SNOOKER BAIZE BLOG

2013 World Snooker Championship Draw

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 13:52:00 +0100

Here is the 2013 World Snooker Championship Draw. The Defending Champion, Ronnie O'Sullivan will play Marcus Campbell in the first match in months. World Number one Mark Selby has drawn Matthew Selt, while Judd Trump has drawn Dominic Dale (AGAIN).

Jack Lisowski will play his Crucible debut against Stuart Bingham.

1/4:
O'Sullivan vs Campbell
Carter vs Woollaston

Bingham vs Baird
Higgins vs Mark Davis

2/4:
Murphy vs Gould
Dott vs Ebdon

Stevens vs Fu
Trump vs Dale

3/4:
Robertson vs Milkins
Walden vs Holt

Williams vs Michael White
Maguire vs Poomjaeng

4/4:
Allen vs King
Ding vs McManus

Hawkins vs Lisowski
Selby vs Selt

Match Schedule: http://livescores.worldsnookerdata.com/SessionList/Tournament/13297

Australian Goldfields Open 2012 - Barry Hawkins Downed Ebdon To Victory

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 12:15:00 +0100

Australian Goldfields Open 2012 - Barry Hawkins downed Peter Ebdon in the final by 9-3 to capture his first ranking title.

Barry Hawkins downed Peter Ebdon

The Shoot-out Champion beaten likes of Matthew Stevens and Mark Davis en route to make his first ranking final while convincing Peter Ebdon edged out top players Ding Junhui, Shaun Murphy and Marco Fu to reach his second final this year, after China Open in April.

Ebdon who was chasing for his tenth ranking title found himself 1-4 down to Hawkins as his opponent made breaks of 57, 74, 106 and 116. The 2002 World Champion reduced the gap to 3-5 by winning two frames out of the three in the first session.

However, Hawkins showed no signs of nerve. The 33-year-old did not let any frame slipped during the night session, winning four frames required with 133, 74 and 51 to win his first ranking title. He pocketed a cheque of 73000 for winner's and highest break prize.

Barry Hawkins

"Winning my first ranking event feels quite strange," said Hawkins, one of the circuit's most popular players. "I don't think it has sunk in yet, I feel quite calm. It'll probably sink in more when I get home and see the family. I'm delighted obviously and it could be a big moment in my career hopefully. I just can't believe it, I'm speechless.''

He added, "Even during the good times there's still doubt, you start questioning yourself thinking am I ever going to win a big tournament. I've come close quite a few times but that was quite a few years ago now, and I hadn't reached a quarter-final for a while so obviously the confidence was lacking a little bit. I've been working with Terry Griffiths, just like Mark Davis, for the last year or so and I won the Shoot-Out since I started working with him, I don't know if it was a coincidence or not. But now I've won this so obviously I'm doing something right. Fingers crossed that it isn't the last one.''

Peter Ebdon, the runner-up

The runner-up expressed his disappointment, "I didn't have a very good day at all today, nothing really went for me and I really struggled out there today in all departments and it's very disappointing. It's not often that would happen to me in a final but every credit to Barry, I thought he played really, really well. His all-round game was very good, he scored very heavily, his long-game was good, touch, feel, cue ball control, it was all there today.''

Wuxi Classic 2012 - Ricky Walden Crowned In China Again

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Mon, 2 Jul 2012 10:52:00 +0100

Wuxi Classic 2012: Ricky Walden won his second ranking title at Wuxi, China by beating Stuart Bingham 10-4 in the final.

Ricky Walden won his second ranking title at Wuxi

The man from Chester, as a player outside top 16 unexpectedly beaten Ronnie O'Sullivan in the final to win his first ranking title at Shanghai in 2008. Four years later, Walden repeated the myth again to win his second ranking title. He collected a cheque for 75000 pounds as prize money.

Walden fought back from unfavourable situation in the first two frames of the final. He built up a healthy 4-0 lead over Bingham at mid interval session. The Ballrun, Stuart Bingham won his first frame in the final with a maximum break to trail 1-5. It was the third maximum of his career. He earned 7000 pounds for the break.

Stuart Bingham celebrated after making his third maximum break

However, the maximum break did not help Bingham to raise his form. Instead, Walden extended his lead to 9-1 with 73 and 56, leaving only one frame away from victory. The Essex cueman did not give up, making 103 and 100 to reduce the deficit to 4-9. Walden held himself to win the title with a break of 74 in the 14th frame.

"I'm over the moon to win the event," said Walden. "I think the first two frames were massive. The first frame, I felt like I hadn't settled down and Stuart seemed to be getting the upper hand. When he missed and let me in I managed to get a couple of snookers to put the pressure back on. I think it sets the tone for the rest of the match and I took advantage of a few of his mistakes, potted a few big balls in the opening five or six frames and I managed to keep a decent lead.''

Ricky Walden

Walden had a blinking start for the season. "I'm just looking forward to playing, I'm enjoying my snooker at the moment. It's such a full calendar that you know that if you have a bad result one week you can have a good go the next week and try to redeem the result. I've not got any targets, I just want to keep enjoying my snooker, travelling to as many tournaments as I can just play well, like I've started to this week."

The runner-up, also winner of first APTC expressed his disappointment, "Obviously I'm a bit disappointed, I've had 15 or so unbeaten and today it just didn't happen. I think it was just a bad day at the office. Some consolation was the 147. It's always nice to make a 147, especially in a final. I've been told it's only the third one in a final so it's some history.'' Still, it is not bad for Bingham to start his road for defending his title of Australian Open next week.

Wuxi Classic 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match Schedule

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Sun, 24 Jun 2012 10:44:00 +0100

Wuxi Classic 2012: (25 June - 1 July, Wuxi Stadium, China)

Defending Champion: Mark Selby (Beaten Ali Carter by 9-7 in the final)

Live Streaming:

LIVE SCORES [Follow Me on Twitter for latest update]

Blog Entries:
Ricky Walden Crowned In China Again

Draw/Results:

Wildcard Round

WC1	Ken Doherty 5-4 Lu Ning
WC2	Jamie Burnett 5-3 Jin Long
WC3	Michael White 4-5 Zhou Yuelong
WC4	Rod Lawler 5-2 Li Hang
WC5	Dave Harold 1-5 Rouzi Maimaiti
WC6	Fergal O'Brien 5-2 Lu Haotian
WC7	Michael Holt 1-5 Zhu Yinghu
WC8	Robert Milkins 5-2 Chen Feilong

Last 32	Last 16	Quarter-Finals	Semi-Finals	Final
Mark Selby 5-2 Barry Hawkins	Mark Selby 5-0 Jamie Cope	Mark Selby 4-5 Stuart Bingham	Stuart Bingham 6-5 Mark Davis	Stuart Bingham 4-10 Ricky Walden
Martin Gould 3-5 Jamie Cope
Stuart Bingham 5-4 Peter Ebdon	Stuart Bingham 5-4 Ken Doherty
Shaun Murphy 1-5 Ken Doherty
Neil Robertson 1-5 Jamie Burnett	Jamie Burnett 3-5 Mark Davis	Mark Davis 5-0 Graeme Dott
Ding Junhui 2-5 Mark Davis
Graeme Dott 5-1 Zhou Yuelong	Graeme Dott 5-4 Rod Lawler
Stephen Maguire 4-5 Rod Lawler
Mark Williams 5-0 Tom Ford	Mark Williams 5-3 Mark Allen	Mark Williams 3-5 Marcus Campbell	Marcus Campbell 1-6 Ricky Walden
Mark Allen 5-1 Rouzi Maimaiti
Ali Carter 3-5 Fergal O'Brien	Fergal O'Brien 2-5 Marcus Campbell
Stephen Lee 1-5 Marcus Campbell
Matthew Stevens w/d w/o Joe Perry	Joe Perry 4-5 Ricky Walden	Ricky Walden 5-3 Robert Milkins
Ricky Walden 5-0 Zhu Yinghu
Andrew Higginson 3-5 Robert Milkins	Robert Milkins 5-3 Judd Trump
Judd Trump 5-1 Dominic Dale

Match Schedule/Order of play:
Note: All matches up to and including quarter-finals are best of 9 frames. Semi-finals are best of 11 and the final is best of 19 (9/10). Only 2 tables will be streamed.

