2024 German Masters

The 2024 German Masters (officially the 2024 BetVictor German Masters) was a professional snooker tournament that took place from 29 January to 4 February 2024 at the Tempodrom in Berlin, Germany. Qualifying for the tournament took place from 18 to 22 December 2023 at the Ponds Forge International Sports Centre in Sheffield, England. The 18th edition of the German Masters, first held in 1995 as the German Open, it was the twelfth ranking event of the 202324 season, following the World Grand Prix and preceding the Welsh Open. It was the seventh of eight events in the 202324 European Series. Organised by the World Snooker Tour and sponsored by BetVictor, the event was broadcast by Eurosport in Europe and by other broadcasters worldwide. The winner received the Brandon Parker Trophy and £80,000 from a total prize fund of £427,000.

Ali Carter was the defending champion, having defeated Tom Ford 103 in the previous year's final, but he lost 15 to Sam Craigie in the quarter-finals. Si Jiahui reached his first ranking event final, but Judd Trump defeated him 105 to win a record third German Masters title, the 27th ranking title of his career. It was Trump's fourth ranking title of the season, following his wins at the 2023 English Open, the 2023 Wuhan Open, and the 2023 Northern Ireland Open. He also secured the £150,000 European Series bonus for winning the most prize money in the series that season. It was the third time Trump had won the bonus, in the five seasons since it was introduced, having previously won it in the 20192020 and 202021 seasons.

The main stage of the tournament produced 46 century breaks, and the qualifying stage produced 30 centuries. Jordan Brown and Craigie shared the highest break prize, having both made 142 breaks, Brown in his qualifying match against Long Zehuang and Craigie in his last-64 match against Liam Pullen.

Format

The event took place from 29 January to 4 February 2024 at the Tempodrom in Berlin, Germany. The organisers extended the length of the main stage to seven days, versus five days for previous editions. Qualifying for the tournament took place from 18 to 22 December 2023 at the Ponds Forge International Sports Centre in Sheffield, England, although matches featuring the top eight seeds were held over to be played in Berlin.

All matches were played as the best of nine until the semi-finals, which were the best of 11 frames. The final was the best of 19 frames, played over two .

Broadcasters

The main stage of the event was broadcast by Eurosport and Discovery+ in Europe (including the United Kingdom and Ireland); , Huya and Lioaning TV in China; Now TV in Hong Kong; Astro SuperSport in Malaysia and Brunei; TrueVisions in Thailand; Sportcast in Taiwan; Premier Sports Network in the Philippines; Fastsports in Pakistan; and Matchroom.live in all other territories.

Qualifying was broadcast by Discovery+ in Europe (including the United Kingdom and Ireland); and Huya in China; and Matchroom.live in all other territories.

Prize fund

The event featured a total prize fund of £427,000 with the winner receiving £80,000. The breakdown of prize money for the event is shown below:

* Winner: £80,000
* Runner-up: £35,000
* Semi-final: £17,500
* Quarter-final: £11,000
* Last 16: £7,500
* Last 32: £4,500
* Last 64: £3,000
* Highest break: £5,000
* Total: £427,000

Summary

Qualifying

Qualifying for the tournament took place from 18 to 22 December 2023 at the Ponds Forge International Sports Centre in Sheffield, England. Qualifying matches were the best of nine frames. Lyu Haotian led Si Jiahui 40, but Si won five frames in a row, making breaks of 123, 87, 98, and 103, for a 54 victory. Yuan Sijun defeated Ding Junhui 52, despite being docked a frame after returning late from the mid-session interval. The 16th seed Jack Lisowski lost 35 to 75th seed Zak Surety. Jordan Brown defeated Long Zehuang 54, making a 142 break in the fourth frame, the highest of the qualifying stages and joint highest of the tournament. Former world champion Stuart Bingham lost 15 to the 99th seed Liam Pullen. Zhou Yuelong attempted a maximum break in the third frame against Jak Jones, but missed the 13th black; he won the match in a deciding frame. Mark Davis also attempted a maximum break in the fifth frame against Ashley Hugill, but missed the 15th black; he won 52.

