Please note that this is NOT an official website. At this point in time Ronnie O’ Sullivan does not have an official website, nor does he wish to have one.
He shared this piece yesterday on his blog “Tuesday Newsletter” hosted substack:
The 2025/26 professional season was memorable for its vast variety of winners and some landmark moments.
When Mark Williams turned professional at the age of 17, the prospect of being 50, never mind still playing at the top level at this age, would have been hard to conceive.
His great Welsh compatriot, Ray Reardon, had won the 1982 Professional Players Tournament, a ranking title, a few days past his 50th birthday. 43 years on, this record was finally broken as Williams captured the Xi’an Grand Prix, beating Shaun Murphy 10-3 in the final.
He was 192 days older than Reardon had been. However, with Ronnie O’Sullivan and John Higgins also in their 50s and several other players maturing like fine wines, it seems unlikely it will take another 43 years for this record to be beaten.
9) CHANG’S PERFECT PERFORMANCE
Chang Bingyu returned to the pro ranks in 2025 after serving a suspension for his part in the Chinese match-fixing scandal. At the Welsh Open in Llandudno in February, he produced an astonishing display of break-building to leave his opponent, Shaun Murphy, applauding him off the stage.
Quite simply, Chang did not miss a ball. He made four centuries – 130, 136, 119 and 130 – three of them total clearances, to win 4-0, with Murphy potting one ball.
But this was no reflection on Murphy. He was merely a spectator as Chang became the ninth player to make four centuries in four frames. For sure, one to watch during the 2026/27 campaign.
8) OH YES, UN-NOOH
Thepchaiya Un-Nooh is a fan favourite due to his fast, dashing style of play but has often come unstuck if his A-game has not functioned.
This seemed likely to happen again when he fell 4-0 adrift to Ronnie O’Sullivan in the World Open final in Yushan, China, but he steadied the ship and entered the evening with a 5-4 lead.
The Thai had previously won the Shootout but had come up short in his only previous long form ranking final. O’Sullivan made four centuries in taking a 7-6 lead and his vast experience in big occasions looked like a clear advantage.
In fact, he scored only six further points as Un-Nooh went on a break-building blitz, firing in runs of 77, 132, a maximum 147 and 131 to win 10-7.
In doing so, this great enigma proved he could produce his best snooker when it mattered, against the greatest of all time.
7) ZHAO XINTONG’S DASH FOR THE LINE
Early on in the season, it was apparent Zhao Xintong had not quite adjusted to his new status as world champion, but this unflappable talent became more comfortable as the campaign continued and ended it by winning four trophies.
This included all three titles of the prestigious Players Series, with his performance in the Players Championship final against John Higgins the highlight.
This had been a closely fought affair to 7-7 before Zhao unleashed a devastating three-frame spell of scoring which brought the contest to an emphatic halt.
Breaks of 104, 126 and 92 got the job done as he added the title to the World Grand Prix, with the Tour Championship to follow. Higgins compared Zhao to George Best and labelled him ‘an absolute genius.’
The Crucible Curse, or more accurately Shaun Murphy, did for Zhao in Sheffield but he was, overall, the player of the season.
6) O’SULLIVAN’S TWO MAXIMUMS
For the second season running, Ronnie O’Sullivan did not win a title on the World Snooker tour, opting out of many events, but his capacity to amaze was evident in two record-breaking performances, the first of which came at the Saudi Arabia Masters in Jeddah.
Facing Chris Wakelin in the semi-finals, O’Sullivan made a maximum break in the opening frame. He then left the arena to check that there was a bonus prize for two 147s in this event, together with the three which comprise the triple crown. Jackson Page had pocketed £147,000 for making two maximums in the same match – on different days – at the World Championship qualifiers a few months earlier.
Armed with this information, O’Sullivan made another max, the 17th of his professional career, in frame seven. He also compiled breaks of 142 and 134.
Perhaps the emotion and adrenaline affected him early in the final as he fell 7-2 down to Neil Robertson, fighting back to lead 9-8 but eventually falling short 10-9.
Even so, once again he was the star of the show.
