The Snooker Triple Crown: World, UK and Masters, and Who Has Won All Three
The Triple Crown is snooker's three biggest events: the World Championship, the UK Championship and the Masters. A player who has won all three in a career is a Triple Crown winner, and only 11 have done it.
The record: Ronnie O'Sullivan with 23 Triple Crown titles (7 world, 8 UK, 8 Masters). Chinese players have won all three events between them, but no Chinese player has won all three alone; Zhao Xintong is one Masters title away.
There are more than twenty professional events a season, but they do not carry the same weight. The Triple Crown events have the longest history, the biggest stage and the most television coverage, and a player's standing is judged first by them. Here is how they compare, and who has won all three.
The three events compared
| World Championship | UK Championship | Masters | |
|---|---|---|---|
| First held | 1927 | 1977 | 1975 |
| Venue | Crucible Theatre, Sheffield (since 1977) | York | Alexandra Palace, London |
| Status | Ranking event | Ranking event | Invitation event, no ranking points |
| Field | 32 at the Crucible: the top 16 seeds plus 16 qualifiers | Top 16 seeded into the main stage; the rest qualify | Only 16: the world top 16 after the UK Championship |
| Final | Best of 35 frames over two days | Best of 19 | Best of 19 (earlier rounds best of 11) |
| Winner's prize | £625,000 in 2027 (fund £3,000,000) | £312,500 in 2026 (fund £1,502,500) | 2027 not yet announced; £350,000 in 2026 |
| 2026/27 dates | 17 April – 3 May 2027 | 28 November – 6 December 2026 | 10–17 January 2027 |
The most recent champions: Mark Selby beat Judd Trump 10–8 in the 2025 UK Championship final; Kyren Wilson beat John Higgins 10–6 to win the 2026 Masters, at his third Masters final; and Wu Yize beat Shaun Murphy 18–17 on the deciding frame of the 2026 World Championship final, becoming the second Chinese world champion. Prize money for every event this season is in snooker prize money 2026/27.
Which is the most prestigious?
The World Championship, without argument. It is the oldest and the longest, from best-of-19 first-round matches to a best-of-35 final across seventeen days, so it tests stamina and nerve as well as skill. It also pays the most: the world champion's £625,000 is twice the UK champion's prize. A player's place in history is judged first by world titles.
Whether the UK Championship or the Masters comes second is an old argument, because they are strong in different ways:
- The UK Championship is a ranking event, and after the World Championship it carries the most ranking points of the season.
- The Masters invites only the top 16, so every match is between elite players and there are no easy draws, which is why many call it the hardest of the three to win. Its last winner's prize, £350,000, was also bigger than the UK Championship's at the time. But it is an invitation event, so none of its prize money counts for the rankings (see how snooker rankings work).
That leaves a nice quirk: winning the Masters can pay more than winning the UK Championship and not move a player's ranking at all, while the ranking after the UK Championship is what decides who plays in the Masters.
The 11 Triple Crown winners
| Player | Total | World | UK | Masters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ronnie O'Sullivan | 23 | 7 | 8 | 8 |
| Stephen Hendry | 18 | 7 | 5 | 6 |
| Steve Davis | 15 | 6 | 6 | 3 |
| Mark Selby | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| John Higgins | 9 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
| Mark Williams | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| Neil Robertson | 6 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| Alex Higgins | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Judd Trump | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Shaun Murphy | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Terry Griffiths | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Counted up to and including the 2026 World Championship (so including the 2025 UK Championship and the 2026 Masters).
O'Sullivan's 23 Triple Crown titles are the record, and unusually evenly spread: 7, 8 and 8. Only three players have won all three in a single season: Steve Davis, Stephen Hendry, and Mark Williams in 2002/03.
One title short
Several current players need just one more:
- Kyren Wilson: World Championship 2024 and Masters 2026; needs the UK Championship.
- Stuart Bingham: World Championship 2015 and Masters 2020; needs the UK Championship.
- Mark Allen: Masters 2018 and UK Championship 2022; needs the World Championship.
- Zhao Xintong: UK Championship 2021 and World Championship 2025; needs the Masters.
- Ding Junhui: UK Championship three times and Masters 2011; needs the World Championship, where his best is runner-up to Mark Selby in 2016.
The 2026 UK Championship and the 2027 Masters could both produce a 12th Triple Crown winner.
Chinese players and the Triple Crown
Chinese players have won eight Triple Crown titles between them, at all three events:
| Player | Triple Crown titles |
|---|---|
| Ding Junhui | UK Championship 2005, 2009, 2019; Masters 2011 |
| Zhao Xintong | UK Championship 2021; World Championship 2025 |
| Yan Bingtao | Masters 2021 |
| Wu Yize | World Championship 2026 |
Ding's UK Championship win in 2005, at 18, beating Steve Davis in the final, was China's first Triple Crown title; twenty years later Zhao Xintong won China's first world title. No Chinese player has yet completed the set, and Zhao is closest: a top-16 player, he should be at the Masters in January 2027 with the chance to become the first Chinese Triple Crown winner. The rise of this generation is told in our Chinese article on China's golden era of snooker.
Follow the Triple Crown events live
Our snooker section updates scores, results and the schedule every hour during events, with player pages for the top 16 and the full 2026/27 calendar.
See the 2026/27 calendar →FAQ
What are the three Triple Crown events in snooker?
The World Championship, the UK Championship and the Masters.
Who has won the most Triple Crown titles?
Ronnie O'Sullivan, with 23: seven World Championships, eight UK Championships and eight Masters titles.
How many players have won the Triple Crown?
Eleven, counted up to the 2026 World Championship: O'Sullivan, Hendry, Steve Davis, Selby, John Higgins, Mark Williams, Robertson, Alex Higgins, Trump, Murphy and Terry Griffiths.
Has anyone won all three in one season?
Yes, three players: Steve Davis, Stephen Hendry, and Mark Williams in 2002/03.
Why does the Masters not count for the rankings?
It is an invitation event for the top 16 only. If its prize money counted, the top 16 would get an extra chance to earn ranking money every season that nobody else has, which would entrench the rankings, so no invitation event counts.
Related reading: Snooker Prize Money 2026/27 · How Snooker Rankings Work · How Long Is a Snooker Match? · Snooker Tour Cards and Q School · Snooker scores and results
Sources: Triple Crown winners counted from the Wikipedia lists of World Championship, UK Championship and Masters finals, cross-checked against our own winners tables, up to the 2026 World Championship; prize money from WST event pages (checked 9 November 2026); 2026/27 dates from the WST calendar. This article contains no sponsored or affiliate links.