Please note that this is NOT an official website. At this point in time Ronnie O’ Sullivan does not have an official website, nor does he wish to have one.
Ronnie is on his way to Kunshan for the third leg of his exhibitions tour in China. This will be two nights of exhibition matches with Jack Lisowski, Marco Fu and Zhang Anda. Hopefully, Ronnie will be fully fit and well again, and able to play to his full potential. This should be good!
Upon arrival Ronnie was reunited with Ding’s dad … a friendship that started in 2007, after Ronnie helped a very young and distraught Ding who was abused by idiots in the crowd.
But, here, in Europe, things get underway in earnest tomorrow with the start of the first 2024 UK/Europe Q-School in Sheffield. It will be played behind closed doors. This is a crying shame. Ok, there will be one table streamed but that’s just one table…
WPBSA Q Tour Asia-Pacific Expansion Announced for 2024/25
The World Professional Billiards & Snooker Association (WPBSA) has announced that its Q Tour Asia-Pacific series will expand to five events for the upcoming season.
The 2024/25 campaign will see the second staging of the Asia-Pacific series with two additional events held across Australia and New Zealand after former professional Vinnie Calabrese topped last season’s ranking list with two titles.
Once again, the top ranked player in the Asia-Pacific series ranking list will be offered places at the Q Tour Global Play-Offs, where three World Snooker Tour (WST) two-year tour cards will be on offer.
Alex Render, Australian Billiards & Snooker Council President said: “I am thrilled to announce our full support for the upcoming Q Tour season.
“By selecting five prestigious Open Snooker events, we are paving the way for aspiring players to embark on a remarkable journey. This initiative not only showcases the immense talent within our region but also provides a clear pathway for individuals to compete on the global stage.”
WPBSA Chairman Jason Ferguson said: “All major sports must recognise the challenges to the distance and travel in providing opportunities for all. This network of Global Q Tours is creating more vital opportunities for many who dream of competing on the World Snooker Tour.”
“Our thanks must go to President Alex Render and his team for demonstrating an incredible commitment to aspiring players and officials across the Asia Pacific Region.”
Further information about the 2024/25 Q Tour will be published in due course.
I have underlined parts of Jason Ferguson quotes. He’s 100% right BUT making the qualifying process truly global isn’t enough – and doesn’t make sense – unless the main tour itself becomes truly global, which it isn’t currently as we know. The main Tour has to grow out of its UK centric organisation to become a truly inclusive and fair Tour. I won’t repeat what needs to be changed for that to happen… I have written about it about a zillion times. in the past years.
The exhibition tournament in Chengdu continued today. The Ronnie vs Ding match attracted a lot of fans but unfortunately it was very one-sided, Ding winning by 5-1 and getting his revenge after Ronnie beat him convincingly in Luoyang earlier this week. It was mentioned yesterday that Ronnie wasn’t feeling well during his match against John Higgins and, possibly, this was a factor today as well. If so, it’s unfortunate but those things happen and it can’t be helped.
Anyway … here are some images shared on social media, mainly on Weibo
The other match today saw John Higgins play Judd Trump. At the time of writing I don’t know who won, let alone the score. Higgins didn’t make a 147 … but he did make the highest break of the tournament – thanks Kalacs for clarifying this – and has won a car for his efforts.
Once again, big thanks to Kalacs for his much appreciated contribution … Please, check the comments section where Kalacs posted a lot of short videos and more pictures.
Ronnie is in Chengdu, with Jason Francis and his friend Robin Huxley…
Here are some images from their trip and arrival, including some cultural and gastronomical stuff ..
Ronnie’s first match in Chengdu was against John Higgins. John beat him by 5-3. Ronnie, apparently wasn’t feeling too well and was 4-0 behind at the MSI, so it’s not that bad a result.
“Rocket” O’Sullivan appeared and became extremely popular
“Rocket” is coming! On May 18, Chengdu welcomed a number of big names in the snooker world. “Rocket” O’Sullivan, Higgins, Trump, and Zhang Anda all appeared at the Sichuan Provincial Stadium for a two-day exhibition match.
O’Sullivan vs. Higgins duel
O’Sullivan stuck out his tongue at his mistake
“Rocket” versus “Wizard”
The gathering of big names attracted fans from all over the country and even abroad to watch the game. In the afternoon, Trump and Zhang Anda had a duel, and the climax came in the evening, when the Scottish “Wizard” Higgins and “Rocket” O’Sullivan started a PK. In the second game, Higgins broke 100 in a single stroke and cleared the stage with one stroke, which was a feast for the eyes of the fans in the audience.