Matches featuring the top eight seeds were played in Berlin on 29 January. World number one Ronnie O'Sullivan withdrew from the event for medical reasons, and was replaced by Barry Pinches. The sixth seed Mark Selby lost 15 to Marco Fu. The eighth seed Shaun Murphy lost 35 to Xu Si, who won five frames in a row, making a 131 break in the seventh. The defending champion Ali Carter won a deciding frame against Michael White. The reigning World Champion Luca Brecel lost 25 to 100th seed Ishpreet Singh Chadha, who was competing in his first season as a professional.

Early rounds

Last 64

The last-64 matches were played from 29 to 31 January as the best of nine frames. Hossein Vafaei withdrew from the event due to visa issues, and Martin Gould withdrew for medical reasons. Their respective opponents, Elliot Slessor and John Higgins, received byes to the last 32. Sam Craigie defeated Pullen 52, making a 142 break during the match, the joint highest of the tournament. Matthew Selt whitewashed Martin O'Donnell. Stephen Maguire made breaks of 53 and 107 to lead Joe O'Connor 21, but O'Connor won the match 53. Si defeated Joyce 51, making breaks of 57, 79, 87, and 140. Neil Robertson whitewashed Jimmy Robertson, making breaks of 87, 78, 135, and 86. Neil Robertson said after the match: "I need to get back to being brutal and burying opponents into the ground. I want the worst for my opponent on the table." Zhou compiled back-to-back centuries of 112 and 101 as he whitewashed Tian. Thepchaiya Un-Nooh defeated Zhang Anda, making a 74 break in the deciding frame.

The 77th seed He, competing in his first season on the tour, made centuries of 121 and 102 as he defeated two-time German Masters champion Mark Williams 51. Surety made back-to-back centuries of 136 and 114 in his 52 win over Alexander Ursenbacher. The 121st seed Andrew Pagett defeated 22nd seed Chris Wakelin 52. Tied at 33 with Matthew Stevens, Trump made breaks of 114 and 66 to secure a 53 victory. Trailing Alfie Davies 13, Fu withdrew at the mid-session internal for medical reasons; Davies received a bye to the last 32. Leclercq trailed Doherty 23, but won three frames in a row to clinch the match 53. The 59th seed Davis made breaks of 89, 66, 54, and 63 to defeat 15th seed Hawkins 51. Kyren Wilson beat Ben Woollaston 51 with breaks of 96, 129, 53, and 67. Chadha and Liu were tied at 22 at the mid-session interval, after Chadha made a 122 break and Liu a 128 in the third and fourth frames. Chadha made a 108 break in the eighth frame as he secured a 53 victory. The 23rd seed Ricky Walden and 70th seed David Lilley were tied at 44, but Lilley won the deciding frame.

Last 32

The last-32 matches were played from 31 January to 1 February as the best of nine frames. Yuan made breaks of 113, 81, 115, and 80 to defeat Pagett 51. Ryan Day beat Robert Milkins 51. The 67th seed Leclercq defeated the 39th seed Jordan Brown 51. Allen trailed O'Connor 12, but won four consecutive frames for a 52 victory. Facing Higgins, Zhou made a 127 break in the fourth frame to level the scores at 22, but Higgins won the match 53. Un-Nooh defeated Jamie Clarke 51. Craigie lost the first frame to He, but took the next five with breaks of 81, 96, 84, 61, and 50 to win 51. Trump defeated Selt 52, making breaks of 66, 97, 118, and 73. The 75th seed Surety beat 49th seed Slessor 52. Pang made breaks of 72 and 114 against defending champion Carter, but Carter won the match 52. Xu lost the first three frames against Graeme Dott, but recovered to win the match with a 114 break in the deciding frame. Neil Robertson and Kyren Wilson defeated their respective opponents Perry and Lilley 51. Fan Zhengyi made breaks of 89, 66, 51, and 77 to lead Chadha 41, and went on to win the match 52, making a 138 break in the last frame. Ford beat Davis 52.

