The format of the Cazoo UK Championship has changed so that the world’s top 16 are seeded through to the last 32 and will play in the final stages at the York Barbican, running from November 12 to 20.
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All other players will compete in the qualifying rounds at Ponds Forge in Sheffield from November 5 to 10, with 16 players going through to York to be drawn at random against the top 16 seeds.
Here’s how the qualifying format works:
Round 1 Seeds 81-112: Placed in 32 specific positions in the draw Seeds 113-144: Drawn at random
Round 2 Seeds 49-80: Placed in 32 specific positions in the draw, so if top seeds win in round one, seed 49 meets seed 112 in round two, 50 meets 111 and so on.
Round 3 Seeds 17-48: Placed in 32 specific positions in the draw, so if top seeds win in round two, seed 17 meets seed 80 in round three, 18 meets 79 and so on
Round 4 Round three winners all play against one another to reduce the field to 16. Draw arranged so that if top seeds win in round three, seed 17 meets seed 48 in round four, 18 meets 47 and so on.
Round 5 Top 16 seeds placed in specific positions in the draw, and drawn at random against the 16 qualifiers.
All matches up to and including the semi-finals are best of 11 frames, then the final on November 20th is best of 19 (8/11).
Prize money
Winner: £250,000 Runner-up: £100,000 Semi-finals: £50,000 Quarter-finals: £25,000 Last 16: £15,000 Last 32: £10,000 Last 48: £7,500 Last 80: £5,000 Last 112: £2,500 High Break: £15,000 Total: £1,205,000
This, for me, is a very welcome change as it gives the lower ranked players a more winnable match and only 32, instead of 64, will walk away with no prize money/ranking points. My only regret is that it’s not played in York.
Having struggled badly in the semi-finals, Ryan Day produced very high quality snooker from start to finish yesterday and beat Mark Allen by 10-7 to win a fourth ranking title, the 2022 British Open.
Ryan Day won his fourth ranking title – and the biggest of his career – as he came from 7-6 down to beat Mark Allen 10-7 in the final of the Cazoo British Open.
Welshman Day had previously won the Riga Masters, Gibraltar Open and Shoot Out, and has beaten John Higgins at the Crucible, but admitted that this week’s triumph in Milton Keynes is undoubtedly his greatest achievement in snooker.
The 42-year-old banks the top prize of £100,000, doubling his previous best pay day, and takes the Clive Everton Trophy back to Pontycymmer. The spin-offs are significant as he earns a place in the Cazoo Champion of Champions, looks sure to be in the field for both the World Grand Prix and Players Championship, and having climbed from 27th to 16th in the rankings he is back in contention for a spot at the Cazoo Masters in January.
That’s a tremendous reversal of fortune for a player who failed to go beyond the quarter-finals of any ranking event last season. He began working with renowned coach Chris Henry in 2021, and confidence has come flooding back for one of the most fluent break-builders of his generation.
Northern Ireland’s Allen came into the final as heavy favourite having been the best player of the week, but was outplayed at the decisive moments as his opponent reeled off the last four frames of an exciting contest. Antrim’s 36-year-old Allen, who missed out on a seventh ranking title, earns £45,000 and climbs from 14th to tenth in the world.
Allen took the first frame of the evening session to go 5-4 ahead, and had a chance in frame ten but potted just one red before missing the blue to a centre pocket, handing Day the chance to compile a break of 58 to get back on level terms. Allen regained the lead with a 53 before Day’s 79 made it 6-6 at the interval.
In frame 13, Day had a chance to clear from 41-5 behind, but missed the last red along the top cushion on 48. Allen later failed on the final pink, but got another chance and slotted in a long pink to edge ahead for the fifth time. Once again Day restored parity, thanks to a run of 74. Allen had a clear scoring chance early in the 15th but missed the blue to a top corner, and his opponent punished him with 70 to take the lead for the first time since 4-3.
A run of 84 saw Day go 9-7 ahead – the first time that either player had led by two frames. Tension took hold in frame 17 as both players missed chances. It came down to a tactical exchange on the yellow and Day, leading 49-39, laid a crafty snooker and from the chance that followed he cleared to the pink for victory.
“It’s special,” said Day, who was joined by wife Lynsey and daughters Francesca and Lauren as he celebrated with the trophy. “It was a fantastic match and a top standard for most of it. I felt like I got stronger as it went on. To be able to share that moment at the table with the trophy and the family is magic.