5) SELBY’S MIRACLE BREAK TO WIN THE UK CHAMPIONSHIP
Mark Selby had played superbly to race into a 5-0 lead over Judd Trump in the UK Championship final but leading only 9-8, the heat was on.
The table in frame 18 was unpromising when he came to it, with balls tied up and apparently not much to be made. The only pottable colours were the yellow and the black, albeit only into one corner pocket.
Nevertheless, Selby somehow put together a superbly crafted run of 69, the break of the tournament to win the tournament and become only the fourth player to have won each of the World, UK and Masters titles on at least three occasions.
4) SEMI-FINAL SATURDAY AT THE CRUCIBLE
In the end, all roads lead to Sheffield. What happens at the Crucible is career-defining and can sometimes feel like it puts the rest of the season in the shade.
The semi-finals have been criticised for being too long – they last three days, after all – but the pay-off are Saturdays like the one we enjoyed this year.
Shaun Murphy was attempting to overturn a 13-11 overnight deficit against John Higgins. At the final interval he was still two behind at 15-13, but maintained his all-out attacking approach – he made five centuries in the match – and was the stronger in the finish, winning 17-15.
Next, the drama of the evening, one of the most extraordinary semi-final sessions ever seen. Wu Yize and Mark Allen had not got all their requisite frames in so were 11-11 when the night began and traded blows until Allen pulled clear at 16-14.
He had chances to win the next frame before, at 16-15, he stood over the last black, on its spot, a pot to reach his first world final. Wu was getting ready to shake hands. The Crucible audience was getting ready to head into the night.
But… Allen missed, Wu levelled and went on to win the decider and, of course, the title.
3) RONNIE O’SULLIVAN’S 153
Ronnie O’Sullivan’s second historic moment of the season came in a match which, frankly, did not seem a candidate to live long in the memory before it began.
It was a World Open quarter-final against Ryan Day, to whom O’Sullivan had lost just twice in their ten previous meetings. For a European audience, it was first thing in the morning, so it’s not clear how many people watched the start of the match live, but the first frame proved to be one for the ages.
Only seven players had previously compiled a ’16-red’ total clearance, with the aid of a free ball, and just one, Jamie Burnett, had made more than 147, fashioning 148 in the 2004 UK Championship qualifiers.
After snookering Day, O’Sullivan’s chance came, with the black near a corner pocket. In fact, for a while a 155 was on, but he was forced to take two pinks after knocking the black on to the top cushion in playing a cannon.
This meant the pot to create history was difficult, but O’Sullivan stroked it in to add another record to his bulging file of career achievements.
2) LISOWSKI FINALLY WINS A TITLE
Jack Lisowski has long been a popular player but also a little frustrating. Clearly very talented and with a likeable personality, he had reached six ranking finals and lost them all. His most recent final before arriving in Belfast for last October’s Northern Ireland Open had been in 2021, so there was a sense that he had started to fall away.
It had been a difficult year for Lisowski. His father passed away suddenly in March. But amidst the sadness there came a new determination.
In the final, he faced his best friend, Judd Trump. It went the distance and both had chances in the decider before Lisowski potted the balls to win 9-8.
This was memorable enough, but the interviews afterwards caused many snooker fans to shed a tear. Raw emotion poured from Lisowski, describing Trump as ‘the closest thing I have to a brother’ and thanking him for the care he had taken of him in the aftermath of his bereavement.
In that instant, nobody cared about the money, the points or the status of the event. This went beyond sport. It was just a beautiful, human moment.
1) WU WOWS THE WORLD
The crowning of the world champion is always the most coveted and watched moment of the year, but this season it also came after one of the matches of the year.
Wu Yize, a dazzling talent, just 22, of course should have been out in the semi-finals, but that wasn’t his problem.
Shaun Murphy, who himself won the title as a 22-year-old in 2005, had lost in three world finals since and, at 43, was maybe beginning to feel that time was running out to become a multiple world champion.
Wu led 10-7 after day one before Murphy began to take control, winning five frames in succession to move on front at 12-10, but Wu creditably dug out three frames for a narrow 13-12 advantage heading into the final session.
