Tour Players Guaranteed Prize Money Under New WST And WPBSA Initiative
Players on the World Snooker Tour will be guaranteed to earn a minimum of £20,000 during the 2022/23 season, under a new system which offers them security in a difficult economic climate.
The initiative will be introduced with immediate effect, with players to be offered payments of up to £10,000 in September, and a further £10,000 in January.
These payments are set against prize money, so players otherwise earning £20,000 or more over the season will have the up-front payments deducted from their prize money earnings. The system will particularly benefit those who would otherwise earn less than £20,000 in prize money.
WST Chairman Steve Dawson said: “We are delighted to join forces with the WPBSA and its players organisation to fund this new programme. We recognise that these are tough times for many people given the cost of living crisis and that a £20,000 guarantee provides an important level of reassurance for many players who need to plan and prepare for life on tour.
“The top stars on our tour earn vast sums, in fact three years ago we saw Judd Trump become the first player to earn £1 million in prize money in a single season. But we recognise that further down the rankings, there are no guarantees. We have brought in this new system to support the many talented players who may need a level of security to fund their snooker careers.
“Before Matchroom took control of the sport in 2010, overall prize money had sunk as low as £3.5 million and all players had to pay around £5,000 a year in entry fees. We have since scrapped entry fees and the prize money levels are far higher. Due to the pandemic, we have not been able to stage ranking events in China since 2019, which has adversely affected our tour. But we will return to China as soon as restrictions are reduced, and we are striving to create new events, as we have done with the British Open, Turkish Masters, Hong Kong Masters and World Mixed Doubles.”
WPBSA Chairman Jason Ferguson
WPBSA Chairman Jason Ferguson added: “This new initiative is a fundamental shift in the way we are underpinning the future of our sport. This clearly shows the importance of our new structure at the WPBSA where players are represented and listened to through their own WPBSA players body, and I would like to thank the WPBSA players board for their support. In addition, this demonstrates the value of becoming a World Snooker Tour card holder where we take talent retention and the welfare of our players seriously.”
The new system, open to all 130 tour players, will run this season on a trial basis before the decision is made whether to continue next season.
Ferguson Hails New Prize Money Guarantee Scheme for World Snooker Tour
World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) Chairman Jason Ferguson has welcomed the introduction of a new prize money guarantee scheme that will see players on the World Snooker Tour (WST) guaranteed to earn a minimum of £20,000 for the first time during the 2022/23 season.
Jointly announced by WST and snooker’s world governing body the WPBSA, and supported by the WPBSA’s own players board, the new initiative will provide unprecedented support for all professional players. In particular, the scheme will provide stability for players to compete throughout the year.
Jason Ferguson, WPBSA Chairman said: “We are today delighted to be able to announce this new scheme which will underpin the future of our sport going forwards.
“There can be no question that the World Snooker Tour represents the pinnacle of our sport and that every player who has qualified through our recognised WPBSA pathways is deserving of the opportunity to compete at the very highest level.
“However, we are currently living through challenging times, with the global cost of living crisis combined with the continued impact of the coronavirus pandemic upon the international calendar, undoubtedly having a destabilising effect upon players.
“We further recognise that talent can come from anywhere around the globe, there are players from no fewer than 19 countries currently represented on the World Snooker Tour and I am sure this scheme will now make it possible for anyone to achieve their dreams and fulfil their potential. Player welfare is an issue that we take extremely seriously, and there is no doubt that this scheme will ease the pressure for many of our members, allowing them to do what they do best – play snooker and entertain the many millions of fans around the world.
“This scheme demonstrates the value of earning a two-year WST Tour Card and has been made possible through the tripartite structure that exists within our sport. This includes our commercial arm WST, the WPBSA as world governing body and crucially our WPBSA Players organisation, which ensures that the views of the players are heard at all stages. This demonstrates that our new constitutional changes at the WPBSA are working. I would like to place on record my thanks to fellow Chairman at WST Steve Dawson, the WST Board of Directors, and the new Players Board currently chaired by Ken Doherty, all of whom have contributed to making this happen.”
