After two weeks of tension-charged motion, Q College ended on Sunday with 12 gamers in whole rising as graduates to the World Snooker Tour.
4 qualifying occasions occurred, with eight gamers coming by way of the 2 tournaments staged in Leicester and an additional 4 from competitions held in Bangkok.
Half of these rivals have sealed spots on the skilled circuit for the primary time of their careers, with the opposite six returning for one more crack at stardom.
9 international locations are represented, which is a terrific quantity that helps to underline the game’s potential on a world scale.
Here’s a transient rundown of the dozen gamers who’ve secured two-year playing cards to compete on World Snooker Tour in the course of the upcoming 2024/25 and 2025/26 campaigns.
Q College 1
Artemijs Zizins
Artemijs Zizins (pictured) grew to become the primary snooker participant from Latvia to show skilled after overcoming Kayden Brierley within the closing spherical of Q College 1.
The 18 year-old additionally beat the likes of Victor Sarkis, Iulian Boiko, and Mark Joyce en path to securing his maiden two-year card.
Allan Taylor
Allan Taylor dropped off the primary tour on the finish of final season after failing to interrupt into the highest 64 of the official world rankings listing.
However the Englishman, who first turned skilled again in 2013, edged Chris Totten in a deciding body to instantly bounce again.
Haydon Pinhey
Haydon Pinhey suffered agony within the closing spherical of Q College in every of the final 4 editions of the cut-throat match for aspiring amateurs.
The Englishman made it fifth-time fortunate, beating Craig Steadman and Anton Kazakov earlier than orchestrating a 4-2 victory over Gerard Greene within the final spherical.
Wang Yuchen
Wang Yuchen edged Dylan Emery 4-3 in a dramatic concluding spherical of Q College 1 that noticed all however one body performed throughout the 4 matches.
The Chinese language 26 year-old, who now represents Hong Kong, had a earlier stint on the professional circuit between 2016 and 2018 with not a lot success.
Q College 2
Anton Kowalski
Anton Kowalski will take part as knowledgeable participant for the primary time in his fledgling profession after rising efficiently from Q College 2.
The Poland potter, who turned 20 in February, pipped James Cahill on the ultimate black within the penultimate spherical earlier than beating Simon Blackwell 4-1 on the final hurdle.
Chris Totten
Scotland’s Chris Totten, denied cruelly at Q College 1, ended a five-year absence from the World Snooker Tour courtesy of a 4-2 glory over Lewis Ullah.
The 25 year-old, a former European newbie champion, spent solely three seasons as knowledgeable throughout his solely prior stint among the many elite.
Farakh Ajaib
After dropping his tour card on the finish of the 2021/22 snooker season, Farakh Ajaib will make his return in 2024.
The Englishman, who denied Iulian Boiko within the closing spherical of Q College 2, reached the final 16 of the 2022 European Masters and was a winner of a Q Tour occasion in the course of the 2022/23 marketing campaign.
Mitchell Mann
A former World Championship qualifier on the Crucible Theatre, Mitchell Mann is again on the primary tour following only a yr’s absence.
The 2017 Paul Hunter Basic semi-finalist has reached a career-high rating of quantity 70 up to now, and victory over Joshua Thomand confirmed his return to the big-time.
Q College 1 (Asia & Oceania)
Lim Kok Leong
Lim Kok Leong is likely one of the three gamers from the Asia and Oceania leg of Q College who will change into a rookie skilled for the 2024/25 snooker season.
The Malaysian, 29, triumphed on the IBSF World Championship in 2022 and squeezed previous Gao Yang within the closing spherical.
Sunny Akani
A preferred participant amongst followers, Sunny Akani makes his return to the professional setup after two years within the doldrums as an newbie.
The 28 year-old beforehand loved skilled standing between 2015 and 2022, twice reaching the quarter-finals of rating occasions.
Q College 2 (Asia & Oceania)
Haris Tahir
Haris Tahir beat Lan Yuhao 4-2 within the final spherical of Asia and Oceania Q College 2, that means that considerably surprisingly there have been no Chinese language-representing gamers who emerged as a graduate this yr.
Tahir, 24, will subsequently be hoping to change into the primary participant from Pakistan since Shokat Ali to make a real affect on the primary tour.
Kreishh Gurbaxani
Lastly, Kreishh Gurbaxani from India gained promotion to the very best degree of snooker due to a 4-2 success over Muhammad Naseem Akhtar.
The 21 year-old beat outgoing Indian skilled Himanshu Jain within the early rounds and joins countryman Ishpreet Singh Chadha on the primary tour.
Featured photograph credit score: WST
