2018 Championship League

The 2018 Championship League was a professional non-ranking snooker tournament taking place from 2 January to 29 March 2018.[1] It was the 11th staging of the tournament.

Championship League
Tournament information
Dates2 January – 29 March 2018
VenueRicoh Arena
CityCoventry
CountryEngland
FormatNon-ranking event
Total prize fund£178,900
Winner's share£10,000
Highest break Martin Gould
Luca Brecel
(147)
Final
Champion John Higgins
Runner-up Zhou Yuelong
Score3–2
← 2017
2019 →
Ricoh Arena (Coventry)

The defending champion John Higgins retained his title with a 3–2 final win over Zhou Yuelong. As in the previous edition of the tournament Higgins had entered the competition in Group 7 and from there won his way through to the Winners' Group.[2]

Martin Gould and Luca Brecel both made their maiden official maximum breaks in this tournament. Gould achieved his maximum in the deciding frame of his Group 6 round robin match against Li Hang. Brecel achieved his in the third frame of a 3–0 whitewash of defending champion John Higgins in their Group 7 round robin match. These were the 135th and 136th official maximum breaks and the fourth and fifth of the 2017/2018 season. It was the fifth consecutive year that a maximum was made in the Championship League, and the second consecutive year that two were made.[3]

Prize fund

The breakdown of prize money for the 2018 Championship League is shown below.[4]

  • Tournament total: £178,900

Group 1

Group 1 was played on 2 and 3 January 2018. Zhou Yuelong was the first player to qualify for the Winners' Group.[5]

Matches

Table
Pos Team Pld W L FF FA FD
1 Stephen Maguire (Q) 6 4 2 15 12 +3 Qualification to Group 1 play-off
2 Zhou Yuelong (Q) 6 4 2 14 10 +4
3 Ryan Day (Q) 6 3 3 12 13 −1
4 Anthony Hamilton (Q) 6 3 3 12 13 −1
5 Kyren Wilson (A) 6 3 3 11 11 0 Advances into Group 2
6 Mark King (E) 6 2 4 14 14 0 Eliminated from the competition
7 Michael Holt (E) 6 2 4 10 15 −5
Source:
(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated.

Play-offs
 
Semi Finals
Best of 5 frames		Final
Best of 5 frames
 
      
 
 
 
 
 Stephen Maguire2
 
 
 
 Anthony Hamilton3
 
 Anthony Hamilton2
 
 
 
 Zhou Yuelong3
 
 Zhou Yuelong3
 
 
 Ryan Day2
 

Group 2

Group 2 was played on 4 and 5 January 2018. Mark Selby was the second player to qualify for the Winners' Group, recording his 500th career century in the Group 2 final against Barry Hawkins.[6]

Matches
Note

* Neil Robertson had to pull out of the Championship League due to personal reasons after his fifth match. Results from Robertson's previous matches were removed from the group table.[7]

Table
Pos Team Pld W L FF FA FD
1 Barry Hawkins (Q) 5 5 0 15 6 +9 Qualification to Group 2 play-off
2 Ryan Day (Q) 5 3 2 11 9 +2
3 Mark Selby (Q) 5 2 3 12 10 +2
4 Kyren Wilson (Q) 5 2 3 9 10 −1
5 Anthony Hamilton (A) 5 2 3 8 11 −3 Advances into Group 3
6 Stephen Maguire (E) 5 1 4 4 13 −9 Eliminated from the competition
7 Neil Robertson (E) 0 0 0 0 0 0
Source:
(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated.

Play-offs
 
Semi Finals
Best of 5 frames		Final
Best of 5 frames
 
      
 
 
 
 
 Barry Hawkins3
 
 
 
 Kyren Wilson1
 
 Barry Hawkins1
 
 
 
 Mark Selby3
 
 Ryan Day0
 
 
 Mark Selby3
 

Group 3

Group 3 was played on 8 and 9 January 2018. Kyren Wilson was the third player to qualify for the Winners' Group.[8]

Matches
Note

Anthony McGill withdrew before the tournament and was replaced by Tom Ford.

Table
Pos Team Pld W L FF FA FD
1 Mark Allen (Q) 6 4 2 15 8 +7 Qualification to Group 3 play-off
2 Barry Hawkins (Q) 6 4 2 14 9 +5
3 Kyren Wilson (Q) 6 4 2 13 13 0
4 Tom Ford (Q) 6 3 3 12 11 +1
5 Ali Carter (A) 6 3 3 11 13 −2 Advances into Group 4
6 Anthony Hamilton (E) 6 2 4 12 15 −3 Eliminated from the competition
7 Ryan Day (E) 6 1 5 9 17 −8
Source:
(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated.

