Posted by: vidcapper 14th January 2020, 02:17 PM
QUOTE(Mack. @ Jan 13 2020, 09:12 PM) 
A thread to discuss all things snooker related such as tournaments, debates and news and anything to with the world of snooker in 2020.
Good on you, Neil
Good on Neil, the news from Australia is difficult to watch.
I noticed the Masters were starting soon. Looking forward to catching a session or two as I am back at work soon.
World Snooker has been rebranded:
https://wst.tv/wst-brand-relaunch-for-snooker-as-part-of-global-vision/
Ronnie O'Sullivan's decision to pull out of the Masters is a "waste" and a call the seven-time champion will come to view as a career mistake, says World Snooker Tour chairman Barry Hearn.
The Masters Odds: (Coral)
Judd Trump 5/2f
Neil Robertson 9/2
Mark Selby 6/1
John Higgins 10/1
Mark Allen 10/1
Ding Junhui 11/1
Kyren Wilson 18/1
Stuart Bingham 18/1
Shaun Murphy 20/1
Mark Williams 22/1
David Gilbert 28/1
Jack Lisowski 28/1
Barry Hawkins 33/1
Stephen Maguire 45/1
Ali Carter 66/1
Joe Perry 66/1
Live coverage of the Masters will be on BBC and Eurosport.
Mark Selby and Ding Junhui suffered shock defeats in their opening matches of this year's Masters in London.
Ali Carter was a replacement for Ronnie O'Sullivan, who chose not to play in the tournament, and led 3-1 before falling 4-3 behind.
But he won three frames in a row to claim a 6-3 victory to eliminate three-time champion Selby.
Ding arrived at the tournament having won the UK Championship in York last month but was beaten 6-3 by Joe Perry.
Judd Trump was knocked out in the Masters first round with a 6-3 defeat by Shaun Murphy.
World number one Trump, 30, made three century breaks to take a 3-2 lead over Murphy, the 2015 Masters winner.
But Murphy edged the next three frames, including breaks of 77 and 52, before easing through the final frame to set up a quarter-final meeting with number 15 seed Joe Perry.
Later, two-time Masters champion John Higgins beat Barry Hawkins 6-1.
Scotland's Higgins will play Ali Carter in the quarter-finals.
Ali Carter never hit the yellow at all.
Someone is being kicked out of the snooker for using a whoopie cushion and the commentators are livid. Absolute scenes.
Stuart Bingham became the oldest Masters winner by defeating Ali Carter 10-8 in a thrilling and fluctuating final at Alexandra Palace.
Bingham, 43, claimed his second Triple Crown event title to go alongside his 2015 World Championship win.
Carter turned around a 5-3 deficit to lead 7-5, but world number 14 Bingham showed tremendous bottle to fight back.
He sealed victory with a nerveless break of 109 - his first century of the tournament coming in the final frame.
Bingham becomes the 24th different name on the Paul Hunter Trophy, collecting a record £250,000 winner's prize money.
Neil Robertson leads Zhou Yuelong 8-0 after the first session in the European Masters final.
Neil Robertson completes a 9-0 victory over Zhou Yuelong to claim the European Masters title.
The China Open has been postponed due to the coronavirus.
First Round Draw for the World Grand Prix
Judd Trump ( 1 ) v Li Hang ( 32 )
Kyren Wilson ( 16 ) v Jack Lisowski ( 17 )
John Higgins ( 9 ) v Stuart Bingham ( 24 )
Yan Bingtao ( 8 ) v Zhoa Xintong ( 25 )
Neil Robertson ( 5 ) v Michael Holt ( 28 )
Mark Williams ( 12 ) v Barry Hawkins ( 21 )
Joe Perry ( 13 ) v Ali Carter ( 20 )
Ding Junhui ( 4 ) v Scott Donaldson ( 29 )
Mark Selby ( 3 ) v Xiao Guodong ( 30 )
Graeme Dott ( 14 ) v Kurt Maflin ( 19 )
Dave Gilbert ( 11 ) v Ronnie O'Sullivan ( 22 )
Mark Allen ( 6 ) v Liang Wenbo ( 27 )
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh ( 7 ) v Matthew Selt ( 26 )
Stephen Maguire ( 10 ) v Tom Ford ( 23 )
Zhou Yuelong ( 15 ) v Gary Wilson ( 18 )
Shaun Murphy ( 2 ) v Matthew Stevens ( 31 )
Ronnie O'Sullivan just sneaking past Dave Gilbert 4-3 with Tom Ford also coming back from 3-1 down to beat Stephen Maguire 4-3.