“Last night I was worried that the match would all be done and dusted early in Mark’s favour, because of how badly I played in the semi-finals, it could have been a massacre. But I slept well, changed my mindset and played a lot better.
“I have had some horrific defeats and played some awful matches in the last few years and I was wondering whether the end was near. But a win like this gives me at least another couple of years with a cue in my hand and hopefully there is more to come. Winning a big event like this shoots you up the rankings and I need to capitalise.
“My wife had already booked a holiday in New York in December so the £100,000 comes at a good moment!”
Allen, who has now lost eight of his 14 ranking finals, said: “I know how hard it is to win tournaments. The really top guys make it look easy, and it’s not. So all credit to Ryan because it has been a while since he got over the line in a big event. I missed the blue at 7-7, then after that he made good breaks and closed it out well. I had my chances and didn’t perform well enough.
“Ryan said himself that he really struggled in the semi-finals last night (beating Robbie Williams 6-5) but I knew he would play better today. The first session today was a really high standard, then he continued that into tonight’s session and I didn’t.”
Allen lost over four stone in weight over the summer and added: “I feel I have my priorities better now. I did it for my life, rather than my snooker, but if it helps my game as well that’s brilliant. I am getting myself healthier because I want to be around for my family.”
The truth is that Ryan has underachieved for some reason. At times, nerves let him down. One example of such occurrence is the 2007 Shanghai Masters final. The way he played yesterday though was no surprise to me. Ryan has tremendous ability and, when on song, he’s a delight to watch.
The first time I fully understood how good Ryan can be was a one-off event called OneForSeven played in Cardiff on 21 December 2009. It was a variant format, it was a lot of fun but was never repeated. Ryan won it and he played blistering snooker for start to finish. it was mesmerising.
This is how it works
I took pictures at that event but don’t have them at hand but I did found this gallery online, and this one as well. It’s a bit of a walk through the memory lane this… Because of the location there was a very strong Welsh contingent. You might recognise a very young Michael White, a very young Jamie Clarke and a very young Liam Highfield. Dave Harold was still playing, as were Hannah Jones (at the time a very promising young female player). Reanne Evans and Stephen Lee were there too. David Hendon paid us a visit and Paul Collier for some reason was wearing a prisoner’s outfit.
The two matches we saw yesterday a t the 2022 British Open couldn’t have been more different. The only thing they had in common is the referee. Indeed, because Colin Humphries was unwell, it was Ben Williams who took charge of both.
The afternoon match was as one-sided as it gets. During the first mini session, Mark Allen restricted Noppon Saengkham to just 6 points, of which 5 were from a penalty. The trend continued after the interval. Mark went 5-0 up. At that point he had scored breaks of 69, 76, 133, 69 and 56 whilst Noppon had scored 11 points in total. To Noppon’s credit, he didn’t give up and managed to win the scrappy next frame.All smiles, e celebrated with the crowd who was clearly happy for the sympathetic Thai. It was as good as it got though as Mark took the next with a break of 64.
Mark Allen described his own performance as “nearly perfect” after beating Noppon Saengkham 6-1 in the semi-finals of the Cazoo British Open.
Northern Ireland’s Allen lived up to his billing as the heavy favourite for the title as he dominated a potentially tough task against Thailand’s Saengkham, sealing the result in just 112 minutes to reach his 14th ranking final.
World number 14 Allen will face Ryan Day or Robbie Williams over a possible 19 frames in the final on Sunday in Milton Keynes, with the winner to lift the Clive Everton Trophy and a top prize of £100,000. Victory would give Allen a seventh ranking title, which would put him 14th on his own on the all-time list, ahead of Ken Doherty, Stuart Bingham and Stephen Maguire who all have six.
Just one of Allen’s six ranking titles has come in England – he has won three in China, one in Scotland and last October he enjoyed his finest hour when he captured the Northern Ireland Open in Belfast. The 36-year-old also won the Masters in 2018.
World number 38 Saengkham was playing in his third ranking semi-final and had hoped to reach his first final, but was completely outplayed and has to settle for a prize of £20,000.
The Thai scored just 11 points in the first five frames as Allen rattled in breaks of 69, 76, 133, 69 and 56 to go 5-0 up. A whitewash looked likely in frame six until Allen missed a red to a centre pocket on 44, and Saengkham cleared with 48 before raising his hands to the crowd in celebration having got one on the board.
Saengkham trailed 64-0 in the seventh then had a chance to clear after fluking a red, but missed the final green and that extinguished any hopes of a fight-back.