This is indeed a radical shift from Barry Hearn’s “philosophy”, allegedly about “not rewarding mediocrity”. It isn’t “rewarding mediocrity” to pay people for their job done. It isn’t “rewarding mediocrity” to recognise that new players on tour need time to adjust: this is a very difficult sport and the top players play at a very high standard. It isn’t “rewarding mediocrity” to help players who need to “expat” – because of the UK centric nature of the tour – to relocate and settle in their new lives. All this applies, no matter the economical climate, but it is more important than ever in this time of deep crisis.
There is a small risk that a couple may abuse the system, take the money and do nothing, but it’s a small price to pay if this system allows many young talents to develop and thrive. This is about the future, and maybe even the survival, of snooker as a top sport. Well done WPBSA!
The WPBSA has today charged Thanawat Tirapongpaiboon with fixing the outcome of six World Snooker Tour matches between 2013 and 2015. His case will be heard at a formal hearing of the Independent WPBSA Disciplinary Committee on a date and at a venue to be confirmed.
Jason Ferguson, the Chairman of the WPBSA has taken the decision to suspend Tirapongpaiboon from competition. This suspension will remain in place until the conclusion of the hearing or hearings and the determination of this matter.
Tirapongpaiboon is fully co-operating with the WPBSA.
The WPBSA will not comment further until the case has been before the independent WPBSA Disciplinary Committee.
The rules in question are:
WPBSA Conduct Regulations Part 1 – Section 2 Betting Rules
Corruption:
2.1.2.1 to fix or contrive, or to be a party to any effort to fix or contrive, the result, score, progress, conduct or any other aspect of the Tour and/or any Tournament or Match.
This raises so many questions…
“Between 2013 and 2015” … Thanawat last played on the main tour in December 2015. We are in September 2022. Why is this coming out now? The matches under investigation happened nearly seven years ago or earlier. Some happened nine years ago. So, why now? Why wasn’t this investigated earlier? Was this taken out of oblivion only because Thanawat actually qualified for the main tour again via the Asia-Oceania Q-School? It looks like it and that doesn’t look right to me: not the fact that it is investigated, but the fact that it wasn’t for so many years. Why wait?
Firebomb attack on Sheffield home of snooker players in corruption probe
00:35 BST, 22 September 2013
By Nick Harris
Updated: 22 September 2013
The Sheffield home of two Thai snooker players under investigation for possible match-fixing has been firebombed in a premeditated arson attack, The Mail on Sunday reveals.
Although the police have established no fixed motive for the arson, which resulted in two people needing medical treatment, one line of inquiry is that it could be linked to gambling on snooker.
Violent crime has been a blot on Thai snooker historically. Thailand’s best player, James Wattana, a former world No 3, once had a death threat to encourage him to lose a match, and his father was shot dead in 1992, said to be as a result of gambling debts.
Suggestions that Asian fixers could be trying to influence British snooker will send a chill through the sport – hence the complete secrecy, until now, about the arson attack.
The Mail on Sunday reveals it happened at a house in the Brinsworth area of Rotherham, near Sheffield, early on Friday August 30.
The property is owned by a snooker academy boss, Keith Warren, and two of those to have stayed there are Thai players, Thanawat Tirapongpaiboon, 19, and Passakorn Suwannawat, 27.
The attack came three weeks after snooker’s governing body, the WPBSA, announced they were investigating unusual betting patterns on matches played in Doncaster by Passakorn and Thanawat on August 7.
Snooker’s head of integrity Nigel Mawer said: ‘Whether the matches are connected to the arson, I don’t know’
Money had been placed on Thanawat, the world No 75, and Passakorn, ranked No 92, to lose in a qualifying event for the Shanghai Masters. Both fell to lower-ranked opponents. Bookmakers suspended betting before the matches and the WPBSA announced immediately they would liaise with the Gambling Commission to ‘establish the available facts’.
Almost seven weeks on, the inquiry is continuing. ‘We are continuing to look at the two matches, and I can confirm there was an arson attack,’ said snooker’s head of integrity Nigel Mawer, formerly the head of the Economic and Specialist Crime Command at the Met Police. ‘Whether the matches are connected to the arson, I don’t know, but that is one of several possibilities that could be considered.’
The two players were not in the house at the time of the attack, having left for Thailand three or four days earlier, and wanted to remain anonymous.
A local fire brigade spokeswoman said three fire engines attended a blaze at 2.30am and two occupants were told how to stay safe until rescued. ‘The door area of the house was on fire and the rest of the property was smoke-logged,’ said the spokeswoman. A brigade investigation found the fire was ‘deliberate’ and the police took over.