Monday, June 25 (Day 1)

7.30am: WC2 Jamie Burnett 5-3 Jin Long, WC4 Rod Lawler 5-2 Li Hang, WC5 Dave Harold 1-5 Rouzi Maimaiti

12.30pm: 9 Mark Selby 5-2 Barry Hawkins, WC7 Michael Holt 1-5 Zhu Yinghui, WC6 Fergal O'Brien 5-2 Lu Haotian, WC8 Robert Milkins 5-2 Chen Feilong

Tuesday, June 26 (Day 2)

7.30am: 13 Neil Robertson 1-5 Jamie Burnett, WC1 Ken Doherty 5-4 Lu Ning, 11 Stuart Bingham 5-4 Peter Ebdon, 18 Mark Allen 5-1 Rouzi Maimaiti

12.30pm: 14 Ding Junhui 2-5 Mark Davis, WC3 Michael White 4-5 Zhou Yuelong, 19 Allister Carter 3-5 Fergal O'Brien, 10 Martin Gould 3-5 Jamie Cope

Wednesday, June 27 (Day 3)

7.30am: 17 Mark Williams 5-0 Tom Ford, 12 Shaun Murphy 1-5 Ken Doherty, 22 Ricky Walden 5-0 Zhu Yinghui, 23 Andrew Higginson 3-5 Robert Milkins

12.30pm: 24 Judd Trump 5-1 Dominic Dale, 16 Stephen Maguire 4-5 Rod Lawler, 20 Stephen Lee 1-5 Marcus Campbell, 15 Graeme Dott 5-1 Zhou Yuelong

Thursday, June 28 (Day 4)

7.30am: 32 Robert Milkins 5-3 Judd Trump, 29 Mark Williams 5-3 Mark Allen, 26 Ken Doherty 4-5 Stuart Bingham, 30 Fergal O'Brien 2-5 Marcus Campbell

12.30pm: 25 Mark Selby 5-0 Jamie Cope, 28 Graeme Dott 5-4 Rod Lawler, 27 Jamie Burnett 3-5 Mark Davis, 31 Joe Perry 4-5 Ricky Walden

Friday, June 29 (Day 5)

7.30am: Mark Selby 4-5 Stuart Bingham, Mark Davis 5-0 Graeme Dott

12.30pm: Mark Williams 3-5 Marcus Campbell, Ricky Walden 5-3 Robert Milkins

Saturday, June 30 (Day 6)

7.30am: Stuart Bingham 6-5 Mark Davis

12.30pm: Marcus Campbell 1-6 Ricky Walden

Sunday, July 1 (Day 7)

7.30am: Final - Stuart Bingham 1-7 Ricky Walden (First Session - 9 frames)
*Bingham made a maximum break (147) in the only frame he had won

7.30pm: Final - Stuart Bingham 4-10 Ricky Walden (Second Session - 10 frames)

Congrats to Ricky Walden winning Wuxi Classic 2012!

Ronnie O’Sullivan Decided To Take A Break From Snooker

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Wed, 6 Jun 2012 15:21:00 +0100

Ronnie O'Sullivan has decided to make good on his desire to take some time off from competitive snooker. He said today:

“I have decided not to enter any tournaments for the time being including this year's Premier League and forthcoming WPBSA ranking events.

“I have not signed the player's contract as I feel the contract is too onerous and am in a stage of my career where I don't wish to make this commitment.

“I still want to play snooker and visit those places around the world such as China where snooker is enthusiastically received and adored.

“I hope to remain involved in the sport in some way in the future.”

The Statement is released on Grove Leisure (his management company). O'Sullivan had just claimed his fourth World Title last month. Well good luck to our dear Ronnie. I understand he should spend some more time with his family but hope it is not the end of his career.

World Championship - Ronnie O'Sullivan Seals Fourth World Title

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Tue, 8 May 2012 10:02:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Final Day: Ronnie O'Sullivan seals his fourth world title by beating Ali Carter 18-11 in the final. Congratulations!

Ronnie O'Sullivan seals fourth world title with his son Ronnie Junior (right)

O'Sullivan led Ali Carter by 10-7 overnight and he had a blinking start in the third session as well. The Rocket blasted to take all four frames before mid interval to lead Ali Carter by 14-7. We were thinking if there would be night session as Ronnie only needed four more to lift up the trophy.

The Captain finally won his first frame in the third session during frame 22. He added another two frames on the scoreboard with breaks of 105 and 53, looked forward to take another frame at the end of third session to reduce the deficit. Notwithstanding Carter tried hard, O'Sullivan won the last frame with efforts of 64 and 55 to go 15-10 ahead. He just required three more frames in the last session to crown.

Ronnie O'Sullivan

First frame of the night session went to Ronnie's hand before Carter put up a fight in the next to trail 11-16. Carter would love to drag the match into mid interval but The Rocket won the other two frames required to seal his fourth World Title. Ronnie Junior and Ronnie's mother Maria were delighted, joining the celebrations.

Ronnie O'Sullivan replaces John Higgins to become the oldest player to win the World Championship, at age of 36 and five months. He now shares the same number of World Title (four) and 24 ranking titles with John Higgins. The Rocket has beaten three World Champions (Ebdon, Williams, Robertson) and two World Finalists (Stevens, Carter) on the road to conquer the Crucible for the fourth time.

Ronnie held his son tightly through out the whole prize ceremony, he said: "I didn't think I'd ever get the opportunity to share a moment like this with my son Ronnie so it's so nice to have him here. He loves snooker, I've tried to turn him off it but he's having none of it. I got a bit emotional even before the match was over because I felt it was just me and him in the whole arena. It's the best feeling I've ever had in my life.''

O'Sullivan: It's the best feeling I've ever had in my life

He also thanked Dr. Steve Peters for helping him along the way, ''we're fortunate to be able to play this game, so it's allowed me to be happy in my life and enjoy the game as well. I'm not a better player, I'm just giving myself more of a chance I suppose.''

Being asked about if he would retire after the massive victory, "I've had a long time to think about everything I've done. I'm not saying I have retired but what I am saying is that my family has become the most important thing in my life. I've made plans, but I'm making no knee-jerk reactions, I'm taking a few months off and I'll assess the situation. I know there's a big responsibility for me to promote the game and I think I do do that, and if I could play in every tournament I would but it's hard sometimes.''

The runner-up Carter said: "I'm just disappointed to lose. I didn't feel like I played well in the final, Ronnie put me under all kinds of pressure out there, his safety was unbelievable, even his break offs had me in trouble every time. I was pleased I did compete and I'll be back next year. Ronnie played the better snooker so he's going to get the luck, but the better man won. He's a genius and it's the Ronnie O'Sullivan show.''

Carter: I'm just disappointed to lose

First of all congratulations to Ronnie. He played a great tournament with consistency in the past 17 days. I am happy to see him having better mentality compared to his last two appearances at the Crucible. He has got the right mind after winning the German Masters in February. I hope that he can keep this to play on the next year.

Although Carter lost to O'Sullivan again in the final after 2008, his journey to get to the final is good enough for the man who has been struggling with Crohn's disease in the past 12 months. The moment that he beaten Judd Trump 13-12 from 9-12 down was huge. It was completely out of my expectation, indeed in a good way. Carter lost his top 16 place despite reaching the final, I truly believe he will get back into the elites very soon.

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results

World Championship - O'Sullivan Ahead Of Carter In The Final

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Mon, 7 May 2012 11:40:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Day 16: Ronnie O'Sullivan led Ali Carter by 10-7 overnight in the World Final, after two sessions of playing.

Ronnie O'Sullivan and Ali Carter before the World Final

The final started in a quirky way. The cueball went off when Carter scored which Ronnie punished for such a mistake to take the opening frame. The first century in the final appeared in the second frame, 117 from The Rocket to go 2-0 up. Carter settled down in the next frame, levelling off 2-2 at mid interval with a top break of 84.

The first two frames after mid interval were shared before Ronnie made a superb 92 clearance to lead 4-3. One more frame to end the session, O'Sullivan produced total clearance of 141 to lead 5-3 before the night session started. Although Carter won the opening frame of the night session but O'Sullivan won the next three to gain three-frame advantage at mid session.

