Disgraced snooker ace Chang Bingyu walked away with a whopping £172,000 for his efforts in World Championship qualifying, despite failing to book his spot in the main draw. The Chinese potter was up against former Crucible champion Luca Brecel when he compiled a maximum 147 break.
How Chang Bingyu Secured the Bonus
The World Snooker Tour had been dangling a bumper bonus in front of players for achieving two 147 breaks across the World Championship, UK Championship, Masters and Saudi Arabia Masters throughout the season. A £147,000 windfall was handed to Ronnie O'Sullivan earlier in the campaign when he remarkably put together two maximums in the very same match at the Saudi Arabia Masters.
Chang's achievement wasn't quite as breathtaking, though he did enter World Championship qualifying with one 147 already under his belt in the required tournaments. He had reached the milestone during the UK Championship qualifying stage, before repeating the feat in his clash against Brecel.
No further 147 breaks were recorded during the remainder of the tournament proper, as Wu Yize defeated Shaun Murphy in the final on Sunday. As a result, Chang collected an additional £15,000 for the highest break prize. The ultimate prize for Chang would have been a place in the World Championship main draw, but he was beaten 10-8.
Comeback After Match-Fixing Ban
It represented a welcome comeback for a player who recently completed a 20-month ban following his involvement in a match-fixing scandal. He was among 10 Chinese players caught up in the controversy, yet was handed one of the lighter suspensions, alongside 2025 champion Zhao Xintong, after it was established he had not personally fixed a match.
Chang has been earning widespread acclaim since his return, with 2026 finalist Shaun Murphy having praised the youngster after a recent Welsh Open meeting. The Magician was defeated by Chang in a stunning display.
He told TNT Sports at the time: "That was as good as anything I've ever witnessed in my 35 years playing snooker. I've always said that if your opponent doesn't miss, you can't win, and today I was proved right."
Meanwhile, in a separate BBC Wales interview, Murphy added: "That's the best performance in a best-of-seven match that I've ever seen. If that were Ronnie O'Sullivan or Judd Trump, it would be on the news. It was quite literally the best performance I've ever witnessed in a match of that length. I mean, you can copy and paste my comments from last week from the Players Championship. It's another absolutely outstanding performance from an opponent against me this season. I've got nothing but good things to say about it - what a performance and what a player."