It is understood that the WPBSA were alerted that cash in Asian markets had been wagered on the Thai players’ qualifiers, and peculiar betting patterns were also seen in the UK.
Snooker betting: Shanghai Masters inquiry closes with no charges
29 January 2014
Snooker’s governing body says there is no evidence to link two Thai players with unusual betting patterns at two Shanghai Masters qualifying matches.
Scot Ross Muir beat Thanawat Tirapongpaiboon, of Thailand, 5-0, while Egyptian Mohamed Khairy defeated Thai player Passakorn Suwannawat 5-4 at the Doncaster Dome in August 2013.
Several bookmakers suspended betting on the matches, but the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) says it had found nothing to indicate any wrongdoing.
The WPBSA liaised with the Gambling Commission about the games.
Nigel Mawer, the WPBSA’s disciplinary chief, told BBC Sport: “After a thorough investigation, including interviewing the two Thai players and making inquiries in Thailand, there is no evidence of a link between the players and suspicious betting activity. The case is concluded.”
Snooker chiefs insist they treat all allegations around suspicious betting activity seriously.
We can only suppose that the current investigation is about other matches. I don’t remember suspicious betting being talked about at the time. That said I’m not into betting at all so it might well have completely escaped me. Also it’s about 6 matches over a period when Thanawat didn’t play that much at all. I’m puzzled…
Mohamed Ibrahim from Egypt has won the 2022 Snooker African Championship and will be offered a two years tour card. He defeated Hesham Shawky 5-4 on the pink to win the 2022 African Snooker Championship late last night in Morocco. Mohamed Ibrahim had already qualified for the main Tour in 2018/19, by winning the same competition. However, he never played a professional match. What will happen this time remains to be seen.. All the same, congratulations to him!
No event in China at all, not even with a “to be confirmed” tag. No Gibraltar Open either. That’s maybe not that surprising after the problems players faced last season. Indeed, because of Brexit, most players now need a “Schengen Visa” just in case, because of the weather, their plane would land in Spain rather than in Gibraltar. Last season, a number of them were sent back to the UK, after landing in Spain, missing out on possibly crucial ranking points.
BetVictor Continues Partnership With World Snooker Tour
BetVictor, a leading global gambling company, will be title sponsor of nine events on the World Snooker Tour during the 2022/23 season, with the leading money winner across the BetVictor Series to earn a huge £150,000 bonus.
WST is delighted to continue its long term partnership with BetVictor, a dedicated supporter of snooker for many years.
The BetVictor sponsored tournaments will include the four BetVictor Home Nations Series events, the new and innovative BetVictor World Mixed Doubles and four others. The events are:
BetVictor Championship League, June 28 to July 29, Leicester, promoted by Matchroom Multi-Sport
BetVictor World Mixed Doubles, September 24-25, Milton Keynes
BetVictor European Masters, August 16-21, Germany
BetVictor Shoot Out, January 26-29, Leicester
BetVictor German Masters, February 1-5, Berlin
BetVictor Home Nations Series
BetVictor Northern Ireland Open, October 16-23, Belfast
BetVictor Scottish Open, November 28 to December 4, Edinburgh
BetVictor English Open, December 12-18, Brentwood
BetVictor Welsh Open, February 13 to 19, Llandudno
All of these events, other than the BetVictor World Mixed Doubles, will count towards the BetVictor Series. All money earned by every player in the eight counting events will be tallied on the BetVictor Series Rankings. The money list leader after the eighth and final event in Wales in February will earn the £150,000 bonus.
John Higgins earned the £150,000 bonus last season
Last season, going into the final event there were 11 players still in with a chance of banking the bonus. In a dramatic finish, John Higgins came out on top and won the £150,000. Judd Trump captured the bonus in both 2020 and 2021.
All of the BetVictor-sponsored events will be broadcast live to hundreds of millions of snooker fans across the globe.
Discovery-owned Quest and Eurosport are the host broadcasters for the BetVictor Home Nations Series. Eurosport are also host broadcasters for the BetVictor Shoot Out, BetVictor European Masters and BetVictor German Masters.
