The qualifying round will run from October 2-5 at the Barnsley Metrodome, while the main event will run from October 28 to November 3 in Yushan, China.
Top stars in the draw include big names such as Judd Trump, Ding Junhui, Mark Selby, Ronnie O’Sullivan, John Higgins and Neil Robertson. All will have to contend for the 772,000 World ranking event.
World Open 2019 Qualifiers Draw Round 1.
30-year-old Englishman Judd Trump plays young Chinese star Zhang Jiankang. World number 17 Joe Perry nicknamed “The Gentleman” meets teenage snooker player Peifan Lei. Chinese professional Yan Bingtao plays Bai Langning. Barry Hawkins squares off with 26-year-old Welshman-Jak Jones.
Barry turned professional in 1996. But he rose to fame in the 2004/2005 snooker season when he made it to the last 16 of the 2004 UK Championship, the quarter-finals of the 2004 British Open, and the semi-finals of the 2005 Welsh Open.
The 40-year-old “Hawk” as he is fondly called has now spent twelve successive seasons ranked inside the top 32. He triumphed at the 2012 Australian Goldfields Open where he won his first ranking title.
Ding Junhui meets 27-year-old Englishman Billy Joe Castle. Ding has long been considered the most successful Asian player in the history of the snooker.
In the course of his career, he has won 13 major ranking titles, which includes two UK Championships in 2005 and 2009, two Shanghai Masters titles in 2013 and 2016, and one German Masters title in 2014.
He has catapulted himself twice to the final of the Masters, winning once in 2011. He has also represented his home country China at the Asian Games. He has won five gold medals in individual and team events. In 2016, he set a record of becoming the first Asian player to reach the final of the World Championship. That same year, saw him winning his first Six-red World Championship.
Other encounters will see Mark Selby playing Jamie Clarke. The Jester from Leicester has been the World Snooker Champion three times and is the current world number six.
Shaun Murphy takes on Rod Lawler. Neil Robertson squares off with Ian Burns while Thai’s professional Thepchaiya Un-Nooh plays Jamie O’Neill.
Dominic Dale plays Ronnie O’Sullivan, who is regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport. Another tough fixture in the qualifiers will see Anthony Hamilton take on Jimmy White.
Jimmy White is priced at 2.65 to defeat Hamilton, while Anthony Hamilton is backed at to emerge victorious 1.46.
Written by: Imisa Aruorihwo.