Snoooooooker

[Nick Ink]

Two weeks of cues, cushions, spiders, kisses, pots, fouls, doubles and frames starts today in Sheffield.

The draw, with the seeded players on the left, looks like this

Neil Robertson (Aus) v Judd Trump (Eng)
Marco Fu (HK) v Martin Gould (Eng)
Graeme Dott (Sco) v Mark King (Eng)
Ali Carter (Eng) v Dave Harold (Eng)

Ding Junhui (Chn) v Jamie Burnett (Eng)
Peter Ebdon (Eng) v Stuart Bingham (NI)
Stephen Hendry (Sco) v Joe Perry (Eng)
Mark Selby (Eng) v Jimmy Robertson (Eng)

Mark Williams (Wal) v Ryan Day (Wal)
Jamie Cope (Eng) v Andrew Pagett (Wal)
Mark Allen (NI) v Matthew Stevens (Wal)
Stephen Maguire (Sco) v Barry Hawkins (Eng)

Shaun Murphy (Eng) v Marcus Campbell (Sco)
Ronnie O'Sullivan (Eng) v Dominic Dale (Wal)
Ricky Walden (Eng) v Rory McLeod (Eng)
John Higgins (Sco) v Stephen Lee (Eng)

Defending champion, the exciting young Australian Neil Robertson, has been in dodgy form coming up to the Championships, and also faces a tricky first round match against the hugely talented youngster, Judd Trump (who has just beaten Mark Selby in the China Open for his first big tournament win.) With a new baby and the pressure of being holder, I somehow don't fancy Robertson to become the first ever first-time winner to defend the title.


         Neil Robertson                                          Judd Trump                                 

The bookies' favourite is John Higgins, seemingly rehabilitated with four tournament wins since last year's match-fixing scandal that saw him banned from the game. Higgins is a ruthlessly consistent player who has the odd off-session, but very few off-days. One interesting thing is that he could face the world's best player, Ronnie O'Sullivan in the quarter finals, which would be a fantastic match. That is, if Ronnie overcomes his own personal problems - he's had a terrible year, dropped out of two tournaments and hinted repeatedly at retirement - only a week ago, he withdrew from this competition, retracting it the next day. But you never know with O'Sullivan, and if he hits form, he's unbeatable.


             John Higgins                                        Mark Williams                             

The snooker story I've enjoyed most over the last 18 months has been the revival of Mark Williams. The former World Champion had dropped to a ranking of number 47 a couple of years back, but is currently number 2, just behind Higgins, and has what looks like the easiest quarter of the draw. Having said that, I also like Mark Allen, and he's been threatening a longer run in this for a couple of seasons.


                 Ronnie O'Sullivan                           Mark Allen

My predictions for the QFs are:

Judd Trump V Ali Carter
Ding Junhui V Mark Selby
Mark Williams V Mark Allen
Ronnie O'Sullivan V John Higgins

The bookies see it like this:

John Higgins 11/2
Mark Selby 13/2
Ronnie O'Sullivan 7/1
Ding Junhui 8/1
Neil Robertson 8/1
Mark Williams 16/1
Shaun Murphy 22/1
Mark Allen 22/1
Allister Carter 25/1
Stephen Maguire 28/1
Graeme Dott 33/1
Judd Trump 40/1
Marco Fu 40/1
Jamie Cope 50/1
Martin Gould 66/1
Ryan Day 66/1
Stephen Hendry 66/1
Peter Ebdon 66/1
Stephen Lee 66/1
Matthew Stevens 80/1
Ricky Walden 100/1
Mark King 100/1
Joe Perry 125/1
Barry Hawkins 125/1
Stuart Bingham 200/1
Rory Mcleod 200/1
Dominic Dale 200/1
Marcus Campbell 250/1
Andrew Pagett 250/1
Dave Harold 250/1
Jamie Burnett 250/1
Jimmy Robertson 250/1

It all kicks off in an hour or so, with the Robertson V Trump match. You can follow the BBC's Mark Ashenden for updates on Twitter, if you feel so inclined.