The new BetVictor World Mixed Doubles will be live on ITV and ITV4, featuring the world’s top four men and top four women players. The BetVictor Championship League will be broadcast by streaming partners including Matchroom.Live
The events will also be shown around the world on WST’s broadcast partners which include TrueSport, SportCast, Now TV, Astro SuperSport, CCTV5, Liaoning TV, SPS Mongolia, Pakistan TV Sports, Premier Sports Philippines, Hub Sport and DAZN as well as various streaming partners including Huya, Youku, Migu and Matchroom.Live.
WST Chairman Steve Dawson said: “BetVictor has been a fantastic and welcome part of the snooker family for many years and we are thrilled to continue our partnership with them. In the coming season they will sponsor a wide range of events with a variety of formats. Every tournament will feature the very best players in the world at a time when the entertainment delivered by our sport is stronger than ever.
“The BetVictor bonus has provided a fascinating extra element to our tour over the past three years. From the first event, players are striving to top the leaderboard and put themselves in line for the £150,000. To have 11 players in the race over the final three days of the series last season gave us a thrilling conclusion and we hope for a similar story next time.
“Snooker continues to grow in terms of our worldwide television and digital audience, with new and younger fans discovering the enthralling nature of the sport every year. BetVictor have joined us on that journey, bringing their brand to hundreds of millions of followers. They are a great team to work with and we look forward to developing our relationship for many years to come.”
Hull To Stage Tour Championship For The First Time
Neil Robertson and John Higgins contested a classic final last year
The Bonus Arena in Hull will host the world’s best snooker players next year, when the Tour Championship comes to the city for the first time.
The tournament is one of the biggest on snooker’s global circuit and features an elite eight-man field. Only the top eight on the 2022/23 season one-year ranking list will qualify for the world ranking event.
Running from March 27 to April 2 in 2023, the event will be televised live by ITV and a range of other international broadcasters.
Neil Robertson won the title last season in Llandudno, beating John Higgins in the final. Also in the field were Ronnie O’Sullivan, Judd Trump, Mark Williams, Mark Allen, Zhao Xintong and Luca Brecel. A stellar field of the sport’s all-time greats is expected again in 2023.
…
World Snooker Tour Chairman Steve Dawson said: “We are excited about going to the Bonus Arena in Hull for one of our biggest events for the first time as it is a fabulous venue and the atmosphere when it is packed out is going to be incredible. For the very best players on the planet and for the fans lucky enough to get tickets this is going to be a special experience.
“From the moment the first balls are struck this season, the players are in a race to climb high on the one year list, because only those in form qualify for the elite events in this series. The top 32 make it to the World Grand Prix, then 16 qualify for the Players Championship and by the time we get to the eight-man Tour Championship it really is the cream of the crop.
“We look forward to working with the team at the Bonus Arena and the people of Hull on delivering a sensational event.”
Hull, and this venue in particular, have hosted several important “Seniors” events. It’s a great venue and Hull is a very nice and interesting city to visit. It has both “historical” and “mordern” sides. The locals are particularly wellcoming, and helpful if you get lost! If you plan to go … take some warm clothes with you! The sea coast climate is “tonic” but not exactly hot!
Snooker’s Scottish Open and Welsh Open get new homes for 2022/23 season
Phil Haigh Monday 20 Jun 2022
The Scottish Open will return to Scotland this season after a brief trip to Wales last year, while the Welsh Open moves to Llandudno for the 2022/23 campaign.
It was an unusual Scottish Open in 2021, with a contractual issue forcing a late switch from Glasgow to north Wales due to the tournament being sponsored by a bookmaker.
It returns to Scotland in 2022, but not to Glasgow which has been its home for the majority of its latest incarnation, but to Edinburgh for the event that runs from 28 November to 4 December.
World Snooker Tour confirmed the switch in their Cue News newsletter, although did not announce which venue would be used in the Scottish capital.
In a previous life, the Scottish Open was last hosted in Edinburgh in 2003 at the Royal Highland Centre, when David Gray beat Mark Selby in the final to lift the title.
The newsletter also confirmed that the Welsh Open will be making the move to Llandudno for the first time in its history.
The tournament dates back to 1992 and has either been held in Cardiff or Newport since its inception, but will move north to Llandudno in 2023 from 13-19 February.