They were then level at 14-14, 15-15, 16-16 and, finally, 17-17 to set up only the fourth deciding frame finish to a world final at the Crucible and a first since 2002.
The way Wu won it was typical of his approach the entire championship. He saw a red to left middle. It was far from easy and he could be leaving Murphy in if he missed.
But he potted it, made 85 and was world champion after just five years on tour, the second in succession from China after Zhao Xintong’s victory the previous year.
Snooker now has a new star and much to be excited about as we head into the 2026/27 season.
I will update the presentation of this piece when back home.
Some may argue with David’s choices, or with his rating order, but all these moments were memorable and what David’s piece shows is how good the players have become, even down the rankings actually even if the piece is about the stars of the game, how much snooker delivers as a sport, event after event. It does not more rely just on a couple of stars to attract the audiences, it has plenty to offer. It’s no more about the UK players only. The future is bright.
The 2026 Women Snooker World Championship has concluded earlier this week and its unexpected outcome has serious implications for the women representation in the main tour.
Thailand’s Panchaya Channoi has defeated Reanne Evans 6-2 to win the World Women’s Snooker Championship title for the first time in her career at the Snooker Sports Arena in Dongguan Changping, China and earn a two-year professional World Snooker Tour card from the start of the 2026/27 season.
Victory for the 18-year-old represents her first ranking event title on the World Women’s Snooker Tour and sees her become only the 16th player to have lifted the Mandy Fisher Trophy since 1976.
Known as ‘Mind’ Panchaya, she becomes the youngest world champion since Ann-Marie Farren earned the crown in 1987 and the fourth first-time champion from the past five years, joining compatriots Mink Wongharuthai and Siripaporn Nuanthakhamjan, as well as China’s Bai Yulu in lifting the trophy since 2022.
Channoi made her Tour debut at the World Championship in 2019 aged just 11, winning the world under-21 title for the first time in 2025 and last year losing 4-2 to eventual champion Bai Yulu at the last 16 stage of the main competition. It was not until this season that Channoi began to compete outside of Asia for the first time, as she notably reached the semi-finals of the WSF Women’s Championship back in January.
A prodigious talent, Channoi brilliantly claimed the scalps of Bai, Mink and finally Reanne Evans this week to reach the summit of women’s snooker and also emulated the achievement of Bai Yulu in 2024 by completing the main and Under-21 world title double during the same year.
Channoi also scored the highest break of the Championship with a run of 107 in the title match and became only the second woman to compile two century breaks in the title match, emulating the feat of Evans in 2013.
The success will see her climb eight places to a career-high position of number seven in the latest WWS world rankings.
For Evans, who was appearing in her first world final since her record 12th victory in 2019, the defeat is her first final loss of her career at the blue riband event and sees her wait for an unprecedented 13th title go on.
The first ever meeting between the pair got off to an explosive start as Channoi claimed the opening frame with a milestone break of 100 which was her first ever century on the WWS Tour, becoming only the 19th player to have achieved the feat.
Channoi, however, was able to respond in impressive fashion as she compiled her second century break of the match with a tournament-high run of 107 to restore her two frame advantage.
From here, she was to add further breaks of 43 and ultimately a nerveless 59 to cross the winning line and achieve a lifelong dream of becoming world champion for the first time in her career.
New world champion Panchaya Channoi and world number two Bai Yulu will be nominated to join the professional World Snooker Tour from the start of the 2026/27 season following the conclusion of this year’s World Women’s Snooker Championship.
Thailand’s Channoi will turn professional for the first time in her career after the 18-year-old stormed to a maiden world title success which included victories against defending champion Bai, 2022 winner Mink Nutcharut and ultimately record 12-time champion Reanne Evans in the final.
Having first competed on the women’s tour at the 2019 World Championship, Channoi has competed more regularly since 2025 and will now follow in the footsteps of fellow Thais Nutcharut and 2023 world champion Siripaporn Nuanthakhamjan in competing on the WST.
She will be joined by China’s Bai Yulu, who earns a professional place for the second time, having completed an initial stint on the Tour from 2024-26.
The 22-year-old won a number of matches during her first spell, most notably reaching the final qualifying round of the 2024 UK Championship, as well as having compiled a stunning break of 145 at the 2025 International Championship, the highest-ever by a female player at a WST event to date.