Once led The Captain by 9-6, Ronnie seemed would have four-frame-cushion but The Captain got the last frame of second session with the aid of a fluke. Ronnie O'Sullivan still leads by 10-7 overnight.

Ali did not play his game too well today, neither Ronnie was at his best. Perhaps Carter should go for more long pots with confidence as energy storage is crucial in long matches. I don't deny the strategy of putting more safety into his game but I think playing his own game will be the more comfortable.

First player to win 18 frames would lift the trophy and top prize of 250000 pounds. Ronnie needs 8 more while Carter needs 11. Third session kicks off at 2.30pm and the final session starts at 7.30pm.

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

World Championship - Carter And O'Sullivan Repeat 2008 World Final

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Sun, 6 May 2012 10:02:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Day 15: Ali Carter and Ronnie O'Sullivan set up a repeat of 2008 World Final in 2012.

We are back to 2008 World Final, the two finalists

The Captain was the first one to book his final place, his second world final. Carter led Maguire by 14-10 before the final session, he simply did not want the match to go into mid interval. In the opening scrappy frame, Carter was trapped in a superb snooker that missed to hit the red for six times until Referee Leo Scullion decided not calling a foul. Maguire went for the double but missed, left Carter a difficult red but Carter potted it and cleared up.

A superb fluked red in the next frame put Carter just one frame away from victory, 16-10. The match appeared to be finished before mid interval, Maguire hit back to win the next two frames to keep his hope alive. Nevertheless, Carter got his job done with a 70 break to claim the victory, 17-12.

Carter And Maguire

The former Welsh Open and Shanghai Masters champion said: "I'm not just happy being in the final. We'll see what happens. On the performance of his opponent, Carter said: "I'm surprised by the way Stephen played. I think he thought he was going to beat me easily the way he started." Maguire said after his lost, "There were at least eight frames I lost on the colours or the last red. I took so many hits I felt like a punchbag out there. It starts to hurt after a while when you get so close. I don't know how to take this one to be honest."

The third session of O'Sullivan versus Stevens were shared, 4-4 despite the fact that Stevens could win the session and got closer on the scoreline. Stevens showed his effort to trail by 9-12 but his errors during the last two frames of the session put Ronnie into a good position to reach the final. Ronnie claimed 15-9 lead, and during the last session of the semi-finals, Stevens surrendered by 10-17.

The Rocket may retire after the championship?

"I don't intend to stay in the game long; even though I've been in a much better place I've made the decision that this might be my last time playing in this tournament," said 36-year-old O'Sullivan. "I've weighed up the plusses and the minuses and I'm quite comfortable with that decision, if I win it great, absolute bonus, if I don't at least I can say I've gone out on a high.'' "Yes! I hope he does retire!" said the Welshman. "I can't see him doing it but you never know with Ronnie, if he did retire as world champion, what a perfect way to finish but I think he loves the game too much.

The two players in this year World Final are the same as that of in 2008 but the main difference would be none of them has made a 147 in the previous rounds. The final in 2008 was not close, Carter lost by 8-18. However, Carter got advices from Peter Ebdon this year. "I feel totally different to the way I did four years ago. I was mentally knackered then. I wasn't getting to bed until about 3 in the morning."

Who Will Lift The Trophy?

The head-to-head is all the way Ronnie O'Sullivan leads, 13-1. Carter has never beaten Ronnie in a ranking tournament but Carter needs the title to put himself back into the top 16. I hope it would stimulate Ali trying to play his best snooker but still O'Sullivan is the favourite to win his fourth world title.

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

World Championship - O'Sullivan And Carter Lead In The Semis

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Sat, 5 May 2012 09:39:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Day 14: Ronnie O'Sullivan and Ali Carter lead their opponents in the semi-finals, hopefully the 2008 World Final will be repeated.

Rocket O'Sullivan

Leading 5-3 before the second session, O'Sullivan struggled at the beginning. Matthew Stevens took the opening two frames of the session to level 5-5 after stunning 63 clearance to steal the frame from Ronnie's hands. The Rocket played better, 62 and a ton put him 7-5 ahead of Stevens at the mid interval.

Ronnie found his form, winning another four in a row (total six a row this session) with runs of 98, 94 and a ton. The Essex cueman had an clear advantage over Stevens, 11-5 with two more session to go tomorrow. He could kill off the match tomorrow morning if he win six out of eight frames to be played during the third session.

I believe many Rocket fans may found an interesting pattern - O'Sullivan played his best snooker during the second session of the match. He took six consecutive frames during second session in the four matches he have played in the championship so far. What a weapon to win a match.

Captain Carter flying high in the sky

Carter extended his lead to 14-10 after the first two sessions. Carter dominated the match, 5-3 and 10-6. He won most of the tight frames on colours, even down to the final black. The standard of the match is higher today, Carter made breaks of 118, 134, 73 to lead 14-7. However, Maguire took the final three frames of third session to ensure Carter would not have a session to spare tomorrow.

Carter v Maguire will finish at 2.30pm and winner of O'Sullivan v Stevens will be determined at 7pm.

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

World Championship - O'Sullivan Saw Off Robertson To Made Semi-Finals

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Thu, 3 May 2012 11:51:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Day 12: Ronnie O’Sullivan, Stephen Maguire, Ali Carter and Matthew Stevens are the four players who advanced to semi-finals.

O'Sullivan saw off Robertson to make semi-finals

The Rocket trailed Neil Robertson by 3-5 after the first session. The three-time World Champion had a brilliant performance in the second session, taking six frames in a row to lead Robertson by 9-5 with a few quality breaks. Despite struggling at the afternoon, the 2010 World Champion claimed last two frames of the session to trail 7-9 before final session kicked off.

Ronnie had a healthy lead 12-8 over Robertson with runs of 100 and 104 but Robertson swung back to trail 10-12 with 89 and 77. Ronnie killed the match with 59 in the frame 23 to beat Robertson by 13-10.

Poor afternoon session cost Robertson the match

Following his victory, the 36 year-old said: "It's nice to enjoy the game, and to play with openness which is my natural game. Robertson said, "I played too slowly in the afternoon - I just couldn't get going, I couldn't get any rhythm. On his opponent, O'Sullivan added: "Neil's had a great tournament, he's been fantastic and he's had another good season."

This is the first Crucible semi-finals since 2008 for The Rocket. He will play Matthew Stevens who beaten Ryan Day by 13-5, winning 10 straight frames to enter the semi-finals. Stevens, who will now play either Ronnie O'Sullivan or Neil Robertson, said: "I'd be lying if I said that I thought I'd get back here - to the semi-finals of the World Championship.'' "It would mean everything to win it, but I feel I'm going to have to improve if I'm going to go any further.''

Ali Carter came through tests from Jamie Jones with scoreline of 13-11 to advance to semi-finals. Carter led Jones by 9-7 in the previous session, he made a good start to be 12-8 up on Jones. The Crucible debutant took the following three frames. The pressure is now on The Captain's shoulder. Carter who overcame Trump in the last round held his nerve to win with a break of 73.

Jamie Jones & Ali Carter

"What an incredible performance [from Jamie] to get through to a quarter-final and make so many century breaks, he's an awesome player, gutsy as you like. He reminds me of Graeme Dott, always there on your heels and it was only my safety that won me the match." Jone said, "I'm so at home out there I can't really explain it, I've loved being here, it's been the best experience of my life.

Stephen Maguire saw off Stephen Hendry yesterday by 13-2 and therefore he got a session to spare today. Tomorrow will be down to one table set-up, with Maguire versus Carter and O'Sullivan versus Stevens.

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

Stephen Hendry Announced Retirement

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Wed, 2 May 2012 11:33:00 +0100

Stephen Hendry made the announcement of retiring from the game at the press conference of his quarter-finals defeat. He lost to Stephen Maguire by 2-13. His decision shocked everybody.

The Legend Stephen Hendry

The seven-time World Champion has beaten Stuart Bingham and the Defending Champion John Higgins to reach the quarter-finals. I believe Hendry had not regret as he made his eleventh maximum break in the first round, to level off Ronnie O'Sullivan's record of making the most 147s.

