Marco Fu is the defending champion after he denied John Higgins the chance to win his national title with victory against him in last year's final. As Fu comes here with his final chance to lift silverware before turning 40 in January, this season's home nations results show that age is no barrier.
Ronnie O'Sullivan was the champion in Barnsley at the English Open and he celebrated his 42nd birthday in York last week, while Mark Williams took home the Alex Higgins trophy from Belfast recently, also at the age of 42.
With a big name in Mark Selby deciding not to play this week, while Luca Brecel has withdrawn to rest a shoulder injury, it will be interesting to see who has enough left in the tank after a gruelling schedule in recent weeks.
Quarter 1
Last 128 draw: (Picks in bold)
Marco Fu Vs Duane Jones
David Gilbert Vs Fang Xiongman
Zhou Yuelong Vs Ian Preece
Yu De Lu Vs Lee Walker
Martin Gould Vs Noppon Saengkham
Fergal O'Brien Vs Zhang Yong
Gary Wilson Vs Lu Haotian
Xiao Guodong Vs Li Yuan
Sam Baird Vs Chris Totten
Hossein Vafei Vs Mitchell Mann
John Astley Vs Liam Highfield
Neil Robertson Vs Rod Lawler
David Grace Vs Alexander Ursenbacher
Alan McManus Vs Matthew Selt
Mark King Vs Zhang Anda
Mark Allen Vs Ben Woollaston
Defending champion Marco Fu has not had the start to this season that he would have been looking for at all. In York he was beaten at the last 32 stage, and he has only reached the last 16 of a ranking event once this season at the Shanghai Masters. With good memories from last year, Fu will be hoping that this is the week when he finds his form. Martin Gould has certainly found his form in recent weeks. Given that he skipped the Northern Ireland Open, he has reached at least the quarter-finals of his last three events played - the International Championship, Shanghai Masters and UK Championship. Looking at this section, I think he has a good chance to carry on that form and potentially have another good run here.
Neil Robertson will be looking to bounce back quickly from another early exit at the UK Championships and one that has seen him lose his place in the top 16 and fail to qualify for the 2018 Masters. A common theme with Robertson this year is that he seems to score well, win or lose, which has made many think he is coming back to form just before another unexpected defeat. In nine ranking events played this season, the Australian has only reached one quarter-final and has now gone 14 months since last ranking event semi-final which helps to explain his drop down the rankings. Hossein Vafei continues to produce nice results, beating Anthony McGill in York and he has a good record in the home nations series reaching a couple of quarter-finals in them over the last year and with his draw not being too bad, he will be hoping for more good performances. Mark King had some good wins to make the quarter-finals of the UK Championship and will be hoping to keep that form going in Glasgow but is in a slightly tougher part of the quarter.
My first quarter choice is someone who has shown good form all season and is determined to get back in the winners circle and that is Mark Allen. Allen only just lost out in the last 16 at the UK Championships and has been playing well for much of the season so far, scoring as heavily as anyone on the circuit. A final at the International Championship was long overdue for a player of his class and built on from the semi-final at the World Open. I think this tournament may present a good opportunity for Allen to get on a good run, given that there are not too many other big form horses in this section, and as a few other top players have chosen to give Scotland a miss or are looking tired after gruelling schedules. Allen should still be fairly fresh and I think he is a good selection both for the quarter and for the title as he has really been knocking on the door this season, and I would be surprised if did not pick up a trophy before the campaign is over.
