Saturday 28 February 2009

World Championship Qualifiers 27th February 2009

Results

Matthew Couch 10-8 Michael Georgiou

Lee Spick 10-5 Stephen Craigie

Jimmy White 10-8 Vincent Muldoon

Daniel Wells 10-9 Li Hang

Supoj Saenla 10-5 Liu Chuang

Scott MacKenzie 9-10 Wayne Cooper

Day 2 of the World Championship qualifiers 2009 saw wins for Jimmy White and Lee Spick.

Throughout Jimmy White’s match, Jimmy had to come back from behind, at one point trailing by 7-4.

White’s highest break was a nice 134; he now plays Andy Hicks on Sunday.

World Championship Qualifiers 26th February

Results

Li Hang 10-2 Colin Mitchell

Declan Hughes 0-0 Neil Selman (Selman goes through)

Chris McBreen 10-8 Del Smith

Stefan Mazrocis 9-10 Tony Knowles

In the first day of qualifying for the Snooker World Championship, Tony Knowles scored an unexpected win against Stefan Mazrocis.

Knowles made the semi final three times at The Crucible in the 1980’s.

He now goes through to the last 96 of the qualifiers where he plays Rodney Goggins.

Monday 23 February 2009

Provisional Rankings following the Welsh Open

Provisional World Snooker Rankings following the Welsh Open 2009.

1 Ronnie O´Sullivan 47275
2 Stephen Maguire 42350
3 Allister Carter 36825
4 Shaun Murphy 36675
5 Marco Fu 32850
6 Ryan Day 32475
7 John Higgins 31825
8 Mark Selby 31075
9 Joe Perry 30775
10 Neil Robertson 26925
11 Mark Allen 25775
12 Stephen Hendry 25625
13 Junhui Ding 25144
14 Mark Williams 25119
15 Barry Hawkins 23800
16 Dave Harold 23557
17 Peter Ebdon 23000
18 Mark King 22600
19 Stuart Bingham 22044
20 Joe Swail 21519
21 Jamie Cope 21432
22 Matthew Stevens 21407
23 Ricky Walden 21350
24 Steve Davis 21169
25 Wenbo Liang 19575
26 Michael Holt 19025
27 Stephen Lee 18988
28 Dominic Dale 18895
29 Fergal O'Brien 18245
30 Judd Trump 18201
31 Anthony Hamilton 18138
32 Ian McCulloch 17538

Welsh Open Champion Allister Carter

Result

Ali Carter 9-5 Joe Swail

In a sensational comeback, Ali Carter won seven frames on the trot to win from 2-5 down to win 9-5. This is Carters first ranking title victory. He now goes up to number 3 in the provisional world snooker rankings.

During five of the frames he won, Carter outscored Swail by 28 points to every 1 for Swail.

As is usually the case, the interval between afternoon and evening session turned the tide and Carter played some of the snooker of his life.

After the final, Carter said he learnt a lot from losing the world final last year and that Swail made it tough for him in the afternoon.

Carter also thanked his coach Terry Griffiths.

He concluded that he hoped it would be the first of more victories in the future.

Swail said he was disappointed to lose, after having a 5-2 lead disappear. But he said there was not much he could do as Carter played very well.

Swail is now provisionally world number 20 and keep his season going the right way.

The final frame saw Swail knock in a 45 break, but it was not enough as Carter cleared to win the match.

Highest Breaks

Ali Carter 89, 41, 54, 116, 109, 61, 91, 67
Joe Swail 40, 43, 60, 49, 43, 40

Sunday 22 February 2009

Welsh Open 2009 Carter and Swail into final

Results

Anthony Hamilton 5-6 Allister Carter

Joe Swail 6-4 Neil Robertson

Semi finals day at the Welsh Open saw Ali Carter and Joe Swail reach the final.

Congratulations to Joe Swail, who has reached his first ever ranking event final. He had previously only been as far as the semis, which he had done a few times at the crucible some years ago.

Swail managed to command a 4-0 lead at the interval, as Robertson looked out of sorts.

After the interval, Robertson came back strongly to make it 5-4 to Swail. Robertson knocked in breaks of 82, 94 and 93.

