golden maximum’ 167 break and collect a massive bonus prize (more on this below).

At the first edition of this event, John Higgins got the closest to having a shot at the gold ball when he potted 15 reds and 15 blacks before missing the yellow whilst on 120.

What are the rules for the gold ball at the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship?

The only time the gold ball can be legally played as a nominated object ball and potted is the final shot of a golden maximum 167 break attempt.

The gold ball can not be nominated as the object ball to be struck first at any other time during the frame. The only other way the gold ball could be featured elsewhere during the frame is if the cueball or another object ball contacts it as part of a shot.

For example, if a player was to play a safety shot off a red and the cueball returned to the baulk area and nudged the gold ball, that is a legal shot. The gold ball will stay where it has been moved to.

As soon as a golden maximum 167 break can not be made - for example, if a player pots the first red then a pink - the referee will remove the gold ball from the table, and it will not return until the start of the next frame.

What is the prize money for the 2024 Riyadh Season Snooker Championship? What is the bonus prize for a 167 break?

There is a regular total prize fund of £785,000 at the 2024 Riyadh Season Snooker Championship. The payouts are:

• Champion: £250,000
• Runner-up: £125,000
• Losing semi-finalists: £75,000
• Losing quarter-finals: £50,000
• Losers in round two: £25,000
• Losers in round one: £5,000

There is a $1 million bonus prize on offer for a golden maximum 167 break.

How can I watch the 2024 Riyadh Season Snooker Championship?

• Worldwide: DAZN (free to watch)
• China: Huya.com, CBSA-WPBSA Academy WeChat Channel, CBSA-WPBSA Academy Douyin
• Hong Kong China: Now TV
• Malaysia: Astro
• Philippines: Tap
• Taiwan: Sportcast
• Thailand: True Sport
• Indonesia: Sportstars/Vision+

Read the World Snooker Tour’s announcement on Riyadh Season Snooker Championship coverage here.