The Festival of World Women’s Snooker will return to the Northern Snooker Centre, Leeds in March-April 2019. The five-day event will provisionally include the following events: World Women’s 10-Red Championship World Women’s 6-Red Championship World Women’s Under-21 Championship World Women’s Seniors Championship World Women’s Pairs Championship World Mixed Pairs Championship The 2018 Festival saw Reanne […]
Tag: Reanne Evans
Eden Women’s Masters 2018
The Eden Women’s Masters will return to the South West Snooker Academy in Gloucester, England on the weekend of 24-25 November 2018. Last year’s event was won by Ng On Yee following a dramatic 4-3 victory against Reanne Evans in the final. Further information, including the full entry pack will be released closer to the […]
World Women’s Rankings – UK Women’s Championship 2018 Update
The official world women’s rankings have been updated for the first time this season following the latest title triumph for Hong Kong’s Ng On Yee at the LITEtask UK Women’s Snooker Championship last weekend.
The WLBS world rankings operate on a rolling two-year basis, with points earned during 2016/17 to be removed during the course of this season. At this revision, points earned at the 2016 Paul Hunter Ladies Classic and 2016 UK Ladies Snooker Championship events have been removed from the ranking list and replaced by those earned last weekend at the Northern Snooker Centre.
On Yee extends her advantage
Following the successful defence of her UK title in Leeds, Hong Kong star Ng On Yee has significantly tightened her grip on top spot with her lead now stretching from 5,850 to 13,612 points to second placed Reanne Evans.
This significant swing is primarily the result of two factors, the first of course being On Yee’s victory combined with the surprise last 16 exit of record eight-time UK champion Evans to Rebecca Kenna.
The second reason is that as well as having more points going onto her total after this event, On Yee also had fewer points to defend with 12,300 coming off her total compared to 13,500 for Evans following their respective results two years ago. Interestingly this pattern will continue through until early next year with Evans defending winners points from the Eden Women’s Masters (7,500) at which On Yee lost in the quarter-finals (3,750), as well as semi-final points from the 2017 Connie Gough Trophy (3,200) at which On Yee did not compete.
The tables will turn after that however with On Yee set to defend a further 20,000 points before the end of the season compared to just 6,400 for Evans, giving the Dudley star a chance to close down the gap.
The top 10
Keighley-based Rebecca Kenna has moved back up Maria Catalano into a career-best equalling third position following her run to the final at the UK Women’s Snooker Championship.
The two most consistent performers on the tour outside of the top two in recent seasons, the pair have enjoyed a competitive battle in 2018 which has seen them regularly swap places in the table and it will be interesting to see whether either player can make that position their own over the coming months or even mount a serious challenge to the top two.
There is no change in position elsewhere in the top ten, although Katrina Wan has closed the gap to fifth placed Laura Evans by reaching the quarter-finals, while Evans was not in action in Leeds.
Ranking risers
It was another successful event for Thailand’s Nutcharut Wongharuthai who climbs six places to a career-high 11th position following her run to the semi-finals. With no points to come off her total prior to next year’s World Women’s Championship, it would appear inevitable that the 18-year-old will soon break into top ten for the first time and could follow the example set in recent years by players like Rebecca Kenna and Laura Evans who have firmly established themselves inside the top six.
Other significant movers include Hong Kong’s Ho Yee Ki who climbs four places to 17th following her run to the quarter-finals, while there are new career-high positions for several players including Chloe White (23) and Connie Stephens (44), who reached the last 16 of an event for the first time in Leeds.
Of the five debutants in action this weekend Ploychompoo Laokiatphong enjoyed the most success by making it through to the last eight and is rewarded with an initial ranking of 59.
Under-21 rankings
Turning to the Under-21 rankings and 16-year-old Shannon Metcalf remains in top spot following her run to the final this weekend in Leeds. Interestingly however, second placed Emma Parker has closed the gap to just 300 points after her semi-final run because she had no points to defend having not competed at the event in 2016 while Metcalf was defending final points from that year.
Both players are now comfortably clear of third placed Stephanie Daughtery, who was defending champion’s points from the UK Under-21s Championship in 2016.
Elsewhere, this weekend’s champion Nutcharut Wongharuthai climbs one place to seventh and with two titles from three since joining the tour as a regular player earlier this year, it would again be no surprise to see her gain further positions over the coming months.
Next up will be the WLBS European Women’s Masters 2018, which will be held for the first time at De Maxx Snooker Club in Neerpelt, Belgium from 5-7 October 2018. Enter now online HERE.