Llandudno has become a feature on the World Snooker Tour in recent years, also hosting the Tour Championship in 2019 and ’22, but the eight-man event is set to move on this season.
Hull is expected to be announced as the new home of the Tour Championship for 2023.
After careful consideration the WPBSA Board has taken the decision not to admit Thanawat Tirapongpaiboon as a Member of the WPBSA.
This decision has been taken in the best interests of the WPBSA and the sport. This means that he will be unable to take a place on the World Snooker Tour for the forthcoming season.
This is due to outstanding serious disciplinary matters from when he was last on the World Snooker Tour in 2015. Thanawat is cooperating fully with the WPBSA to resolve the outstanding issues.
The WPBSA was today alerted to unusual betting patterns regarding the match between Thanawat Tirapongpaiboon and Martin O’Donnell at the Paul Hunter Classic in Germany.
The WPBSA monitors betting on ALL professional snooker and has the most sophisticated methods available today. Working with partners worldwide and by liaising with the Gambling Commission, the WPBSA will review the available facts surrounding betting on this match. A decision will then be taken on whether any further action is necessary.
Firebomb attack on Sheffield home of snooker players in corruption probe
The Sheffield home of two Thai snooker players under investigation for possible match-fixing has been firebombed in a premeditated arson attack, The Mail on Sunday reveals.
Although the police have established no fixed motive for the arson, which resulted in two people needing medical treatment, one line of inquiry is that it could be linked to gambling on snooker.
Violent crime has been a blot on Thai snooker historically. Thailand’s best player, James Wattana, a former world No 3, once had a death threat to encourage him to lose a match, and his father was shot dead in 1992, said to be as a result of gambling debts.
Suggestions that Asian fixers could be trying to influence British snooker will send a chill through the sport – hence the complete secrecy, until now, about the arson attack.
The Mail on Sunday reveals it happened at a house in the Brinsworth area of Rotherham, near Sheffield, early on Friday August 30.
The property is owned by a snooker academy boss, Keith Warren, and two of those to have stayed there are Thai players, Thanawat Tirapongpaiboon, 19, and Passakorn Suwannawat, 27.
The attack came three weeks after snooker’s governing body, the WPBSA, announced they were investigating unusual betting patterns on matches played in Doncaster by Passakorn and Thanawat on August 7.
Money had been placed on Thanawat, the world No 75, and Passakorn, ranked No 92, to lose in a qualifying event for the Shanghai Masters. Both fell to lower-ranked opponents. Bookmakers suspended betting before the matches and the WPBSA announced immediately they would liaise with the Gambling Commission to ‘establish the available facts’.
Almost seven weeks on, the inquiry is continuing. ‘We are continuing to look at the two matches, and I can confirm there was an arson attack,’ said snooker’s head of integrity Nigel Mawer, formerly the head of the Economic and Specialist Crime Command at the Met Police. ‘Whether the matches are connected to the arson, I don’t know, but that is one of several possibilities that could be considered.’
The two players were not in the house at the time of the attack, having left for Thailand three or four days earlier, and wanted to remain anonymous.
A local fire brigade spokeswoman said three fire engines attended a blaze at 2.30am and two occupants were told how to stay safe until rescued. ‘The door area of the house was on fire and the rest of the property was smoke-logged,’ said the spokeswoman. A brigade investigation found the fire was ‘deliberate’ and the police took over.
It is understood that the WPBSA were alerted that cash in Asian markets had been wagered on the Thai players’ qualifiers, and peculiar betting patterns were also seen in the UK.
Snooker is grappling with one major match-fix case already. Former world No 5 Stephen Lee, 38, was found guilty last week on seven counts of fixing games or frames in 2008-09 and faces a possible life ban.
It’s been made public this morning that the residence in Rotherham which houses the Thai snooker players was subjected to an arson attack back in August, just three weeks after two of them fell under suspicion for match fixing.
While it has not been established if there is a concrete link between the dodgy goings-on in Doncaster which saw Passakorn Suwannawat and Thanawat Thirapongpaiboon both lose in the wake of unusual betting patterns it does seem coincidental that their house, which they were not in at the time, was targeted.
If this is the case, this is a sinister twist in the story, I understand that the attack followed a visit from the police to question the players about any involvement in match fixing.