Hendry said in his press conference: "I made the decision about three months ago, I didn't tell many people, I only told two or three people but this is me finished in tournament snooker. It was quite an easy decision, there's a few reasons which I'm not going to go into in detail and bore you with. The schedule didn't help, the fact that I'm not playing the snooker I want to play doesn't help, the fact I don't enjoy practice doesn't help. I've got other things I want to do, I've got a lot of commitments now in China which I've signed up for and I can't do both, I can't do that and play snooker, because I would never be at home, so the time is right for me.

"If I'd have won this event, it would have been an even better way to go out. I'm delighted that I've made a maximum here, that's why I was more animated than normal when making it, I was delighted to do it on my last appearance here. It wasn't a spur of the moment thing, I thought about it last year, but 2 or 3 months ago I decided enough was enough.

After dropping out of the Top 16 this season, Hendry seemed to play better snooker compared to the previous season. Making a maximum at the Crucible, his last tournament to be played in the professional circuit is the best ending of his career. Although Hendry had not won a full ranking title since 2005 Malta Cup, he had archived more than everybody had won so far in the game.

Being one of the greatest player ever in the sport, I wish Hendry all the best in the future. Thank you for all your brilliant matches and magic moments that brought to us in these 26 years.

World Championship - Captain Ali Carter Massive Turnaround on Judd Trump

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Tue, 1 May 2012 07:16:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Day 10: The Captain Ali Carter made a massive turnaround on Judd Trump, winning 13-12 from 9-12 down to reach quarter-finals.

Captain Ali's massive turnaround

Ali Carter did not enjoy a good season this year due to his Crohn's disease. Having only reached one quarter-finals this season, Carter came to the Crucible with a good form. He won his first round match, beating Mark Davis by 10-2 to meet Judd Trump. However, Carter fell 7-9 down behind after second session. I believe not many people could believe The Captain would make a comeback.

The first four frames of the final session were shared between Trump and Carter. Trump went for 147 in frame 19 but he broken down on the 13th red. After the mid interval, Trump added another frame on the scoreboard, setting to reach quarter-finals for the second consecutive years, leading Carter by 12-9.

Judd Trump and Ali Carter

Fearless Carter tried maximum in the next frame but he ran out of position on 81. He found himself back into the match, winning the next two frames with a top break of 53 to level 12-12 against Trump, forcing a decider. The UK Champion had two good chances to score in the decider but missed the opportunity on easy balls. Carter made 47 to go 48 points ahead, with one red left on the table only.

Never-give-up Trump got three out of the four snookers he needed but The Essex man finally potted the last red to secure the thrilling victory. The Captain clinched his fist to celebrate the massive victory. Trump is gracious in defeat, "If I was fully fit then I would expect to play a lot better but I just tried to play the best I could in the conditions. He played better, he was more mentally ready and I struggled," he said.

Trump struggled in the last few frames

"I knew I was hitting the ball well, at 12-9 I thought just get to 12-10 and he knows I'm there," said Carter. "I played some solid match snooker at 12-11 and that's all it takes. Judd just pots them from everywhere but there's more to this game than just potting them from everywhere believe me, and I've proved that today.'' "Now he (Trump) can feel what it feels like to have a nasty scar in your career. He was in it to win it but so am I."

Ali Carter will face Jamie Jones next in the quarter-finals, who saw off Andrew Higginson by 13-10. Higginson won four in a row to level 10-10 from 6-10 down but the 24-year-old held it off to win with runs of 135 and 50. Jones said, "With qualifying it is four long matches I have played now but I still feel really fresh and I am looking forward to my next game. I have played against Carter once before and I won, so hopefully that's a good omen!''

Ronnie O'Sullivan blasted into the final eight with a 13-6 victory over Williams. "I haven't had an easy draw," said O'Sullivan, who is aiming for his fourth world title. "I think whoever wins this tournament will have to beat Neil Robertson and I've got to play him in the quarters so it's definitely not easy. But I'm a competitor, I'll always give it my best and we'll see."

Matthew Stevens

Matthew Stevens set up a all-Welsh quarter-finals match against Ryan Day after defeating Barry Hawkins 13-10. This is Steven's first quarter-finals in five years, "My last final here was seven years ago and I'm not getting any younger, but I still feel as if I can compete with the so-called top players, if I play my game and score heavily.''

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

World Championship - Superb Ronnie O'Sullivan Played His Best Snooker

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 11:03:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Day 9: Ronnie O'Sullivan played his best snooker to go 11-5 up on Mark Williams, requiring two more frames to play Robertson in the final eight.

Ronnie O'Sullivan at his top form

The Rocket had a 5-3 lead on Mark Williams overnight. Williams had chance to win the first frame of the session but his mistakes put himself into the trouble. Ronnie had a blinking start of 107. He went on to take the following three frames before mid interval, with runs of 74, 51 and 68 to be 9-3 ahead of The Welshman.

The mini break did not cool The Rocket's hands. A dominating O'Sullivan played his best snooker to make it 11-3, with a marvellous break of 128 and a nearly century 93. The three-time World Champion could have a session to spare if he won the next two frames. Credits must be given to Mark Williams, who made 86 after losing nine frames in a row to guarantee the match would go to the final session. Williams took the final frame of session as well to trail 5-11 behind O'Sullivan.

Judd Trump

Last year's finalist Judd Trump found his way today to lead Ali Carter by 9-7 from 3-5 down. Unlike O'Sullivan v Williams match, there are more safety exchange but still a high-quality match to be watched. Trump won the opening frame with 120 to narrow the gap but The Captain missed the frame ball pink to regain two-frame advantage in the next frame. Nevertheless, Carter made 112 before Trump levelled off at mid interval.

Trump won the next two frames to go 8-6 up before Carter pulled one back with 54. Trump could not be stopped by Carter, 79 in the final frame of the session guaranteed himself to lead 9-7 overnight.

Crucible Debutant Jamie Jones is 10-6 ahead of Andrew Higginson, setting to reach the quarter-finals by winning three more frames tomorrow. Matthew Stevens and Barry Hawkins all squared at 8-8 after two sessions.

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

World Championship - Stephen Hendry Defeated Higgins To Move On

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 10:06:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Day 8: Stephen Hendry defeated defending champion John Higgins to make quarter-finals.

Stephen Hendry reached his 18th Crucible Quarter-Finals

The seven-time World Champion took the frame he needed today with a break of 64 as he led Higgins by 12-4 after the two sessions of playing. Hendry won 13-4 and compiled his 18th Crucible quarter-finals. Hendry will play another fellow countryman, Stephen Maguire who had collected a 13-7 win over Joe Perry.

"Stephen Maguire looks very solid. He's hard to beat. Anything can happen from here on in. I love playing here. It's the best place to play snooker in. You've just got to try and take the chances given to you." Hendry said. "John's had a poor season by his standards. This place is hard, if you miss a few balls it's hard to get going.''

"I've gone into this season not doing the right things on or off the table. You only get out of life what you put in. This season I've not done the right things and I've not deserved anything out of the game. Next year I'm going to try and rectify that and come back a more focused player and a better prepared player.'' Higgins had won three titles last seaon but nothing this season. "Over my career I've been a bit of a winner and you don't like going through this, you've got to pick yourself up and try and win more tournaments, I got to prepare better for tournaments..

Ryan Day

Ryan Day defeated Chinese qualifier by 13-7 after a disappointing second session for him. Day's advantage reduced to two frames only as Cao won 5 frames out of 8 played during the second session, only trailing by 7-9 behind. The Welshman produced a fantastic final session, taking four frames he needed before mid interval to win the match with runs of 113, 53, 87 and 119.

"I scored well, I started really well and kept the pressure on him this evening," said Day, who was 7-3 down to Gerard Greene in the final qualifying round but hit back to win 10-8. "I was lucky enough to get some good scoring opportunities and of all the sessions I've played so far, I felt that that was the best.'' Day will face either Matthew Stevens or Barry Hawkins next, "It would be nice to play Matthew but me and Barry are good friends as well so let the best man win.

Ronnie O'Sullivan stepped up to lead 5-3 after being 2-3 down on Mark Williams at the end of first session. Ali Carter had an two-frame advantage over Judd Trump overnight. Both matches resume at 2.30pm on Sunday.

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

World Championship - Neil Robertson Saw Off Gilbert To Progress

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 09:28:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Day 7: Neil Robertson saw off David Gilbert by 13-9 to be the first man progress to the quarter-finals.