Mark Selby and Mark Allen both out to Chinese opposition in Xiao Guodong and Liang Wenbo.
Graeme Dott reached Sunday's World Grand Prix final in Cheltenham with a 6-4 win over England's Tom Ford.
The 42-year-old world number 21, world champion in 2006, lost 6-4 to eventual winner Judd Trump in last week's German Masters semi-final.
But after beating Ronnie O'Sullivan 5-3 in the last eight, Dott, who sealed the last of his two ranking titles in 2007, made a 103 en route to victory.
Neil Robertson reached his third ranking final in as many weeks with a hard-fought 6-4 win over Kyren Wilson at the World Grand Prix in Cheltenham.
Judd Trump reached the second round of the Welsh Open thanks to a 4-1 win over James Cahill.
The world champion eased to victory after opening with a break of 132 against fellow Englishman Cahill.
Wales' Mark Williams progressed thanks to a 4-1 win over Oliver Lines, while Mark Selby beat David Grace 4-2.
A good result for Ronnie in his quest to make the Players Champs as Gary Wilson lost. Ronnie could play Jack Lisowski in the last 16, he is just above Ronnie in the race for that top 16 slot.
As things stand
15 - Kyren Wilson - 102.500
16 - Gary Wilson ( out ) - 91,000
17 - Tom Ford ( out ) - 83,250
18 - Jack Lisowski - 82,750
19 - Ronnie O'Sullivan - 81,000
That is including prize money guaranteed from this event so far. Ronnie needs at least a semi final place at the moment and hope that somebody just behind him doesn't win it.
When Ronnie O'Sullivan is in the mood for winning, he's almost unplayable
Ronnie through to the semi-finals of the Welsh Open after beating Mark Selby 5-1.
Well played by Murphy, deserved to win and he has been joined by Yan Bingtao in the semis after he beat Higgins 5-2.
Kyren Wilson beat Ronnie O'Sullivan 6-5 to book his place in Sunday's Welsh Open final in Cardiff.
O'Sullivan had hoped to win a fifth Welsh Open title in Cardiff, his last crown there coming in 2016.
But at the end of a tussle that went down to the final frame, Wilson edged the contest against his English compatriot.
Wilson will play Shaun Murphy in the final after he beat China's Yan Bingtao 6-5 in the other semi-final.
Shame for Yan Bingtao but he’s now turned 20 and he already has a ranking title under his belt. He’s got a great future that’s for sure.
3-0 now to Shaun Murphy in the Welsh Open Final.
Shaun Murphy leads 4-0 at the first interval against Kyren Wilson.
Murphy 7-1 up against Kyren Wilson in the Welsh Open Final.
From the Snooker Shootout:
According to someone on snooker.org
Yan Bingtao v Joe Perry that will be an intriguing match in the Players Championship quarterfinals.
Judd Trump has become the first player to win six ranking titles in a single season by taking the Gibraltar Open.
Tour Championship Draw
1 Judd Trump v 8 John Higgins
4 Neil Robertson v 5 Ding Junhui
3 Mark Selby v 6 Yan Bingtao
2 Shaun Murphy v 7 Mark Allen
Statement from World Snooker...
Following today’s advice from the UK Government, there will be no access for fans at this week’s Coral Tour Championship.