Nigel Mawer, the head of the sniffer dogs at the Integrity Unit said ‘Whether the matches are connected to the arson, I don’t know, but that is one of several possibilities that could be considered.’ He didn’t mention what the other ones were.
Thai snooker is no stranger to controversy of this kind and even a casual Google Search of James Wattana will reveal death threats and even murder linked to such things, so it’s not something that you really want to get yourself involved with if you value your health.
The fire brigade have established that the fire was started deliberately and it is now in the hands of the police to investigate who might be behind it and for what reason.
I have also received unconfirmed reports that Passakorn is unlikely to continue his professional snooker career having had his funding withdrawn and is back in Thailand unlikely to return.
Passakorn indeed didn’t return to the main tour, but Thanawhat did.
Bradford-based snooker star James Wattana received a death threat just hours before a major match in Bangkok, it was revealed today.
Wattana was told to “be prepared to die” less than three hours before he lost 5-2 to Ken Doherty in the second round of the Thailand Masters.
The call, which was taken seriously, was made to Wattana’s mobile phone from a public booth believed to be near to the venue.
He was given full police protection, but his mother, Ployrung, still pleaded with her son to withdraw, claiming it was not worth the risk to continue.
The anonymous call, which is under investigation, could well have been linked to an illegal betting ring.
Seven years ago Wattana’s father was gunned down by an assassin in Bangkok while, some 6,000 miles away in Derby, his son compiled a maximum 147 break at the British Open.
“I told James not to play,” said his mother, who was seen crying during the match. “This tournament just isn’t worth the risk. I lost my husband and I don’t want to lose my son as well.”
After the match with Doherty, Wattana joked: “It was good that the guy asked me to lose. What would I have done if he’d asked me to win? Against Ken that would have been very difficult.”
His father Kowin Phu-ob-orm, was shot dead in an argument over gambling debts. Two men suspected of the killing were later shot dead in a Bangkok street by police.
The Daily Telegraph snooker correspondent, John Dee, who is covering the tournament in Bangkok, said today: “We did not know about the death threat until after James had played.
“I spoke to him last night and he was very subdued. After the match he gave his snooker cue and case away – he was suspicious about it bringing bad luck. A lot of the players here are shocked at what happened but James will be moving onto China next week for another tournament and trying to put this behind him.”
Wattana became an adopted Bradfordian in 1989 when he moved to the city from London. He is based in Allerton and practices there at the Cuedos Snooker Club.
In December Wattana, who spends half the year in Bradford and half in Bangkok, broke down in tears at a press conference after a shock 5-1 defeat in the Asian Games in Bangkok.
After a doubles defeat where he was representing his country, Wattana said: “The pressure has been unbelievable , the worst I have ever felt. I could not see straight, walk straight or think straight….it was that bad.”
After last night’s dramatic death threat, Wattana, who was the Thai Masters Champion in 1994 and 1995, lost his match.
Now, what do I make of all this?
Well … so many things feel wrong to me here.
From the moment Thanawhat entered the Asia-Oceania Q-School, there was always a real possibility that he could win it. Why take his money and allow him to compete if he wasn’t going to be allowed to join the main tour anyway?
The “initial” 2015 statement is nearly 7 years old. Why hasn’t this been resolved yet? Why dig it out now?
James Wattana stories and the arson show that some Thai players have been put under very serious threats by – as far as we know – the Thai betting mafia. Whilst match fixers must be punished, it seems to me that in these cases the main culprits – the betting rings – aren’t punished at all, whilst their victims – the frightened players – are put in an impossible situation.
I do hope that WPBSA will explain their decisions further and that we will eventually understand the how and why of this mess.
The WPBSA and Liang Wenbo Disciplinary Hearing Finding
At a WPBSA Disciplinary Committee hearing on 26th May 2022, Liang Wenbo accepted that he had breached the WPBSA Rules and his players contract with World Snooker Limited (WSL).
This case arose from his criminal conviction at Sheffield Magistrates Court on 9th February 2022 and subsequent sentence hearing on 1st April 2022. The conviction was for domestic-related assault by beating where he pleaded guilty. He was fined a total of £1,380 and given a 12-month community order.
