Ronnie reacts to yesterday’s victory

January 6, 2016 Monique Professional snooker tournament Interview, Professional snooker

Ronnie was interviewed yesterday evening in Crondon Park after winning the Championship League Snooker 2016 Group 1.

Here is an excerpt

Ronnie O’Sullivan, who has been a bit of a stranger to the match table this season, wasted no time in shaking off any rust, as he looked in totally dominating form to win Group One of Championship League Snooker. The Rocket went undefeated through the group stages and won his semi-final 3-0 over Ricky Walden before beating Robert Milkins 3-0 in the final.

The Essex potter also recorder the 800th century of his career with a 136 against Barry Hawkins in the final match of the group stages and in all, racked up seven in the tournament. O’Sullivan, a 9/2 shot for next week’s Masters, looks full value as he moves forward to the final stages of Championship League in March.

“It is good to get through; I played some decent matches but didn’t feel like I played that well but my scoring would suggest otherwise,” said a delighted O’Sullivan.

“I felt I could cue a bit better but my focus was good, my mental approach was good and that is probably what held it together.

“My mental skills are good and that keeps me in the game these days and my ability to score amongst the balls always gives me a chance. There are areas of my game that need improving on if I am to dominate and win how I used to win, but maybe I shouldn’t be thinking that, maybe I should be just enjoying this new phase.

“It would be nice if I could bottle the scoring this week and take it to the Masters but it is a different tournament, different setup but I am pleased to have had a few matches and I look forward to getting going in the Masters now.

“800 is a nice milestone to get to. 1000 would be good but I will probably have to play for another three or four years to get that, but we will have a go,” he added.

Now that’s good to read!

Championship League Snooker 2016 – Ronnie wins Group 1

January 5, 2016March 22, 2020 Monique Professional snooker tournament Professional snooker

Ronnie won Group 1 of the Championship League Snooker 2016 in style: he won all eight matches he played, lost only eight frames of the 32 he played and made seven centuries in the event, six today. He is now on 802 career centuries, a new record. He is through to the Winners Group to be played early March.

Here is Ronnie’s 800th century, during his match vs Barry Hawkins

2016 CLS G1 GM: Ronnie O’Sullivan 800th Century – Barry Hawkins

Semi Finals: Ronnie beat Ricky Walden by 3-0

Scores (Ronnie first): 117(94)-5, 82(82)-40, 140(70)-0

Referee: Brendan Moore

MissingClip 2016 CLS G1 SF: Ronnie O’Sullivan – Ricky Walden

Final: Ronnie beat Robert Milkins by 3-0

Scores (Ronnie first): 120(120)-4, 57-33, 133(133)-0
.
Referee: Paul Collier

MissingClip 2016 CLS G1Final: Ronnie O’Sullivan – Robert Milkins

Championship League Snooker 2016 – January, 5, 2016

January 5, 2016October 10, 2019 Monique Professional snooker tournament Professional snooker

Ronnie continued today, as he left it yesterday. He’s on top of the league table having won six league matches out of 6. He will play Ricky Walden in the first semi-final at 6pm UK time.

It’s not the only feat of the day: indeed Ronnie hit four centuries today, the last one, a 136 being the 800th of his career. He celebrated with an apple!

World Snooker tweeted:

Take a bow. @ronnieo147 compiles his 800th career century break at the Championship League! Congrats Ronnie!

Ronnie O’Sullivan

So here is what happened:

Ronnie beat Ryan Day by 3-2

Scores (Ronnie first): 76-43; 1-69(69); 113(106)-14; 12-111(105); 64(55)-6

Referee: Rob Spencer

MissingClip 2016 CLS G1 GM: Ronnie O’Sullivan – Ryan Day

Ronnie beats Robert Milkins by 3-1

Scores (Ronnie first): 118(117)-14; 0-131(131); 126(126)-0; 103(95)-0

Referee: Brendan Moore

Some standard here, three centuries and a 95 in four frames!

MissingClip 2016 CLS G1 GM: Ronnie O’Sullivan – Robert Milkins

Ronnie beats Barry Hawkins by 3-1

Scores (Ronnie first): 140(136)-0; 0-79(78); 75-0; 69(69)-1

Referee: Paul Collier

2016 CLS G1 GM: Ronnie O’Sullivan – Barry Hawkins

Championship League Snooker 2016 – January, 4, 2016

January 4, 2016October 10, 2019 Monique Professional snooker tournament Professional snooker

The Championship League Snooker 2016, got underway today with the first day of Group 1. Ronnie has entered the event and is playing in Group 1 along with John Higgins, Mark Williams, Barry Hawkins, Ryan Day, Ricky Walden and Robert Milkins.

The format of this event is peculiar as explained on the Championship League website.

Seven groups of seven players produce seven winners who play in one further group to determine the winner of the 2016 Championship League.

In each group every player will play each other once in a best of five frame match (21 matches) after which the top four players will contest in the play offs; semi finals and final over the best of five frames.

Players will be awarded one point for each match won, then most frames won and the least frames lost in the league series will determine their position in the league table. Dead frames will not be played in either the league or knock-out stages.

The play-off winner will progress to the Winners’ Group of Championship League Snooker while the players coming sixth and seventh in the group will be relegated and will not feature in any further group matches.

Therefore after the group has played its total 24 matches (21 League matches plus play offs semi finals and final) three players will leave and be replaced by a further three players for the next group.

Also on the website is a page with the fixtures and results as they unfold.