Last 16

The last-16 matches were played on 1 February as the best of nine frames. Leclercq made a 105 break to lead Day 20, but Day took five in a row with breaks of 72, 68, 74, 87, and 54 to win 52. Carter whitewashed Surety 50. Higgins won the first three frames against Allen, making breaks of 76 and 103. Allen narrowed Higgins's lead to 32, but Higgins won two more frames to capture a 52 victory. Higgins noted after the match that he had begun working with a sport psychologist after losing 56 to Allen at the 2024 Masters. He commented: "I'm doing a few things off the table to try and get my mind right, which I've never done in my career."

Si won the first three frames against Yuan. Yuan made breaks of 87 and 101, but Si won the match 53. Trump made breaks of 110, 132, and 80 to lead Un-Nooh 40 at the mid-session interval. Having scored only one point in the first four frames, Un-Nooh won frames five and six with breaks of 53 and 74. However, Trump produced his third century of the match, a 135, to win 52. By reaching the quarter-finals, Trump secured the £150,000 European Series bonus for the most prize money in the series. This was the third season in which Trump had won the bonus, in the five seasons since it was introduced, having previously won it in the 20192020 and 202021 seasons. Trump said: "There was that added incentive, that added bit of pressure. It wasn't just a normal game." Kyren Wilson trailed Neil Robertson by two frames, but won four frames in a row with breaks of 115 and 72 to lead 42, and went on to win the match 53. Fan lost the first two frames to Ford, but won five of the next six for a 53 victory. Craigie and Xu won alternating frames to level the scores at 33 and 44. Craigie won the deciding frame with a 52 break.

Later rounds

Quarter-finals

The quarter-finals were played on 2 February as the best of nine frames. Trump and Higgins were tied at 22 at the mid-session interval, but Trump won three consecutive frames for a 52 victory, reaching his seventh ranking semi-final of the season. Trump said after the match: "For the first five or ten years, igginswas always just getting over the line. Now I am able to do the same. Along with onnie O'Sullivan he is the benchmark. If I can beat that type of player I know I'm doing well." Si lost the first frame to Day, but won five in a row with breaks of 52, 96, 72, 75, and 73 to reach the second ranking semi-final of his career, following his semi-final appearance at the 2023 World Snooker Championship.

Kyren Wilson whitewashed Fan, making a 125 break in the first frame. Craigie, who contested the third ranking quarter-final of his career, produced breaks of 71, 65, 50, and 103 to lead the defending champion Carter 40 at the mid-session interval. Carter won the fifth frame with a 90 break, but Craigie won the match 51 to reach his first ranking semi-final. In the last frame of the match, Craigie attempted a maximum break but two at the same time when he was on the 11th red; the break ended on 89. Craigie commented: "I stayed in the zone, just focusing on me. That is about it, trying to blank everything out and focus on my game."

Semi-finals

The semi-finals were played on 3 February as the best of 11 frames. Facing Si, the 2019 champion Kyren Wilson won the first two frames, making a 97 break in the first, but Si responded with breaks including 138, 90, and 55 as he won five consecutive frames. Wilson won the eighth after a lengthy , but Si took the ninth for a 63 victory. Si commented on his approach to his first ranking final: "It doesn't matter who I am playing, it's not going to change my shot selections." In the other semi-final, two-time champion Trump won four of the first five frames against Craigie. Although Craigie won the sixth frame with a 71 break, Trump made breaks of 75 and 79 to win 62 and reach his sixth ranking final of the season. Commenting on the age difference between himself and his 21-year-old opponent in the final, Trump said: "It is strange for me playing someone that young. I've come full circle. I was playing John Higgins in the World final at that age. I'm the one to be shot at now."

Final

The final was played on 4 February as the best of 19 frames, held over two , between Trump and Si, with Tatiana Woollaston

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