The final frame saw Robertson break down on a break of 39 and Swail got back into the frame. A tense finish saw Neil battle for a snooker, but to no avail. Swail put in some superb pots and clinched the win.


In the other semi, Ali Carter left it to the wire and beat Anthony Hamilton by 6-5.

Carter has had a very consistent season and has now reached four semi finals, but has only now reached his first final.

In the early stages, Hamilton took a 3-1 lead into the interval with breaks of 77 and 80.

As is often the case in snooker, the interval helped the player trailing and Carter pulled ahead 3-4.

Hamilton then knocked in a great break of 116 and was on for a maximum 147 to level at 4-4.

The following two frames were shared and the match went to a decider.

In these situations, all a player can hope for is one chance. Carter got his and made a 58 break. Hamilton had a chance, but was let down on position when he tried to split the reds.

Carter will now play Joe Swail in tomorrow’s final.

Saturday 21 February 2009

Welsh Open 2009 Hamilton and Swail win

Results

Mark Selby 3-5 Anthony Hamilton

Allister Carter 5-2 Shaun Murphy

Stephen Maguire 4-5 Joe Swail

Neil Robertson 5-2 Marco Fu

On quarter finals day of the Welsh Open, there were wins for Anthony Hamilton, Ali Carter, Joe Swail and Neil Robertson.

In the grittiest performance of the day, Joe Swail beat one of the favourites Stephen Maguire despite Swail having an injured arm. Swail edged through 5-4.

Congratulations also to Anthony Hamilton as he reached his first semi final for a few years by beating defending champion Mark Selby by 5-3.

Friday 20 February 2009

Welsh Open 2009 Carter, Murphy and Fu win

Results

Anthony Hamilton 5-2 Michael Judge

Allister Carter 5-4 Graeme Dott

Mark King 2-5 Shaun Murphy

Stephen Maguire 5-4 Ding Junhui

John Higgins 4-5 Neil Robertson

Marco Fu 5-3 Ronnie O'Sullivan

On day 4 of the Welsh Open, there were wins for Stephen Maguire, Neil Robertson and Marco Fu.

Thursday 19 February 2009

Welsh Open 2009 O'Sullivan and Higgins win

Results

Mark King 5-3 Dave Harold

Ding Junhui 5-3 Matthew Stevens

John Higgins 5-2 Dominic Dale

Neil Robertson 5-3 Jamie Burnett

Marco Fu 5-4 Fergal O'Brien

Ronnie O'Sullivan 5-2 Steve Davis

Mark Selby 5-1 David Gilbert

Joe Swail 5-1 Martin Gould

There were wins at The Welsh Open for Ronnie O’Sullivan, Ding Junhui and Neil Robertson on Wednesday.

Ronnie O’Sullivan came out on top of the battle of the legends as he beat Steve Davis by 5-2.

In a game in which O’Sullivan described his game as “a bit rusty since The Masters”, he knocked in a breaks of 58, 63 and 118.

However, Davis was still in the match at 2-2 after he knocked in a brilliant 132 and 62.

But after the interval, O’Sullivan reeled off 3 , including a 118, quick frames to seal the 5-2 win.

Wednesday 18 February 2009

Welsh Open 2009 Selby, Carter and Dott win

Results

Mark Selby 5-0 Paul Davies

Joe Perry 4-5 David Gilbert

Peter Ebdon 2-5 Anthony Hamilton

Ryan Day 3-5 Michael Judge

Allister Carter 5-1 Jimmy White

Graeme Dott 5-3 Mike Dunn

Shaun Murphy 5-3 Barry Pinches

Stephen Hendry 3-5 Martin Gould


In one of the surprise results today, Stephen Hendry lost to world number 63 Martin Gould.

Gould, who is a part time player from London, got to the last 16 for the first time ever.

In what has been a very disappointing season for Hendry, this result only piles on the pressure, with the possibility of him dropping out of the Top 16 over the next 3 to 15 months.

After the match he said was not surprised as he missed more balls than Gould did.

The result for Gould must be his best ever win during his career.