[Nick Ink]

Robertson V Trump perfectly poised at 7-6 to the defending champion as they head into the final session. The young'un had him on the ropes for a while there, but a careless mistake on frame ball in the 12th frame has let the Australian back in, and he's now swaggering around the table like a condemned man who's just been pardoned. Will the mid-session have helped the amusingly named Trump get his head together? It's all about to roll on Table 1.

[Ignatius]

Man it's too bad this happens at the exact same time as the NBA Playoffs or else I'd try and find feeds for this on my off-hours.

[Nick Ink]

Iggy, Iggy, Iggy, unless NBA stands for 'Nude Brazilian Athletics' then you absolutely should stop watching that and start paying attention to the snooker. I have a feeling it's going to be a good one.

First round updates:

Neil Robertson (Aus) 8-10 Judd Trump (Eng)
Shaun Murphy (Eng) 9-0 Marcus Campbell (Sco)
Ali Carter (Eng) 8-1 Dave Harold (Eng)
Mark Williams (Wal) 6-3 Ryan Day (Wal)
Jamie Cope (Eng) 4-4 Andrew Pagett (Wal)

So, as predicted by, er, me, the champ is out, and the 'Curse Of The Crucible' strikes again. It was a very tense match, unusually so for the first round, and in stark contrast to a couple of those one-sided scorelines there.

Ali 'The Captain' Carter (he's a qualified pilot, y'know) has become a reliable top 8 guy and should finish off old-timer also-ran Harold today. But that 9-0 up there causes me a bit of distress. I've never taken to Shaun 'Fat Baby Bird' Murphy, with his historical mix of bad sportsmanship and devout Christianity, and it's always a bit of a pain when he gets to the latter stages. Hopefully, Trump will sort him out in R2.


                 The Captain                                  Where did I drop my worm?

This morning sees the brilliant but burdened Ding Junhui start another doomed attempt to carry the hopes of a continent. He should be alright against the unfancied Jamie Burnett though.

[kyle]

You have singlehandedly excited my interest in a sport I previously did not know exist. When are games on the eastern coast of US?

[Nick Ink]

 

I go here or here for info, but it does seem to be a bit harder than necessary to find out who's playing who, and when.

I'll try to link up anything interesting I find here.

[Thermofusion]

Are there any American snooker players of note, Nick?

[Nick Ink]

Are there any American snooker players of note, Nick?

I've never heard of any, I'm afraid. There have been several Canadian legends, of course - the scandal-dogged Kirk Stevens, famed for his Travoltaesque white suits and cocaine-fuelled bust-ups with fellow professionals, the 25-stone (160 kg) Bill Werbeniuk who famously claimed to be under doctor's orders to drink 30 pints of beer a day ( ) and once split his trousers leaning over to play a ball in a match against Dennis Taylor, and of course, most celebrated of all, the moustachioed Cliff 'The Grinder' Thorburn, a notoriously slow-playing hustler who regularly bored his opponents into late-night fatigue and eventual submission. Cliff won the World Championship in 1979, when I was 10 and the year I got my first 1/4 size table. I thought he was very cool indeed. Cliff (4 years later), and Kirk, in 84, made only the second and third ever televised maximum 147 breaks (Davis was first, fittingly), both huge slices of snooker history. Alain Robidoux was the last player of note to fly the maple flag, but never really made it and his career is unfortunately probably remembered most for the rather embarrassing circumstances under which he was thrashed by young Ronnie O'Sullivan at the 97 tournament - Ronnie infuriating the Candian with some left-handed showboating, which led to a painful and farcical denoument to their match.

       
                Kirk Stevens                                  The Grinder   

                  Big Bill

When snooker was at the height of its popularity, in the late 80s, the then invincible Steve Davis went to the US to try to promote the game there, and also to try his hand at the new challenge of pool. I seem to remember some cross-code matches between Davis and the famous pool player, the late Steve Mizerak, but I fear that's about it for American players. I have just discovered, however, a snokkerusa website, which is a pleasant surprise.