“I’m delighted with the way I played, I was pretty much flawless for the first four frames,” said Allen. “After that I kept making it tough for him and didn’t give him easy chances. I think I only missed one ball.
“I remember playing John Higgins in the (2013) World Open semi-finals, it was 2-2 at the interval and he didn’t pot a ball in the next four frames. That’s pretty much how it was today, it was nearly the perfect performance.
“It would be great to go ahead of the likes of Ken and Stuart on the list of ranking event winners but those two have both won the world title so I think they would take their career ahead of mine. I’m not getting carried away, I have to go and do a job tomorrow. At the end of my career I’ll see where I am on that list.”
Allen, who lost more than four stone in weight over the summer, added: “I won’t be watching the other semi-final tonight, I’ll have a very relaxed evening and the same in the morning. I’ll do a little work out in my room and otherwise take it easy.”
The evening match was completely different. It was pretty horrible TBH.
Ryan Day is one match away from his biggest career title after holding his nerve in a final frame decider to defeat Robbie Williams 6-5 and secure his place in the Cazoo British Open final.
The three-time ranking title winner admitted he had to “fight tooth and nail” to overcome Williams, with both players not at their fluent best.
Day, who came from 4-2 down in the match, won three consecutive frames to lead 5-4, before Williams won the tenth to force a decider. But, in the end, the Welshman pulled through to book his spot in the final where he will play Mark Allen – who beat Noppon Saengkham 6-1 earlier today.
After wins in the Riga Masters, Gibraltar Open and more recently, the Shoot Out, Day will be hoping to claim a fourth ranking title and take home £100,000 – the biggest payday of his career.
Day, who is ranked 27th in the world, took the lead with a break of 55. Williams hit back with a break of 77 before going on to win the next two frames and enter the mid-session interval with a 3-1 lead. The next two were shared then Day edged the seventh, 56-31, before a break of 61 ensured the match was finely poised at 4-4. He then moved in front for the first time since the opening frame.
Day had a match-winning chance in the tenth but missed the last red to a top corner with the score 51-50. Williams, who was seeking to reach his first ranking final, cleaned up for 5-5.
In the decider, Williams led 28-24 when he misjudged a containing safety, handing his opponent a chance to pot a red to a top corner. Day made a break of 45 which proved enough to secure a spot in the final.
“I was massively relieved to fall over the line,” said Day. “What you’ve seen tonight is two players that are not up the top of the rankings, fighting tooth and nail, letting the pressure affect them. But tomorrow is a different day. I’m playing Mark Allen, who is the form guy of the whole week and I know I’m going to have to improve massively, but I’m sure I’ll be better than I was tonight, for sure.
“I’ve won three ranking titles but they were not really massive events. This one would go down as a proper big event on home soil. So it would mean the world. I’ve got to come out of the trap early tomorrow and try and put Mark under pressure.
“I’ve got nothing to lose. Everyone, especially after watching that match tonight, will be expecting Mark to win. He’s trounced everybody he’s played. I’ve got a nice cheque coming in at the end of the week that is going to help my ranking, probably get me into one or two extra events that I wasn’t guaranteed before this week and I’ve just got to try to enjoy it.”
Day, who is a Manchester United fan, will now miss the Manchester Derby against rivals City tomorrow. The 42-year-old joked: “I’m not sure if that is a good or bad thing really! City are in good form, United have been a little bit better lately so hopefully, there is an upset in both the football and the snooker tomorrow!”
Ryan’s quotes, in italic and bold, do tell the story. There is not much to add and credit to them both. It’s not easy out there under such circumstances.
Ryan Day is currently up to second in the provisional one year list, and Robbie to 11th. Both definitely well placed to qualify for the Grand Prix.
Mark Allen became hot favourite for the Cazoo British Open title as he beat Mark Selby 5-3 to reach the semi-finals, remaining on course for a seventh career ranking crown.
Allen followed up yesterday’s victory over Judd Trump by knocking out another of snooker’s top guns, and the world number 14 is the highest ranked player left in the field in Milton Keynes. He will play in the first semi-final from 1pm on Saturday afternoon (live on the main ITV channel) with the random draw for the last four to be made this evening.
On the other table, Robbie Williams beat Lyu Haotian 5-1 to reach the semi-finals of a ranking event for the third time in his career. The world number 61 is now guaranteed £20,000, his second-biggest pay day.
Northern Ireland’s 36-year-old Allen is seeking his first title since winning his home tournament in Belfast last October. Having lost over four stone in weight over the summer, he has come into the new season full of confidence. The Pistol had lost his previous two meetings with Selby, but proved the stronger player at the business end of today’s contest.
