Jak Jones' career earnings as qualifier bids for £500k in World Snooker Championship final

Jak Jones is in uncharted territory at the World Snooker Championship, with a dream run to the final guaranteeing him by far the biggest payday of his 14-year professional career. Even if the Welshman falls short against Kyren Wilson, his career earnings will be catapulted to new heights as a result of his Crucible exploits.

Jones, who earned his spot at the World Snooker Championship by coming through qualifying, has produced several shock results at this year's tournament. Si Jiahui was dispatched in the second round before a huge victory over Judd Trump in the quarter-finals.

And despite making a dismal start against Stuart Bingham in the semis, Jones rallied to win 17-12 and reach the first major final of his career. The lucrative prize money on offer at the Crucible means Jones is in for a bumper cash injection regardless of how he fares against Wilson.

The winner banks a mind-boggling £500,000, with the runner-up pocketing £200,000. Another seismic win for Jones would see him more than double his career earnings.

Having turned professional in 2010, Jones banked less than £10,000 in total across the first five seasons of his career. Things soon began to trend upwards, however, and his best season came in 2022/23, when he finished with £84,000 in prize money.

Overall, CueTracker claim that the 30-year-old has banked just over £377,000. Reaching the final therefore guarantees him a life-changing sum of money.

And while 2020 finalist Wilson would also love to get his hands on the trophy, and the winner's prize pot, for the first time, the impact it would have on his £2.8million career earnings would not be so drastic.

"It will take a while to sink in properly," said Jones, whose run to the final will see him move into the world's top 16, after his win over Bingham. "I'll just give it my all in the final and see what happens.

"The long formats kind of suit me. But it's the biggest tournament in the world and I seem to do better here than anywhere else, so it obviously brings something out in me."

Having stayed on at the Crucible until the small hours of Sunday morning after his late-night Bingham victory, Jones made a poor start to the final on Sunday as he trailed Wilson 4-0 by the first mid-session interval.