Zhao Xintong won a remarkable fourth consecutive Q Tour title, beating Ehsan Heydari Nezhad 4-1 in the final in Mons, Belgium.
Zhao is now guaranteed to finish top of the WPBSA Q Tour Europe ranking list and has secured a two-year World Snooker Tour (WST) tour card starting from the 2025/26 season.
The 27-year-old from China has lost just a single match in the Q Tour Europe series this season and has picked up titles in Stockholm, Manchester, Vienna and now Mons. He also made history by compiling the first maximum break in Q Tour history during the event in Sweden, and incredibly followed this up with another 147 in the following event at Club 200 in Manchester.
Iulian Boiko became the second player to make a maximum in the Q Tour with a 147 in Mons, in the third frame of his last 64 stage match against home nation player Dan Leysson en route to a 4-2 victory.
Upon confirmation of his return to the professional tour, Zhao said: “I am very happy because I have hoped for this day for a long time. I knew it would be very hard to get back on to the tour and I needed to play very well because all the players on Q Tour are really good.
“I went a long time without playing a competitive match and I have really enjoyed being back. To play on the tour, I need to be winning and gain some confidence. I will do my best to win this title, I am guaranteed to be on the tour next season now but I still want to do the best I can.”
As a result of his success in the amateur game this season, Zhao was invited to take part in the qualifying rounds of the 2024 Victorian Plumbing UK Championship and successfully won four matches to reach the televised stages before losing out to 2005 world champion Shaun Murphy in the last 32.
The former UK Championship and German Masters winner believes he can pick up silverware in the professional ranks once more, saying: “I just want to enjoy the matches but if I play well, I know I can be a champion again on the tour. I believe in myself so lets do it.”
Spots at the Q Tour Global Play-Offs, which take place in Turkey in March and will offer three further WST two-year tour cards, remain up for grabs. Learn more about WPBSA Q Tour.