Despite this case being a matter outside of the sport itself, and the fact that it had been dealt with by a criminal court, the WPBSA decided that the case was so serious that there was a case for Liang to answer for breaches of the WPBSA Rules and his WSL players contract. The basis for this is that Liang’s behaviour and subsequent conviction is conduct unbecoming of a sportsperson and brings the sport of snooker into disrepute. Due to the serious nature of this, WPBSA Chairman Jason Ferguson immediately suspended Liang pending disciplinary proceedings just prior to him appearing in the World Snooker Championship.
The Independent Disciplinary Committee has subsequently found Liang to be in breach of the WPBSA Members Rules and his players contract with WSL.
On 3rd June 2022, the sanction imposed by the Independent Disciplinary Committee is that Liang be suspended from playing or being involved in all snooker events for a period of four months until 1st August 2022, and to pay £1,000 towards the costs of the hearing.
Liang has the right to appeal the decision of the Independent Disciplinary Committee.
Jason Ferguson, WPBSA Chairman said “I have no doubt that this was a difficult case for the Independent Disciplinary Committee to deal with as it had already been heard in a criminal court. Despite this, neither I, nor the WPBSA could accept this type of behaviour from one of our members which led me to immediately suspend Liang just prior to the largest event and with the biggest prize money of the snooker season. I am pleased the Committee upheld this decision.”
The WPBSA Members Rules
1.1 Members shall, at all times (i.e., whether at a Tournament or not), behave in a proper and correct manner consistent with their status as professional sportsmen.
1.3 A Member shall not make or cause to be made any statement or commit or cause to be committed any act which in the reasonable view of the WPBSA is likely to bring into disrepute the games of snooker and/or billiards.
WSL Players Contract
3.5.1 Behave in a professional and reputable manner befitting a professional sportsperson.
I deliberately let a night “pass” after the announcement before posting about it.
There were a lot of very strong reactions on social media, calling for a much harder punishment. Personally, I wasn’t surprised by the relatively “short” ban period.
Before I go any further, I want to make it clear that I don’t condone Liang’s actions in any way. What he did is plain wrong, no matter what the private circumstances might have been.
Some of the social media reactions were going about “beating a woman earns you a milder punishment than breaking the betting rules”. Right but … WPBSA has no power to punish Liang specifically for the beating, that’s a matter for the Magistrate. Liang was found guilty by the court, and ordered to serve 12 months of community service as well as paying a fine of £1,380. That sounds pretty mild to me, but then again, I don’t know the private circumstances. Possibly, the combined facts that Liang apparently collaborated with the justice authorities and that it was a first offence explain the rather “light” punishment. WPBSA however were only able to fine him for bringing the game into disrepute.
When it comes to breaking the betting rules, the situation is different. First of all, those are not laws, those are rules set the the sports’ gouverning body, and the same body is competent to examine, judge and punish infringements of those rules. Particularly in case of proven match fixing or intent to fix matches, the fans have to realise that infringements of those rules are casting doubts over the integrity of the sport of snooker as a whole as well as its exponents’ integrity. This in turn is likely to have consequences – serious consequences – when it comes to the public’s, possible sponsor’s and broadcasters’ perception of the sport itself.
Many comments were about the fact that Liang would miss very little of the season. That’s true, but they forget that, because of his suspension, he has already missed the World Championship itself, by far, the biggest earning opportunity in snooker. May I remember all of you that when John Higgins, as the reigning 2010 World Champion, appeared to accept to fix several matches AND be ready to involve other players as well, he was banned for a longer period, BUT, didn’t miss ANY of the majors, despite this “incident” being potentially much more damaging for the sport as a whole than Liang’s behaviour, no matter how terrible it is (and it truly IS terrible). That John was set up is irrelevant, he didn’t know that, so the way he reacted would have been the same if the approach had been genuine.
So those are the reasons why the rather “mild” punishment didn’t surprise me and why I believe that the comparison with what happens when “betting rules” are broken isn’t a valid one.
Having said all that, I have witnessed some extreme emotional reactions by Liang in the past, both in joy and in anger. I’m not sure if this is within the power of WPBSA, but, maybe some mandatory “counselling” on anger management would be a good idea.
Yesterday’s annoucements were received favourably by players and fans alike. The return of best of 19 at the World Championship qualifiers was unanimously applauded.
The fact that first round losers still get nothing though was a disappointment for many.
