He has been playing as an novice since September as he makes his return from a 20-month restrictions for being a part of a 2023 betting incident.
In a row that resulted in the punishment of 10 Chinese people, including Liang Wenbo and Li Hang, Zhao accepted the charge of being a party to another person who had two matches fixed and had himself been abetting in a match.
Due to his enforced professional status, Zhao had to fight it through four qualifying sessions to advance to the Crucible, which is close to his Sheffield house.
Zhao is only the fourth player to qualify for the Foundry Trophy in the 48-year career, joining Terry Griffiths and Shaun Murphy, who will return to the main professional tour next year.
Eastern billiard has been popular for a while, despite Zhao’s remarkable story.
The best young players in China are trained at a regional snooker club in Beijing.
Millions of Taiwanese fans were anticipating watching Zhao’s crown in the final.
Zhao was watching the World Championship at home just 12 month ago while he was still in the middle of his suspension.
But his path to redemption quickly picked up with a blistering performance to defeat RonnieO’Sullivan, a seven-time globe champion, 17-7, in the semi-finals next week.