Neil Robertson is the first man through to quarter-finals

2010 World Champion led Gilbert by 5-3 after first session had completed. The last two sessions were played today, with Robertson extended his lead to 10-6 with runs of 76, 77, 82 and 92. Gilbert put up a strong resistance at the final session. Robertson took the first frame of the session before Gilbert won the three out of the next four with 69, 121, 67 but Robertson collapsed his hopes to win 13-9.

"I take my hat off to David because he hung in there and gave it everything," said Masters champion Robertson. "He played to top 16 standard and never looked under pressure.'' Gilbert said: "It was such a buzz to play here and it makes me determined to get out of the cubicles and get to more venues." Robert will play the winner between Ronnie O'Sullivan and Mark Williams, he said, "I'd love to play Ronnie next because it would be a great atmosphere and I've got a good record against him, he brings the best out of me."

Stephen Hendry

Stephen Hendry encountered the Defending Champion, John Higgins in the last 16. This is the first time they play each other at the Crucible. After two sessions of playing, Hendry had an huge advantage over Higgins, 12-4 requiring just one more frame to reach his first ranking quarter-finals since 2010 China Open.

The high-quality first session, ended up Hendry led 5-3. Hendry made 81, 69, 93, 123 and 67 while Higgins knocked 124 and 52. However, the defending champion struggled at the night session. Both players made loads of errors but Hendry took the advantage on Higgins, he took sevens frames out of eight they played.

Higgins struggled to find his form

On-fire Maguire dominated his match against Joe Perry. Maguire found his form and won six frame out of eight they played to lead 11-5. Runs of 91, 80 and 75 helped Maguire to outplay Perry. He just needs two more to advance to quarter-finals. Ryan Day leads Cao Yupeng by 6-2 as the Chinese qualifier showed signs of nerves and missing crucial shots.

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

World Championship - Mark Williams To Meet Ronnie O'Sullivan In Last 16

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 10:55:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Day 6: Mark Williams is the last man through to second round, beating Liu Chuang 10-6 to meet O'Sullivan next.

The Welsh Potting Machine

The Welsh Potting Machine with a better form today moved up to 9-4 at the interval and requiring just one more frame for victory. The Chinese took two more frames before Williams dash his hopes of comeback, winning the match by 10-6.

"I probably should have won it a lot earlier and every frame he was winning, I was starting to feel a bit more pressure. At one stage I was sat in my chair wondering how many more he was going to pull back. I'm just over the moon to scrape through.'' Being asked about losing to Ronnie in ranking events for ten years, "I've been owing Ronnie one for ten years. Let's hope that this time that I beat him. I enjoy the occasion really, but he always plays well against me. I need to play a lot better than that to stand any chance."

The Captain

2008 World Finalist Ali Carter beaten Mark Davis by 10-2, showing some form today. Breaks of 44 and 48 brought first frame of the session before Davis won his second frame in the match. Total clearance of 132 in the next frame marked Carter's victory. "I'm pleased with the way I played, Mark obviously felt under the weather, but it was quite a good performance," said Carter. "It's only the first round so I'm not getting too excited but it's job done.'' He will face Judd Trump next.

Superb Neil Robertson led David Gilbert by 5-3 by the end of first session. Gilbert, who defeated Martin Gould in the previous round was 3-1 up on Robertson at interval. Superb Aussie took the coming four frames with runs of 84, 106 and 131. Stephen Maguire led Joe Perry by the same scoreline with breaks of 101, 101, 52, 65 and 88.

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

World Championship - Judd Trump Battled Through To Second Round

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 11:41:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Day 5: Judd Trump beaten Dominic Dale by 10-7 to through to second round.

Judd Trump battled through to second round

The UK Champion suffered from food poisoning on Tuesday morning but got better today. Trump led Dale by 5-4 when second session started but Dale scored the first two frames of the session to regain a lead. Trump levelled off 6-6 with 114 at the mid interval.

80 from Dale helped him to establish a lead again before losing two frames to let his opponent being 8-7 in front. A crucial fluke came in frame 17, Trump fluked a red which remind us the similar situation that Dale encounter when he faced Trump in the first round of UK, Trump won a crucial frame to stay in the match with two flukes. Dale had chances in frame 18 but he missed again, Trump won by 10-7.

"I'm tired, yesterday I felt worse, but today I'm more drained. I haven't eaten for two days, I tried to have some soup last night but other than that it's just been bread really, so I'm just glad to get out of there," said last year's runner-up. "It's the closest I've ever been to pulling out in a professional tournament. If it had been a smaller event like a PTC then maybe I wouldn't have played.'' Trump is very likely to face Ali Carter next, who leads Mark Davis by 8-1 at the end of first session.

Ryan Day shocked Ding Junhui

Ryan Day shocked Ding Junhui by 10-9, coming from 6-9 behind. The Welshman won the opening two frames of the session to extend his lead to 6-4 before losing the next five as Ding made breaks of 38, 52, 56, 69 and 57. Day did not give up, knocking 57 and 79 in the coming three frames to force a decider. Ding looked good in the decider but unexpectedly broken down on 48, an easy red with a rest. Day clinched the victory with a break of 64 to meet Cao Yupeng in the second round.

The two-time Crucible quarter-finalist Day said, "The pressure was really high. I was concentrating on breathing properly and was thinking about winning it. From 9-6 I drew inspiration from my daughters, all the way through clearing up I was thinking 'don't miss, don't miss.' My daughter believes if she tells me to win I lose and if she tells me to lose I win. So she's telling me 'lose dad.'

Frustrated Ding Junhui

The Chinese who reached semi-finals last year said: "It was all rubbish. I don't think I played well. I was concentrating on the game and people kept shouting. How can they do that? People say Chinese fans are not good but I come here and what do they do?" I believe this is out of frustration, no offence on the audience. Ding just has too much pressure on his shoulder from the Chinese fans. It is understandable.

World Number One Mark Selby lost to Barry Hawkins by 10-3 with a neck injury. Selby said after his defeat, "Ten days ago it looked as if I would have to pull out, so I'm pleased that I was at least able to play and try my best. There's never a good time for something like this to happen, but I wish it had been earlier in the season.'' Hawkins will play Matthew Stevens to compete for a quarter-finals spot.

Mark Williams led China's Liu Chuang by 6-3, requiring just four more frames to set up a clash against Ronnie O'Sullivan in the next round.

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

World Championship - Ronnie O'Sullivan Advanced To Second Round

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 11:26:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Day 4 - Ronnie O'Sullivan beaten Peter Ebdon by 10-4 to advance to the second round.

The Rocket with new haircut

'The Rocket' had a new haircut today to continue the challenge from Ebdon. Ronnie led Ebdon by 7-2 before the second session kicked off, requiring just three more frames to win. He opened with a break of 80 but Ebdon won the two frames out of the coming three to keep his hope alive. Ebdon trailed Ronnie by 4-9 at mid interval.

Ebdon was very likely to win another frame after the interval but he broken down on 50. Ronnie caught the chance and made clearance to claim the 10-4 victory. "I enjoyed playing - my attitude was good, my attitude's been good all season even though I've not been playing great," said O'Sullivan. "I've not been beating myself up so much for not playing great which is what I always do.''

Peter Ebdon

He added, "All credit to Peter, he's a top player and winner of our last tournament out in China, I knew it was going to be tough, that's what I got." Ebdon praised his opponent, "Even though he didn't play that well in that match there were four or five occasions of just sheer brilliance and inspiration, he's just fantastic to watch."

Former World Champion Graeme Dott, who has a good record at the Crucible trailed Joe Perry by 1-8 at the end of first session. Dott had no way turning back in the second session with 'nightmare snooker form', eventually being crushed out in the first round by 10-1. This is the biggest defeat in the first round so far in this year's championship.

Andrew Higginson

Andrew Higginson is the third Welshman to pass the first round after beating Stephen Lee by 10-6. Having a 5-4 narrow advantage over Lee overnight, Higginson won five frames he needed with Lee only scoring two frames today including a ton of 102. This is his first victory at the Crucible, and he will play fellow countryman Jamie Jones next.