LITEtask UK Women’s Championship 2018
The LITEtask UK Women’s Snooker Championship 2018 will be held on the weekend of 15-16 September. The first event of the new season will welcome the world’s best women players to the Northern Snooker Centre in Leeds, England, as defending champion Ng On Yee will look to capture the title for a fourth time after […]
LITEtask UK Women’s Snooker Championship: Tournament Preview
The World Women’s Snooker Tour will return this weekend with the LITEtask UK Women’s Snooker Championship in Leeds and with the draws for the tournament now out, today we take a look at a few of the key themes to follow throughout the event.
- Download the main tournament draw
- Download the under-21 draw
- Download the seniors draw
- View the current world rankings
The top two
Having shared last season’s silverware between them, current world number one Ng On Yee and 11-time world champion Reanne Evans will once again head into the tournament as the players to beat.
On Yee, who last season won the event for a third time with a 4-1 victory against Evans in the final, will be looking to extend her advantage at the top of the current world rankings with the gap currently standing at 5,850 points at the close of last season. In fact, with Evans defending maximum points from the corresponding event two years ago when she defeated On Yee in the semi-finals, the Hong Kong player will only need to complete her first match to guarantee retaining top spot following the event.
Record eight-time UK champion Evans however comes into the event having won three of the past four singles competitions on the tour and with 5,450 fewer points to be removed from her total during the course of this season will be keen to start closing the gap this weekend in Leeds.
Group draw
With the top two seeded through to the knockout rounds the remaining 26 players will contest Saturday’s group stage with the top two guaranteed to progress from each of the seven groups.
There is a real feeling of variety to this event with nine of the world’s top ten joined by five players who will be making their first appearances on the women’s circuit in Leeds, including players from the USA and Thailand.
Group A is headed by two-time UK Championship semi-finalist Suzie Opacic who will be aiming to go one match further this weekend and reach the final for the first time. The current world number seven will be joined by Thailand’s Nutcharut Wongharuthai, fresh from her appearance at last week’s SangSom 6-Red World Championship in Thailand, as well as Elizabeth Black and Heidi De Gruchy.
Grimsby’s De Gruchy will be making her return following a year off the tour since the corresponding event in 2017 at which she qualified for the knockout stages for the first time before losing out to Reanne Evans.
Over in Group B we have a real mix of youth and experience with top seed Aimee Benn joined by fellow junior Steph Daughtery and seniors competitor Dorothée Rapp of Germany. The group is completed by Hull’s Kate Longworth, the first of five debutants at the Northern Snooker Centre.
On paper one of the most eye-catching groups is Group C which will see world number four Rebecca Kenna looking to progress beyond the quarter-final stages of this event for the first time.
She will be up against former world women’s under-21 champion Emma Parker, Claire Edginton and Thai debutant Ploychompoo Laokiatphong. Coached by professional player Mike Dunn, the Thai youngster is well-regarded as a player and like each of the newcomers this weekend, a welcome addition to the circuit.
Two players from Hong Kong have found themselves paired in Group D with world number six Katrina Wan paired with compatriot Ho Yi Kee. Joining them will be two-time under-21 event winner Chloe White and 13th ranked Shannon Metcalf.
The final four-woman group is Group E with 2012 champion Maria Catalano its seeded star. Winner of the Connie Gough Trophy in 2017, Catalano is the last player other than Ng On Yee or Reanne Evans to claim silverware on the circuit and will of course look a little different this weekend following the completion of her ‘brave the shave’ challenge on Friday evening.
Set to challenge her on the baize will be Maureen Rowland together with two more newcomers to the circuit in the form of Jessica Connolly and Frances Eames Noland, the latter becoming our first active player from the United States of America.
There is also an international flavour to Group F with Germany’s top ranked player Diana Schuler set to be joined by former world number three Jaique Ip Wan In of Hong Kong and England’s Jackie Ellis.
Lastly, Group G is headed by the experienced Jenny Poulter, who will take on Connie Stephens and our final newcomer for this event, Michelle Baker. The wife of World Disability Billiards and Snooker player David Baker, Michelle has caught the snooker bug and will be looking to make a name for herself starting in Leeds.
Side events
The weekend will also see side-events played across both days of snooker.
The under-21s competition will see eight players begin at the quarter-finals stage in a straight knockout draw with Shannon Metcalf and Emma Parker kept apart as the top two seeds based upon their positions on the current Under-21 ranking list.
