The 2009–10 season was Zhang's first professional season on the tour. His first match was a 2–5 defeat to Craig Steadman in the first qualifying round of the Shanghai Masters.&lt;ref name="09/10"&gt;&lt;/ref&gt; His first wins came over Ben Woollaston (5–3) and Jin Long (5–2) during qualifying for the Grand Prix. He was then eliminated by Welshman Dominic Dale 0–5.