Gould knocked in a superb 135, which is the current tournament high break.

Gould said after the match that he fancied his chances as Hendry has had a string of poor results.

He now plays Joe Swail in the next round.

In the evenings other matches, Graeme Dott and Michael Judge both won their matches.

Graeme Dott beat Mike Dunn. Dotts top break was 105. He fully expects to be in the qualifiers next season as he has had 2 poor seasons and is ranked provisionally number 41.

In the final match tonight, Michael Judge beat home favourite Ryan Day.

Judge won with a high break of 109. He cleared in the last frame after a long safety battle.

Earlier on today, Jimmy White fell to Ali Carter. Over 400 people turned up for the match.

Tuesday 17 February 2009

Welsh Open 2009 Results Gilbert and Dale win

Mark Williams 1-5 David Gilbert

Dominic Dale 5-4 Liang Wenbo

In Monday evening’s matches at the Welsh Open 2009, there were wins for David Gilbert and Dominic Dale.

In a performance in which Gilbert described as “the best he ever played”, he beat home favourite Mark Williams 5-1.

Gilbert knocked in breaks of 131, 115, 66 and 58 while Williams had a consolation break of 75 to win his frame.

Gilbert is through to the last 16 for the first time ever. It was also his first win on television. He will now play Joe Perry.

In the nights other match, Dominic Dale came through in a tough match against Liang Wenbo. Dale will now play John Higgins in the first round proper.

Monday 16 February 2009

Welsh Open 2009 Maguire, Swail and Stevens Win

Results

First round

Stephen Maguire 5-0 Ian Preece
Joe Swail 5-3 Mark Allen

Qualifying

Matthew Stevens 5-4 Andy Hicks

The first afternoons play at the Welsh Open is now complete. Stephen Maguire, Joe Swail and Matthew Stevens all started with wins.

The best result of the afternoon was for Stephen Maguire with a 5-0 victory.

Afterwards, Maguire said he was surprised how well he played, giving his opponent few chances. His highest break was 78.

The victory came in less than 90 minutes.

Sunday 15 February 2009

Full Welsh Open 2009 Draw

Here is the complete draw for the 2009 Welsh Open which starts tomorrow.

Mark Selby v Paul Davies
Joe Perry v Mark Williams or David Gilbert
Peter Ebdon v Anthony Hamilton
Graeme Dott v Mike Dunn
Mark King v Dave Harold
Shaun Murphy v Barry Pinches
Neil Robertson v Jamie Burnett
Marco Fu v Fergal O'Brien
Stephen Maguire v Ian Preece
Ryan Day v Michael Judge
Ali Carter v Jimmy White
Ding Junhui v Matthew Stevens or Andy Hicks
Mark Allen v Joe Swail
Stephen Hendry v Martin Gould
John Higgins v Dominic Dale or Liang Wenbo
Ronnie O'Sullivan v Steve Davis

Saturday 14 February 2009

Welsh Open 2009 BBC schedule

Here is a rundown of the BBC schedule for The Welsh Open 2009, which starts on Monday. I will update this entry later this weekend.

Saturday 21 February
1300-1615, BBC Red Button/online
1900-2200, BBC Red Button/online

Sunday 22 February
1330-1600, BBC Red Button/online
1900-2200, BBC Red Button/online

Wednesday 11 February 2009

Championship League Group 3 Final Results

In the latest round of group matches at the Matchroom Sport Championship League, Joe Perry came through after victories over Neil Robertson and Mark Williams.

Perry made a break of 101 in the final against Williams, who he beat 3-0.

This league goes towards qualifying for the lucrative Premier League later this year.

Joe Perry 2-2 Mark Williams
Ding Junhui 2-2 John Higgins
Neil Robertson 4-0 Ding Junhui
Ali Carter 1-3 Neil Robertson
John Higgins 2-2 Joe Perry
Ding Junhui 1-3 Barry Hawkins
Mark Williams 3-1 Barry Hawkins
Joe Perry 3-1 Neil Robertson

Semi Final 1
Joe Perry 3 - 1 Neil Robertson

Semi Final 2
Barry Hawkins 1 - 3 Mark Williams

Final
Joe Perry 3-0 Mark Williams

Friday 6 February 2009

Snooker Welsh Open Qualifiers 06/02/09

In today’s final qualifying round for the Welsh Open, there were wins for Steve Davis, Jimmy White and Joe Swail.