At 5pm today the government advised the public to avoid pubs, clubs, theatres and other such social venues. We have reacted to this advice with the decision to close the doors at Venue Cymru in Llandudno to all fans.
We realise this will be disappointing to fans but we must act according to the latest government advice.
Snooker's Tour Championship in Llandudno has been postponed over coronavirus fears.
World snooker had hoped to run the event for the world's top eight players behind closed doors at Venue Cymru.
On the morning of the tournament however they accepted it could no longer go ahead after latest UK government advice.
They now provisionally hope to stage the event due to run from 17-22 March at the same venue from 21-26 July.
Willie Thorne, one of snooker's most popular figures, is to undergo chemotherapy treatment after being diagnosed with leukaemia.
Snooker players will likely be "unemployed for four or five months" in the wake of the World Championship postponement, says world number 23 Scott Donaldson.
The coronavirus outbreak has postponed the final ranking event of the season.
Donaldson says it is likely to be "very uncertain" over the coming months.
"For those down the ranking list, they have families to feed - it is going to hit them," the Scot told BBC Scotland.
"I was guaranteed £10,000 just for participating in the event, it's a lot of money.
"Before that you had the China Open, which was cancelled as well, so the two biggest tournaments of the season are off the calendar now. All the snooker boys are unemployed now for about four or five months."
The World Championship could take place at the time the Olympics were due to be held. The Crucible has provisionally been booked from 22/7 to 10/8. Whether that is with or without a live audience is another question. It would probably suit the BBC as it will help to fill the hours they would have devoted to the Olympics.
As it's a quiet sport,snooker wouldn't be much different without an audience. The players and umpire could keep six feet apart. It could be the first sport to come back.
A look at the matches, BBC will be showing:
Saturday 18 April (15:00): Steve Davis v Tony Knowles - 1982, first round.
Sunday 19 April (14:00): Ray Reardon v Alex Higgins - 1982, final.
Followed by a documentary on Alex Higgins from 17:00-18:00.
Monday 20 April (14:00): Steve Davis v Jimmy White - 1984, final.
Tuesday 21 April (14:00): Neil Robertson v Mark Selby - 2014, semi-final.
Wednesday 22 April (14:00): Steve Davis v Joe Johnson - 1986, final.
Thursday 23 April (14:00): Jimmy White v Stephen Hendry - 1988, second round.
Friday 24 April (14:00): Stephen Hendry v Jimmy White - 1992, final.
Saturday 25 April (12:30): Stephen Hendry v Jimmy White - 1994, final.
Sunday 26 April (14:00): Stephen Hendry v Ronnie O'Sullivan - 2002, semi-final.
Monday 27 April (13:45): Peter Ebdon v Matthew Stevens - 2002, semi-final
Tuesday 28 April (13:45): Ken Doherty v Paul Hunter - 2003, semi-final.
Wednesday 29 April (13:45): Shaun Murphy v Matthew Stevens - 2007, quarter-final.
Thursday 30 April (13:45): John Higgins v Judd Trump - 2011, final.
Friday 1 May (13:45): Ronnie O'Sullivan v Barry Hawkins - 2013, final.
Saturday 2 May (12:30): Neil Robertson v Judd Trump - 2014, quarter-final.
Sunday 3 May (13:00): Steve Davis v Dennis Taylor - 1985, final.
Monday 4 May (13:45): Judd Trump v Stuart Bingham - 2015, semi-final.
The World Snooker Championship, originally set to take place in April and May, has been rescheduled to start on 31 July at the Crucible Theatre.
The event was postponed on 20 March because of the coronavirus pandemic.
It will run for 17 days and be broadcast in full across BBC TV and online.
The World Snooker Tour (WST) says it will assess "government advice at the time" about the number of spectators allowed inside the Sheffield venue.
My guess is that the World Championship will be played behind closed doors. The chances of a full crowd being allowed must be very close to zero and the logistics of deciding which tickets can be used and which ticket-holders are told they can't come would surely be too much hassle.