O’Sullivan
“Rocket” O’Sullivan is not feeling well today
“Rocket” O’Sullivan during the game
O’Sullivan felt bad today and ultimately lost 3-5. However, winning or losing this game is not important. In the last game, the two staged a wonderful snooker tug-of-war, and their exquisite stick skills made the fans hooked.
Higgins hits the ball
Higgins
Higgins shakes hands with fans
Today happens to be Higgins’s birthday. After the game, his wife, accompanied by the “Giant Panda”, gave him a birthday cake. All the fans sang “Happy birthday to you” to congratulate him on his 49th birthday. The scene Warm.
“Giant Panda” celebrates Higgins’ birthday
Tomorrow, the game will continue, Higgins will face Trump, and O’Sullivan will stage a “Ding Olympic Games” with Ding Junhui.
Happy birthday John Higgins!
And some more pictures shared on Weibo by fans at the event
Big thanks to Kalacs for sharing this article as well as the pictures! Especially as I have difficulties accessing Weibo at the moment and his help is even more precious than ever! Thank you!!!
On the second day of Ding and Ronnie exhibitions in Luoyan, Ronnie appeared to be on ruthless mood as he beat Ding by 5-1. Here is the match:
Ronnie played quite well and Ding struggled. Obviously Ronnie was aware of the fact that Ding had a difficult day and took some very spectacular risky shots, getting most of them. The table obviously played easy which helped… it’s an exhibition after all and “exhibition shots” is what most fans want to watch.
And some more photos of the event…
From what I understood from Weibo, people on the site were able to watch free of charge. The event aimed at promoting both snooker as a sport and the cultural treasures of the region. The Longmen Grottos site is part of the “UNESCO World Heritage” . It is to be protected, admired and cherished.
he Billiard Sports Association of Thailand will host Asia and Oceania Q School 2024 from 22 May to 2 June 2024 at the BSAT Academy at Rajamangala National Stadium in Bangkok. There will be two tournaments and the two finalists from each event will earn a place on the World Snooker Tour for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 seasons.
Former pros Sunny Akani, Gao Yang, Himanshu Jain, Luo Honghao and Hamza Akbar will be among those battling for tour cards. For results and pictures follow the BSAT Facebook page HERE.
Ronnie and Ding are at one of the most important archeological sites in China, and in the World, the Longmen Grottos in Luoyang, to do a couple of exhibitions. The first took place yesterday and Ronnie won the match by 5-2. He had a 134 in frame 5.
Kalacs put this video on YouTube:
It shows the players arriving in Luoyang and visiting the site as well as the full match. Thank you Kalaks.
There were also some pictures shared on various social media, mainly Twitter and Weibo.
It was also announced yet another exhibition, this time with Si Jiahui
Ronnie O’Sullivan embarks on globe-trotting exhibition tour after Crucible disappointment
Ronnie O’Sullivan is set for a busy few weeks travelling the world on the exhibition circuit after a disappointing end to his season at the World Snooker Championship.
The Rocket had a fabulous campaign, winning five titles including the Masters and UK Championship, but suffered a shock quarter-final defeat to Stuart Bingham at the Crucible in his final match of the season.
He is not taking much time off, though, heading to China where he will be playing a number of exhibitions, starting with challenge matches against Ding Junhui in Luoyang.
He then goes to Chengdu, Kunshan and Shanghai with the likes of Judd Trump, John Higgins, Jack Lisowski and Si Jiahui involved across the three events.
The Rocket then lands in Finland, playing in Tampere from 3-5 June, before heading to Bulgaria where he plays John Higgins in Plovdiv on 7 June and in Sofia then following day.
After defeat to Bingham in Sheffield, O’Sullivan was already looking forward to his busy time around the globe, before he gets the new season underway at the Shanghai Masters in July.
‘I quite enjoyed it, quite enjoyed playing out there, didn’t get the result but that’s just sport, that’s life, you can’t win them all,’ he said after World Championship defeat on 1 May.
‘I’m just looking forward to going to China in 10 days and playing Ding in some challenge matches. I’m enjoying the game.
‘I’ll have 10-12 days off now before I go to China. I’ll be away for two-and-a-half, three weeks doing my work stuff out there, so I’m really looking forward to that. Then off to Finland for three nights, then Bulgaria, so a busy three or four weeks playing, which is great.