Four-time Crucible king Selby started strongly with a break of 123 in the opening frame, then Allen took a scrappy second before making a superb 143 to lead 2-1. In frame four, Selby missed a mid-range red to a corner pocket on 34 and his opponent punished him with a 75 clearance.
After the interval, Leicester’s Selby made a 103 to close the gap to 3-2, then got the better of a safety exchange on the penultimate red in frame six and took the chance to level the tie. In the crucial seventh frame, Selby led 51-12 when his attempted long pot on the third-last red missed by several inches. Allen made an excellent 47 to regain the lead, and a long red early in the eighth set him up for a match-winning 126.
“I’m very proud of the clearance I made at 3-3 because the balls were tough,” said Allen. “I felt I was being frozen out of the match up until that point. Mark’s safety was immaculate, every time I came to the table I had no shot. I stayed patient and showed a lot of character in the end.
“I’m sure I’ll be favourite to win the tournament now but all of the other guys still in the field are there for a reason – they have all played well this week and they are all dangerous. Whoever I draw next is going to be very tough.”
Williams, age 35 from the Wirral, reached his two previous ranking semi-finals at the 2013 Indian Open and 2022 BetVictor Shoot Out.
After losing the opening frame today, he trailed 55-0 in the second, but hit back to win it on the colours. That proved a turning point as Williams took the next four frames in a row with a top break of 49.
“I didn’t score well today but it was all about getting the win,” said Williams, whose biggest scalp this week was Ding Junhui in the last 32. “The main thing for me is concentration. In the past I have struggled with keeping my focus at the big moments, but I have managed to do that this week. That has made a huge difference.
“These are the opportunities I want to grasp because it helps me get into the other ITV events later in the season. A run like this can kickstart a whole career. I wasn’t playing well today but I kept reminding myself to stay focussed and stick in there.”
Thailand’s Noppon Saengkham overcame an attack of nerves as he moved a step closer to a first ranking title, beating Jamie Jones 5-3 to reach the semi-finals of the Cazoo British Open.
Saengkham appeared in two ranking semi-finals in 2018, at the Yushan World Open and Welsh Open, and now has the chance to reach his first final. He will face Mark Allen at 1pm on Saturday in Milton Keynes, a match televised live on the main ITV channel. World number 38 Saengkham finished last season strongly, reaching the last 16 of the World Championship, and has carried that momentum into the new campaign.
Defeat has a silver lining for Jones as his schedule is now clear for him to run the London Marathon on Sunday, raising money for WST’s official charity Jessie May Children’s Hospice at Home.
Breaks of 61 and 89 gave Saengkham a 2-0 lead tonight, then Jones fought back to 2-2. A run of 102 saw Saengkham regain the advantage, but he made more errors as the winning line drew close and Jones recovered to 3-3.
In frame seven, an excellent pot on a red to a centre pocket set up Saengkham for a run of 63 to go 4-3 up. Both players missed clear opportunities in the eighth, but when Jones made a safety mistake with three reds left it proved his last shot as his opponent scored the points he needed.
“At 4-3 I thought my heart was going to jump out of body,” said former World Under-21 Champion Saengkham. “I told myself to calm down. I was nervous, I couldn’t control my hands. I missed easy balls, so I tried to relax and I just hoped I would get more chances. There was lots of pressure. I think I will enjoy tomorrow’s match more because I will be facing a top 16 player.”
In the other quarter-final, Ryan Day made a fantastic total clearance in the deciding frame to beat Yuan Sijun 5-4. The Welshman will now meet Robbie Williams on Saturday at 7pm.
World number 27 Day has won three ranking titles – the 2017 Riga Masters, 2018 Gibraltar Open and 2021 Shoot Out – and this is his first semi-final since that Shoot Out triumph 20 months ago.
Day and Yuan shared the first four frames – the Chinese player making the bigger breaks with 74 and 68. Yuan then took a scrappy fifth frame and had a chance to go 4-2 ahead but missed the final pink to a top corner when he trailed 61-51. Day potted the pink for 3-3 and made a 50 in the next to edge ahead.
Yuan dominated frame eight to make it 4-4, but didn’t have a chance in the decider as 42-year-old Day made a 124.
Day said: “It wasn’t the best game but I stuck in there. To win it with a big break gives me a big confidence boost. I tried to play fast and not get bogged down. There were nerves tonight on both tables, you could sense that. Tomorrow night is a big opportunity for both me and Robbie.”
