Mumbai: After a long time something big in snooker is about to happen.  India's biggest Pro-Am Snooker Tournament in recent years has been conceptualised and slated for the 6th of May till the 13th of May 2013 at the Khar Gymkhana, Mumbai.
 
Proudly sponsored by Ravindra Gupta of Delhi, the RKG-Khar Gymkhana Snooker Masters 2013 event shall boast of 4 top UK professionals, top 4 Indian amateurs, Pankaj Advani, Aditya Mehta, Yasin Merchant and Khar Gymkhana's wild card entry. They will be joined by 16 qualifiers from across 4 venues in India, viz, Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata and Pune.
 
This is the first time such a concept has been essayed in India and given the response from across India and the neighbouring countries, especially U.A.E. and Bahrain, who have shown keen interest in participating in the qualifiers, we expect it to be a big success, and should pave the way for many such events with the generous support of our sponsor, Ravindra Gupta.
 
The prize money is probably the biggest offered in India in recent times with the winner's purse being Rs.500,000/-, right down to the group losers going home with Rs.10,000/- guaranteed to the amateurs and Rs.25000/- guaranteed to the professionals. Two professionals, Anthony Mcgill and Jamie Jones have already verbally confirmed their participation, whilst Stephen Lee and Nigel Bond have personally expressed their desire to be a part of this tournament. We shall be getting their written confirmations soon.
 
The Chennai event kicks off on the 22nd of February, with a participation strength of almost 90 players.  Each player needs to reach the semi-finals at the venue to qualify for the main event. Once he does that he need not play the other qualifiers, whereas those who cannot make it in the first qualifying event, get three other chances.
 
Khar Gymkhana has graciously agreed to co-host the event offering their beautiful banquet hall, which can house 4 tables as the venue for this event.