World Snooker Tour targeting record with Kai Tak event

Kai Tak Sports Park is continuing to build its events roster with the announcement that the World Snooker Tour (WST) will relocate its World Grand Prix from the UK to Hong Kong amid ambitions to set the sport’s biggest ever live audience for a ranking tournament.

The World Grand Prix has been held in the UK since its inception in 2015, with Leicester’s Morningside Arena the setting for this year’s event on January 15-21. Today’s (Friday’s) announcement will see Hong Kong hold its first ranking event in 35 years, with the tournament handed dates of March 4-9.

The Grand Hall, Kai Tak Arena will be the new setting for the World Grand Prix. The indoor sports centre being developed at the Sports Park will have a seating capacity of up to 10,000, but the WST said a capacity of over 4,000 will be used for the World Grand Prix, which still has the potential to set a new record for a ranking tournament.

In 2022, the Hong Kong Masters saw the world’s best players congregate for a prestigious invitational event. Ronnie O’Sullivan defeated Marco Fu 6-4 in the final, which was played in front of a world record crowd of over 9,000 in the Hong Kong Coliseum. The only previous ranking event in the city was the Hong Kong Open back in 1989.

The World Grand Prix is the opening event in the Players Series, where only the most successful 32 performers of the season will earn a place. Prize money for the tournament’s move to Hong Kong will be boosted by 84% compared to last year’s total fund, rising from £380,000 (€457,000/$496,000) to £700,000. The top prize jumps from £100,000 to £180,000.

WST CEO, Simon Brownell, said: “We are hugely excited to be taking such a massive event to Hong Kong. This is a move which is in line with our strategy to have a greater distribution of snooker’s biggest tournaments around the world and further globalise the sport. Hong Kong is a territory and market of particular significance for us, and we are delighted to be utilising this new world class venue.

“Having a long-term ranking event in such a prominent global city is fantastic news for the tour. We were impressed by the levels of support at the Hong Kong Masters in 2022. The 9,000 fans in attendance for the final created a magical atmosphere.

“We would like to thank F Sports Promotions for bringing us back to Hong Kong and we look forward to working again with the Billiard Sports Council of Hong Kong China in this prestigious event.”

Today’s news comes after confirmation last month that Kai Tak Sports Park is gearing up to host the Hong Kong Sevens event from March 28-30 next year. 

Taking over hosting duties from Hong Kong Stadium, the 2025 Hong Kong Sevens, part of World Rugby’s SVNS series, will be held at the 50,000-capacity Kai Tak Stadium, the centrepiece of the Sports Park which is set to open just ahead of the three-day event.

Earlier in the month, Hong Kong property development group New World Development said it was in talks to sell its entire stake in the Kai Tak Sports Park project to its parent company, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises.