Northern Ireland Open Returns to Belfast

The Northern Ireland Open returns to the Waterfront Hall in Belfast where some of the best players in the world will be competing for the Alex Higgins Trophy. The trophy has only been won by four players since the tournament began in 2016.

Judd Trump will be trying to defend the title for a third time, and if he achieves that, it will be the fifth time he has taken the trophy home. However, there will be one person trying to stop the ‘Ace in the Pack’ from achieving this in Mark ‘The Pistol’ Allen, a local favorite.

Mark Allen has had a successful attendance at the Waterfront in recent years, and is the only person to put a stop to Judd’s reign, and subsequently prevent him from a fourth successive title back in 2021. Mark thwarted Judd’s chances then, beating his opponent five frames to three in the quarter finals,