Former world champion Peter Ebdon has announced his retirement from snooker because of a chronic neck injury.
The 49-year-old won the World Championship title in 2002 - beating Stephen Hendry 18-17 in the final - and won eight other ranking events, including the 2006 UK Championship.
He has made the decision to retire in order to avoid spinal surgery.
Snooker will resume in the UK on 1 June with its first tournament since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Championship League event is to be be staged behind closed doors at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes.
All players, staff, and contractors will be tested before entering the venue, and will be kept in isolation until their results are known.
Players will require a negative test in order to be eligible.
Not a bad development there, let's hope for minimal to no hitches!
It'll be interesting to see what happens. Depends though if they have permission from the Government to resume.
3-0/3-0/3-0 or 9-0 either way just another day at the office for Ronnie, first to do this, this week.
Ben Woolaston and Stuart Bingham through tonight in their respective groups.
Stuart Bingham beat Ronnie O’Sullivan 3-0 in the crucial match in Group C of the Matchroom.Live Championship League to book a place in the Tournament Finals.
The final group to decide the winner of the Championship League are:
Stuart Bingham
Ben Woollaston
Ryan Day
Luca Brecel
Luca Brecel takes the first frame in the opening group match final against Bingham.
Luca Brecel took the opening match against Stuart Bingham 3-0.
Some costly mistakes from Ryan Day, such as a missed black off the spot and also a pink off the spot!
He eventually stops the cueball going in off with his chalk, concedes and Ben Woollaston is level!
Now 2-1 to Woollaston.
Ding Junhui has withdrawn from this month's Tour Championship as a "safety precaution" and to "avoid extensive travel" from China.
The World Snooker Tour was working with the government to secure Ding an exemption from the 14-day quarantine policy for those arriving in the UK.
But the 33-year-old has decided not to travel, with his place in the eight-man event going to Scot Stephen Maguire.
Snooker chief Jason Ferguson has confirmed his sport has no intention of reducing the size of this year's World Championship following the sport's successful return from coronavirus lockdown this week.
Eleven days of action in the Championship League in Milton Keynes saw Belgium's Luca Brecel emerge victorious late on Thursday night in one of the first domestic events to battle through the restrictions.
The rearranged World Championship is set to start behind closed doors at the Crucible at the end of July and Ferguson, who is chairman of the sport's governing body, the WPBSA, is adamant its integrity will remain intact.
Ferguson told the PA news agency: "One hundred and forty-four players will start out for the World Championship, and the challenge is to ensure the access is there for every player.
"We are working closely with the government, through our all-party parliamentary group, on how we can make these processes of quarantine work and we're waiting on the next stage of reopening as well.
"Whether or not we get huge crowds, the idea is to make sure that the World Championship is a true World Championship, that can be contested at the highest level with all the players who have earned the right to be there."
Former snooker star and BBC commentator Willie Thorne has been placed into an induced coma in hospital after suffering respiratory failure.
The 66-year-old, who was diagnosed with leukaemia in March, was taken to hospital in Spain last week with dangerously low blood pressure.
Thorne reached two World Championship quarter-finals during his career.
A GoFundMe page set up to help pay for Thorne's treatment had passed £17,000 by Tuesday afternoon.
Stephen Maguire leads Neil Robertson 3-1 at the interval.
The opening match of the Tour Championship has seen breaks of 108, 100, 86 and 58.
What a fantastic performance from Stephen Maguire today. Didn’t qualify for this tournament originally and replaced Ding and played out of his skin! 6 century breaks and is through to the semi finals after beating Neil Robertson 9-5!
Judd Trump currently 4-1 up against John Higgins in their Tour Championship quarter-final.
Stephen Maguire beat world number one Judd Trump 9-6 to reach the final of the Tour Championship in Milton Keynes.
Their last-four meeting came just a day after Trump said he felt Maguire lacked the mentality and dedication to reach his true potential.
