The Home Nations Series is a

snooker Snooker (pronounced , ) is a cue sport played on a rectangular table covered with a green cloth called baize, with six pockets, one at each corner and one in the middle of each long side. First played by British Army officers stationed in ...

tournament series in the four

home nations Home Nations is a collective term with one of two meanings depending on context. Politically it means the nations of the constituent countries of the United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales). In sport, if a sport is g ...

of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

. It began in the

2016–17 snooker season The 2016–17 snooker season was a series of professional snooker tournaments played between 5 May 2016 and 1 May 2017. The number of ranking events was increased in 2016/17, with a target of 20 ranking events for 2017/18. ...

, combining two existing tournaments, the Scottish Open and Welsh Open, with two newly created tournaments, the

English Open The English Open was a professional golf tournament held in England. First played in 1988, it was an annual event on the European Tour until 2002. After several aborted attempts at reviving the tournament, it returned to the tour schedule in 20 ...

and Northern Ireland Open.

History

On 29 April 2015,

Barry Hearn Barry Maurice William Hearn (born 19 June 1948) is an English sporting events promoter and the founder and President of promotions company Matchroom Sport. Through Matchroom, Hearn is also involved in many sports including snooker, darts, ...

, chairman of

World Snooker The World Snooker Tour (WST) is the main professional snooker tour, consisting of approximately 128 players competing on a circuit of up to 28 tournaments each season. The World Snooker Tour is administered by World Snooker Ltd, the commercial ar ...

announced that from the

, a "Home Nations Series" would be added to the season's calendar. The Home Nations Series includes the tournaments of the four individual countries of the home of snooker, the

, the Northern Ireland Open, the Scottish Open, and the Welsh Open. A player who wins all four tournaments in the same season receives a special bonus of £1 million. So far, the highest number of tournaments won in the same season is two, with

Mark Selby Mark Anthony Selby (born 19 June 1983) is an English professional snooker player, who is a four-time World Snooker Champion. Ranked world number one on multiple occasions, he has won a total of 21 ranking titles, placing him eighth on the ...

winning the English and the Scottish Open in the 2019–20 season, and

Judd Trump Judd Trump (born 20 August 1989) is an English professional snooker player, a former world champion and former world number one. Widely regarded as one of the sport's most talented players, he is currently sixth on the list of all-time ranki ...

winning the English and the Northern Ireland Open in the 2020–21 season. The Home Nations Series awards two wildcards to amateur players. The four national governing bodies select the wildcard players according to criteria that they have previously agreed with the WPBSA. The first round of the Home Nations was changed for the 2021-22 season, whereby the first round is now a qualification round for all players not in the top 16. However, the top 16 would play their qualification round at the venue instead of elsewhere.

Events and trophies

The cups of the individual tournaments are named after well-known snooker players of the respective countries: * At the

: after

Steve Davis Steve Davis (born 22 August 1957) is an English retired professional snooker player who is currently a commentator, musician, DJ, and author. He is best known for dominating professional snooker during the 1980s, when he reached eight World S ...

, the Davis Trophy * At the Northern Ireland Open: after

Alex Higgins Alexander Gordon Higgins (18 March 1949 – 24 July 2010) was a Northern Irish professional snooker player who is remembered as one of the most iconic figures in the game. Nicknamed "Hurricane Higgins" because of his fast play, he was Worl ...

, the Higgins Trophy * At the Scottish Open: after

Stephen Hendry Stephen Gordon Hendry (born 13 January 1969) is a Scottish professional snooker player who dominated the sport during the 1990s, becoming one of the most successful players in its history. After turning professional in 1985 at age 16, Hendry ...

, the Hendry Trophy * At the Welsh Open: after

Ray Reardon Ray may refer to: Fish * Ray (fish), any cartilaginous fish of the superorder Batoidea * Ray (fish fin anatomy), a bony or horny spine on a fin Science and mathematics * Ray (geometry), half of a line proceeding from an initial point * Ray (g ...

, the Reardon Trophy

Format

All tournaments are ranking tournaments of the

World Snooker Tour The World Snooker Tour (WST) is the main professional snooker tour, consisting of approximately 128 players competing on a circuit of up to 28 tournaments each season. The World Snooker Tour is administered by World Snooker Ltd, the commercial ar ...

and are played with 128 players. After first nominating all professional players, the wildcard players will be nominated and finally top-up players from the Q School order of merit. Up to and including the last 16, the matches are played as best-of-seven frames, in the quarter-finals as best-of-nine, semi-finals as best-of-eleven frames, and in the final best-of-seventeen. As of the 2021-22 season, the last 128 round has been changed to a qualifying round, where players outside of the top 16 have to win a match in order to play at the final venue. The top 16 still play in the qualifying round, however, their matches are held over to be played at the final venue.

Results

Statistics

Champions

References

{{Snooker tournaments Snooker competitions in the United Kingdom * Snooker tours and series