- Challenge Tour (snooker)
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UK/Challenge Tour Tournament information Venue World Snooker Centre Location Prestatyn Country United Kingdom Established 1997/1998 Organisation(s) World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association Format Non-ranking Final Year 2004/2005 Final champion(s) Jamie Cope
The Challenge Tour was a series of professional snooker tournaments that ran from the 1997/1998 season until the 2004/2005 season.[1] The tour was immediately below the level of the WPBSA Main Tour. The series was initially known as UK Tour.
Contents
History
Due to over-subscription of the World Snooker Tour, a two-tiered tour structure was adopted from the 1997/1998 season resulting in the Main Tour and the UK Tour. The Main Tour had an exclusive membership, whereas initially the whole professional membership could compete on the UK Tour and the best performers could earn promotion.[1] From the 1999/2000 season entry was limited to players not competing on the Main Tour,[1] and from the 2001/2002 season the UK Tour itself had an exclusive membership.[2] From the 2000/2001 season it was rebranded the Challenge Tour.[3]
In its first season there were five events, but the number was reduced to four in the following seasons.[3] There were two official maximum breaks at the UK Tour, both being made in the 1998/1999 season. In Event 3 Stuart Bingham made it against Barry Hawkins and in Event 4 Nick Dyson made it against Adrian Gunnell.[1] The tour was discontinued after 2004/2005, but the concept was revived in 2010/2011 in the form of the Players Tour Championship.
Event finals
Season Event Winner Runner-up Score UK Tour 1997/1998 Event 1 Paul McPhillips
Michael Holt
6–5 Event 2 Mark Fenton
Antony Bolsover
6–4 Event 3 Simon Bedford
Robert Milkins
6–4 Event 4 Patrick Wallace
Shaun Murphy
6–4 Event 5 Paul Sweeny
Hugh Abernethy
6–5 1998/1999 Event 1 Alfie Burden
Anthony Davies
6–5 Event 2 Joe Swail
Alfie Burden
6–1 Event 3 Stuart Bingham
Matthew Couch
6–1 Event 4 James Reynolds
Jason Ferguson
6–4 1999/2000 Event 1 Matt Wilson
Barry Hawkins
6–4 Event 2 Andrew Higginson
Scott MacKenzie
6–3 Event 3 Simon Bedford
Barry Hawkins
6–5 Event 4 Barry Hawkins
Craig Butler
6–1 Challenge Tour 2000/2001 Event 1 Adrian Rosa
Surinder Gill
6–4 Event 2 Andrew Norman
Luke Fisher
6–3 Event 3 Shaun Murphy
Andrew Norman
6–3 Event 4 Shaun Murphy
Luke Simmonds
6–2 2001/2002 Event 1 James Reynolds
Steve Judd
6–5 Event 2 Leo Fernandez
Ryan Day
6–3 Event 3 Lee Spick
Joe Delaney
6–3 Event 4 David Gilbert
Ryan Day
6–3 2002/2003 Event 1 Chris Melling
Tom Ford
6–2 Event 2 Adrian Rosa
Stuart Mann
6–5 Event 3 Michael Rhodes
Luke Simmonds
6–5 Event 4 Kurt Maflin
James Leadbetter
6–2 2003/2004 Event 1 Stefan Mazrocis
Paul Davison
6–2 Event 2 Hugh Abernethy
Gary Wilson
6–0 Event 3 Brian Salmon
Steve James
6–1 Event 4 Gary Wilson
Jin Long
6–4 2004/2005 Event 1 Jamie Cope
Chris Norbury
6–2 Event 2 James Tatton
Matthew Barnes
6–4 Event 3 James McBain
Mark Allen
6–3 Event 4 Jamie Cope
Matthew Couch
6–0 Order of Merit winners
Season Winner UK Tour 1997/1998 Paul McPhillips
1998/1999 Alfie Burden
1999/2000 Barry Hawkins
Challenge Tour 2000/2001 Shaun Murphy
2001/2002 Ryan Day
2002/2003 Martin Gould
2003/2004 Brian Salmon
2004/2005 Jamie Cope
References
- ^ a b c d e f "WPBSA Secondary Professional Tour". Chris Turner's Snooker Archive. http://www.cajt.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/challenge.html. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
- ^ "2000 / 2001 Challenge Tour". fcsnooker. Preston, Lancashire: The Frank Callan Suite. 26 April 2002. http://www.fcsnooker.co.uk/Players/Challenge_tour/challenge_tour_intro.htm. Retrieved 15 June 2011.
- ^ a b c Hayton, Eric (2004). The CueSport Book of Professional Snooker. Suffolk: Rose Villa Publications. pp. Introduction & 171–186. ISBN 9780954854904.
Snooker tournaments Ranking World Championship · UK Championship · World Open · Welsh Open · German Masters · China Open · Shanghai Masters · Australian Goldfields Open · Players Tour Championship (Paul Hunter Classic)Non-ranking The Masters · World Cup · Championship League · Wuxi Classic · Beijing International Challenge · Lucan Racing Classic · World Seniors Championship · Scottish Professional Championship · Hainan Classic · Brazil Masters · General Cup InternationalWithdrawn tournaments Categories:- Snooker non-ranking competitions
- Recurring events established in 1997
- Recurring events disestablished in 2005
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