… with John Higgins and Ding Junhui added to the draw last minute. They will play the wildcards tomorrow afternoon and who plays who will be drawn there and then… No explanation or reason have been offered by WST for these last minute additions. If I have to have a guess I would say that the first evening session wasn’t selling. Already Saudi Arabia isn’t the biggest snooker nation, but the prospect of watching two completely one sided matches probably didn’t attract a big crowd… It will likely be the same in the afternoon, unless they bring some school kids in to fill the seats…
Hereafter is WST last piece about the event and it’s golden ball …
SAUDI ARABIA SET TO WELCOME FIRST PRO SNOOKER EVENT WITH GROUND BREAKING 167 PRIZE
Saudi Arabia set to welcome first pro snooker event with ground-breaking new 167 maximum golden ball prize
Riyadh Season will next week be the host for Saudi Arabia’s first-ever professional snooker event which will include the innovation of a Golden ball, giving the sport’s elite players the chance to score a unique 167 maximum and a substantial cash prize.
The Riyadh Season World Masters of Snooker, which will be broadcast live globally on Eurosport and DAZN, will run from 4-6 March in Boulevard City, Riyadh, featuring the world’s top ten players – Luca Brecel, Ronnie O’Sullivan, Judd Trump, Mark Allen, Mark Selby, Shaun Murphy, Mark Williams, Ali Carter, John Higgins and Ding Junhui – who will contest the trophy, alongside wild cards Omar Alajlani and Ali Alobaidli and all will be chasing snooker history.
A 23rd ball, which will be gold and known as the Riyadh Season ball, will be worth 20 points and can only be potted at the end of a 147 maximum. The first player to make the 167 will be awarded a $500,000 (£395,000) bonus by HE Advisor Turki Alalshikh, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the General Entertainment Authority (GEA).
The rules of the Golden Ball:
• At the start of each frame, the Golden Ball will be placed on the table, in the centre of the baulk cushion.• If a 147 is possible in the frame, the Golden Ball will remain on the table. If a player completes a 147 maximum, he will then have the chance to pot the Golden Ball to complete the 167.
• Once a 147 is no longer possible, the Golden Ball will be removed from the table, until the start of the next frame.
• Any foul or infringement involving the Golden Ball incurs a penalty of 4 points or the value of the ball ‘on’, whichever is greater.
“The new Golden Ball is a fascinating idea and something we have never seen in 150 years since snooker was invented! The players are excited about the opportunity to become the first to make a 167 ‘super maximum’ and earn the incredible bonus prize offered by HE Advisor Turki Alalshikh. We are thrilled to be heading to Saudi for our first ever tournament in the Kingdom, working alongside our friends at the General Entertainment Authority, and looking forward to meeting the fans and enjoying the atmosphere at Riyadh Season.”
Steve Dawson
Chairman of WST
EVENT PRIZE MONEY
ROUND-BY-ROUND BREAKDOWN
Winner £250,000
Runner-up £125,000
Semi-finals £75,000
Quarter-finals £50,000
Round one £25,000
Preliminary round £5,000
Total £785,000
About Riyadh Season
Saudi Arabia’s capital embraces one of the world’s biggest entertainment events every year during winter. Since the launch of the Riyadh Season in 2019, the festival has welcomed visitors from all over the world to experience thousands of concerts, sporting activities, and other unique cultural events.
For me this golden ball is just a gimmick… a very lucrative one for whoever making the “first 167”. I read that they will get 500,000 dollars for it. That’s quite simply indecent, shameful. I just hope that whoever picks it – if anyone – will at least give the best part of it, if not the whole sum, to a deserving charity.
The snooker.org team discussed wether we want to cover this event or not. We will but without enthusiasm. Here is what Hermund – our boss – shared on Twitter.
If you wonder who Jamal Khashoggi was … here goes.
I’ll do the same here. I will report, but not share anything on social media, other than this one.
As always, some came on social media, arguing that we condemn Saudi Arabia, but seem to accept China. To which Hermund replied this:
I totally share his views on the issue. There is no condoning China’s treatment of some ethnic minorities, but at least their interest in snooker is genuine and they have millions playing it.
So in theory there is a 175 break possible. It would be kinda cool if someone made a 175 and disrupts the narrative of the 167.
Does someone have an idea if the Golden Ball is replaced into the centre of the baulk cushion after a foul on it? If not I wonder if someone dares to accidentally foul it at the start of the frame to make the 167 shot easier.
It’s not replaced. It stays where it landed
Ok. So if no miss is called or no miss is taken of course. And given how often that happens, this “accidental” foul probably is not worth the risk.
It’s all very sad. Just because it is deplorable how they had a tournament in China after the Tienanmen massacre, there is no reason to go deeper in the mud. In any case, this golden ball thing is ridiculous. I hope nobody will make a 147, let alone a 167. As to Ronnie, it just saddened me to read how he fell in line and worse. After the disastrous Selby-match, OK, he had a bad day, it happens, there was no need to say he cares nothing about performance (at the Players???), but will give 300% in Riyadh. Yes, I understand he needs to have money for old age and the family, but there are limits. Or at least should be.
They added a further round and the wildcards will be played? That goes a bit against the ticket selling theory?
Well, I don’t know what demand there is, since they’ve never been there. But I just thought spontaneously adding matches could mean there is demand. Yeah, if there will be a lot of school kids, it will be suspicious, but on the other hand they could be inspired as well. Even if they then leave this country to become a snooker player, the inspiration started there.
Not really. Most people in the country, men in particular, will probably be at work in the afternoon, but free in the evening. What I mean is that, maybe, there is no much interest in wildcard matches, people you don’t have a lot on money may not be ready to spend it to see a one-sided trouncing, but they may be ready to pay for a match between two top professionals. OK, organising one more session that is unlikely to be well attended costs something, but it might be worth it if the evening session then sells well
Dave Hendon just said in his podcast that all sessions are sold out.
Well … empty arena this afternoon anyway as expected.
You mean you are watching this, Monique? 🙂
I certainly wanted to see what the arena looks like and as I expected, the setup looks nice but there aren’t many spectators. I also wanted to know if there would be any female refs, and how they would be dressed. At least Tatiana wasn’t wearing a scarf… And I will watch tonight because I’m marking the scores for snooker.org
Well he says it his his theory in the sentence before. I don’t know which part of the following sentence he relates to with that previous sentence.
Well, once they remove the golden egg, it looks like a normal snooker match between top players, who do not usually play each other in best of 7s. Otherwise an empty arena might be better than the continuous moving around of people and waiters with food and drinks LOL. But don’t get me wrong, I don’t have sympathy for the players for a second. And if someone makes that ridiculous 167 (I hope, not), they will be paid even if there is nobody too watch.
The continous moving was quite symptomatic. No interest in the break, just demonstrating power.
I’m talking about the 167 attempt by Higgins and not demonstrating power by moving, that’s just silly, but if the prize for a break is more than the tournament prize it’s of course about demonstrating something.