On the changes to the prize money structure and the lack of funds for first round losers, a WST spokesperson said: ‘We have made prize money increases to various events and we have made amendments which are aimed at creating a more balanced prize money ranking system. These changes are based on discussions and feedback from players and the WPBSA Players Board.
‘Our two biggest ranking events, the World Championship and UK Championship, now have tiered structures and all players inside the top 80 are guaranteed prize money in those events.
‘Our principal remains that we reward excellence and in most events players must win matches to earn prize money.
‘We are constantly aiming to provide as many tournaments and earning opportunities as possible for all players.’
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I do understand and agree with the concept of rewarding excellence but not THIS way. If players do their job properly they should be able to earn from it whilst they are on the tour.
I’d rather look for a way to ensure that players who are underperforming badly can’t return on tour every two years mainly because they have experience with the surroundings and playing conditions whilst more talented/motivated amateurs fail purely because they are placed in a completely alien environment and, with short matches and a plain knock-out system, they get no real chance to adapt.
If a player can’t win a minimal number of matches – minimal to de defined – over two seasons, and have shown no or very little improvement in the second season, then, barring exceptional health or personnal circumstances, it means that either they aren’t good enough, and/or they didn’t put enough work and efforts into their snooker. I would be in favour to “ban” them from Q-school – or any other qualifying process – for two seasons. Time for them to reflect on their own situation and motivation. Time to look at the possible issues and address them.
Predictably, Hearn came back again with the “golf” comparison. Only to get this answer by Steve Feeney, Mr Sightright, who coaches snooker and golf players.
Hearn once scorned at me for saying that the comparison doesn’t hold. Well, it really doesn’t hold. In golf, you play your own ball. Where you find it is where you placed it, There is no interference from your opponent(s). It’s entirely in your hands. Same for darts, it’s entirely in your hands. That’s not the case in snooker. As Steve wrote, in snooker you can play great and lose, snooker is matchplay, it’s different.
Mark Williams also reacted in answer to Sean O’Sullivan’s tweets
It’s obvious that Willo harbours no hope whatsoever for a change regarding the prize money situation despite being convinced that no player would oppose it. The tiered system somehow “softens” the situation a bit as less players stay out of pocket and the lowest ranked ones get more winnable first round matches. But it has other drawbacks of course, notably in terms of exposure, television appearance and experience of the main venues. Exposure and television appearance or the lack of it impact their chances to find a personal sponsor as well.
All qualifying rounds of the Cazoo World Championship will be played over the best of 19 frames from 2023.
This is a change to the format of recent seasons, where the first three rounds were played over best of 11 frames.
Based on feedback from the WPBSA and players, WST has taken the decision to revert to best of 19 frames from next season’s qualifying event, to take place in April 2023.
Dates for the qualifying event will be announced in due course.
We are also pleased to announce prize money increases for several events for the coming 2022/23 season.
This is excellent news. I can only suppose that this will also mean a return of eight tables in operation, which is great for the fans who come to watch those qualifiers. It may nor have the glamour of the Crucible but it’s a very important, and very interesting event to attend.
What’s not so great is that there is still no money for the first round losers. That’s bad. It really is, especially in the current state of the economy. If some money was paid – only just enough to cover the basic expenses the players face for doing their job (travel, accomodation and some food) and doesn’t count towards ranking, it wouldn’t “protect” them in any way. Those not good enough wouldn’t be able to stay on tour. It also wouldn’t allow them to really earn a living out of it because that money would only just cover what it costs them to do their job. The “not rewarding mediocrity” argument doesn’t hold. I’ll say it once again: by playing to the best of their ability they bring value to the tournament, the sponsors, the venue and the broadcaster. They should not be out of pocket for doing their job properly. Giving them £250 would cost less than the prize money of one losing semi-finalist. Surely that’s not impossible? If a player blatantly doesn’t try, or doesn’t show up, that’s a different situation of course.
Players on the World Snooker Tour will be guaranteed to earn a minimum of £20,000 during the 2022/23 season, under a new system which offers them security in a difficult economic climate.
World Snooker Tour Chairman Steve Dawson said: “We are excited about going to the Bonus Arena in Hull for one of our biggest events for the first time as it is a fabulous venue and the atmosphere when it is packed out is going to be incredible. For the very best players on the planet and for the fans lucky enough to get tickets this is going to be a special experience.
Ronnie O'Sullivan 