Nuessle, Hallworth and Highfield Secure World Snooker Tour Cards
Yesterday at 12:44 PM
Florian Nuessle, Steven Hallworth and Liam Highfield have each earned two-year World Snooker Tour tour cards after successfully coming through the WPBSA Q Tour Global Play-Offs in Antalya, Türkiye.
Nuessle makes history for Austria by becoming the first player from the nation to become a professional snooker player after defeating Estonia’s Andres Petrov 10-3 in the play-off final.
Meanwhile, Hallworth and Highfield secured emotional returns to the World Snooker Tour after an absence of three and one years respectively.
The event was held alongside the EBSA European Championships in Antalya, Türkiye from 11-13 March 2025. Read below to find out how each section unfolded.
NUESSLE MAKES HISTORY FOR AUSTRIA
Austria’s Florian Nuessle defeated Estonia’s Andres Petrov 10-3 to make history by becoming the first ever World Snooker Tour professional from his country.
The popular 23-year-old cueist finally secured professional status for the first time in his career after a number of near-misses in recent years.
It proved to be a comfortable final round victory for the Austrian as he took a 6-3 lead into the concluding session before confidently winning all four frames of the afternoon to run out a 10-3 victor.
The early stages of the contest were closely fought with the two players sharing the first four frames. A run of four consecutive frames, featuring breaks of 54, 86 and 80 then saw Nuessle pull away and open up a four frame advantage.
The Austrian, who had earlier eliminated Josh Thomond and Ehsan Heydari Nezhad to reach the play-off final, quickly moved one away from victory and showed impressive composure to fire in a break of 108 when it mattered the most.
Following the landmark moment in his career, a visibly emotional Nuessle reflected: “I feel happy and relieved. I am happy for my family because they have supported me all the way and it wouldn’t be possible without them, but the biggest part was proving it to myself because I am my harshest critic.”
“I think I held myself together well and did the right things at the right moments which hasn’t always been the case in the past. (The near-misses) were definitely on my mind – I’ve heard all the stories of players not being able to get over the line and you don’t want that kind of feeling to be carried around with you for too long because it gets heavier and heavier.”
“I hope this will help to elevate Austrian snooker. I have had many experiences on the tour already and I think I can go on and, not only stay on tour, but do some damage and hopefully win titles.”
HALLWORTH SECURES RETURN
England’s Steven Hallworth defeated fellow countryman Mark Joyce 10-5 to earn a two-year World Snooker Tour card in Antalya, Türkiye.
Hallworth started the strongest in the battle of the two former professionals by racing into a 2-0 lead and ending the first session with a 113 break to open up a 6-3 advantage.
The 29-year-old, who will return to the professional ranks after a three-year absence, took the first two frames of the afternoon session but Joyce hit back to take the next two and reduce the deficit to 8-5 at the mid-session interval.
Two close frames followed but Hallworth was able to hold his nerve and come from behind in both to complete an emotional 10-5 victory.
Hallworth was close to tears after the match and said: “It’s just pure relief. The amateur circuit is tough and there have been moments over the past couple of years where I didn’t believe that I would ever get back on but I showed my class today which was pleasing.”
“I ‘ve got a lot going on off the table and I am in a really good place in my life – my wife and I have actually just got back from our honeymoon last week. I would never be one to come into a tournament without practicing all the hours under the sun so I was a little bit anxious coming here but I have felt really relaxed and focused and I fancied the job” he added.
Hallworth has taken to snooker commentary in recent months but explained: “It will certainly have to go on the back burner now because I want to be a snooker player. I have enjoyed doing it because it has kept me involved with the professional game. I’ve never watched so much snooker in my life and I’m watching the best players in the world all the time so I’m picking up little bits – you’re never too old to learn.”
Looking ahead to the next two years, he said: “Hopefully on the tour I can find some consistency and get on a few runs. I set myself some goals this season and I’ve just achieved my main goal. We’ll see what happens. I’m not going to spout off all these mad dreams – we’ve all got dreams and I’m happy to keep them with me.”
HIGHFIELD BOUNCES BACK
England’s Liam Highfield overcame Ukraine’s Iulian Boiko 10-3 to secure a return to the World Snooker Tour after a one-year absence.
The 34-year-old ended a 14-year unbroken spell among the professional ranks at the end of last season, but showed impressive form across the week to drop just six frames in three matches and earn his return.
Highfield showed his scoring prowess in the previous days semi-final, firing in six breaks over 70 to defeat Harvey Chandler 6-2, and he followed this up with an impressive display against Boiko in the play-off final.
Five half-century breaks saw the Englishman storm into a 7-2 lead at the conclusion of the opening session and, from there, there was only one winner as he took three of the next four frames to get over the line.
Post-match, Highfield said: “I am over the moon to bounce back within a year. It looks really comfortable but, when you’re out there, it doesn’t feel that way.”
“I think I am back where I belong. I broke my wrist which was a big setback at the beginning of last season but I had got into some bad habits and maybe wasn’t working as hard as I should have. Sometimes in the past I’ve been guilty of throwing a few matches away and not thinking great but I think I’m through that now” he said.
Highfield added: “I’m a bit older and a bit wiser and this is the second part of my career now. I’ve done a lot of learning over the previous 14 years and hopefully I’ll move on to bigger and better things. I’ve got a good few years left in the game so I would like to win a title one day.”
The WPBSA would like to thank the European Billiards & Snooker Association (EBSA) and Turkish Billiards Federation (TBF) for their support with running the 2025 WPBSA Q Tour Global Play-Offs.
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