Calendar of events for the 2006/07 season

2006/07 CALENDAR

16 Jun 2006 14:00:00
www.worldsnooker.com
www.premierleaguesnooker.com

World Snooker announced the calendar for the 2006/07 professional Tour today, which includes a new ranking event and higher prize money.

The season begins with the Northern Ireland Trophy at the Waterfront Hall in Belfast in August - the first time a ranking event has ever been staged in Northern Ireland. It was staged as an invitation tournament last year and now gains ranking status.
The world’s top 32 players plus 16 qualifiers will compete at Belfast’s premier venue for indoor sporting events from August 13 to 20.

The calendar also includes the four major events televised by BBC Sport - the Grand Prix, the UK Championship, the Masters and the 888.com World Snooker Championship - as well as the Welsh Open and overseas trips to Malta and China.

Prize money on the World Snooker Tour has swelled by over £400,000 to £3.26million.

World Snooker chairman Sir Rodney Walker said: “I have stated many times that our goal is to increase the number of ranking tournaments and the level of prize money and I’m delighted that we are now in a position to start fulfilling that promise.

”This growth has been achieved through our recent sponsorship and broadcast deals and it is only the first step in the development of the Tour. We intend to continue to boost events and prize money in the coming seasons.

“Hopefully snooker fans and players will recognise today’s announcement as very encouraging news for the sport.”
World Snooker Tour 2006/07:

August:

Northern Ireland Trophy
Waterfront Hall, Belfast
August 13-20, 2006

Snooker German Open 2006
SSC Furth e.V., Germany
August 25-27, 2006

September:

Pot Black Cup
Venue To Be Confirmed
September 2

Premier League
The Sands Centre, Carlisle
September 14, 2006
Graeme Dott v Stephen Hendry
Ronnie O’Sullivan v Ding Jun-hui

Premier League
GL1, Gloucester
September 21, 2006
Jimmy White v Graeme Dott
Ronnie O’Sullivan v Ken Doherty

Premier League
The Hawth, Crawley
September 28, 2006
Steve Davis v Ding Jun-hui
Jimmy White v Ken Doherty

October:

Premier League
Assembly Rooms, Derby
October 5, 2006
Jimmy White v Ding Jun-hui
Stephen Hendry v Steve Davis

Premier League
Guildhall, Preston
October 12, 2006
Ken Doherty v Ding Jun-hui
Ronnie O’Sullivan v Jimmy White

Premier League
Grimsby Auditorium
October 19, 2006
Jimmy White v Steve Davis
Stephen Hendry v Ken Doherty

Grand Prix
Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre
October 21-29, 2006

November:

Premier League
Plymouth Pavilions
November 2, 2006
Graeme Dott v Ding Jun-hui
Ronnie O’Sullivan v Steve Davis

Premier League
Warwick Arts Centre, Coventry
November 9, 2006
Graeme Dott v Ken Doherty
Jimmy White v Stephen Hendry

Premier League
The Loch Suite, SECC, Glasgow
November 16, 2006
Graeme Dott v Steve Davis
Ronnie O’Sullivan v Stephen Hendry

Premier League
AECC, Aberdeen
November 23, 2006
Steve Davis v Ken Doherty
Stephen Hendry v Ding Jun-hui
Ronnie O’Sullivan v Graeme Dott

December:

Premier League
The Forum Centre, Wythenshawe
December 2, 2006
The Play-Offs – Semi Finals

Premier League
The Forum Centre, Wythenshawe
December 3, 2006
The Play-Offs – Final

UK Championship
Barbican Centre, York
December 4-17, 2006

January:

The Masters
Venue to be confirmed
January 14-21, 2007

Malta Cup
Hilton Conference Centre, Portomaso
January 29 - February 4, 2007

February:

Welsh Open
Venue to be confirmed
February 11-18, 2007

March:

Kilkenny Masters
Kilkenny
March 9 - March 11, 2007

China Open
Student Gymnasium, Beijing
March 25 - April 1, 2007

April:

888.com World Snooker Championship
Crucible Theatre, Sheffield
April 21 - May 7, 2007