Best of the rest: Martin Gould, Hossein Vafei
Quarter choice: Mark Allen
Quarter 2
Last 128 draw: (Picks in bold)
John Higgins Vs Jack Lisowski
Christopher Keogan Vs Nigel Bond
Mike Dunn Vs Adam Duffy
Zhao Xintong Vs Gerard Greene
Ali Carter Vs Anthony Hamilton
Ashley Hugill Vs Ross Vallance or Robert Carlisle
Tian Pengfei Vs Kurt Dunham
Yuan Sijun Vs Peter Lines
Michael White Vs James Wattana
Scott Donaldson Vs Josh Boileau
Dominic Dale Vs Basem Eltahhan
Kyren Wilson Vs Chen Zhe
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh Vs Jamie Barrett
Li Hang Vs Sean O'Sullivan
Robert Milkins Vs Oliver Lines
Ronnie O'Sullivan Vs Michael Georgiou
The second quarter is where we find Scotland's number 1 John Higgins. However, any ideas of an easy ride have gone out of the window as he faces an in-form Jack Lisowski in round one. Lisowski has been dangerous all year, making a maiden semi-final a few weeks ago in Shanghai and will be looking to turn up the heat again after a couple of last 64 losses in his last two tournaments. Higgins meanwhile looked very tired in the UK Championships and given the amount of tournaments he has played over the last few months that is hardly a surprise. He should be able to find some extra inspiration in his home event, and a tournament that he reached the final of a year ago, but he will have to be at his absolute best here and it would not surprise me to see Lisowski come through and then have another impressive run through the draw.
Ali Carter has not been in any kind of form in recent weeks. He looked poor in losing in the first round of the UK Championships and other than a couple of good weeks out in China, he has not had the best of seasons, though has also not played in every event either. With his draw this week though he does have an opportunity to make it into the latter stages. As the time of this blog being published, Ronnie O'Sullivan is in yet another final at the UK Championships. He is due to play in Glasgow on Tuesday afternoon which gives him plenty of time to get up and play, but you have to question how much O'Sullivan has left in the tank after a gruelling stretch. After making the final in Coventry, he had to get straight on a plane and travel to Shanghai where he won the title, meaning another race against time to play in Northern Ireland. An early exit there gave him a bit of extra time to prepare for York, but as the latter stages have been in progress there he has looked a little tired and it would not be surprising to see him bow out early here in Glasgow, as all of this must eventually begin to take it's toll on O'Sullivan.
My second quarter selection though is Kyren Wilson who has already reached two finals this season. With some of the top players in this section looking tired, and others perhaps not at their best I have opted for Wilson here as he is another player that has been knocking on the door this season. Finals at the World Open and the English Open saw him play excellently and it has taken some brilliant performances to knock him out of the tournaments since then. He was totally outplayed in the first round in Belfast by a heavy scoring Sam Craigie, and Wilson's only frame there was a century break. It also took a very steady performance from Ricky Walden to knock him out in York and he was defeated by an in-form Martin Gould in the last 32 of the International Championship despite making a 147 break in that match. Not qualifying for the Champion of Champions or the Shanghai Masters in November should mean that Wilson is one of the fresher players in Glasgow and I fancy his chances of a good run this week.
Ali Carter has not been in any kind of form in recent weeks. He looked poor in losing in the first round of the UK Championships and other than a couple of good weeks out in China, he has not had the best of seasons, though has also not played in every event either. With his draw this week though he does have an opportunity to make it into the latter stages. As the time of this blog being published, Ronnie O'Sullivan is in yet another final at the UK Championships. He is due to play in Glasgow on Tuesday afternoon which gives him plenty of time to get up and play, but you have to question how much O'Sullivan has left in the tank after a gruelling stretch. After making the final in Coventry, he had to get straight on a plane and travel to Shanghai where he won the title, meaning another race against time to play in Northern Ireland. An early exit there gave him a bit of extra time to prepare for York, but as the latter stages have been in progress there he has looked a little tired and it would not be surprising to see him bow out early here in Glasgow, as all of this must eventually begin to take it's toll on O'Sullivan.
My second quarter selection though is Kyren Wilson who has already reached two finals this season. With some of the top players in this section looking tired, and others perhaps not at their best I have opted for Wilson here as he is another player that has been knocking on the door this season. Finals at the World Open and the English Open saw him play excellently and it has taken some brilliant performances to knock him out of the tournaments since then. He was totally outplayed in the first round in Belfast by a heavy scoring Sam Craigie, and Wilson's only frame there was a century break. It also took a very steady performance from Ricky Walden to knock him out in York and he was defeated by an in-form Martin Gould in the last 32 of the International Championship despite making a 147 break in that match. Not qualifying for the Champion of Champions or the Shanghai Masters in November should mean that Wilson is one of the fresher players in Glasgow and I fancy his chances of a good run this week.