Mark Selby congratulated Mark Allen on social media and insisted that there were many positives despite the defeat. In particular, he said that his mental health is improving which, of course, is much more important than any match of snooker.
Lyu Haotian collapsed. He won the first frame, was well ahead in the second, missed, lost it and basically further disintegrated as the match went on. He had chances in every frame. It’s sad to see. I had hoped that he was coming back to his best, and technically he probably is, but mentally he remains extremely fragile.
Yuan Sijun, on the other hand, gave a good account of himself. With a bit more experience in the latter stages of events, he will become extremely dangerous.
This afternoon, we will start with Mark Allen vs Noppon Saengkham. Allen is favourite of course but I wouldn’t dismiss Noppon’s chances. I would love to see him win a big event and it would do snooker in Thailand a world of good.
Regarding the evening match, Ryan Day is much more experienced than Robbie Williams when it comes to playing on the TV table in the latter stages of a big event. But Ryan has not always handled pressure that well and Robbie is very capable to create an upset.
Yesterday in Milton Keys saw the last 32 and the last 16 rounds played to a conclusion.
The quarter-finals line-up is an interesting one.
The two remaining top sixteen players, Mark Allen and Mark Selby will play each other. This opens a great opportunity for the rest of the field. All six other players are quality. I’ll sit on the fence
Robbie Williams faces Lyu Haotian. Lyu had a very hard time when he first qualified for the main tour. He was too young, lonely and terrible things happened to him. He almost quit snooker. That would have been a terrible shame because he’s incredibly talented. He’s still very young, he’s only 24. He seems to be coming back to hist best and it’s good to see. Robbie is a solid all-rounder. I fancy Lyu to win
Noppon Saengkham will play Jamie Jones. Both have played at the Crucible and won at least one match there. Both have reached the semi-finals of a ranking event more than once. I’ll sit on the fence
Ryan Day faces Yuan Sijun. Ryan has reached the QF stage at the Crucible three times and is a multiple ranking event winner but has not done much recently. Yuan Sijun is only 22. He has beaten some big names before: Kyren Wilson, John Higgins, Shaun Murphy, Mark Williams, Stephen Maguire and Ding Junhui. He lost his form for a while but looks very dangerous again. I fancy Yuan to win.
Judd Trump saw off Xu Si 4-0 at the Cazoo British Open and has lost just one frame in his three matches so far in Milton Keynes, but could face a much tougher challenge against Mark Allen in the last 16.
Mark Selby vJack Lisowski Anthony Hamilton v Yuan Sijun Jamie Jones v Ben Woollaston Robbie Williams v Steven Hallworth Mark Allen v Judd Trump Graeme Dott v Ryan Day Noppon Saengkham v Jordan Brown Lyu Haotian v Matthew Stevens
Trump is seeking his first title since he lifted the Turkish Masters trophy in March and looks favourite for the £100,000 top prize this week, which would put him ahead of Ronnie O’Sullivan at the summit of the world rankings.
He might have lost the opening frame against Xu, but the Chinese cueman’s attempted clearance ended when he missed a routine pot on the final pink. Trump capitalised and went on to take the next three frames with top runs of 62 and 130.
“No one has played their best against me yet,” admitted Trump. “The draw is getting tougher now so we’ll see what I really have in the tank. Mark Allen can be one of the best in the world on his day so that’s a big test. That kind of pressure tends to bring the best out of me.”
Northern Ireland’s Allen saw off Gary Wilson 4-2 with top breaks of 98, 52, 82 and 78.
Trump and Mark Selby are the only members of the world’s top ten still in the field. China’s Zhao Xintong, ranked seventh, suffered a 4-1 reverse against Thailand’s Noppon Saengkham. After losing the first frame, Zhao made a 77 for 1-1, then made a 64 in frame three, only for his opponent to clear with 67. That proved the turning point as Saengkham took a scrappy fourth frame then sealed victory in the fifth with an 89 clearance.
“I was excited to play Zhao and I enjoyed it,” said Saengkham. “After I won the third frame he felt uncomfortable and there was pressure on him. I am always trying new things in practice and trying to improve.”
World number 61 Robbie Williams top scored with 96 in a 4-2 win over Ding Junhui, while Ryan Day made a 103 in a 4-1 defeat of Jimmy Robertson. Former Welsh Open champion Jordan Brown edged out Yan Bingtao 4-3 with a top break of 134.
