The quest for the Crucible got underway on Monday at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield, where 128 players are battling it out for just 16 coveted spots in the final stages of the Halo World Championship.
Players enter this fiercely contested qualifying gauntlet at different stages depending on where they are seeded, as follows:
Round one begins today by pitting players ranked 81 to 112 against those ranked 113 to 144.
In round two, those 32 winners will face players ranked 49 to 80.
In round three, those 32 winners will face players ranked 17 to 48.
In round four, those 32 winners play each other, with the 16 winners going through to the Crucible.
The qualifying rounds run until Wednesday April 16th. Huge drama is anticipated, with players competing to the backdrop of tour survival battles and a quest to achieve their dreams by earning qualification for the sport's grandest stage. Matches are contested over the best of 19 frames, across two sessions.
Here's how things unfolded on day one of a month long festival of snooker...
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Wins for Mitchell Mann and Gong Chenzhi bring an end to the action on day one.
England's Mann closes out a hard fought 10-7 win over Scotland's Chris Totten, while Chinese 18-year-old Gong prevails 10-7 against English 16-year-old Patel.
We'll be back from 10am tomorrow with all the action from day two.
Full Results
Antoni Kowalski 10-4 Reanne Evans
Hammad Miah 10-0 Jonas Luz
Gong Chenzhi 10-7 Kaylan Patel
Artemijs Zizins 4-10 Dylan Emery
Amir Sarkhosh 2-10 Mateusz Baranowski
Haris Tahir 10-6 Joshua Cooper
Chris Totten 7-10 Mitchell Mann
Huang Jiahao 10-4 Amaan Iqbal
10:29PM
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Victory for Pakistan's Haris Tahir. He's scored a 10-6 win over Joshua Cooper, nephew of Shaun Murphy, to book his second round berth.
Tahir can now look forward to a meeting with Ireland's Aaron Hill.
10:24pm
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It's been a difficult first season on tour for China's Huang Jiahao, having won only two matches outside of the Shoot Out.
However, he now has a match win in the World Championship and third victory of the season after defeating Amaan Iqbal 10-4. Huang's reward is a second round meeting with Daniel Wells.
10:00PM
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You can't fault 21-year-old Antoni Kowalski for ambtion!
He's gunning to surpass Stephen Hendry as the youngest ever Crucible king.
9:49PM - Mission Impossible For Kowalski?
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Antoni Kowalski is Poland's second player of the day to make it through. A clean sweep of five straight frames this evening has seen the 21-year-old brush aside 12-time Women's World Champion Reanne Evans 10-4. Next up he faces Zak Surety.
Meanwhile, Dylan Emery quickly snuffed out any danger of an Artemijs Zizins fightback in their first round clash. Breaks of 56 and 80 helped him to three on the bounce to secure a 10-4 win. Joe Perry, who is considering retirement, awaits in round two.
8:52PM
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Mateusz Baranowski admitted that his role in the coaching setup for Poland's Junior Team, which includes 14-year-old sensation Michal Szubarczyk, motivated him to try and make a professional career for himself.
Baranowski's only other World Championship qualifying appearance came in 2016, when he was thrashed 10-2 by Ali Carter. Another trip to the sport's biggest event didnt look likely, but today's 10-2 win over Amir Sarkhosh proved to be a joyous return for the 27-year-old.
8:47PM - Coaching Role Inspiring Baranowski
"I started coaching the Polish Junior Team. This year we had two players in the final of the European Under 16 Championship and one in the final of the Under 18s. When I started, they were losing in the group stages. Now they are fighting for medals and winning tournaments. I thought I needed to show them not to give up. I love snooker."
Mateusz Baranowski
WSF Championship Semi-Finalist
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A brilliant win for Polish amateur Mateusz Baranowski. The 27-year-old has thrashed Iran's Amir Sarkhosh 10-2 and booked his place in round two, where he will play Indian number one Ishpreet Singh Chadha.
8:21PM
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Great start to the evening for Latvian 18-year-old Artemijs Zizins. He's taken the first two frames of the session to reduce his arrears to 7-4.
Emery had his chance to claim the 11th on the black, but spurned an opportunity to the green pocket. Zizins stepped in to deposit the final ball and pull within three. Could that be a turning point?
