2026 British Open

2026 Unibet British Open
Tournament information
Dates31 August – 6 September 2026 (2026-08-31 – 2026-09-06)
VenueThe Centaur
CityCheltenham
CountryEngland
OrganisationWorld Snooker Tour
FormatRanking event
Total prize fund£502,000
Winner's share£100,000
Highest break Liam Highfield (ENG) (147)
Defending champion Shaun Murphy (ENG)
← 2025

The 2026 British Open (officially the 2026 Unibet British Open[1]) is an upcoming professional snooker tournament that will take place from 31 August to 6 September 2026 at the Centaur in Cheltenham, England. Qualifying took place on 23 and 24 July at the Leicester Arena in Leicester, England. The sixth consecutive edition of the tournament since it was revived in 2021, it will be the fourth ranking event of the 2026–27 snooker season, following the 2026 Wuhan Open and preceding the 2026 English Open. The winner will receive £100,000 from a total prize fund of £502,000.

Shaun Murphy is the defending champion, having defeated Anthony McGill 10–7 in the 2025 final.

Overview

The Centaur at Cheltenham Racecourse (pictured in 2025) will host the event.

The tournament began in 1980 as the non-ranking British Gold Cup, won by Alex Higgins.[2] Held as the non-ranking Yamaha Organs Trophy in 1981 and the non-ranking Yamaha International Masters from 1982 to 1984, it was renamed the British Open in 1985, when it also gained ranking status.[3] Staged 21 times as a ranking event from 1985 until its discontinuation after the 2004 edition, the tournament was revived as a ranking event in 2021. In 2022, the tournament trophy was named the Clive Everton Trophy to honour the longtime commentator and snooker journalist.[4]

The 2026 edition of the tournament will be held from 31 August to 6 September at the Centaur in Cheltenham, England. Qualifying took place on 23 and 24 July at the Leicester Arena in Leicester, England.[5] The tournament will be the fourth ranking event of the 2026–27 snooker season, following the 2026 Wuhan Open and preceding the 2026 English Open.[6] Shaun Murphy is the defending champion, having defeated Anthony McGill 10–7 in the 2025 final.[7]

Format

Matches will be played as the best of 7 frames up to the quarter-finals, which will be the best of 9 frames. The semi-finals will be the best of 11 frames, and the final will be the best of 19 frames, played over two sessions.[8]

Prize fund

The winner of the event will receive £100,000 from a total prize fund of £502,000. The breakdown of prize money for this event is shown below:[9]

  • Winner: £100,000
  • Runner-up: £45,000
  • Semi-final: £20,000
  • Quarter-final: £12,000
  • Last 16: £9,000
  • Last 32: £6,000
  • Last 64: £3,000
  • Highest break: £5,000
  • Total: £502,000

Summary

Qualifying

Liam Highfield made the first maximum break of his professional career in the first frame of his 4–1 victory over Stephen Maguire. It was the 245th official maximum.[10]

Mark Allen and Ronnie O'Sullivan both withdrew from the tournament, and were replaced by amateur players Patrick Whelan and Mark Joyce respectively.[11][12][13]

Qualifying draw

Numbers in parentheses after the players' names denote the players' seeding, and an (a) indicates amateur players not on the World Snooker Tour. Winners of matches are shown in bold.[14]

Cheltenham

The sixteen qualifying matches featuring the highest ranked players will be played at the Centaur in Cheltenham on 31 August:[5]

Leicester

The remaining qualifying matches were played at the Leicester Arena between 23 and 24 July.[5]

Note: w/d=withdrawn; w/o=walkover

Century breaks

Qualifying stage centuries

A total of 23 century breaks were made during the qualifying stage of the tournament in Leicester.[15]

Notes

  1. ↑ Mark Joyce replaced Ronnie O'Sullivan who withdrew.[13]
  2. ↑ Patrick Whelan replaced Mark Allen who withdrew.[11]
  3. ↑ Allan Taylor replaced Ian Burns who withdrew.[5]
  4. ↑ Tom Ford withdrew giving Ross Muir a walkover.[5]

References

  1. ↑ "Unibet returns as title partner for snooker's historic British Open". World Snooker Tour. 4 June 2026. Retrieved 19 August 2026.
  2. ↑ "Alex 'Hurricane' Higgins". The Times. 25 July 2010. Archived from the original on 18 April 2026. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  3. ↑ Turner, Chris. "British Open including British Gold Cup, Yamaha Organs trophy and Yamaha International Masters". cajt.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk. Archived from the original on 16 February 2012. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  4. ↑ "British Open trophy named after Clive Everton". World Snooker Tour. 21 September 2022. Archived from the original on 21 September 2022. Retrieved 1 October 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "British Open Qualifiers 2026". snooker.org. Retrieved 23 July 2026.
  6. ↑ "Calendar 2026/2027". snooker.org. Retrieved 27 April 2026.
  7. ↑ "Unibet British Open 2025". snooker.org. Retrieved 27 April 2026.
  8. ↑ "Win tickets to watch the sport's biggest names in action as the World Snooker Tour returns to Cheltenham". www.soglos.com. 4 August 2026. Retrieved 19 August 2026.
  9. ↑ "Unibet British Open". World Snooker Tour. Retrieved 27 August 2026.
  10. 1 2 "Highfield hits maximum in Unibet British Open qualifying". World Snooker Tour. 24 July 2026. Archived from the original on 25 July 2026. Retrieved 25 July 2026.
  11. 1 2 "Allen withdraws from British Open and English Open". World Snooker Tour. 26 August 2026. Retrieved 26 August 2026.
  12. ↑ Petrie, Richard (26 August 2026). "Allen to miss British and English Opens for personal reasons". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 August 2026.
  13. 1 2 "O'Sullivan withdraws from British Open". World Snooker Tour. 28 August 2026. Retrieved 28 August 2026.
  14. ↑ "Unibet British Open 2026 qualifiers matches". World Snooker Tour. 24 July 2026. Archived from the original on 24 July 2026. Retrieved 24 July 2026.
  15. ↑ "Centuries: British Open Qualifiers – 23". snookerinfo.co.uk. Retrieved 24 July 2026.
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