Jimmy White came through with a surprising whitewash against the now struggling Ken Doherty. He now plays Ali Carter at the event proper at Newport.

Jimmy will be looking for a bit of revenge against Carter who White lost to at the UK Championship before Christmas.

Barry Hawkins 4-5 Paul Davies

Anthony Hamilton 5-3 Michael Holt

Michael Judge 5-2 Stuart Pettman

Ken Doherty 0-5 Jimmy White

Ian McCulloch 4-5 Mike Dunn

Dave Harold 5-1 Gerard Greene

Jamie Cope 3-5 Barry Pinches

Stuart Bingham 3-5 Ian Preece

Nigel Bond 4-5 Martin Gould

Fergal O'Brien 5-1 Ricky Walden

Steve Davis 5-2 Tom Ford

Stephen Lee 3-5 Jamie Burnett

Joe Swail 5-3 Marcus Campbell

Snooker Welsh Open Qualifiers 05/02/09

In the third day of qualifying for the Welsh Open, rising player Judd Trump came unstuck in his match with Barry Pinches. Pinches won the match with a high break of 136.

Jimmy White beat Rory McLeod with a highest break of 67and now plays Ken Doherty in the final round later today.

The last round of qualifiers sees former top 16 players Steve Davis, Mark Williams, Ken Doherty Matthew Stevens, Stephen Lee and Jimmy White in action.

Alan McManus 4-5 Stuart Pettman

Liang Wenbo 5-1 Li Hang

Jamie Burnett 5-0 Mark Joyce

Ricky Walden 5-3 David Morris

David Gilbert 5-3 David Roe

Michael Holt 5-2 Stephen Craigie

Tom Ford 5-2 Daniel Wells

Jimmy Michie 3-5 Paul Davies

Judd Trump 3-5 Barry Pinches

Rory McLeod 2-5 Jimmy White

Mike Dunn 5-4 Robert Milkins

Gerard Greene 5-1 Joe Delaney

Andrew Higginson 4-5 Ian Preece

Adrian Gunnell 2-5 Andy Hicks

Marcus Campbell 5-2 Aditya Mehta

John Parrott 3-5 Martin Gould

Thursday 5 February 2009

Snooker Welsh Open Qualifiers 04/02/09

In the second round of the Welsh Open qualifying at Prestatyn, Jimmy White made an excellent comeback in his match against Rod Lawler.

White came back from 4-0 down to win 5-4. White found some form after the interval. He now plays Rory McLeod.

Afterwards, White said he was trying very hard to qualify for the venue at Newport.

Paul Davies 5-1 Patrick Wallace

David Roe 5-3 Vincent Muldoon

David Gray 2-5 Stephen Craigie

Stuart Pettman 5-0 Stefan Mazrocis

Rod Lawler 4-5 Jimmy White

Robert Milkins 5-3 Wayne Cooper

Joe Delaney 5-3 Lee Spick

Barry Pinches 5-3 Jin Long

Ian Preece 5-4 Peter Lines

Andy Hicks 5-3 Paul Davison

Mark Davis 3-5 Aditya Mehta

Martin Gould 5-3 Matthew Selt

Liu Song 2-5 Li Hang

Mark Joyce 5-1 Lewis Roberts

David Morris 5-1 Rodney Goggins

Andrew Norman 4-5 Daniel Wells

Tuesday 3 February 2009

Snooker Welsh Open Qualifiers 3rd February

In today’s top qualifier at Prestatyn, Jimmy White came through after a few scares playing David Grace. He came back after trailing four times to beat Grace 5-4.

In a fairly scrappy match, the top break was made by White with 75.