The pair will join OnYee Ng and Reanne Evans, who each have one year remaining on their current tour cards.
Ronnie beat Luca Brecel by 10-5 yesterday evening to win the first “Global Championship”.
Congratulations Ronnie!
Once again l’ll share here the piece written by the always excellent David Caulfield:
Global champion Ronnie O’Sullivan says Snooker 900 has ‘hit the sweet spot’ for snooker
David Caulfield
Ronnie O’Sullivan believes that the rapidly growing Snooker 900 format could have a long-term future in the sport after capturing the inaugural Snooker 900 Global Championship title on Sunday.
The Rocket beat Luca Brecel 10-5 in the final to pocket the £25,000 top prize from the tournament’s overall £100,000 purse.
O’Sullivan produced another sparkling scoring display in victory, compiling five century breaks in the showpiece contest.
He also made the same number of tons during his recent triumph over Joe Perry in the final of the World Seniors Championship.
The 50 year-old has now won three consecutive titles outside of the main World Snooker Tour circuit, having also captured the John Virgo Trophy that was contested under the same Snooker 900 rules in April.
Yet while O’Sullivan’s latest success added another trophy to his glittering collection, much of the post-match discussion surrounded the format itself and whether it could become a more permanent fixture in professional snooker.
“I think if you asked 128 players, I reckon 70% of them would say we would rather play under this format,” O’Sullivan said.
“Because we’ve played a lot of snooker today, but we’re not sitting here until 1 o’clock in the morning – we’re not playing sessions thinking: ‘what time will we get something to eat?’”
“We know where we are, we just love playing. But at some point you’ve just got to know when you’re clocking on and off.
“Jason [Francis] has come up with an amazing format, and I just think he has hit the sweet spot with snooker really.
“If he can get some sort of tour going and get some backing, I’m sure this will be here to stay forever.”
Runner-up Brecel echoed those sentiments despite ending up on the losing side in the final on this occasion.
“I really like this, and I would love there to be more of them,” the Belgian Bullet said. “I think many players would love to be involved in these kinds of tournaments.”
“You also can see that it’s not like a World Championship – it’s not the prize money or the ranking points. But you can see all the players are really, really focused all the way through.
“The intensity with Ronnie and me was the same as in a UK Championship final, for example. So that just shows you how special this is.”
Brecel certainly contributed to a high-quality final despite ultimately falling short in his bid to secure a first individual title since winning the 2023 World Championship.
O’Sullivan established a 6-3 advantage after the opening session and didn’t relinquish control thereafter, with his heavy scoring proving decisive.
The Englishman’s victory continued an excellent recent record against Brecel, having now beaten the former Crucible king in each of their last three meetings in finals.
O’Sullivan survived an epic quarter-final clash with Billy Castle – beating the amateur in a deciding frame – before outlasting Kyren Wilson 6-4 in the semi-finals.
For Snooker 900 as a concept, though, the bigger picture may prove even more significant than the result itself.
The format appears to be growing rapidly and is increasingly being embraced by both players and fans alike.
While traditionalists will always prefer the longer tactical battles that have defined snooker for decades, Snooker 900 has arguably found a modern niche that feels commercially and practically appealing.
Frames move quickly, matches are completed within predictable time slots, and audiences can plan around broadcasts far more easily than they often can with conventional snooker tournaments.
That scheduling aspect may sound minor on the surface, but it is an important factor in an era where entertainment is competing harder than ever for viewers’ attention spans.
The format also seems to suit television requirements more naturally, with broadcasters able to work around tighter and more reliable schedules.
Importantly, the standard of play has not suffered.
O’Sullivan’s five centuries in the final alone demonstrated that quick-fire snooker does not necessarily mean lower-quality snooker, albeit it should be noted again that, like in last week’s World Seniors Championship, the pockets did appear to be on the generous side.
Yet even without ranking points on offer, the players appeared fully invested throughout the week.
Interest surrounding the format also seemed to be increasing online, with traffic on SnookerHQ.com high during both this tournament and the earlier John Virgo Trophy.