‘Then I’ll take three weeks off, then start getting my cue out again because I’m going to Shanghai for the Shanghai Masters. I’m looking forward to playing Ding in China, that will be fun.’
Snooker exhibitions in China can be wildly popular events, as shown by Judd Trump in a recent appearances in Guangzhou.
The former world champion attracted a lot of attention, appearing alongside Thai stars Thepchaiya Un-Nooh, Noppon Saengkham and Mink Nutcharut.
The 2024/25 World Snooker Tour season gets underway on 10 June with the start of the Championship League, running all the way until 3 July.
It sounds like O’Sullivan will begin his campaign at the Shanghai Masters, which begins on 15 July and the Rocket will look to win the event for a sixth time and the fifth on the spin.
The main news yesterday was about the untimely passing of Dene O’Kane, the first ever snooker professional from New Zeland. WPBSA posted a tribute to Dene and many current and former professionals expressed their sorrow at the news and their sympathy for Dene’s family. I can’t really add anything meaningful. I only met Dene briefly at the 2019 World Seniors Snooker Championship and never got to really know him.
The World Professional Billiards & Snooker Association (WPBSA) has today announced an exciting expansion of the Q Tour Middle East series for the 2024/25 season.
The series will feature a trio of events in the region, with the first set to take place in Bahrain later this month before further events in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia later in the year.
Last season saw a global expansion of the Q Tour for the first time with the incorporation of events in the Middle East, Americas and Asia-Pacific regions alongside the European series which has been held since 2021/22.
The Middle East series had notable success in its inaugural season as both Iran’s Amir Sarkhosh and Mohamed Shehab, from the UAE, secured two-year World Snooker Tour cards at March’s Global Play-Off in Bosnia & Herzegovina.
The full calendar for the 2024/25 Q Tour Middle East series can be found below. Further details on dates and venues will follow in due course.
Event 1: 21-23 May 2024 (Bahrain)
Event 2:19-21 July 2024 (Dubai, United Arab Emirates)
Event 3: October/November/ 2024 (Saudi Arabia)
The series will once again carry a ranking list with the top two players at the conclusion of the final event earning their places at the 2025 Q Tour Global Play-Off.
WPBSA Chairman Jason Ferguson said: “We are delighted to announce an expansion of the Q Tour Middle East series to now feature events in three countries.
“Snooker is seeing tremendous growth in the region with World Snooker Tour events staged in Saudi Arabia, the achievements of ranking event winner Hossein Vafaei in recent years and the success of the Q Tour Middle East series further highlighting this growth.
“We are hugely excited to be returning as we underline our commitment to the region. We would like to thank our partners for their ongoing support.”
Saudi Arabia Billiard & Snooker Federation President, Dr. Nasser Saab Al-Shammari said: “We are pleased to see the continued expansion of snooker in the Middle East and we hope that the continued success of the WPBSA Q Tour Middle East series will provide the pathway for our players and officials and inspire the next generation of snooker stars from the region to develop and compete with the world’s top stars.
“We would like to thank WPBSA Chairman Jason Ferguson and his team for their ongoing support as we continue our goal of growing snooker in the Middle East.”
Mr Monther Albasri of the Bahrain Billiards, Snooker & Darts Federation said: “We are pleased to support the growth of the game alongside the WPBSA by hosting the first event of the 2024/25 Q Tour Middle East Series.”
Mr Khalid Alkhaili from UAEFED added: “We are delighted to see an expansion to the Q Tour Middle East series. With our partnership with the WPBSA and CueSports, we aim to serve the game as one of the UAE government & Dubai Sports Council’s strategic plans.”
CueSports CEO Dr. Ahmed Alhashmi said: “There is no more exciting way to help players in the region than working together with the WPBSA to develop the Q Tour Middle East series and future plans.”
Further information about the 2024/25 Q Tour will be published in due course.
Any extension of snooker outside the UK is a good thing … but I wish similar efforts would be made to promote snooker in mainland Europe. Of course, I’m not naïve… countries in mainland Europe are not awash with money to throw into such initiatives … nor do they feel a great need to get involved in sports-washing. That said, the middle East players did very well on the Q-tour. But those guys are not young kids which shows two things : that snooker is played at a high level in the region for a long time, and that for it to continue and develop action is needed.
Also … without wanting to trigger controversy – Israël is geographically part of that region and has some very good players too. I just hope that they will not be prevented to compete in those events if they so wish. In IBSF events in the region, Israeli players had visas refused … and that was well before the current conflict started.
Sichuan
Ronnie O'Sullivan 