Kyren Wilson thrashes Jak Jones 9-2 to win Northern Ireland Open

Kyren Wilson won the 2026 Northern Ireland Open snooker title on Sunday, October 25, beating Jak Jones 9-2 in the final at the Waterfront Hall in Belfast. It was the 11th ranking title of Wilson's career and his second Northern Ireland Open in three editions. The 34-year-old led 6-2 after the afternoon session and needed only three more frames in the evening to close out the best-of-17 final.

The Northern Ireland Open is one of the ranking events on the professional snooker tour, which means the prize money counts towards the world rankings. Those rankings decide seedings at major events and, most importantly, which players qualify directly for the World Championship at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield each spring. Players ranked outside the top 16 at the cut-off have to go through qualifying rounds, which are long and draining.

That is why this win matters beyond the trophy. Ranking updates published after the final described the £100,000 as a big step in Wilson's bid to secure an automatic Crucible place. A dominant final against an experienced opponent also sends a message to the rest of the tour early in the season.

For Jak Jones, reaching the final was still a strong week. He came through a tight deciding frame against Mark Williams to get there. The runner-up prize of £45,000 also adds to his ranking total. But he could not match Wilson's scoring once the final began, and the gap of 6-2 after the first session left him with too much to do.

The format explains how quickly the final turned. In a best-of-17 match, the first player to win nine frames takes the title, so a 6-2 lead after the first session meant Wilson needed only three of the remaining frames, while Jones needed seven of the remaining nine. Matches of this length are split into an afternoon and an evening session, which gives a trailing player a break to regroup, but Jones could not turn the evening into a comeback.

The semi-finals were the most dramatic part of the week, with both decided in the last frame. Wilson trailed Craigie and had to win the decider to avoid an early exit, which shows how close the margins were before his one-sided final.

Short-term: Wilson climbs the one-year and two-year ranking lists and heads into the next events on the calendar with momentum and confidence. Jones also gains ranking money from his run to the final.

Long-term: The title strengthens Wilson's chances of qualifying directly for next year's World Championship and keeps him among the contenders for the season's biggest events.

Who is affected: Kyren Wilson and Jak Jones, players fighting for top-16 places in the rankings, tournament organisers in Belfast, and snooker fans who follow the tour on television and streaming.

Questions and Answers