Ronnie played three matches today.

Ronnie beat Mark Williams by 3-2.

Scores (Ronnie first): 0-68(66); 97-1; 48-89(78); 122(85)-4; 73-30

Referee: Paul Collier

During the first frame Ronnie looked very rusty and was outplayed. But he improved as the match went on and eventually won it, making a good 85 in the fourth.

Watch the match (again) here:

MissingClip 2016 CLS G1 GM: Ronnie O’Sullivan – Mark J Williams

Ronnie beat Ricky Walden by 3-0.

Scores (Ronnie first): 18-0; 74(60)-14; 66(65)-23

Referee: Paul Collier

Ricky was really struggling and never really looked like he was going to be a danger to his opponent. The first frame was very bizarre: Ronnie won it by 18-0 without potting a ball. Indeed Ricky found himself facing a difficult safety but not being snookered very early in the frame. He choose to try to run into the pack but hit the pink first twice. He was then warned by Paul Collier that he would lose the frame should he fail to hit a red on the third attempt. Ricky though decided to play the same shot again, hit the pink again and that was that …

Watch the match (again) here:

2016 CLS G1 GM: Ronnie O’Sullivan – Ricky Walden

Ronnie beat John Higgins by 3-2

Scores (Ronnie first): 1-67(61); 55-73; 73(51)-10; 115(115)-16; 85(81)-13

Referee: Brendan Moore

Ronnie came from 0-2 down to beat John Higgins by 3-2. He looked out of sorts at the start of the match, his long potting in particular not being great. But some very good safeties and his ever reliable break building helped him turn the match around. He made a 115 in frame four, the 796th century break of his career. There is a genuine possibility that he could reach the 800 mark in Crondon Park this week.

Watch the match (again) here :

MissingClip 2016 CLS G1 GM: Ronnie O’Sullivan – John Higgins

This was Ronnie’s last match for today. He’s top of the league table after the afternoon session with only Robert Milkins and him currently undefeated. This means that he’s in a very good position already to avoid the relegation zone.

After his matches, Ronnie tweeted:

Nothing comes close to crondon park, pure snooker, cue out and play, no faffing about, how it should be

Ronnie will be playing in Morocco for the first time, next March

January 2, 2016February 29, 2016 Monique Snooker Legends event Snooker Legends

Ronnie and Jimmy White will be playing in the Sheffield Academy, Casablanca, Morocco, on April 9, 2016. This is a new date, the exhibition was initially scheduled on March 12. Following Ronnie’s win at the Welsh Open, he qualified fro the World Grand Prix and new arrangements were agreed with the Sheffield Academy. The exhibition match will be followed by and Morocco v England challenge.
Read the event page for more infos.

Watch the trailer here:

Darts atmosphere at snooker events?

January 1, 2016 Monique Media Debate, Media

Ronnie O’Sullivan wants to bring the raucous party atmosphere of a darts crowd to a snooker event.

Ronnie O’Sullivan: Wants a party atmosphere at snooker events

The five-time world champion has landed his major titles by playing in enforced near silence at snooker’s major venues, including the Crucible.

The atmosphere can still be electric, but O’Sullivan is a regular visitor to the darts PDC Championship at Alexandra Palace, where the crowds, often fuelled by large amounts of alcohol, and razzmatazz provide an entirely different sense of occasion.

O’Sullivan wrote on Twitter: “The new rock stars are the dart players.”

He asked his followers: “By the way who would go and watch a snooker match played in a darts atmosphere?”

Despite a mixed response, O’Sullivan added: “Ok we will do one and see how it goes, I will play (Judd) trump first and see if it’s what the public wants.”

“I’d love to play in that atmosphere, and anyone who can’t, go home.”

O’Sullivan, 40, was awarded an OBE in the New Year Honours and will make his first tournament appearance since the World Championship last April when he plays at the Masters this month.

The Masters – also at Alexandra Palace – runs from January 10 to 17 and O’Sullivan starts his bid to win the event for a sixth time when he plays Mark Williams on January 12.

Similar articles have been published by other online “papers” as well, all inspired by Ronnie’s tweets today.

Personally, I’m not convinced that this would work at all, and, I’m not convinced that Ronnie would like it so much either once he’s tried it. Not in major events anyway: how could players concentrate on their shots with dozens of people screaming, gesticulating and walking in their line?

Ronnie takes a lot of pride in the quality of his performance, he hates playing badly and let the audience and himself down. How is he going to maintain that level of quality in a drunken circus atmosphere? One thing he isn’t taking into account is that dart players aren’t that close to the audience and, more importantly, they don’t face the audience when throwing.

In a way it’s a bit what the snooker shootout is trying to offer and … guess what? A number of top players have not entered it, Mark Selby, Neil Robertson, Ding Junhui … AND Ronnie, they all give it a miss. So?

Thoughts anyone?

And so 2016 begins …

January 1, 2016January 6, 2016 Monique Live Live

Most important thing first, I want to wish everyone of you and those dear to you a peaceful, happy and healthy 2016.

Next … I want to thank you for welcoming and supporting this blog. It has been around for about four months now and it got 40947 views by 13176 distinct visitors in 2015. Most views came from United Kingdom and Russia, both close to the 6500 mark.
The individual post with most views, 2614, was “Farewell to Billy O’Connor” which goes to show that, for the readers of this blog, the human person and solidarity are and remain the most important things in their life. Thank you guys, you are great!