Higginson is pleased, "I'm over the moon to get through," "Stephen's been the most consistent player over the last three or four months, he's been the best player in the world in my eyes, so to play him and to get one over on him is an achievement in itself, so I'm thrilled.'' "Everyone was expecting Murphy to get through and all the seeds, but the standard of the game is very very high and Jamie deserves to be where he is because of the way he played.''

Judd Trump led Dominic Dale by 5-4 after first session as he got food poisoning in the morning and playing not well. Ding Junhui trailed Ryan Day by 4-5. Mark Selby struggling against Barry Hawkins, falling 3-6 behind the Snooker Shoot-Out Champion.

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

World Championship - Jamie Jones Stunned Shaun Murphy

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 11:20:00 +0100

World Snnoker Championship Day 3: Crucible Debutant Jamie Jones stunned Former World Champion Shaun Murphy by 10-8 to advance to second round.

Jamie Jones beaten Shaun Murphy by 10-8

Murphy led the Welshman by 5-4 overnight and the first two frames of final session were shared, including an effort of 101 from Murphy. Jones levelled off 7-7 before putting himself in front of Murphy with 136 to go 8-7 up. Jones won the next long frame before Murphy pulled one back. Breaks of 32 and 26 in frame 18 built Jones the biggest victory in his career so far.

"I've never felt pressure like that in my life," said Jones. "I started off yesterday and struggled to settle down and got into it by the end of the session. Today was a bit of a mixed bag, I was playing some great shots and missing some easy ones. I've never played an occasion like that in my life.'' He added, "I know how well I've been playing, I knew if I scored well then I could win. I was just happy to be here, I just went out there to enjoy it and enjoy the experience. To come out a winner is fantastic."

Shaun Murphy

The 2005 World Champion who was going up in the first round said, "It was a fantastic game, I really enjoyed it. Its sounds funny saying that having got beat. I thought the match was really high quality, I thought Jamie held himself together really well and he didn't play like a debutant. He played a lot better than me on my debut, so full credit to him.'' Congrats to Jamie!

The game between Matthew Stevens versus Marco Fu was expected to be close and intense pre-match but eventually Fu could not give his best, having trailed 1-8 at the end of first session, unstoppable Stevens defeated the Hong Kong cueman by 10-4.

Luca Brecel

17-year-old Belgian Luca Brecel's run at the Crucible is ended by Stephen Maguire. The young lad was 3-6 behind the Scot before today's session kicked off. He won two frames today including a break of 86 but Maguire proved that he was too strong for Brecel - runs of 101 and 94 secured his victory. Brecel said in post-match press conference, said: "I didn't play my best, unfortunately. Until next year! I think if I had won the second frame today it might have been a different match.

The Rocket Ronnie O'Sullivan led China Open Winner Peter Ebdon by 7-2 after finishing the first session of their match. PTC Grand Finals Winner is 4-5 behind Andrew Higginson and they resume playing at 7pm tomorrow.

World Snooker released statement regarding Mark Allen's post match comments. The WPBSA will be writing to Mark Allen to initiate disciplinary proceedings. Allen was recently fined 1000 pounds for comments he made during Haikou World Open which he won, and now faces further action.

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

World Championship - Cao Yupeng Upset Mark Allen

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 09:52:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Day 2: 21-year-old Crucible Debutant Cao Yupeng upset Mark Allen to reach the second round.

Mark Allen is defeated by Mark Allen in a dramatic way

The World Number 81 led Allen by 5-4 overnight before the final session kicked off today. The youngster took the opening two frames of the session, including a break of 108 his first century at the Crucible to go 7-4 ahead. Allen pulled one back before Cao made his second century 113 and scoring another frame to get the match point 9-5. The Northern Irish showed his fighting spirit in frame 15 with 101.

Looking very likely to stay in the match having clearing from blue to black, after Allen potted the black he was about to leave the arena, thinking he was ready to start a real battle. However, the cueball went off in seconds and he lost the frame and the match. He handed the victory to the Chinese.

After his defeat, the Haikou World Open Champion accuse Cao Yupeng cheating in frame 9. He said: “The big turning point was at 5-4 when he was in the balls and Paul Collier, the referee, missed a blatant push. It was quite obvious to me and anyone watching at home would have been able to see it no problem. If the referee rightfully called a foul there I’d have had a good chance of going to 5-5 and the match would have been different. But he went on to pull away to 7-4. That was massive.''

Allen went on, “It seems to be a bit of a trait for the Chinese players because they’re have been a few instances in the past of fouls and blatant cheating going on. It needs to be corrected. He’s a good enough player and doesn’t have to do that. I was pretty confident at the time it was a foul and Terry (Griffiths - commentator on TV) pretty much confirmed it to me at the interval.''

''It's very sad the state of snooker if it has to go down to that, but it's not the first time. Marco Fu and Liang Wenbo have been known for it in the past so maybe it’s just the Chinese players.”

I am very disappointed with Allen's behaviour towards the Chinese players. I understand that defeat is terrible to him but there is no reason to brand the other Chinese players for using certain 'tactics' to earn wins. This disrespect is discrediting the sport and sportsmanship. The 'push' shot that Allen claimed to be foul, Allen should approach the referee right away. He should not put the blame on others.

David Gilbert & Martin Gould

David Gilbert scored a 10-8 victory over Martin Gould despite Gould pulling three frames from 5-9 down to 8-9 with back-to-back centuries. Gilbert kept calm in frame 18 to make 54 for winning the match. He reached the last 16 at the Crucible for the first time and he is playing Neil Robertson next, who beaten Ken Doherty by 10-4.

Gilbert said, ""It's a massive relief, at 9-5 I just wanted the match over as quickly as possible and Martin just started to play brilliantly. I felt fine yesterday, I had no great expectations I knew that if I played alright I could compete. I started well and just carried it on. It was a bit of a struggle today but it has to be expected, I'm not used to playing here but now I've got over the line I feel great."

Stephen Hendry, who knocked a maximum yesterday beaten Stuart Bingham by the same scoreline 10-4 to meet John Higgins in the next round. Stephen Maguire holds 6-3 advantage on 17-year-old Belgian Luca Brecel after wrapping today's session. 2005 World Championship leads Jamie Jones by 5-4, their play resume tomorrow as well.

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

World Championship - Fantastic Maximum For Stephen Hendry

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 09:32:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Day 1: Stephen Hendry made a fantastic maximum at the Crucible during the first session of his match against Stuart Bingham.

Fantastic Maximum for Stephen Hendry

Hendry, who just returned from China on Friday with no practice to play the match today. However he proved that he was in a fantastic form. Hendry showed his form by making breaks of 100, 89, 78 and 61 to go 5-1 up on Bingham before the magic 147 in frame 7. Hendry showed no signs of nerve when he was going for the maximum including potting a few difficult balls. A sensational 147 is then produced.

This is the eleventh maximum of the seven-times World Champion, his third 147 (1995, 2009, 2012) at the Crucible. This also helps himself to level off the record made by Ronnie O'Sullivan last August. Zhu Ying, the first Chinese female Referee making her debut at the Crucible today officiated the magic moment. Hendry picked up 50000 pounds for this maximum. Congratulations!

Hendry after making the maximum: "I felt really good out there, and the jetlag - well, sleep is for wimps. It's the new way, fly in to Sheffield the day before with no practice!'' He added,"That ties with me with Ronnie to have made three here, and I don't care what Mark Williams says about the Crucible, there is no better feeling than to make on here."

It is never easy for the 43-year-old to pass this year. Last year right here at the Crucible, after losing to Mark Selby in the second round considered to retire from the circuit as he may drop out of Top 16 after his defeat. Fortunately, Hendry's ranking stayed in the 16th but the happy days are not long. He dropped out of Top 16 for the first time in years at the first cut-off point of this season.

Hendry received congratulation from Zhu Ying, who made her debut at Crucible today

Many people doubt if he will be playing his best again. Hendry proved himself by playing better this season, beating players like Neil Robertson and Martin Gould to reach the second round of some ranking tournaments. He led Bingham by 8-1 after first session, requiring just two more frames to win tomorrow. I am delighted for Hendry and indeed his fans.