Best of the rest: Jack Lisowski
Quarter choice: Kyren Wilson
Quarter 3
Last 128 draw: (Picks in bold)
Ding Junhui Vs Jak Jones
Chris Wakelin Vs Thor Chuan Leong
Graeme Dott Vs Rory McLeod
Wang Yuchen Vs Niu Zhuang
Liang Wenbo Vs Sanderson Lam
Mark Joyce Vs Martin O'Donnell
Ricky Walden Vs Billy Castle
Joe Swail Vs Lukas Kleckers
Tom Ford Vs Ian Burns
Matthew Stevens Vs Hammad Miah
Joe Perry Vs Chen Zifan
Stuart Carrington Vs Jackson Page
Allan Taylor Vs Soheil Vahedi
Andrew Higginson Vs Cao Yupeng
Akani Songsermsawad Vs Jimmy White
Shaun Murphy Vs Daniel Wells
Given his recent eye trouble it was slightly surprising to see the name of Ding Junhui in the draw this week. His exit in the UK Championships is one of the biggest surprises in snooker history given Leo Fernandez's circumstances and the fact that Ding was 5-1 ahead. Aside from his win at the World Open in September, Ding has had a mixed start to the season and it is difficult to know what to expect from him this week. Someone that could take advantage of an early exit for Ding in that mini section is another home favourite in Graeme Dott. The 2006 world champion has looked in good form this season and reached a few last 16's but will be looking to go on and get back to the real business end of a tournament. Victory against Judd Trump in the last 32 of the UK Championships showed that he is still very capable but his consistency is perhaps the one thing letting him down.
Liang Wenbo will come to Glasgow a relieved man, taking the 16th and final spot in January's Masters despite a last 32 exit in York. It has been a quiet first half of the season for Liang and he is yet to really show much form and in a tricky section I would not be surprised to see another early exit on the cards for Liang. Ricky Walden is someone who I think is starting to come back closer to his best after a long and difficult battle with a back injury. Last 16 appearances in the Northern Ireland Open and the UK Championships should boost his confidence as he had some nice victories against Kyren Wilson and the form man Jack Lisowski in those events. His scoring looks to be much better in those last couple of weeks and if he can keep that up then there is no reason why he cannot have a good finish to a difficult calendar year. At the time of writing, Shaun Murphy is in the final of the UK Championships and whichever way that final goes, the short turnaround to get himself up to play in Glasgow may well play a part. If he carries on playing like he is in York then the Magician could storm through the draw here as well, but after a long tournament in York you would also not be surprised if he fell to one of the tricky little players in his section. In that regard, Akani Songsermsawad could be one to watch after his great run in York.
My third quarter choice is another player who has looked in recent weeks like coming back closer to his best after a slide outside of the top 16 and that is Joe Perry. The gentleman comes to Glasgow off the back of two decent weeks that have seen him play much better than the months prior to that. In Northern Ireland he looked to be scoring heavily in the early rounds and was nearly a maximum man in the last 64, on the way to an eventual last 16 defeat. Then in York he shot down Lisowski, Maflin and Allen on the way to his first quarter-final of the season, and but for a couple of early steals in that match from Maguire he could have gone even further. His mini-section of the draw looks a lot less dangerous with the withdrawal of potential last 64 opponent Luca Brecel, and every time I have watched Perry over the last couple of weeks he really has looked like returning to some of his best form and it would not surprise me to see his name in the draw when Friday and Saturday come around.
