Players Championship Snooker 2023: How to watch, why is Ronnie O'Sullivan not playing, prize money, who's favourite to win and what's the draw?

Australia's Neil Robertson won last year's Players Championship but will not be able to defend his title after failing to qualify for the 2023 tournament.

The 2023 Players Championship is taking place at Aldersley Leisure Village in Wolverhampton over seven days of play on the baize.

It features 16 of the world’s best snooker players – although some of the sports most popular names are missing due to the qualification system.

Here’s who did – and didn’t make the cut – and everything else you need to know.

How can I watch the Players Championship in the UK?

In the UK, the 2023 Players Championship is available to watch live on ITV4 - just tune in to Sky channel 120, BT channel 26, or Virgin channel 118.

You can also stream the 2023 Players Championship on ITVX.

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What is the prize money?

The winner of the Players Championship will receive a cheque for £125,000, with the runner-up getting £50,000, and the semi-finalists £30,000.

The quarter-finalists get £15,000 and those who lose in the first round will still take home £10,000.

Who is playing and how did they qualify?

The seedings for the tournament were based on the one-year ranking list up to and including the 2023 Welsh Open – with the top 16 players winning a place at the tournament.

The defending champion Neil Robertson has a ranking of 20 so did not qualify.

The players battling for the Players crown, in order of seeding, are as follows.

1: Mark Allen

2: Ryan Day

3: Kyren Wilson

4: Robert Milkins

5: Ali Carter

6: Ding Junhui

7: Mark Selby

8: Luca Brecel

9: Jack Lisowski

10: Shaun Murphy

11: Gary Wilson

12: Judd Trump

13: Tom Ford

14: Zhou Yuelong

15: Chris Wakelin

16: Joe O'Connor

Why is Ronnie O’Sullivan not playing?

Ronnie O'Sullivan was one of three high profile players who failed to qualify due to not being in the top 16 rankings – along with Mark Williams and Scotland’s John Higgins.

What’s the first round draw?

Here are the eight first round matches being played from February 21-23.

Mark Allen v Joe O'Connor

Luca Brecel v Jack Lisowski

Ali Carter v Judd Trump

Robert Milkins v Tom Ford

Kyren Wilson v Zhou Yuelong

Ding Junhui v Gary Wilson

Mark Selby v Shaun Murphy

Ryan Day v Chris Wakelin

What’s the format?

All matches in the Players Championship are the best of 11 frames (first to 6), other than the final which is the best of 19 frames (first to 10).

What’s the schedule?

The last 16 games are played over three consecutive days from Monday, February 20, to the afternoon session of Wednesday, February 22.

The quarter finals will be played over four sessions from the evening session of Wednesday, February 22, to the afternoon session of Friday, February 24.

The first semi final starts at 7pm on Friday, February 24, with the second following on 7pm the next day, Saturday, February 25.

The final will take place over two sessions on Sunday, February 26.

Who is favourite to win?

Mark Allen was the initial favourite before being beaten 6-3 by Joe O'Connor in the first round.

Judd Trump is now favourite with odds of 3/1, followed by Shaun Murphy (5/1), Kyren Wilson (7/1) and Ding Junhui (9/1).