Play-offs
 
Semi Finals
Best of 5 frames		Final
Best of 5 frames
 
      
 
 
 
 
 Mark Allen 3
 
 
 
 Tom Ford 2
 
 Mark Allen 1
 
 
 
 Kyren Wilson 3
 
 Barry Hawkins 1
 
 
 Kyren Wilson 3
 

Group 4

Group 4 was played on 10 and 11 January 2018. Ali Carter was the fourth player to qualify for the Winners' Group.[9]

Matches
Note

* Mark Allen had to withdraw due to family reasons prior to his second match in the group. The result from Allen's first match in the group was removed from the group table.[7]

Table
Pos Team Pld W L FF FA FD
1 Judd Trump (Q) 5 4 1 13 4 +9 Qualification to Group 4 play-off
2 Barry Hawkins (Q) 5 4 1 13 7 +6
3 Shaun Murphy (Q) 5 2 3 9 12 −3
4 Ali Carter (Q) 5 2 3 8 10 −2
5 Liang Wenbo (A) 5 2 3 7 12 −5 Advances into Group 5
6 Tom Ford (E) 5 1 4 7 12 −5 Eliminated from the competition
7 Mark Allen (E) 0 0 0 0 0 0
Source:
(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated.

Play-offs
 
Semi Finals
Best of 5 frames		Final
Best of 5 frames
 
      
 
 
 
 
 Judd Trump0
 
 
 
 Ali Carter 3
 
 Ali Carter3
 
 
 
 Shaun Murphy 1
 
 Barry Hawkins2
 
 
 Shaun Murphy 3
 

Group 5

Group 5 was played on 23 and 24 January 2018. Mark Williams was the fifth player to qualify for the Winners' Group.[10]

Matches
Note

Barry Hawkins, Shaun Murphy and Liang Wenbo withdrew from the tournament and were replaced by Joe Perry, David Gilbert and Ben Woollaston.

Table
Pos Team Pld W L FF FA FD
1 Judd Trump (Q) 6 4 2 16 8 +8 Qualification to Group 5 play-off
2 Ben Woollaston (Q) 6 4 2 15 11 +4
3 Mark Williams (Q) 6 4 2 13 8 +5
4 Ricky Walden (Q) 6 3 3 13 13 0
5 Martin Gould (A) 6 3 3 12 12 0 Advances into Group 6
6 Joe Perry (E) 6 2 4 9 15 −6 Eliminated from the competition
7 David Gilbert (E) 6 1 5 5 16 −11
Source:
(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated.

Play-offs
 
Semi Finals
Best of 5 frames		Final
Best of 5 frames
 
      
 
 
 
 
 Judd Trump2
 
 
 
 Ricky Walden3
 
 Ricky Walden1
 
 
 
 Mark Williams 3
 
 Ben Woollaston1
 
 
 Mark Williams3
 

Group 6

Group 6 was played on 25 and 26 January 2018. Martin Gould was the sixth player to qualify for the Winners' Group.[11]

Matches

Table
Pos Team Pld W L FF FA FD
1 Martin Gould (Q) 6 5 1 16 8 +8 Qualification to Group 6 play-off
2 Judd Trump (Q) 6 4 2 14 7 +7
3 Ricky Walden (Q) 6 4 2 12 13 −1
4 Li Hang (Q) 6 3 3 14 11 +3
5 Graeme Dott (A) 6 3 3 13 14 −1 Advances into Group 7
6 Michael White (E) 6 1 5 8 15 −7 Eliminated from the competition
7 Ben Woollaston (E) 6 1 5 7 16 −9
Source:
(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated.

Play-offs
 
Semi Finals
Best of 5 frames		Final
Best of 5 frames
 
      
 
 
 
 
 Martin Gould 3
 
 
 
 Li Hang 2
 
 Martin Gould 3
 
 
 
 Judd Trump 0
 
 Judd Trump 3
 
 
 Ricky Walden 0
 

Group 7

Group 7 was played on 26 and 27 March 2018. John Higgins was the seventh player to qualify for the Winners' Group.[12]

Matches
Notes

Graeme Dott and Li Hang withdrew from the tournament prior to Group 7 play. They were replaced by Dominic Dale and Jimmy Robertson.

Table
Pos Team Pld W L FF FA FD
1 Judd Trump (Q) 6 5 1 16 8 +8 Qualification to Group 7 play-off
2 Jimmy Robertson (Q) 6 5 1 15 9 +6
3 John Higgins (Q) 6 4 2 14 10 +4
4 Ricky Walden (Q) 6 3 3 12 12 0
5 Dominic Dale (E) 6 2 4 11 13 −2 Eliminated from the competition
6 Robert Milkins (E) 6 1 5 8 16 −8
7 Luca Brecel (E) 6 1 5 7 15 −8
Source:
(E) Eliminated; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated.