Mark Allen has lost over four stone in weight during the summer and looks to have new impetus on the table, beating Judd Trump 4-3 to reach the quarter-finals of the Cazoo British Open.
Northern Ireland’s Allen struggled for results in the second half of last season, but slimming down has helped his game and he looks sharp this week. The 36-year-old can look forward to a meeting with Mark Selby on Friday afternoon in Milton Keynes.
Friday’s quarter-finals
1pm Mark Selby v Mark Allen Robbie Williams v Lyu Haotian
7pm Noppon Saengkham v Jamie Jones Ryan Day v Yuan Sijun
Breaks of 68 and 67 helped put Allen 2-0 ahead of Trump, and he might have extended his lead but missed the last red to a baulk corner in frame three. That handed Trump a lifeline and he thumped the red into the same pocket, cleared for 2-1 then took the next frame to square the match. Allen regained the lead before Trump’s 109 made it 3-3.
In the decider, Trump had first chance and made 38 before playing safe. Allen’s counter ended when he missed the last red to a top corner on 55, and he was fortunate to snooker his opponent behind the black. Another slice of luck on his next shot saw him snooker Trump again, and from the chance that followed the Antrim cueman cleared for victory.
“From 2-0 I let Judd back into the match,” said world number 14 Allen. “But in the end I hung in there and made a decent 55 in the last frame. I was lucky that Judd wasn’t quite at his best tonight. My focus was good. I will need to play better than that against Mark Selby, but I really enjoy testing myself against the top players.”
Selby gave the clearest indication yet of a return to his best form as he beat Jack Lisowski 4-1 and made a superb 147. The maximum gave Selby the opening frame, then the second went to a respotted black and he converted a double to a centre pocket for 2-0. The Leicester cueman got the better of a battle on the last red in the third and extended his lead.
Lisowski showed his quality during a break of 119 as he pulled one back, but a long red early in frame five set up Selby for a match-winning 117.
“It was fantastic to make the 147 on live on TV, it’s extra special,” said four-time Crucible king Selby. “I had no choice but to go for the treble (on the 12th red), it was a one in 50 shot.”
Jamie Jones beat Ben Woollaston 4-2 to reach his second quarter-final of the season, having made the same stage of the BetVictor European Masters. Welshman Jones was due to run the London Marathon on Sunday but snooker takes priority.
“I am supposed to collect my number by Saturday evening, so if I win my quarter-final here I’ll have to think carefully about whether to pull out of the marathon,” said Jones, who now meets Noppon Saengkham, a 4-0 winner over Jordan Brown. “If that happens then I will run a virtual marathon in Neath next week and people will come out and run with me, which would be great anyway. Either way it’s going to be a positive end to the week for me.
“I played well in patches tonight. All of the underdogs left in the draw realise this is a great opportunity, as the random draw has kept us away from the bigger names.”
China’s Lyu Hoatian made breaks of 141 and 131 as he beat Matthew Stevens 4-1, setting up a tie with Robbie Williams, who ended the run of amateur Steven Hallworth. From 3-2 down, Williams took a scrappy sixth frame, then finished in style with a 134 total clearance.
Yuan Sijun edged out Anthony Hamilton 4-3 and now meets Ryan Day, who beat Graeme Dott 4-2.
This is Mark Selby’s 147, shared by WST on their Youtube channel
Aaron Canavan, the 2018 World Seniors Snooker Champion, won week 2 at the 900. He beat Stuart Watson, another stalwart on the Seniors tour in the final. After his win, Aaron praised Jason Francis, basically saying that without him he would still be hitting balls only in Jersey.
With a “slimmed” Seniors Tour this season, a lot of Seniors have expressed interest in the 900.
Here is how the action unfolded yesterday:
Emma Parker could not repeat her last Monday heroics but she still showed that girls can play.
Billy Castle was in the commentary box.
There is a strong support for the series and it’s obvious that it means a lot to the amateurs. They rarely get such exposure and they truly appreciate the experience.
Here are more pictures, shared yesterday on social media
This is the program for next monday
Again a lot of seniors players in the draw, including Levi Meiller from Canada !
Round 3 at the 2022 British Open starts this evening and we have lost quite a few of the top players already. You can follow all the results on snooker.org.
Four of the top 16 went out in round 1 (held-over matches): Ronnie, Shaun Murphy, Luca Brecel and Hossein Vafaei.
Here you will find more about Ronnie’s defeat to his Nemesis, Alexander Ursenbacher (again!).