And apparently there's a national championship, which looks to be dominated, for some reason, by Asian-Americans:

2010 Ahmed Aly El Sayed (Date: July 2 - 4 Location: Embassy Billiards Club, San Gabriel, California.)
2009 Ahmed Aly El Sayed (Date: May 21 - 24 Location: Prince Snooker Club, Brooklyn, New York.)
2008 George Lai (Date: May 23 - 25 Location: Embassy Billiards Club, San Gabriel, California.)
2007 Jack Kung (Date: May 25 - 27 Location: Embassy Billiards Club, San Gabriel, California.)
2006 Paul Kimura (Date: July 1 - 3 Location: Embassy Billiards Club, San Gabriel, California.)
2005 George Lai (Date: September 2 - 4 Location: Embassy Billiards Club, San Gabriel, California.)
2004 Kenny Kwok (Date: June 26 - 27 [playoffs] Location: New York Athletic Club, New York City, New York.)
2002-3 Championship Not Held
2001 Tom Kollins
2000 Ajeya Prabhakar
1999 Tom Kollins
1998 Tom Kollins
1997 George Lai
1996 Peter Ong
1995 Tang Hoa
1994 David Yao
1993 David Yao
1992 Tom Kollins
1991 Tom Kollins

As for the action here at the World Championship, Murphy polished off his match easily enough, but at least Campbell got a frame on the board and avoided the whitewash. Jamie Cope came out on top against Pagett, but I'd be surprised if he gets any further. Ding Jun Hui made a great start to his match, going 8-1 up in his first-to-ten match this morning. I'd love to see him win it outright actually - I think the potential surge of new Chinese players (hinted at a couple of years ago when 3 made it to Sheffield) could be the spur the game needs.

The one I've been watching however, is seven-times champion Stephen Hendry against Joe 'Gentleman' Perry. Hendry is in the box seat, 6-3 up going into the final session and looking as deadly as ever when in amongst the balls. If he can get his long game together, he could be a threat for the hotly fancied Mark Selby, assuming both progress.

[Thermofusion]

All interesting stuff! Keep it up!

   

Spectacular.

[Nick Ink]

Mon 1000 Ding Junhui (Chn) 8-1 Jamie Burnett (Sco)
Mon 1000/Mon 1900 Stephen Maguire (Sco) v Barry Hawkins (Eng)
Mon 1430 Stephen Hendry (Sco) 6-3 Joe Perry (Eng)
Mon 1430/Tue 1430 Ronnie O'Sullivan (Eng) v Dominic Dale (Wal)
Mon 1900/Tue 1900 Peter Ebdon (Eng) v Stuart Bingham (NI)

So, with only the one upset so far (Trump beating Robertson), today sees Ding and Hndry attempt to see out their matches, and also the first appearance of the slowest, most suspicious and most spectacular men in the sport in Ebdon, Maguire and O'Sullivan respectively. I expect them all to go through, but it might depend on whether or not Maguire has bet on himself at Ladbrokes.

I'm, sadly, back to work, but I'll try to catch up this evening.

[Ignatius]

Did any Americans find feeds of this? I have tomorrow off, and NI's post on past Canadian masters has sold me on the appeal of snooker.

[Antero]

This thread gets a gold star.

[Thermofusion]

I noticed there were feeds of yesterday's action on fromsportcom, Ignatius. I can't attest to the quality though

[Nick Ink]

Well, the most nailbiting day of the tournament so far, and the big action has involved two former champions, and indeed two of the three most influential players of the modern game.

First, seven-times winner Stephen Hendry let his overnight 6-3 lead slip as Joe Perry pinned him all the way back to 9-9. The Scot won the decisive frame though, and although he hasn't taken a major title since 2003, this win brings his career tournament prize money to a staggering £9 million, and if he beats the winner of Mark Selby and Jimmy Robertson in the next round then he might just be a contender.


                 Stephen Hendry                              Ronnie O'Sullivan

That 2003 date, by the way is also the year that Hendry had his favourite cue broken, the one which he'd owned since he was 14, having purchased it for £40, and the one he'd used when winning his 7 world titles. 

In the other key match today, the ridiculously gifted but psychologically flawed Ronnie O'Sullivan raced to a 7-2 lead over Dominic Dale. O'Sullivan hit top gear, twice coming close to maximum breaks and knocking in a century in a third effort. The bookies who made him only third favourite will very quickly be rethinking their odds sheet if he keeps up that form.

