Judd Trump, John Higgins, Mark Selby, Mark Williams, Shaun Murphy, Ding Junhui, Mark Allen and Cheltenham star Jack Lisowski are among the snooker kings set to appear at the Coral World Grand Prix in Cheltenham next week.

The tournament was staged in the Centaur at Cheltenham Racecourse for the first-time last year and Bristol’s Trump took the title by beating Ali Carter in the final.

And the world ranking event returns to the Gloucestershire venue from 3rd to 9th February.

Only the top 32 players from this season’s ranking list qualify for the tournament. World champion, Trump, currently tops the list, with Murphy and Selby second and third respectively. Lisowski is 13th.

There is one more qualifying event being played in Germany this week, so the final line-up won’t be confirmed until Sunday.

But the field is sure to be packed with the leading stars from around the globe, ensuring a week of outstanding action on the baize in Cheltenham.

A spokesman for WST said: “It’s building up to be a superb line-up in Cheltenham. A lot of the players outside the top 32 still have one more chance to try and jump up the ranking list and gain a place, so they could be battling until the last moment at the German Masters in Berlin. It’s all to play for!

“They all want to be in Cheltenham because as we found last year it’s a fantastic venue and a very prestigious event, with prize money of £380,000.”

The Coral World Grand Prix is the first of the Coral Series events, with the top 16 going through to the Coral Players Championship in Southport (24th February to 1st March) and then only the top eight make the Coral Tour Championship in Llandudno (17th-22nd March).

Lee Moulson, Regional Head of Sales at Cheltenham Racecourse, Jockey Club Racecourses, said: “We are thrilled to be welcoming back so many top names from the world of snooker for a second year.

“It is going to be another action-packed tournament.”

The top four seeds Judd Trump, Shaun Murphy, Mark Selby and Ding Junhui have all had their opening matches scheduled in Cheltenham while other top stars in the draw such as Ronnie O’Sullivan, John Higgins, Mark Williams, Mark Allen and Jack Lisowski will be given slots in due course.

Scheduled matches: Mark Selby v opponent (Monday 3rd February, 7pm); Ding Junhui v opponent (Tuesday 4th February, 1pm); Judd Trump v opponent (Tuesday 4th February, 7pm); Shaun Murphy v opponent (Tuesday 4th February 4th, 7pm).

Tickets are still available but are selling fast. They start at £15 with some VIP packages available from £75.

For details, call 0871 620 7052 or visit www.wst.tv/tickets