First up for home player Metcalf will be a clash with Claire Edginton with either Chloe White or two-time UK under-21s champion Steph Daughtery awaiting in the semi-finals. In the bottom half of the draw Parker will begin her defence of the title that she claimed a year ago against Aimee Benn, while there will also be an all-Thai clash between Nutcharut Wongharuthai and Ploychompoo Laokiatphong.
With six entries received into the seniors competition, both Jenny Poulter and Jackie Ellis have been randomly drawn straight through to the semi-finals and will each await the winner of a preliminary round match. Playing for the right to face two-time defending champion Poulter will be last year’s runner-up Maureen Rowland and Germany’s Dorothée Rapp, while Yvette Greenway faces newcomer Michelle Baker in the bottom half of the draw.
In addition to these two side-events there will also be a Challenge Cup tournament held for players who have not qualified to play during Sunday’s final stages.
Tournament updates
As always, the latest results and draws from the 2018 LITEtask UK Women’s Snooker Championship will be available to view throughout the weekend at MySnookerStats, with regular updates and photos to be posted at our Facebook and Twitter pages.
LITEtask to Sponsor UK Women’s Championship
We are today delighted to announce that LITEtask will once again sponsor the WLBS UK Women’s Snooker Championship this year.
Specialists in the design and distribution of commercial lighting, the Leeds-based company has developed a strong association with the event since it first took over title sponsorship in 2015.
The event, which will again be known as the LITEtask UK Women’s Snooker Championship, was won last year by Hong Kong’s Ng On Yee, who defeated Reanne Evans 4-1 to capture the title for a third time.
Entries for the event opened earlier this week, with side-events for Under-21 and Seniors players also set to be staged subject to entries.
Mandy Fisher, WLBS president said: “I am really happy that LITEtask will sponsor what is our flagship UK event once again this season. Mark Pears [owner] has been a fantastic supporter of the women’s game for many years now and we are all pleased to be able to continue our relationship with him and LITEtask in 2018.”
Mark Pears, owner of LITEtask said: “Once again we are pleased to continue our sponsorship of the LITEtask UK Women’s Snooker Championship next month. Year on year we are continuing to see the standard of play on the World Women’s Snooker Tour increase and I can only see a bright future for the women’s game both here in the UK and overseas.”
Learn more about LITEtask online: www.litetask.co.uk
Learn more about our current partners: www.womenssnooker.com/about/partners
UK Women’s Championship 2018: Enter Now
Entries are now being accepted for the 2018 UK Women’s Snooker Championship.
The first event of the new 2018/19 World Women’s Snooker Tour season will be held on the weekend of 15-16 September at the Northern Snooker Centre in Leeds, England.
Defending champion Ng On Yee and record eight-time UK queen Reanne Evans are set to lead those who will battle it out become this year’s winner, but players of all ages, nationalities and levels of experience are also encouraged to get involved and enter.
Once again there will also be side-events staged for under-21 and seniors (+40), subject to sufficient entries being received.
Enter online
For the first time players can now enter and pay online directly through our website using our new online entry system.
The full tournament entry pack, including our updated World Ladies Billiards and Snooker Standard Terms and Conditions of Entry is also now available to download HERE.
The closing date for entries and payment of entry fees is 4:30pm BST on Monday 3 September 2018.
Open Day
Prior to the tournament, this year will also see our new Women’s Snooker Open Day held at Leeds’ Kirkgate Markets to help raise awareness of women’s snooker and to encourage more women of all ages to take up the sport.
A snooker table will be installed at the state of the art 10m x 10m event space at the Markets, complete with PA system, overhead projector and an impressive eight metre LED screen for use on the day. Activities will include meeting students from up to four local schools, together with local women traders from the markets taking to the baize and try snooker and receive tips from WPBSA World Snooker coach Steve Mallender and the players present.
The day will run from 10:00am-4:00pm and all players are welcome to come along and show their support for the event.
Photo shoot
For players competing in the tournament there will also be a photo shoot organised during the first day of the tournament on Saturday 15 September.
With updated photos to be used for future events marketing and promotion, all players are strongly encouraged to participate and will receive the photos for their own use.
Aimee Benn Q&A
Today we speak to perhaps the most consistent player on the World Women’s Snooker Tour during the 2017/18 season. No, not 11-time world champion Reanne Evans or current snooker queen Ng On Yee, but 16-year-old Aimee Benn from Leeds who impressively was able to reach the last 16 at each of her tournaments during over the past 12 months, an achievement matched by only a handful of other players on the circuit.
