Ding Junhui's victory over Stephen Hendry in the inaugural China Open final in 2005 proved to be a watershed moment for snooker.

In the 14 years since, the sport that was invented by British Army officers in the 1870s has made China its second home.

Amid a snooker boom and an increasing number of professional tournaments being staged here, the Xingpai Group China Open has remained top of the pile.

"We have built an experienced event operation team that has been tested by elite tournaments. The expertise and standards in facility preparation, service, endorsement and promotion make sure the quality of events we are running is always world-class," said Gan Jialing, general manager of the Jiangxi-based Xingpai Sports Development Co Ltd, which operates and promotes the China Open.

"We are also making our domestic events more accessible and better organized under unified rules to facilitate talent development at the grassroots level."

This year's tournament, which runs from today until Sunday at the Olympic Sports Center Gymnasium in Beijing, features a prize pool of 1 million pounds ($1.3 million)－second only to the world championship at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, which begins later this month.

The 64-strong field will again feature the cream of the crop, including defending champion Mark Selby of England, Australian former world No 1 Neil Robertson and reigning world champion Mark Williams of Wales.

World No 9 Ding leads the dozen Chinese potters battling for big bucks and crucial ranking points ahead of the world championship.

The event's rise to snooker's top echelon reflects the inroads the sport has made in China, said Jason Ferguson, chairman of the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA).

"In 14 years, this event has become the flagship World Snooker tournament, not just in China but across Asia," Ferguson told China Daily on Thursday in Beijing.

"It holds a crucial position on our calendar with every round counting to the ranking and seeding for the world championship. It's a testament to our sport's growth here."

With its commercial appeal waning in Britain, snooker is increasingly looking to China to expand.

Under a joint effort between the WPBSA, the Chinese Billiards and Snooker Association and Xingpai, China now hosts four of the 19 ranking events and two invitational tournaments on the World Snooker Tour. Among the 128 players on the tour, 24 are from the Chinese mainland, the second highest representation behind England (55).

At grassroots level, snooker and pool enjoy mass popularity, with big cities brimming with billiards clubs and smaller cities even featuring outdoor pool tables.

According to the CBSA, China has around 60 million snooker amateurs, among which 25 million play regularly.

Ferguson, a former pro player from Nottinghamshire, England, revealed the WPBSA is not planning to bring any more tour events to China for the time being but wants to help expand the nation's domestic circuit and talent cultivation system as a priority.

"It's about sustainable development and producing quality," said the 49-year-old. "If we start putting on smaller events everywhere it will obviously dilute the quality and the resources－this is a concern.

"What we need to do is to get the second tier－the CBSA tour－to travel around the country to deliver the opportunity to find talent to feed the world tour."

Xingpai Group, whose businesses span the sports, real-estate and health sectors, is playing a critical role in promoting billiard sports at both the elite and grassroots levels.

While Xingpai Sports is the only company in the world operating three major events－the China Open, the Chinese Pool World Championship and the Yushan World Open (another World Snooker ranking event)－on the same calendar year.

"With increasing investment and support from the public, snooker will be growing faster in popularity than ever and I hope more and more people will get involved in the sport," said Gan.

"Hosting major international tournaments like the China Open will develop more rising local stars and help China become a powerhouse in the sport."

The WPBSA is delighted to have Xingpai on board.

"To have the support from Xingpai has been very complementary to that partnership with China," said Ferguson. "It's not just about major events and one or two big stars, it's about how can we provide the opportunity and inspiration to the rest of the nation, and in fact the rest of the world, that they can also achieve in our sport."

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