Luca Brecel won't be appearing at the Scottish Open in December after failing to turn up for his qualifying match against Steven Hallworth on Friday. And his absence comes in the aftermath of worrying comments he made about his health in September.
Brecel is one of the most talented snooker players on the tour. He won the World Snooker Championship in 2023 following an 18-15 victory over Mark Selby in the final at the Crucible. But he has been inconsistent in recent seasons and now dedicates some of his time to training for the 2028 Ironman triathlon, at which he is keen to compete.
He was in fine form at the World Championship in April before losing to Judd Trump in the quarter-finals, but then had an extended period away from the baize in an effort to deal with a mystery health issue that has left him feeling fatigued. And snooker fans will be desperate to see the Belgian back in action on a regular basis.
Brecel, who quit his first match of the season after just two frames last month, was due to take on Hallworth at the Robin Park Leisure Centre in Wigan. But he withdrew ahead of the match as his opponent was handed a 4-0 victory.
The 30-year-old won the Scottish Open in 2021 following a 9-5 victory over John Higgins in the showpiece match.
But he won't have the opportunity to clinch more Scottish Open silverware for at least another 14 months following his decision to skip qualifying this year.

Brecel, who is a former world No. 2, opened up about his health struggles during an interview with The Sun in September.
And the Belgian Bullet explained: "Some people have come up to me and said: 'Oh, is it mental health?' And they have tried to help. It's not my head. I'm perfectly happy. I'm fine, it's not mental.
"It's physical things in my body. Strange. I've been to the doctor many, many times. Maybe 18 times in three to four months.
"There must be something wrong. But they cannot find anything. I have to deal with it. At least I can play again. I'm happy to be at the table.
"All of a sudden it happened and no one knows what it is. Still trying to figure it out, I've still got scans to do. It's my body doing strange things.
"Obviously because I wanted to feel good first, and then compete in tournaments, so I've been waiting to feel better. And it didn't quite happen.
"So I thought, well, I'm just going to play now. Whatever happens, I'm just going to play, whatever I feel. I feel okay in the game. It's not every moment of the game, but it's good enough.
"I've not been able to do exercises obviously with all the problems. I was really at quite a good point, doing long-distance running and cycling. So, it's a bit of a pity that that happened. But obviously this is life. It's going to be ups and downs."
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