The youngster has continued to steadily improve her game since she joined the women’s circuit back in 2015 and now sits inside of the world’s top ten for the first time in her career. She is not done yet however and tells us below how she hopes to continue her development over the coming months…
Hi Aimee, firstly congratulations on your recent win at the Otley and District Singles (handicapped) Snooker League title recently. Tell us a little bit about that and what it means to have taken the title?
Thank you, it was my first season playing in the league which includes players of any age, any gender. I wasn’t playing my best snooker as I hadn’t had much practice since my GCSE exams, but I just kept getting further and further in the competition and I remember my dad saying to me once I reached the semi-finals that he was already proud of me for getting so far.
I managed to win the title in the end which is such a huge achievement for me, as it built my confidence which I didn’t have to start with. My dad is a very competent snooker player and he has never won the event, so that makes me even more proud.
Looking back at your last season on the World Women’s Snooker Tour, you were extremely consistent, reaching the last 16 at all of the events that you entered. What do you put that consistency down to?
To achieve consistency in matches, you have to be consistent in practice time, regularly repeating drills until they’re drilled into your head.
Obviously, I’ve faced some tough opponents on the tour which more times than not I’ve fallen short against. It is 100% a learning curve for me as I know that I do need to be more consistent with the standard of my snooker, as well as raising that standard so that I can reach the latter stages of tournaments.
Do you feel that you are continuing to improve as a player?
Yes, I’m sure. Becoming a better player is what everyone strives for and when you keep achieving the little milestones like getting to the last 16 more times than not feels great. It shows me that I really am becoming a better player.
You also finished the season ranked inside the top 10 for the first time, how special an achievement was that for you?
Honestly, it feels great to be inside the top 10, but at this stage it doesn’t mean a lot to me as it’s not about the rankings for me personally. It’s about how well I play and improving my standard to compete more and more with the more competent players inside the top 10.
What do you feel that you need to do to be able to take the next step and reach the latter stages of competitions?
To reach the later stages of the competitions, I feel that I would need to put in a lot more work on the practice table to improve my standard enough so that there is a higher chance of me beating the top players than me losing to them. Also the more I gain experience in competing with the better players, the more I’ll be able to beat them to reach the later stages of competitions.
You are getting used to competing against some of the best women players in the world like Reanne Evans and Ng On Yee. What can you learn from these great players?
When you play the top two seeds, you get a lot from watching. Watching how they look around the table and get a feel for the pace, the spin, the angle. Watching how they break build by getting themselves into the easiest positions and thinking three shots ahead.
Once they get into their swing, they’re unstoppable and it’s phenomenal to watch. You can see how you would play the shot, and if they would play it differently, that helps me to improve as a player.
How much are you looking forward to the new 2018/19 season and returning to action?
I’m looking forward to it as I have many friends off the table who compete alongside me and against me, but I’m more looking forward to improving and showing people that I can do it.
Speaking of your friends, there are indeed a lot of junior players now on the tour – how much does it help you to have the junior community that we now have on the circuit?
Outside of snooker, we’re all friends and that helps to keep us going on. But on the table we’re enemies, out for blood! The junior community is really great because we are all at roughly the same stage and it’s great to see us all developing and growing as players and people.
What are your favourite hobbies away from the baize when not playing snooker?
Honestly, snooker is my sole hobby, I don’t really do much else other than going out with friends, just anything a normal teenager would do.
Finally, what would you say to other young girls like yourself who might be tempted to pick up a cue and give snooker a try?
Give it a go. You won’t regret it at all. Picking up a cue is the first step, we all had to start somewhere.
What I’d advise to any young girls that are interested in snooker would be for them to just give it a go, get up to your local snooker club and see how much fun it is. Snooker is a sport where it’s very difficult at first but then when you look back, you improve every single day.
The best thing for someone wanting to get on the tour would be to come to one of our events, local to you, and just watch and get involved with the lovely community we’ve got.
Thank you to Aimee and best of luck to her for the start of the 2018/19 season which gets underway in Leeds, England, with our new Women’s Snooker Open Day event on 14 September, ahead of the 2018 UK Women’s Snooker Championship at the Northern Snooker Centre the following two days.
Learn more about how you can get involved and join the circuit HERE.
On Yee and Evans Receive Challenge Tour Nominations
The WPBSA and World Snooker Federation have today announced that both Ng On Yee and Reanne Evans have been nominated to join the new Challenge Tour for the 2018/19 season.
Following their appearances at Q School this month, the two top-ranked players on the World Women’s Snooker Tour will now have the opportunity to compete in 10 new mixed gender events, to carry a total prize fund of £100,000 and two main tour cards to the professional circuit for the 2019/20 season.
