The 1997 European Open was the 1997 edition of the European Open snooker tournament, held from 23 February to 2 March 1997 at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, Valletta, Malta.
In the semi-finals Higgins defeated James Wattana and Parrott beat Ken Doherty.
The tournament was the seventh of ten WPBSA ranking events in the 1996/1997 season, following the International Open and preceding the Thailand Open.
Held in February, the International Open was won by Stephen Hendry, who defeated Tony Drago by nine frames to one (9–1) in the final.
[1] In the best-of-17 final Higgins defeated Parrott 9–5 to win his sixth ranking title, earning £60,000 in prize money.