Best of the rest: Ricky Walden, Graeme Dott
Quarter choice: Joe Perry
Quarter 4
Last 128 draw: (Picks in bold)
Barry Hawkins Vs Jamie Jones
Yan Bingtao Vs Matthew Bolton
Leo Fernandez Vs Hamza Akbar
Stephen Maguire Vs Alex Borg
Mark Williams Vs Xu Si
Jimmy Robertson Vs Paul Davison
Ken Doherty Vs Craig Steadman
Alfie Burden Vs Ross Muir
Kurt Maflin Vs Mei Xiwen
Elliot Slessor Vs Rhys Clark
Peter Ebdon Vs Aditya Mehta
Anthony McGill Vs Ryan Day
Mark Davis Vs Eden Sharav
Michael Holt Vs Robbie Williams
Sam Craigie Vs Boonyarit Kaettikun
Judd Trump Vs Robin Hull
There are a couple of strong home hopes for the title in this section, including Stephen Maguire. After a run to the semi-finals of the UK Championships where he looked in very good touch he has a nice couple of games to ease himself into this tournament looking at the draw. With the form he showed in York, there is no reason why Maguire could not go all the way despite not winning a ranking title for nearly five years. Another of those Scots is Anthony McGill though he has been handed an incredibly tough last 128 draw against Ryan Day. McGill has had a quiet couple of weeks after strong start to the season and a victory here against Day would give him plenty of confidence to go on and have a strong run through the draw.
Judd Trump is someone who will be tough to read ahead of this week. He stormed to the final in Shanghai, but in Northern Ireland jet lag perhaps got the better of him and he did not look at all interested as he fell to a last 128 defeat. In the UK Championships he suffered another early exit and although there is a good chance he may storm through the draw like in Shanghai, it would not surprise me if he fell in the first couple of rounds either. Barry Hawkins has really been struggling badly this season and needs a good run this week to end the first half of the season on some sort of positive note. A 6-0 loss in the last 32 of the UK Championships will have left him low on confidence and with the draw he has he is going to have to work hard to turn it around.
My final quarter selection though is the man that very nearly overcame Mark Williams to win his first ranking title in Belfast and that is Yan Bingtao. The young Chinese star has been a revelation ever since earning his tour place and after just a year and a half he is in the top 32 and has been to a ranking event final, which is simply phenomenal. That run in Northern Ireland came just after another excellent run in Daqing where he was a semi-finalist. He has already beaten a number of top 16 players and has thrashed some very established members of the tour too. His response to an agonising defeat in Belfast was to get straight back on the practice table on Monday morning, and by the Tuesday he looked to have forgotten about it all and it was business as usual when he thrashed Zhang Yong in the first round in York. Another heavy win followed before John Higgins got the better of him in the last 32 in a match where Higgins showed his class and experience. If he carries his form on, and there is no reason why he cannot do this, it will take a big performance to stop him this week in Scotland.
Judd Trump is someone who will be tough to read ahead of this week. He stormed to the final in Shanghai, but in Northern Ireland jet lag perhaps got the better of him and he did not look at all interested as he fell to a last 128 defeat. In the UK Championships he suffered another early exit and although there is a good chance he may storm through the draw like in Shanghai, it would not surprise me if he fell in the first couple of rounds either. Barry Hawkins has really been struggling badly this season and needs a good run this week to end the first half of the season on some sort of positive note. A 6-0 loss in the last 32 of the UK Championships will have left him low on confidence and with the draw he has he is going to have to work hard to turn it around.
My final quarter selection though is the man that very nearly overcame Mark Williams to win his first ranking title in Belfast and that is Yan Bingtao. The young Chinese star has been a revelation ever since earning his tour place and after just a year and a half he is in the top 32 and has been to a ranking event final, which is simply phenomenal. That run in Northern Ireland came just after another excellent run in Daqing where he was a semi-finalist. He has already beaten a number of top 16 players and has thrashed some very established members of the tour too. His response to an agonising defeat in Belfast was to get straight back on the practice table on Monday morning, and by the Tuesday he looked to have forgotten about it all and it was business as usual when he thrashed Zhang Yong in the first round in York. Another heavy win followed before John Higgins got the better of him in the last 32 in a match where Higgins showed his class and experience. If he carries his form on, and there is no reason why he cannot do this, it will take a big performance to stop him this week in Scotland.
Best of the rest: Ryan Day
Quarter winner: Yan Bingtao
Tournament winner choice: Mark Allen
The format of play this week mirrors that of the two home nations events from earlier in this season and the whole tournament will again be covered by Eurosport and on freeview TV in the UK on Quest. Northern Ireland showed how much of a lottery the best-of-7 matches can be, and I think they will throw up plenty more surprises this week and an exciting line-up for the latter stages.
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