The Defending Champion John Higgins beaten Liang Wenbo by 10-9 after trailing 6-8. The Wizard of Wishaw narrowly led Liang by 5-4 after first session today and struggled during the night session. Higgins may face his fellow Scotsman Hendry in last 16, "I'm just delighted to win and it looks as if I'll be playing Hendry which would be great because I've never played him here."

John Higgins celebrated his thrilling victory

Neil Robertson has an extensive advantage on Ken Doherty after wrapping up the first session, 7-2. Doherty was going for maximum (before Hendry did) this afternoon as well but failed on the 14th red. Martin Gould is in trouble as he was 3-6 behind David Gilbert and Haikou World Open Winner Mark Allen trailed Crucible Debutant Cao Yupeng by 4-5 after first session.

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 14:35:00 +0100

Betfred.com World Snooker Championship 2012: (21 April - 7 May, Crucible Theatre, Sheffield)

Defending Champion: John Higgins (Beaten Judd Trump by 18-15 in the final)

Live Streaming:
http://www.sportlemon.tv/v-2/18/184/v-398497.html
http://www.sportlemon.tv/v-2/18/186/v-398765.html
http://www.sportlemon.tv/v-2/18/186/v-398758.html
More links on http://www.sportlemon.tv/

LIVE SCORES [Follow Me on Twitter for latest update]

Blog Entries:

Draw/Results:

Last 32	Last 16	Quarter-Finals	Semi-Finals	Final
John Higgins 10-9 Liang Wenbo	John Higgins 4-13 Stephen Hendry	Stephen Hendry 2-13 Stephen Maguire	Stephen Maguire 12-17 Ali Carter	Ali Carter 11-18 Ronnie O'Sullivan
Stuart Bingham 4-10 Stephen Hendry
Graeme Dott 1-10 Joe Perry	Joe Perry 7-13 Stephen Maguire
Stephen Maguire 10-5 Luca Brecel
Shaun Murphy 8-10 Jamie Jones	Jamie Jones 13-10 Andrew Higginson	Jamie Jones 11-13 Ali Carter
Stephen Lee 6-10 Andrew Higginson
Ali Carter 10-2 Mark Davis	Ali Carter 13-12 Judd Trump
Judd Trump 10-7 Dominic Dale
Mark Williams 10-6 Liu Chuang	Mark Williams 6-13 Ronnie O'Sullivan	Ronnie O'Sullivan 13-10 Neil Robertson	Ronnie O'Sullivan 17-10 Matthew Stevens
Ronnie O'Sullivan 10-4 Peter Ebdon
Martin Gould 8-10 David Gilbert	David Gilbert 9-13 Neil Robertson
Neil Robertson 10-4 Ken Doherty
Ding Junhui 9-10 Ryan Day	Ryan Day 13-7 Cao Yupeng	Ryan Day 5-13 Matthew Stevens
Mark Allen 6-10 Cao Yupeng
Matthew Stevens 10-3 Marco Fu	Matthew Stevens 13-11 Barry Hawkins
Mark Selby 3-10 Barry Hawkins

Match Schedule/Order of play:
Note: Both tables are streamed. Sessions are denoted in brackets (i.e 1/2/3/4, *final session). All in UK Time. (Unfinished/Finished)
Round 1: Best of 19 (9/10)
Last 16 & Quarter-Finals: Best of 25 (8/8/9)
Semi-Finals: Best of 33 (8/8/8/9)
Final: Best of 35 (8/9/8/10)

Saturday, April 21 (Day 1 - Last 32)

10am: 1 John Higgins 5-4 Liang Wenbo (1), 11 Martin Gould 6-3 David Gilbert (1)

2.30pm: 2 Stuart Bingham 1-8 Stephen Hendry (1), 12 Neil Robertson 7-2 Ken Doherty (1)

7pm: 1* John Higgins 10-9 Liang Wenbo (2), 14 Mark Allen 4-5 Cao Yupeng (1)

Sunday, April 22 (Day 2 - Last 32)

10am: 4 Stephen Maguire 6-3 Luca Brecel (1), 11* Martin Gould 8-10 David Gilbert (2)

2.30pm: 5 Shaun Murphy 5-4 Jamie Jones (1), 14* Mark Allen 6-10 Cao Yupeng (2)

7pm: 2* Stuart Bingham 4-10 Stephen Hendry (2), 12* Neil Robertson 10-4 Ken Doherty (2)

Monday, April 23 (Day 3 - Last 32)

10am: 4* Stephen Maguire 10-5 Luca Brecel (2), 15 Matthew Stevens 8-1 Marco Fu (1)

2.30pm: 5* Shaun Murphy 8-10 Jamie Jones (2), 10 Ronnie O'Sullivan 7-2 Peter Ebdon (1)

7pm: 6 Stephen Lee 4-5 Andrew Higginson (1), 15* Matthew Stevens 10-3 Marco Fu (2)

Tuesday, April 24 (Day 4 - Last 32)

10am: 8 Judd Trump 5-4 Dominic Dale (1), 13 Ding Junhui 4-5 Ryan Day (1)

2.30pm: 3 Graeme Dott 1-8 Joe Perry (1), 10* Ronnie O'Sullivan 10-4 Peter Ebdon (2)

7pm: 6* Stephen Lee 6-10 Andrew Higginson (1) , 16 Mark Selby 3-6 Barry Hawkins (1)

Wednesday, April 25 (Day 5 - Last 32)

10am: 3* Graeme Dott 1-10 Joe Perry (2), 13* Ding Junhui 9-10 Ryan Day (2)

2.30pm: 8* Judd Trump 10-7 Dominic Dale (2), 9 Mark Williams 6-3 Liu Chuang (1)

7pm: 7 Ali Carter 8-1 Mark Davis (1), 16* Mark Selby 3-10 Barry Hawkins (2)

Thursday, April 26 (Day 6 - Last 32 + Last 16)

1pm: 7* Ali Carter 10-2 Mark Davis (2), 22 David Gilbert 3-5 Neil Robertson (1)

7pm: 18 Joe Perry 3-5 Stephen Maguire (1), 9* Mark Williams 10-6 Liu Chuang (2)

Friday, April 27 (Day 7 - Last 16)

10am: 17 John Higgins 3-5 Stephen Hendry (1), 22 David Gilbert 6-10 Neil Robertson (2)

2.30pm: 18 Joe Perry 5-11 Stephen Maguire (2), 23 Ryan Day 6-2 Cao Yupeng (1)

7pm: 17 John Higgins 4-12 Stephen Hendry (2), 22* David Gilbert 9-13 Neil Robertson (3)

Saturday, April 28 (Day 8 - Last 16)

10am: 18* Joe Perry 7-13 Stephen Maguire (3), 23 Ryan Day 9-7 Cao Yupeng (2)

2.30pm: 17* John Higgins 4-13 Stephen Hendry (3), 21 Mark Williams 3-5 Ronnie O'Sullivan (1)

7pm: 20 Ali Carter 5-3 Judd Trump (1), 23* Ryan Day 13-7 Cao Yupeng (3)

Sunday, April 29 (Day 9 - Last 16)

10am: 19 Jamie Jones 4-4 Andrew Higginson (1), 24 Matthew Stevens 3-5 Barry Hawkins (1)

2.30pm: 20 Ali Carter 7-9 Judd Trump (2), 21 Mark Williams 5-11 Ronnie O'Sullivan (2)

7pm: 19 Jamie Jones 10-6 Andrew Higginson (2), 24 Matthew Stevens 8-8 Barry Hawkins(2)

Monday, April 30 (Day 10 - Last 16)

1pm: 20* Ali Carter 13-12 Judd Trump (3), 24* Matthew Stevens 13-11 Barry Hawkins (3)

7pm: 19* Jamie Jones 13-10 Andrew Higginson (3), 21* Mark Williams 6-13 Ronnie O'Sullivan (3)

Tuesday, May 1 (Day 11 - Quarter-Finals)

10am: QF1 - Stephen Hendry 1-7 Stephen Maguire (1), QF4 - Ryan Day 5-3 Matthew Stevens (1)

2.30pm: QF2 - Jamie Jones 3-5 Ali Carter (1), QF3 - Ronnie O'Sullivan 3-5 Neil Robertson (1)

7pm: QF1 - Stephen Hendry 2-13 Stephen Maguire (2), QF4 - Ryan Day 5-11 Matthew Stevens (2)