Maguire hit six tons in his quarter-final win over Neil Robertson but this was a scrappier victory.
Stephen Maguire claimed his first ranking title in seven years, beating Mark Allen 10-6 in the final of the Coral Tour Championship in Milton Keynes.
Draw for the qualifiers has been made
https://wst.tv/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Betfred-World-Championship-Qualifiers-Draw.pdf
The World Championship is one of the events being used to test new guidelines for spectators so there will be some people in the audience when it starts on 31 July.
Milton Keynes will host the first eight snooker events of the 2020-21 season at the Marshall Arena.
The venue staged the Championship League and the Tour Championship in June as the sport returned behind closed doors after lockdown.
Among the competitions that have been moved to the arena are the European Masters, the English Open and the Northern Irish Open.
It is not yet clear if fans will be able to attend the early-season events.
The Marshall Arena has the benefit of on-site accommodation, meaning everyone involved in the tournament can be contained at the complex.
World Snooker argues that, by selecting the venue as the sole host of the eight opening tournaments, it is minimising the risk of any event being cancelled as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to impact the sporting calendar.
Seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry will receive an invitational tour card to play on the World Snooker Tour for the next two seasons.
The 51-year-old Scot, who won 36 ranking titles during his 27-year career, retired from the sport in 2012.
Jimmy White, Ken Doherty and James Wattana have also been awarded invitational tour cards.
"I'm excited to have the opportunity to enter some tournaments over the coming two seasons," said Hendry.
"I've always missed the buzz of competing and although I have no expectations in terms of performance, this felt like a good time to explore getting back to the table."
English Open Quarterfinals Line-up:
Mark Selby v Zhou Yuelong
Robbie Williams v Neil Robertson
Judd Trump v Kyren Wilson
John Higgins v Jak Jones
English Open Semi-Final Line-Up:
Mark Selby v Neil Robertson
Judd Trump v John Higgins
I thought it was all over when Robbo was 7-4 Up but huge credit to Judd for fighting back. Century in decider too 
The World Snooker Tour says the entire UK Championship will now be staged at the Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes.
The first week of the sport's second biggest tournament, which starts on 23 November, had already been moved from the York Barbican.
Interesting clash between O'Sullivan & Allen there!
Yes I saw that, it was bizarre something to do with Allen being in his eyeline when taking a shot it was an more tense exchange than Carter back in 2017 and McGill v Clarke.
3-0 could a surprise be on the cards with Allen winning.
Northern Ireland Open Last 16
Judd Trump v Martin Gould Trump leads 13-8
Noppon Saengkham v Scott Donaldson Donaldson leads 2-0
Michael Holt v David Grace Holt leads 3-0
Yan Bingtao v Zhao Xintong Zhao Xintong leads 1-0
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ben Woollaston v Ali Carter Woollaston leads 4-1
Igor Figueiredo v Kurt Maflin Tied at 1-1
John Higgins v Ding Junhui Ding Junhui leads 13-11
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh v Ronnie O'Sullivan Tied at 1-1
Northern Ireland Open Semi Final Draw
Judd Trump v David Grace Trump leads 3-0
Ali Carter v Ronnie O'Sullivan O'Sullivan leads 16-2
For the third year running in the Northern Ireland Open it is a Trump v O'Sullivan final.
Judd Trump has beaten Ronnie O'Sullivan 9-7 in the Northern Ireland Open final for the third year in a row.
World number one Trump hit a 128 break to move 5-2 ahead in Milton Keynes.
O'Sullivan responded with a break of 130 but the world champion lost the next two frames as Trump stayed in control in the final on Sunday.
Trump's break of 115 saw him take a 8-5 lead and an 89 sealed the victory after O'Sullivan fought back to within one frame.
It means that three successive Northern Ireland Open finals have featured the same champion, runner-up and scoreline.
UK Champion Neil Robertson is out of the world Grand Prix already as he is beaten 4-2 by Robert Milkins.
Powered by Invision Power Board
© Invision Power Services