Hong Kong’s On Yee has been nominated following her latest women’s world title victory in Malta back in March, while Evans qualifies by virtue of her season-end world number two ranking, as next in line with On Yee also holding top spot.
Further information can be found at WPBSA.com.
WLBS Rankings Review 2018
The 2017/18 season was another to remember for Ng On Yee as the Hong Kong player rose to the summit of the WLBS world ranking list for the first time, but who were the other movers and shakers during the season-long campaign?
Like the professional World Snooker Tour, the WLBS world rankings operate on a rolling two-year basis, with points earned during 2015/16 replaced by those from this season over the past 12 months.
Number one
As mentioned above, this year has seen a change at the top of the rankings for the first time in nearly four years as Ng On Yee claimed top spot from Reanne Evans following the British Open back in February, maintaining the position through to the end of the season.
With victories at the UK Women’s Championship, Women’s Masters and of course the World Women’s Championship in Malta, it was another strong season for the 27-year-old, although after Evans won three of the campaign’s final four events no doubt the pair will enjoy another season-long battle for top spot next season.
The top eight
Away from the top two it was another successful season for Rebecca Kenna who broke into the world’s top three for the first time earlier this year, eventually finishing in fourth behind Malta finalist Maria Catalano.
The Keighley player enjoyed her most consistent run on the World Women’s Snooker Tour to date, reaching four semi-finals including her third successive World Women’s Championship last four appearance to improve upon her starting position of number six.
The top eight as a whole remained relatively stable with seven of the players who began the season inside the elite bracket remaining there at the end of the campaign. The exception to the rule was Germany’s Diana Schuler, who following a consistent season which saw her regularly qualify for the knockout rounds of competitions, was able to break into the world’s top eight for the first time to become the current highest ranked player from mainland Europe.
Junior progress
It was another strong season for the tour’s junior players who continue to gain valuable experience, including West Yorkshire’s Aimee Benn who also achieved a top ten position for the first time by virtue of reaching the last 16 of each of the six events that she competed in.
As well as Benn, there were new highs for British juniors Stephanie Daughtery (12), Shannon Metcalf (13), Emma Parker (15), Claire Edginton (18) and Chloe White (26) during the course of the season, Parker also climbing to second position in the WLBS Under-21 rankings behind Metcalf following her two victories during the season.
Asian talent
The World Women’s Snooker Tour continued to see an influx of new talent from Asia during last season with no fewer than 10 players from Hong Kong, Thailand and South Korea finishing inside of the top 30.
Without doubt the most successful newcomers were Thai duo Nutcharut Wongharuthai and Waratthanun Sukritthanes, who both earned top 20 places despite not playing a full calendar of events. Both made their debuts at the 2017 World Women’s Championship in Singapore, but it was during 2018/19 that the pair really rose to prominence.
Wongharuthai was first to announce herself as the 18-year-old stunned newly-crowned world number one Ng On Yee in the semi-finals of the British Open to contest her maiden final, before she proceeded to capture the 2018 World Women’s Under-21 Championship in Leeds last month. Sukritthanes meanwhile reached the last eight of the World Women’s Championship in Malta for a second successive year, subsequently going one better at both the World Women’s 6-Red and 10-Red World Championship competitions by reaching the semi-finals.
From Hong Kong we saw three victories at Challenge Cup events as newcomers Ho Yee Ki, Pui Ying Mini Chu and Yee Ting Cheung all claimed silverware, while we also were treated to a memorable semi-final encounter between Ng On Yee and So Man Yan at the Paul Hunter Classic at the start of the season, eventually won by On Yee following a deciding frame.
The future
While the future of course is still to be written, by looking at which players had a strong start to the 2016/17 season or otherwise we can make some deductions as to who may be in a position to climb the ranking list over the first half of the new campaign.
At the head of the list On Yee looks to have a strong grip on top spot as it is Evans who has more points to defend during the first half of the campaign including winner’s points from two of the first three events played during that season. Evans however will then have significantly fewer points to come off compared to her Asian rival as she looks to reclaim the world number one ranking over the following months once again.
With no points to defend over the next six months, top 20 trio Emma Parker, Nutcharut Wongharuthai and Waratthanun Sukritthanes are among those best placed to continue making strides up what is becoming an increasingly competitive ranking list if they can maintain their current form.
The 2018/19 World Women’s Snooker Tour is set to begin with the UK Women’s Championship at the Northern Snooker Centre in Leeds this September. Further details of the tournament and additional events still to be announced will be confirmed in due course.
