The 2019–20 Challenge Tour was a series of snooker tournaments that took place during the 2019–20 snooker season. The Challenge Tour was the second-tier tour for players not on the main World Snooker Tour. The top player in the final rankings earned a two-year card to the World Snooker Tour from the 2020–21 snooker season. The following eight players in the rankings progressed to a play-off event, with the winner of that event also receiving a two-year place on the World Snooker Tour. Two of the events were postponed: Event five was rearranged due to poor weather conditions, whilst the play-off was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Played between August and July, the series was contested over ten events. Ashley Hugill finished top of the rankings, winning two of the events. Hugill had already earned a place on the World Snooker Tour having won the 2020 WSF Open, so second placed Lukas Kleckers
earned a tour card. Third ranked Andrew Pagett also received a place on the World Snooker Tour after his victory in the 2020 EBSA European Snooker Championship. Allan Taylor, who had finished seventh in the rankings, won the play-off tournament and a place on the World Snooker Tour.
Format
The Challenge Tour is a series of ten snooker tournaments, featuring as a qualification route for the World Snooker Tour. Featuring 10 events across Europe, each tournament had 64 participants.[1] The leading 56 players in the 2019 Q School Order of Merit who had not qualified for the main tour, as well as eight wildcards are eligible to play. If there are fewer than 64 entries, additional entries from the Q School Order of Merit could enter.[2] All matches are for the original ten event were held as the best-of-five frames.[1] The player with the most prize money from the ten events received participation for the World Snooker Tour for the 2020–21 and 2021–22 snooker season.[1] A final event, the Challenge Tour play-off was held for the eight highest prize fund winners, who had not already received a tour card. The winner of the play-off, contested as the best-of-seven frames was also awarded a two-year tour card.[1][3]
Prize fund
Each event featured a prize fund of £10,000 with the winner receiving £2,000.[4][1]
Winner: £2,000
Runner-up: £1,000
Semi-final: £700
Quarter-final: £500
Last 16: £200
Last 32: £125
Total: £10,000
Participants
The leading 56 players in the 2019 Q School Order of Merit, excluding the 16 who qualified for the main tour, were automatically eligible to play.[2][5]
Hugill finished the season as the highest ranked player, but had won the 2020 WSF Open, which gave him a place on the World Snooker Tour for the following two seasons.[16] As such, second placed Lukas Kleckers qualified from the Challenge Tour to the main tour for the next two seasons.[17] Third placed Andrew Pagett also received a tour card, having won the 2020 EBSA European Snooker Championship.[18] The next eight highest ranked players took part in the play-off in Sheffield in England for a final World Snooker Tour place for the following two seasons.[19][20] The play-off was postponed until August 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but was won by Taylor, who completed a 4–0 whitewash victory over Duffy.[21]
The final event, the Challenge Tour Playoff, was held at the English Institute of Sport, Sheffield on 20 July. The event was originally planned for March but was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.[24] The event saw the eight highest ranked players, excluding those already qualified for the main tour, compete for a further place on that tour. Ka Wai Cheung chose not to play and was replaced by Tyler Rees.[26] All matches were over 7 frames. The draw was not seeded.[19] The event was won by Allan Taylor, who completed a 4–0 whitewash victory over Adam Duffy.[21]
^"Challenge Tour Revision". World Snooker Tour. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 27 March 2019. Archived from the original on 31 October 2019. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
^ ab"Cheung the Champ at Challenge Tour One". World Snooker Tour. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 1 September 2019. Archived from the original on 1 September 2019. Retrieved 2 September 2019.
^ ab"Hugill Best In Bruges". World Snooker Tour. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 20 October 2019. Archived from the original on 20 October 2019. Retrieved 27 October 2019.
^"Challenge Tour Calendar". World Snooker Tour. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 10 July 2019. Archived from the original on 12 July 2019. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
^"Challenge Tour Five Postponed". World Snooker Tour. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. 2 November 2019. Archived from the original on 3 November 2019. Retrieved 19 November 2019.