7:47PM
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Hammad Miah is the first match winner of the 2025 Halo World Championship.
A 10-0 whitewash defeat of Jonas Luz keeps Miah's hopes of tour survival alive. Next up he faces Rory Thor in round two.
7:35PM
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An intriguing concluding session to day one lies ahead. Our feature match on table one hangs in the balance, with Polish rookie Antoni Kowalski 5-4 up on Reanne Evans.
Elsewhere, Hammad Miah needs just one frame to wrap up victory over Jonas Luz, leading 9-0.
English 16-year-old Kaylan Patel holds the advantage against Chinese teenager Gong Chenzhi, with a 6-3 cushion.
Full scores:
Antoni Kowalski 5-4 Reanne Evans
Hammad Miah 9-0 Jonas Luz
Gong Chenzhi 3-6 Kaylan Patel
Artemijs Zizins 2-7 Dylan Emery
Amir Sarkhosh 2-6 Mateusz Baranowski
Haris Tahir 7-2 Joshua Cooper
Chris Totten 4-5 Mitchell Mann
Huang Jiahao 6-3 Amaan Iqbal
6:50PM
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Last year Australia's Neil Robertson had dropped out of the world's top 16 and subsequently failed to come through the Crucible qualifying process, missing out on a place at the Theatre of Dreams.
Having secured silverware at this season's BetVictor English Open and the World Grand Prix, the Thunder from Down Under is safely through to the final stages and is enjoying a bit of time on the golf course with his son Alexander.
6:30pm - Thunder In The Sunshine
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The second session draws to a close after an afternoon of snooker which has provided a barrage of big breaks and left tour survival hanging by a thread for some players.
These matches will resume tomorrow afternoon from 2:30pm.
Full scores:
Ka Wai Cheung 1-8 Zhao Xintong
Farakh Ajaib 6-2 Baipat Siripaporn
Alexander Ursenbacher 6-3 Paul Deaville
Ben Mertens 6-2 Daniel Womersley
Liam Davies 8-1 Ahmed Elsayed
Liam Graham 2-6 Fergal Quinn
Robbie McGuigan 7-2 Hatem Yassen
Sunny Akani 5-2 Kreishh Gurbaxani
6:21PM
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Baipat Siripaporn's professional status looks to be severely under threat here in a match she needs to win to stay on tour.
Trailing 4-1, a break of 49 gave the 2023 Women's World Champion the advantage in frame five. However, Farakh Ajaib pounced after Siripaporn missed a red with the rest, crafting an excellent contribution of 90 to make it 5-1.
Meanwhile, Welsh teenager Liam Davies has ended his afternoon 8-1 up on Ahmed Elsayed.
5:39PM
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Brilliance from Zhao Xintong. A break building masterclass sees him end the session 8-1 up on Ka Wai Cheung, requiring just two more frames when they resume tomorrow afternoon.
Breaks: 128, 122, 77, 84, 90, 98, 132
Average shot time: 17.3 seconds
Sit back and enjoy his spellbinding opening century of the afternoon below.
Remember, you can watch the action live on discovery+/MAX in the UK and Europe. In all territories without a broadcast, the place to watch is WST PLAY.
5:05pm
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Massive steal before the mid-session interval for Switzerland's Alexander Ursenbacher. He takes the fourth on the black to lead Paul Deaville 3-1.
The Basel cueman isn't afraid of the big stage, holding a 3-0 head-to-head lead over seven-time World Champion Ronnie O'Sullivan. However, he must win this match to stand a chance of retaining his professional status.
4:41PM
4:17PM - Picture Gallery
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The flying start continues for Zhao Xintong, he's blitzed to a 4-0 lead at the mid-session against Ka Wai Cheung.
Elsewhere Liam Davies leads Ahmed Elsayed 3-0 and Fergal Quinn is 2-0 up on Shoot Out finalist Liam Graham.
3:29pm
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WHAT A START! Blistering stuff from Zhao Xintong. He's fired in back to back centuries of 128 and 122 to lead Ka Wai Cheung 2-0.
3:04PM
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It's non-stop action here on day one at the English Institute of Sport, with the afternoon session getting underway in just ten minutes.
Former UK Champion Zhao Xintong returns to the World Snooker Tour next season, after his exploits on the Q Tour. He faces Hong Kong's Ka Wai Cheung in the headline match this afternoon.