For anyone browsing this who would like to see snooker at it's most breathtakingly skilful, here's a video of O'Sullivan's incredible 5 minute 20 second maximum 147, a feat which will surely never be repeated such was its audacious genius. "I can't believe this" stutters one of the gobsmacked ex-pro commentators as O'Sullivan casually slams home the final pink almost before the cue ball has even finished rolling. As he walks out of the arena, Ronnie cheekily gestures to the camera, as if to say 'I never even chalked my cue!'.

Ronnie's darker side can be seen in this clip when he inexplicably conceded a Best of 17 match against Hendry, trailing only 4-1. Hendry, the match commentators  and the studio presenters were all duly stunned.

[Antero]

Hilarious.

the ridiculously gifted but psychologically flawed Ronnie O'Sullivan

Also hilarious.

[Nick Ink]

Barry Hawkins, still without a win in his fifth consecutive appearance at The Crucible, is leading the out-of-sorts looking Stephen Maguire 8-5 at the mid-session interval, and needs just 2 more to finally shake off his bad run at Sheffield.

It would be nice for Hawkins, a player who has flitted about in the lower reaches of the top 32 for the last few seasons but is exactly the kind of guy who is struggling to make a living out of the game these days.


             Barry Hawkins                                       Stephen Maguire

As for Maguire, when he first came onto the scene 7 or 8 years ago he looked briefly like he would be a top 4 player for many years to come and perhaps even a World champion. He's been a regular semi-final and quarter-final man since then, but has never really lived up to the early form that led none other than Ronnie O'Sullivan to say that he could dominate the game for 10 years. He's also been involved in a bit of controversy - two years ago, he was arrested in a match-fixing investigation, after irregular betting patterns on a heavily-backed 9-3 result against Jamie Burnett (Burnett crashed out of this year's Worlds 10-2 to Ding Jun Hui yesterday), and in 2004 he turned up late for a match with his bitter rival, Shaun Murphy (looks like a cuckoo chick, devout Xtian - are you keeping up?)when he forgot his chalk, of all things. Not a big problem, you'd have thought - Murphy disagreed and made himself widely unpopular by enforcing a one frame forfeit against Maguire for his lateness.

[Nick Ink]

A snooker chalk similar to the one forgotten by Stephen Maguire in 2004.

[Nick Ink]

Turning point?

Maguire finally gets a little bit of luck ('the run of the balls', as they sometimes say, or even 'the rub of the green', but, take note adf, never 'the rub of the balls') and comes back from 50 points down to clear the table and make it just 8-6.

Maguire pumps his fist in determination. Get the next one and he's right back in it.

[Nick Ink]

It’s suddenly looking ominous for Hawkins as he misses a straightforward black with the frame at his mercy and Maguire, now brimming with confidence, hits back with another clearance.

Three on the trot for the seed now, and it’s gone from 8-4 to 8-7.

Sidenote: Maguire wears a watch on his table-arm. Never could do that.

On the other table, by the way,  Peter ‘Slow-Hand’ Ebdon snails along with Stuart Bingham, narrowly ahead 3-2. That one should finish some time next week.

[Ignatius]

Watched some of the Maguire/Hawkins match.. Needs more cigarette smoke in the room or something.

[Nick Ink]

Watched some of the Maguire/Hawkins match.. Needs more cigarette smoke in the room or something.

Well, it's not a fantastic standard, but it's totally engrossing in it's own way. Got a feeling it's going all the way too.

[Nick Ink]

8-8, and Hawkins has completely lost the plot. Surely only one winner here now.

[Johnp]

Great thread - keep it up NI - but needs some Jimmy White.

[Nick Ink]

But wait! Both players have chances and finally it's Hawkins who stumbles over the line to take the crucial 17th frame - he now leads 9-8 and needs just one more.

Hawkins will be all too aware though that he has gone out to 10-9 deciders in this round twice before and lost at this stage in each of the last five seasons.

The purist in me wants to see if Maguire can recapture his best form and kick on in the tournament, but I must admit I can't help wanting Hawkins to win now - going sentimental in my old age.

[Nick Ink]

Great thread - keep it up NI - but needs some Jimmy White.

Oh yes! The Whirlwind. Actually, don't get me started on Jimmy or I might cry. Perhaps another day though.