Patrick Wallace 5-2 Liu Chuang

Kuldesh Johal 3-5 Vincent Muldoon

Matthew Couch 2-5 Stephen Craigie

Scott MacKenzie 4-5 Stefan Mazrocis

Jimmy White 5-4 David Grace

Simon Bedford 3-5 Wayne Cooper

Lee Spick 5-3 Robert Stephen

Supoj Saenla 2-5 Jin Long

Peter Lines 5-4 Andrew Pagett

Paul Davison 5-2 Atthasit Mahitthi

James McBain 4-5 Aditya Mehta

Matthew Selt 5-2 Michael Georgiou

Jamie Jones 4-5 Li Hang

Lewis Roberts 5-0 Declan Hughes

Rodney Goggins 5-2 Andy Lee

Daniel Wells 5-0 Chris McBreen

Snooker History

The game is generally regarded to have originated in the latter half of the 19th century. Billiards had been a popular activity amongst British Army officers stationed in India, and variations on the more traditional billiard games were devised.

One variation, devised in the officers' mess in Jabalpur during 1874 or 1875, was to add coloured balls in addition to the reds and black which were used for pyramid pool and life pool. The word snooker also has military origins, being a slang term for first-year cadets or inexperienced personnel.

One version of events states that Colonel Sir Neville Chamberlain of the Devonshire regiment was playing this new game when his opponent failed to pot a ball and Chamberlain called him a snooker. It thus became attached to the billiards game now bearing its name as inexperienced players were labelled as snookers.

The game of snooker grew in the latter half of the 19th century and the early 20th century. By 1927, the first World Snooker Championship had been organised by Joe Davis. As a professional English billiards and snooker player, he moved the game from a pastime activity into a more professional sphere.

Joe Davis won every world championship until 1946 when he retired. The game went into a decline through the 1950s and 1960s with little interest generated outside of those who played. Things saw some improvement when in 1969, when

David Attenborough who was then a top official of the BBC, commissioned the snooker tournament Pot Black to demonstrate the potential of colour television, with the green table and multi-coloured balls being ideal for showing off the advantages of colour broadcasting.

The TV series became a ratings success and was for a time the second most popular show on BBC Two. Interest in the game increased and the 1978 World Championship was the first to be fully televised. The game quickly became a mainstream sport in the UK, Ireland and much of the Commonwealth and has enjoyed much success in the last 30 years, with most of the ranking tournaments being televised.

In 1985 a total of 18.5 million viewers watched the concluding frame of the world championship final between Dennis Taylor and Steve Davis.

Ronnie O'Sullivan wins The Masters 2009.

World Snooker Champions

World Snooker Champion 1977 - John Spencer
World Snooker Champion 1978 - Ray Reardon
World Snooker Champion 1979 - Terry Griffiths
World Snooker Champion 1980 - Cliff Thorburn
World Snooker Champion 1981 - Steve Davis
World Snooker Champion 1982 - Alex Higgins
World Snooker Champion 1983 - Steve Davis
World Snooker Champion 1984 - Steve Davis
World Snooker Champion 1985 - Dennis Taylor
World Snooker Champion 1986 - Joe Johnson
World Snooker Champion 1987 - Steve Davis
World Snooker Champion 1988 - Steve Davis
World Snooker Champion 1989 - Steve Davis
World Snooker Champion 1990 - Stephen Hendry
World Snooker Champion 1991 - John Parrott
World Snooker Champion 1992 to 1996 - Stephen Hendry
World Snooker Champion 1997 - Ken Doherty
World Snooker Champion 1998 - John Higgins
World Snooker Champion 1999 - Stephen Hendry
World Snooker Champion 2000 - Mark Williams
World Snooker Champion 2001 - Ronnie O'Sullivan
World Snooker Champion 2002 - Peter Ebdon
World Snooker Champion 2003 - Mark Williams
World Snooker Champion 2004 - Ronnie O'Sullivan
World Snooker Champion 2005 - Shaun Murphy
World Snooker Champion 2006 - Graeme Dott
World Snooker Champion 2007 - John Higgins
World Snooker Champion 2008 - Ronnie O'Sullivan
World Snooker Champion 2009 - John Higgins
World Snooker Champion 2010 - Neil Robertson
World Snooker Champion 2011 - John Higgins
World Snooker Champion 2012 - Ronnie O'Sullivan