Whether that momentum eventually translates into a permanent place within the professional calendar remains uncertain.
Snooker 900 would arguably make an entertaining addition to the main tour, either as a standalone ranking/invitational event or as part of a broader series.
However, the well-documented fracture between Jason Francis and the World Snooker Tour hierarchy makes that scenario unlikely in the immediate future.
Still, if the objective is to attract new viewers while simultaneously creating a more player-friendly environment, Snooker 900 currently looks like one of the most interesting ideas the sport has produced in years.
Earlier this week, Csilla expressed her dislike for the format and in particular for the fact that frames are played over a limited time frame. While I understand her point of view, I also see the practical advantages of the said format. So many times in the past, when I was watching snooker on television, especially on the BBC, I was unable to watch the conclusion of the matches because they hadn’t finished in the allocated time frame and BBC had to switch to the next program … typically “Only fools and horses”. We were told to watch it on the red button … which wasn’t, still isn’t , available to us in Belgium. And there was no option to watch it later either. That was extremely frustrating.
Wilson, the 2024 world champion, levelled and took a 4-3 lead before O’Sullivan surged to victory.
Luca Brecel will face O’Sullivan in the final after the Belgian beat Joe Perry 6-3 in the other semi-final.
Snooker 900 events involve playing frames to a 15-minute (900 seconds) time limit, a 20-second shot clock and a ball in hand rule when a foul is conceded.
I can’t comment on the match because I saw none of it. I find it weird though that the caption on the picture supposed to illustrate this piece is about Ronnie’s defeat to John Higgins nearly three weeks ago … which is completely irrelevant in the context of the event in object.
The Snooker 900 Global Championship is the “youngest” of Jason Francis snooker’s brainchild. Ronnie is competing in it, and the event is already at thee semi-finals stage.
Here is the piece written by the always extremely knowledgeable David Caulfield, explaining everything you may need to know about this new concept.
How the semi-finals look at Snooker 900 Global Championship
Ronnie O’Sullivan is one of four players who are still in the hunt for glory at the semi-finals stage of the 2026 Snooker 900 Global Championship.
The Rocket is bidding to claim silverware in consecutive weeks following his triumph at the World Seniors Championship last Sunday.
In the inaugural staging of the Snooker 900 Global Championship in Reading, O’Sullivan edged Billy Castle in a dramatic 5-4 tussle in the last of Friday’s quarter-finals.
The 50 year-old, who is one of the backers behind the emerging Snooker 900 format, was pushed all the way by the amateur competitor but eventually got over the winning line with a break of 79 in the deciding frame.
O’Sullivan will face Kyren Wilson in the last four after the 2024 world champion also survived a scare before coming through as a 5-4 winner against Pankaj Advani.
India’s Advani, who was a professional on the main tour from 2012 until 2014, led 4-3 but miscued when in with an opportunity to seal victory.
Wilson pounced to take the game to a deciding frame, which he duly won to book his spot in the semi-finals.
The other semi-final encounter on Saturday will be between Luca Brecel and Joe Perry, who each also came through close fixtures in the last eight.
Brecel beat Florian Nuessle in another deciding-frame belter while Perry orchestrated a 5-3 triumph over Shaun Murphy.
Murphy was playing in his first competitive match since losing the World Snooker Championship final to Wu Yize at the start of the month.
But it was Perry who extended his good run of form having reached the final of last week’s World Seniors Championship where he was beaten 10-4 by O’Sullivan.
A second title-deciding bout in as many weeks between the pair could be on the cards, but they must first overcome their respective hurdles in the penultimate round of the competition.
The Snooker 900 Global Championship, with a total prize fund of £100,000, is using the new variation of rules that has gained popularity over the course of the last few years.
Frames are played over just 15 minutes – or 900 seconds – with a shot clock in operation and the ball-in-hand rule enabled when there are fouls.
It has proven to be entertaining to watch, although a bit like last week’s World Seniors Championship, some have questioned the generosity of the pockets.
The semi-finals both take place on Saturday over 11 frames, with the O’Sullivan-Wilson clash at 12:00 BST and the Brecel-Perry tie at 18:00 BST.
