Champion of Champions 2026 | The Race to Landywood
The 2026 Champion of Champions takes place at the Landywood Snooker Club on Saturday 11 July and the race to qualify for the season finale is hotting up with just three ranking events to go.
The prestigious one-day event sees the top two ranked players from each classification group invited to compete for the Nick Oliver Trophy in a best-of-11 frame contest.
Read below to find out how the race shapes up in each group heading into the conclusion of the season where a maximum of 32,500 points are still available from the Belgian Open, Hull Open and World Championship.
Please note that the ranking lists below are provisional, with all 2023/24 season points already removed.
Group 1+2
- Dave Beaumont (63,500)
- Tony Southern (33,300)
- Gary Swift (31,100)
- Mahomed Abubaker (16,000)
- Surasit Loisaratrakul (12,500)
Dave Beaumont looks all but guaranteed to have the chance to defend the title he won in 2025 as he sits comfortably at the summit of Group 1+2 on the provisional end-of-season ranking list.
With a maximum of 32,500 points available from the final three ranking events of the season, Beaumont holds a 32,400-point advantage over third-placed Gary Swift meaning that simply competing in the remaining tournaments of the campaign would be enough to secure a return to the Landywood Snooker Club in July.
Southern was the losing finalist last year and he maintains second position on the provisional list but has a lead of just 2,200 points over Swift in what is set to be an exciting race to the season finale.
The number of points still on offer means that any player down to Adam Pearson, in 25th, could still mathematically qualify by winning the remaining three events of the season and other results going their way.
Group 3
- Daniel Kelly (50,000)
- Peter Hull (41,200)
- Kal Mattu (37,650)
- Andy Lam (24,500)
- Nigel Coton (19,650)
Daniel Kelly currently leads the race to the Champion of Champions in Group 3 following a memorable 2025.
The Irishman won the Nick Oliver Trophy on debut last year, whitewashing Kal Mattu at the Landywood Snooker Club, before becoming the world number one in his classification group for the first time in his career a few months later.
Mattu has appeared in the last three Champion of Champions finals but currently sits third in the race to the 2026 event behind Peter Hull – who heads to Bruges next month as the defending Belgian Open champion.
The points still on offer from the remaining three events of the season mean that anyone down to ninth-placed Hannes Hermsdorff could still earn their place in the season-closing competition.
Group 4
- Carl Gibson (65,700)
- David Church (50,300)
- Daniel Blunn (49,100)
- William Thomson (26,500)
- Nigel Brasier (22,350)
Two-time Champion of Champions winner Carl Gibson is on course for a third successive appearance at the Landywood Snooker Club as he leads the race in Group 4.
Gibson has won the Nick Oliver Trophy for the last two years and holds a 16,600-point advantage over third-placed Daniel Blunn with three events to go.
The battle for second place is currently separated by just 1,200 points, as last year’s runner-up David Church leads World Snooker Tour (WST) Hall of Fame inductee Blunn heading into the second half of the campaign.
William Thomson, Nigel Brasier and Steve Cartwright each also remain in contention of a Champion of Champions spot with three events still to go.
Group 5
- Dave Bolton (86,500)
- Dalton Lawrence (40,200)
- Brynjar Valdimarsson (21,450)
- Shahzad Butt (14,500)
- David Waller (12,600)
Dave Bolton is the only player already guaranteed his place at the 2026 Champion of Champions heading into the 2026 Belgian Open.
The back-to-back defending champion holds a provisional lead of 46,300 over second-placed Dalton Lawrence, meaning he is also confirmed as the world number one at the end of the 2025/26 season with only 32,500 points still to play for.
Lawrence, who has lost the last two finals against Bolton, is in a strong position to set up a rematch in July as he currently holds an 18,750-point advantage over Iceland’s Brynjar Valdimarsson in third.
The 58-year-old is not yet guaranteed a Landywood Snooker Club return, however, and any cueist down to David Moritz in 10th could still mathematically finish in the top two positions.
Group 6A
- Mohammed Faisal Butt (28,500)
- Alan Reynolds (26,000)
- Ryan Ryding (23,600)
- Aidan Pollitt (18,900)
- Niall Pollitt (14,675)
Mohammed Faisal Butt is currently in poll position to attempt to defend the title he won for the first in 2025.
Butt defeated two-time Nick Oliver Trophy winner Alan Reynolds at the Landywood Snooker Club last year, and the two cueists once again occupy the top two positions as they aim to contest the prestigious season finale for a fourth successive year.
A memorable 2025 for Ryan Ryding, who won the first two ranking event titles of his career, has put him in a strong position to disrupt the streak of Butt and Reynolds as he sits just 2,400 points behind second place with three events remaining.
The three tournaments left during the 2025/26 season will offer a maximum of 32,500 points and so any player competing in the Group 6A classification could still earn their place at the Champion of Champions.
Group 6B
- Matthew Haslam (55,400)
- Leroy Williams (37,600)
- Ryan Pinnington (29,400)
- James Hart (20,400)
- Christopher Goldsworthy (15,000)
Matthew Haslam and Leroy Williams remain on course to contest the Champion of Champions final at the Landywood Snooker Club for a fourth successive year.
Haslam, who has won the last two editions by defeating Williams, could have his place confirmed following the Belgian Open as he currently holds a 26,000-point lead over third-placed Ryan Pinnington.
The second qualifying position remains strongly contested, with just 8,200 points currently separating Williams and Pinnington in the race to the season finale.
Ahead of a trip to Bruges, any player down the James Lodge in 10th could still mathematically earn a spot in the Champion of Champions.
Group 7
- Colvin O’Brien (51,500)
- Mike Gillespie (40,500)
- Ronnie Allen (36,300)
- Dylan Rees (29,700)
- Paul Smith (11,400)
Colvin O’Brien leads the race to the Champion of Champions in Group 7 as he aims to win the Nick Oliver Trophy for the first time in his career.
The Irishman, who lost to Dylan Rees in last year’s final, leads third-placed Ronnie Allen by 15,200 points ahead of the 2026 Belgian Open.
Currently set to join O’Brien in the season finale is 2023 winner Mike Gillespie, who sits just 4,200 points ahead of 82-year-old Allen as the Welshman aims to qualify for the prestigious event for the first time since 2019.
Also still in mathematical contention are reigning world champion Rees and England’s Paul Smith.
Group 8
- Luke Drennan (43,200)
- Lewis Knowles (39,200)
- Gary Taylor (36,800)
- Kristof De Bruyn (31,200)
- Jonathan Steggles (9,900)
One of the tightest Champion of Champions races comes from Group 8 with qualification being chased by four multiple-time ranking event winners.
Defending champion Luke Drennan currently sits at the summit on the provisional ranking list and is set to be joined at the Landywood Snooker Club by reigning European champion Lewis Knowles.
There remains a long way to go in the race however, with just less than 3,000 points separating Knowles from third-placed Gary Taylor while reigning world champion and last year’s losing finalist Kristof De Bruyn also remains in contention.
The available points mean that it is still possible for any cueist down to Ireland’s Francis Coyle, in eighth to still qualify.
Entry for the Belgian Open and Hull Open remains open via WPBSA SnookerScores
