Who has qualified for Players Championship snooker? Will Ronnie O'Sullivan and Mark Williams play?

The race to qualify for the elite Players Championship took another dramatic twist on Tuesday at the Welsh Open. Only the top 16 on the sport's one-year ranking list qualify for the Players Championship which breaks off at Aldersley Leisure Village in Wolverhampton (February 20-26) after the conclusion of the Welsh Open on Sunday evening. Ad Neil Robertson is the defending Players champion, but has not done enough to secure his spot in this year's tournament as a result of losing 4-0 to the evergreen Dominic Dale in the second round in Llandudno on Tuesday afternoon.

Welsh OpenWelsh Open LIVE — Trump, Higgins, White and O'Sullivan all in action in blockbuster dayAN HOUR AGO The Australian added 3,000 points to his overall total, but remains 1,500 points short of Barry Hawkins – the man he defeated 10-5 in last year's Players Championship final – who occupies the 16th and final spot in the standings. Hawkins meets Ben Woollaston in the last 64 of the Welsh Open on Wednesday afternoon looking to cement his spot among the qualifiers. “You have to give all credit to Dominic, he played incredibly well,” said Robertson.

“I have won 30 major tournaments in my career. «It doesn’t impact my preparation for the next event. It means I can have more time on the practice table and watch [my son] Alexander’s football over the weekend.” Three-time world champion Mark Williams faces a sweat to find out if he will be participating in Wolverhampton after suffering a surprise 4-3 defeat to world No.

53 Jak Jones on Tuesday evening. Williams holds 15th spot, but his position looks precarious with a number of players chasing a deep run at Venue Cymru that could knock Williams out of the running. Shoot Out winner Chris Wakelin lost 4-2 to