2023 Women's World Champion Baipat Siripaporn and Swiss number one Alexander Ursenbacher are both facing potential relegation from the circuit, they face Farakh Ajaib and Paul Deaville respectively.
2:20PM
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That's a wrap for the opening session of Halo World Championship Qualifying.
All eight matches will return from 7pm this evening and will be played out to their conclusions.
Full scores:
Antoni Kowalski 5-4 Reanne Evans
Hammad Miah 9-0 Jonas Luz
Gong Chenzhi 3-6 Kaylan Patel
Artemijs Zizins 2-7 Dylan Emery
Amir Sarkhosh 2-6 Mateusz Baranowski
Haris Tahir 7-2 Joshua Cooper
Chris Totten 4-5 Mitchell Mann
Huang Jiahao 6-3 Amaan Iqbal
2:10pm
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It certainly is the most wonderful time of the year, Kyren!
2:00PM - Best Wishes From The Crucible King
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It's game on for Reanne Evans and Antoni Kowalski. The last frame of the session goes the way of Evans and they end with Kowalski leading 5-4 heading into tonight's concluding session at 7pm.
Elsewhere, WSF Junior Championship runner-up Kaylan Patel top scored with 74 on his way to earning a 6-3 lead over Gong Chenzhi and Dylan Emery ends the session 7-2 up on Artemijs Zizins.
1:45pm
1:30PM - Picture Gallery
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The centuries are coming thick and fast here. A run of 104 has helped to move the dominant Hammad Miah 9-0 up on Jonas Luz. They end the opening session with Miah needing just one more frame to book a second round clash with Rory Thor.
Iran's Amir Sarkhosh now trails Poland's Mateusz Baranowski 3-2. He's compiled a break of 107 to pull within one frame.
1:19PM
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Reanne Evans pulls one back against Polish prospect Antoni Kowalski, who now leads 4-2.
Tour rookie Gong Chenzhi has battled back to level at 3-3 with English 16-year-old Kaylan Patel, while Poland's Mateusz Baranowski leads Iran's Amir Sarkhosh 3-1.
Remember, you can watch the action live on discovery+/MAX in the UK and Europe. In all territories without a broadcast, the place to watch is WST PLAY.
12:30pm
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Hammad Miah is in total control against Brazil's Jonas Luz on table two. He now leads 5-0 in a match he must win to retain hope of staying on tour.
Welshman Dylan Emery is 4-1 up on Latvia's Artemijs Zizins. The winner will face Joe Perry, who is considering retirement at the end of the season, in round two.
12:11pm
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The opening session is progressing here at the English Institute of Sport, with the first matches reaching their mid-session intervals.
Poland's Antoni Kowalski has turned things around against Reanne Evans. He's won three on the bounce to lead 3-1.
It's been a great start for English teenager Kaylan Patel against China's Gong Chenzhi. He holds a 3-1 advantage.
Pakistan's Haris Tahir has a 3-1 lead over Joshua Cooper and Mitchell Mann is 3-1 up on Chirs Totten.
11:21AM
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First blood to WST Hall of Fame member Reanne Evans. She takes a 40-minute opening frame against Poland's Antoni Kowalski to lead this morning's table one encounter.
Evans last won a World Championship match in the 2017 World Championship, when she beat Robin Hull 10-8. Could she be in line for another win today?
10:40AM
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Pakistan's Haris Tahir fires in the first century of the 2025 Halo World Championship! A run of 115 puts him 1-0 ahead against Joshua Cooper, who is nephew of Johnstone's Paint Masters Champion Shaun Murphy.
Hammad Miah has taken the opener in his crucial clash with Jonas Luz and English 16-year-old Kaylan Patel, who was runner-up at the WST Junior Championship, leads Gong Chenzhi 1-0.
10:20AM
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The embryonic stages of snooker's snowpiece event kick off with an intriguing opening session.
12-time Women's World Champion Reanne Evans takes centre stage on table one against Poland's promising tour rookie Antoni Kowalski.
On table two, Hammad Miah has a must win encounter as far as his tour survival is concerned, against Brazil's Jonas Luz.
Meanwhile, 16-year-old English amateur Kaylan Patel is in action against China's Gong Chenzhi.
10:00AM