Shaun Murphy lost in the most dramatic fashion: he was playing Gary Wilson – not an easy first round opponent – and had potted the last black in the deciding frame, only to see the white disappear in a middle pocket. That’s hard to take. Gary Wilson could hardly believe what he had just seen and here is his reaction as reported by WST:
World number 33 Wilson, who lost to Mark Williams in the final of this event last year, said: “I was the most surprised out of anybody, because I was sitting in my chair thinking I had lost. Shaun’s a lovely bloke and took it in great spirits. I’ve never actually won a game at this venue, and that was in my mind as he was he was clearing and up. Then all of a sudden, something stupid like that happens. I’m not sure whether he had a kick or just hit it a bit thick.
“I’m playing with a new cue and it didn’t feel great, it just felt heavy. I missed so many easy balls and played so many bad safeties, I just didn’t feel comfortable at all. I’m always hard on myself but I do try to look at positives as well.”
Mark Williams, the defending champion, had a rather easy win against young Andres Petrov from Estonia. H.E. Mr Viljar Lubi, the Ambassador of Estonia to the United Kingdom came to watch the match and support Andres. It’s a nice gesture and a lovely recognition of the sport of snooker, but I’m not sure it helped Andres who probably was already under a lot of pressure playing the defending champion on the main table.
Round 2 proved to be a stumbling block for many of the top seeds: we lost Anthony Mc Gill, David Gilbert, Stuart Bingham, Zhou Yuelong, John Higgins, Kyren Wilson, Joe Perry and Mark Williams.
Mark Williams, the defending champion was beaten by 4-1 by Ben Woollaston. Mark had been on a cruise just before this tournament.
Seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry had little sympathy for Mark Williams after the Welshman was unceremoniously knocked out of the British Open by world No. 44 Ben Woollaston.
…
Speaking on ITV Sport, Hendry said: “He [Williams] said after his first match he’s hardly been practising.
“YOU CAN’T WING IT.
“I know he won this tournament last year getting through matches but you’ve got to put the work in and he hasn’t done. I’m sure he’ll put the work in before the next big event.
“He was poor tonight.
Ben himself didn’t play fantastically well and, in general has not been playing great for quite some time. The same Eurosport article “explains” why …
Woollaston has been diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome recently, and afterwards he spoke more about his ongoing battle to manage the condition.
“It has got better recently so I am trying to be positive,” the 35-year-old said.
“On the good days I feel 60 or 70% of my usual self, but then I have days where I just completely crash.
“I can only practise for one or two hours a day and it’s hard to look after my kids when I’m at home. [Wife] Tatiana has been a massive support but it has been hard for her as well.
“Some people never recover from this kind of illness but I am hopeful because in the last few months I have been better.
“I am doing my best in matches and I have managed to win a few this season. I have no expectations. Tonight’s win was one of my best in recent seasons and the short matches suit me better.”
I’m wishing Ben the best possible for the future.
John Higgins was beaten by Yuan SiJun in a deciding frame. He missed match ball and Yuan cleared to win. John was really aggrieved as reported by WST in this report:
‘Unforgiveable’ Defeat For Higgins
It was a bittersweet day for John Higgins at the Cazoo British Open as he became the second player in snooker history to reach the landmark of 900 career centuries, but suffered a cruel 4-3 defeat against Yuan Sijun.
Higgins led 64-8 in the deciding frame but missed match-ball red to a top corner and that proved a crucial error as China’s Yuan made 31 then played safe, before clearing the colours to snatch victory 66-64.
Livid Higgins was barely consoled by the fact that he has become with only player other than Ronnie O’Sullivan to cross the 900 mark. “It is a milestone but I would have much preferred it to have happened in a win,” said the Scot. “It is unforgivable how you can’t close it out like that in the last frame – just unforgivable. You can add this to the list of so many times when I have collapsed near the finishing line. It only gets worse as you get older.”
Yuan took the opening frame, then in the second Higgins was on course for a 147 until he missed the ninth black on 65, and his opponent cleared with 72 for 2-0. World number five Higgins took the next three, making a 132 in frame five. But Yuan took the next with a 72 and won the dramatic decider book his place in tonight’s third round draw.
Performance of the day came from Cazoo UK Champion Zhao Xintong as he compiled runs of 112, 128, 101 and 52 in a 4-1 defeat of Stuart Bingham. “I didn’t miss a shot in the first three frames,” said Zhao. “There is pressure on the main table but I enjoy that.”
Mark Selby, seeking his first title since the 2021 World Championship, knocked in breaks of 110, 74, 55 and 54 in a 4-1 defeat of Mark Joyce. Jordan Brown top scored with 112 in a 4-1 win against Ng On Yee.