The best-of-19 frames final is then scheduled for Sunday, with live coverage available in the UK and selected regions on Pluto TV.
Yesterday evening, after returning from Athens where I went for medical tests, that yielded reassuring results, I was able to watch and enjoy, the Wilson v Advani game. It was a good entertaining match. I always liked Pankaj, as a person and as a player. He was however terribly homesick when on the tour. Living in the UK didn’t suit him at all.
Ronnie beat Joe Perry in the Final of the 2026 World Seniors Snooker Championship at the Crucible theatre in Sheffield to become the 2026 World Seniors Snooker Champion. This is actually his first Seniors title.
Ronnie O’Sullivan wins first World Seniors championship title | ‘I’d like to finish my career on a strong note’
Snooker Championship final, beating Joe Perry 10-4, a fifth century of the match provided a fitting end; O’Sullivan revealed: “My confidence is quite low. But if I can get some confidence going then I’d like to finish my career on a strong note”
Seven-time world champion Ronnie O’Sullivan added a first World Seniors Snooker Championship title to his trophy haul with a convincing 10-4 victory over Joe Perry.
O’Sullivan never looked back after breaks of 110, 131 and 113 saw him go 3-1 up at the mid-session interval before an 81 put him three frames ahead at the Crucible.
Perry won the next two frames but missed the chance to level things up after fluffing two simple pots as O’Sullivan took a 5-3 lead into the evening session.
The deficit was reduced on the resumption with the aid of a 51 break but it was the last frame Perry would win as O’Sullivan closed out victory in clinical style, which included a 129-clearance before his fifth century of the match provided a fitting end.
“This has been a tough tournament to win, every match I played felt hard. I know it might not have looked it but these guys are experienced competitors,,” O’Sullivan told Channel 5.
“I just wanted to enjoy the game, I didn’t want to get bogged down. I thought I’m just going to come and attack the balls. There’s always a risk with that that you lose some easy opportunities. [In the last session] I thought I’ve got to try and dig deep tonight so I came out and I just tried to play match snooker, use my brain.
“I’ve not been playing great for three years so my confidence is quite low and when I get into little situations, I was missing a few and I’m just thinking I never used to miss them balls.
“But if I can get some confidence going then I’d like to finish my career on a strong note. That’s my ambition.”
World Seniors Snooker Championship: Ronnie O’Sullivan reaches Crucible final on debut after victory over Robert Milkins
Ronnie O’Sullivan is making his debut at the World Seniors Championship; O’Sullivan came back from 5-4 down to beat Robert Milkins and reach Sunday’s final against Joe Perry at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield.
Ronnie O’Sullivan is through to his maiden World Seniors Championship final after closing out a 7-5 victory over Robert Milkins in Sheffield.
The seven-time world champion, making his tournament debut at the Crucible Theatre, had to come from behind on three occasions before winning three successive frames to close out victory.
O’Sullivan had already beaten Ken Doherty (4-1) and Peter Lines (4-2) on Friday to reach the last four, where Milkins provided a tough test during a topsy-turvy contest.
Milkins – the former Welsh Open winner – built leads of 3-2, 4-3 and 5-4 to threaten a famous upset against O’Sullivan, who responded with a brilliant 75 break during the 10th frame to level the contest.
O’Sullivan then won the next two frames to complete his victory against ‘The Milkman’, booking a meeting against Joe Perry in Sunday’s best-of-19 final.
“Conditions were really tough,” O’Sullivan said. “None of the players are making excuses.
“I thought we were cueing well, but it is just sometimes you can fall out of position and keep chasing the balls.
”It is hard, especially under pressure in front of a big crowd. So I think we’ve done really well considering the conditions.
“I’m messing about with different types of cue actions so it was a good experience to play under pressure, lose it and get it back. It is all new for me, so I’m enjoying that process..”
Milkins, who defeated Jimmy White in a black-ball decider in the last 16 before beating Igor Figueiredo 4-1 in the quarter-finals, said: “I’m not quite sharp, my match sharpness. I’ve disrespected the game for too long. I was struggling to get back into it. There are signs of playing well, but I just missed too many easy balls.”