Play-offs
 
Semi Finals
Best of 5 frames		Final
Best of 5 frames
 
      
 
 
 
 
 Judd Trump 3
 
 
 
 Ricky Walden 1
 
 Judd Trump2
 
 
 
 John Higgins 3
 
 Jimmy Robertson 1
 
 
 John Higgins 3
 

Winners' Group

The Winners' Group was played on 28 and 29 March 2018. In the final, John Higgins defeated Zhou Yuelong 3–2 to retain his Championship League title and win it for the second time in his career.[2]

Matches
Notes

* Zhou Yuelong was awarded the first frame, due to Mark Selby arriving late.

Table
Pos Team Pld W L FF FA FD
1 John Higgins (Q) 6 5 1 17 8 +9 Qualification to the Winners' Group play-off
2 Ali Carter (Q) 6 5 1 16 10 +6
3 Zhou Yuelong (Q) 6 3 3 15 12 +3
4 Mark Selby (Q) 6 3 3 12 10 +2
5 Kyren Wilson (E) 6 3 3 12 13 −1 Eliminated from the competition
6 Mark Williams (E) 6 1 5 9 17 −8
7 Martin Gould (E) 6 1 5 5 16 −11
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source:
(E) Eliminated; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated.

Play-offs
 
Semi Finals
Best of 5 frames		Final
Best of 5 frames
 
      
 
 
 
 
 John Higgins3
 
 
 
 Mark Selby 2
 
 John Higgins 3
 
 
 
 Zhou Yuelong 2
 
 Ali Carter 0
 
 
 Zhou Yuelong 3
 

Century breaks

Total: 116

Bold: highest break in the indicated group.

Winnings
No. Player 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 W TOTAL
1 John Higgins 6200 15200 21400
2 Zhou Yuelong 6200 10500 16700
3 Judd Trump 2300 3200 4300 5100 14900
4 Ali Carter 1100 5600 6200 12900
5 Kyren Wilson 1100 2400 6600 2400 12500
6 Mark Selby 6300 6000 12300
7 Barry Hawkins(3) 4900 2700 3200 10800
8 Ricky Walden 4500 2200 2500 9200
9 Martin Gould 1200 6900 1000 9100
10 Mark Williams 6600 1800 8400
11 Anthony Hamilton 4700 1100 1200 7000
12 Ryan Day 3300 2100 900 6300
13 Mark Allen(2) 4700 100 4800
14 Shaun Murphy(3) 4100 4100
15 Stephen Maguire 3100 700 3800
16 Tom Ford 2800 700 3500
= Ben Woollaston 2800 700 3500
18 Li Hang(4) 3000 3000
19 Jimmy Robertson 2800 2800
20 Neil Robertson(1) 1700 1700
21 Mark King 1400 1400
22 Graeme Dott(4) 1300 1300
23 Liang Wenbo(3) 1200 1200
= Luca Brecel 1200 1200
25 Dominic Dale 1100 1100
26 Michael Holt 1000 1000
27 Joe Perry 900 900
28 Michael White 800 800
= Robert Milkins 800 800
30 David Gilbert 500 500
Total prize money 20,800 19,200 20,000 17,200 19,700 19,200 19,700 43,100 178,900

Green: won the group. Bold: highest break in the group. All prize money in GBP.
Notes
(1) Neil Robertson withdrew due to personal reasons after his fifth match in Group 2.
(2) Mark Allen withdrew due to family reasons after his first match in Group 4.
(3) Barry Hawkins, Shaun Murphy and Liang Wenbo withdrew from the tournament prior to Group 5 play.
(4) Graeme Dott and Li Hang withdrew from the tournament prior to Group 7 play.

gollark: Fine, I'll just use DEEP LEARNING™.
gollark: It's not wrong, just inefficient.
gollark: What?
gollark: It doesn't require simulating the opponent in any relevant way.
gollark: Doesn't matter.

References
  1. "2017/18 World Snooker Calendar" (PDF). World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 14 July 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
  2. "Higgins Retains Championship League Crown". Championship League Snooker. Matchroom Sport Ltd. Retrieved 30 March 2018.
  3. "Gould Makes Maiden 147". World Snooker. 26 January 2018.
  4. "Home - Championship League Snooker". Championship League Snooker.
  5. "Zhou Wins CLS Group One". World Snooker. 4 January 2018.
  6. "Selby Makes 500th Century". World Snooker. 5 January 2018.
  7. "Fixtures and results". championshipleaguesnooker.co.uk. Perform. Retrieved 19 February 2018.
  8. "Kyren Wilson Is Group 3 Champion - Championship League Snooker". 9 January 2018.
  9. "Ali Carter Is Group 4 Champion - Championship League Snooker". 11 January 2018.
  10. "Williams Is Group 5 Champ - Championship League Snooker". 24 January 2018.
  11. "Gould Takes Group 6 Honours - Championship League Snooker". 26 January 2018.
  12. "Higgins Takes Final Berth In Winners' Group". Championship League Snooker. Matchroom Sport Ltd. 27 March 2018.
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