Xiao Guodong beat Peter Lines 4-1 in a match between two players who were involved in a fiery altercation last season which result in Lines being fined by the WPBSA Disciplinary Committee. This time, China’s Xiao top scored with 119 as he eased into round three.
Graeme Dott’s 4-1 win over Anthony McGill was highlighted by a break of 110, while Lyu Haotian took the last frame on the colours to beat David Gilbert 4-3.
In the last session of the round, there were wins for Judd Trump, Ding Junhui, Mark Allen and Yan Bingtao. Here is WST report on that session:
Trump Stays On Course For Top Spot
Judd Trump eased to a 4-0 victory over Dean Young in the second round of the Cazoo British Open, and would finish the week on top of the world rankings if he wins the tournament.
Ronnie O’Sullivan’s first round exit has opened a window for Trump to take over as world number one, if he can land the £100,000 top prize in Milton Keynes. The Bristolian was in tremendous shape today as he whitewashed Young in just 61 minutes with breaks of 52, 84, 100 and 64.
“It would be nice to get to number one off the back of winning a tournament, that would give me an extra sense of achievement,” said 2019 World Champion Trump, who now meets Xu Si on Thursday afternoon. “Any time you get to number one is special. Every time I was among the balls today, my position was good, I was in control and making breaks.”
Trump played in the BetVictor World Mixed Doubles last weekend, alongside O’Sullivan, Neil Robertson and Mark Selby. Asked how he feels his game compares to those three fellow titans of the sport, he replied: “When I play my best, I feel no one’s game can live up to mine, but I’m sure the others would say the same. Selby is looking like he is back to his best. Snooker is in a healthy place.”
Ding Junhui, who has slipped to 34th in the rankings having not won a title since 2019, showed signs of a return to form in a 4-1 win over Joe Perry, highlighted by runs of 73, 66, 84 and 50. “I am trying hard and practising a lot,” said China’s Ding. “Snooker fans still love to see me win any tournament. I am still trying, I am not giving up. Family is more important now, but snooker is still my career.”
…
Mark Allen came from 1-0 down to beat Li Hang 4-1, making a crucial 63 clearance in the second frame then firing runs of 133, 100 and 83 in the next three. Former Masters champion Yan Bingtao top scored with 92 in a 4-0 defeat of Andy Lee.
And about Judd Trump, unsurprisingly for me, he doesn’t like Ronnie’s idea about “helping” the women’s game.
‘I am sure Ronnie has got enough money to give away that five per cent in total,’ Trump told The Sportsman. ‘It is a lot easier to say stuff and get a debate going. But he is more than welcome to do it himself.
‘If he has that strong an opinion about it, why doesn’t he go ahead and do it – and put his money where his mouth is? And then the rest can choose if they want to follow his example or not. He can start the fund or kitty.
‘Why doesn’t he hand over his whole prize money for a whole season, and give that to the women’s tour? We also already give 2.5 per cent of the prize money away to World Snooker – I’d almost rather they just gave that to the women’s game.
‘If you added five per cent to the 2.5 per cent that is 7.5 per cent, and then tax on it all you are struggling to make a profit.’
It is fair to say that taking five per cent of prize money off the winners’ purses on the main tour would not impact the likes of O’Sullivan, Robertson and Trump who, regularly win titles, too badly. However, a five per cent cut in the overall prize fund on the main tour would be extremely unpopular with lower-ranked players.
Outside of the game’s elite, players are not earning vast sums of cash and in the bottom half of the world rankings, some are not making much profit at all, especially when expenses are taken into account.
My understanding is that Ronnie wanted 5% of the prize money fund to go the the women, but that does not necessarily mean 5% at each level. It’s obvious that this idea is only a viable option if the money is taken “at the top” and frankly, I would be happy with that. Making the whole system a bit less top heavy would be a good thing in my opinion.
Yuan took the opening frame, then in the second Higgins was on course for a 147 until he missed the ninth black on 65, and his opponent cleared with 72 for 2-0. World number five Higgins took the next three, making a 132 in frame five. But Yuan took the next with a 72 and won the dramatic decider book his place in tonight’s third round draw.
“It would be nice to get to number one off the back of winning a tournament, that would give me an extra sense of achievement,” said 2019 World Champion Trump, who now meets Xu Si on Thursday afternoon. “Any time you get to number one is special. Every time I was among the balls today, my position was good, I was in control and making breaks.”