Wednesday, May 2 (Day 12 - Quarter-Finals)

10am: QF2 - Jamie Jones 7-9 Ali Carter (2), QF4* - Ryan Day 5-13 Matthew Stevens (3)

2.30pm: QF3 - Ronnie O'Sullivan 9-7 Neil Robertson (2)

7pm: QF2* - Jamie Jones 11-13 Ali Carter (3), QF3* - Ronnie O'Sullivan 13-10 Neil Robertson (3)

Thursday, May 3 (Day 13 - Semi-Finals)

1pm: SF1 - Stephen Maguire 3-5 Ali Carter (1)

7pm: SF2 - Ronnie O'Sullivan 5-3 Matthew Stevens (1)

Friday, May 4 (Day 14 - Semi-Finals)

10am: SF1 - Stephen Maguire 6-10 Ali Carter (2)

2.30pm: SF2 - Ronnie O'Sullivan 11-5 Matthew Stevens (2)

7pm: SF1 - Stephen Maguire 10-14 Ali Carter (3)

Saturday, May 5 (Day 15 - Semi-Finals)

10am: SF2 - Ronnie O'Sullivan 15-9 Matthew Stevens (3)

2.30pm: SF1* - Stephen Maguire 12-17 Ali Carter (4)

7pm: SF2* - Ronnie O'Sullivan 17-10 Matthew Stevens (4)

Sunday, May 6 (Day 16 - Final)

2pm: Final - Ali Carter 3-5 Ronnie O'Sullivan (1 - 8 frames)

7pm: Final - Ali Carter 7-10 Ronnie O'Sullivan (2 - 9 frames)

Monday, May 7 (Day 17 - Final)

2.30pm: Final - Ali Carter 10-15 Ronnie O'Sullivan (3 - 8 frames)

7.30pm: Final* - Ali Carter 11-18 Ronnie O'Sullivan (4 - 10 frames)

Ronnie O'Sullivan won World Snooker Championship 2012! Congratulations!

TV Schedule:

BBC and Eurosport transmission schedules

World Snooker Championship 2012 Draw

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 13:59:00 +0100

World Snooker Championship Draw came out today. That is the draw for the first round... (Updated: World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule)

Photo from http://www.telegraph.co.uk

Last 32	Last 16	Quarter-Finals	Semi-Finals	Final
John Higgins v Liang Wenbo
Stuart Bingham v Stephen Hendry
Graeme Dott v Joe Perry
Stephen Maguire v Luca Brecel
Shaun Murphy v Jamie Jones
Stephen Lee v Andrew Higginson
Ali Carter v Mark Davis
Judd Trump v Dominic Dale
Mark Williams v Liu Chuang
Ronnie O'Sullivan v Peter Ebdon
Martin Gould v David Gilbert
Neil Robertson v Ken Doherty
Ding Junhui v Ryan Day
Mark Allen v Cao Yupeng
Matthew Stevens v Marco Fu
Mark Selby v Barry Hawkins

Very interesting draw.The defending champion John Higgins got a tricky draw who faces Liang Wenbo in the first round, good luck to Higgins in avoiding to fall in the 'Crucible Curse'. Stephen Hendry, who will appear as a qualifiers for the first time in years draws Stuart Bingham, not a bad draw for the seven-time World Champion.

Luca Brecel

Stephen Maguire will be matched against Belgian Luca Brecel, the youngest player ever to qualify for the Crucible. That will be an exciting match as both players play attacking snooker. Stephen Lee who had a good run in recent years will play Andrew Higginson. Judd Trump got Dominic Dale, so that will be a re-match of UK Championship first round last year.

No doubt the most interesting match among the first round matches must be The Rocket versus The Psycho. Their quarter-final match on 2005 World Championship which Ebdon won 13-11 from 6-10 down. Ebdon received criticism on playing 'slowly' - at one stage taking three minutes over a shot and five minutes for a break of 12. Ebdon, who won the last tournament China Open had whitewashed Alfie Burden to qualify for The Crucible but The Rocket would surely want a revenge.

The Rocket mentally broken down

Neil Robertson draws Ken Doherty and it will be a competition between two former World Champions. The World Number 1 Mark Selby who withdrew from China Open in the second round due to neck injury will play Barry Hawkins. The Chinese Hero who is tipped by Jimmy White to win this year's world title will play Ryan Day in the first round of World Championship. Along with Ding, three Chinese will appear at the Crucible this year.

First round matches are best of 19.

The Crucible Debutants:
Luca Brecel (youngest player ever to qualify for the Crucible)
Jamie Jones
Cao Yupeng

China Open 2012 - Peter Ebdon Sank Maguire in Marathon Final

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Mon, 2 Apr 2012 12:09:00 +0100

China Open 2012: Peter Ebdon won his second China Open title after 2009, beating Stephen Maguire by 10-9 in the marathon final.

Peter Ebdon won China Open 2012

The 41-year-old led Maguire by 5-1 with two tons after the afternoon session, which nine frames should be played instead of six but the session ended after frame 6 due to slow progress of the match.

Maguire started his fightback at the night session, trailing Ebdon by 4-6 at the mid interval. However, Ebdon went 8-5 up before The Scotsman won three frames in a row to level 8-8 for the first time in the final. Despite of losing three in a row, the 2002 World Champion got the match point 9-8 with 103 but it did not stop the footsteps of Maguire to force a decider. In the deciding frame, Ebdon won by 62-24 to capture his second China Open title.

This is Ebdon's first title in 36 months. He also ensured a place in this year's Premier League, he said: "I'm delighted to win. To be perfectly honest, I feel a little bit embarrassed because I didn't handle the pressure very well today, and I feel that Stephen played better than I did, and I feel that he deserved to win. I'm delighted to win, but disappointed with my performance and that I didn't handle things better tonight.

"I was feeling pretty tired at the end. I felt deflated because I knew I didn't handle myself very well out there. I'm not used to having leads like that. Obviously it's been a long time since I've been in a final, maybe it's to be expected. But I've been playing really well this week. My focus and concentration was good. My preparation has been really, really good. I just expected more coming into the final session this evening. But I'm absolutely delighted that I've won this fantastic tournament again. It's only my ninth professional ranking event win in 20 years as a professional.''

Stephen Maguire

Maguire, gracious in defeat, said: "If I'd lost 10-1 or 10-2, it would have meant I wasn't even part of the match. I just tried hard tonight to make a match of it, to make sure Peter won it, not gift him the title. Which eventually I did. I can take a lot of fighting qualities out of it.''

Mark Selby has pulled out of China Open with a neck injury

noreply@blogger.com (Kelly) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 12:31:00 +0100

The World Number One Mark Selby has pulled out of China Open due to neck injury.

Mark Selby

Selby is going to play the local hero Ding Junhui in last 16 today but announced his withdrawal due to neck injury. Ding Junhui is therefore received a bye to quarter-finals, he will play either Ali Carter or Lu Ning next. Ali Carter v Lu Ning will replace Selby v Ding watch to be televised.

Selby said: "I'm absolutely gutted to have to pull out and to let down the Chinese fans as I was really looking forward to playing Ding tonight. But I have been suffering with neck pain and I struggled through my first round match. I don't want to do any more damage, especially with the World Championship coming up, so I'm going back to the UK to get some treatment. I look forward to coming back to China soon as I love playing here."

Meanwhile, Ronnie O'Sullivan beaten Mark Williams by 5-1 to make quarter-finals, playing Stephen Maguire next who saw off Ricky Walden in decider. Judd Trump came from 2-3 behind to beat Stuart Bingham by 5-3 while Stephen Lee continued his good form, winning 5-3 over Graeme Dott.

China Open 2012 Results/Draw, Live Streaming & Match/TV Schedule

SNOOKER BAIZE BLOG

2013 World Snooker Championship Draw

Australian Goldfields Open 2012 - Barry Hawkins Downed Ebdon To Victory

Wuxi Classic 2012 - Ricky Walden Crowned In China Again

Wuxi Classic 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match Schedule

Ronnie O’Sullivan Decided To Take A Break From Snooker

World Championship - Ronnie O'Sullivan Seals Fourth World Title

World Championship - O'Sullivan Ahead Of Carter In The Final

World Championship - Carter And O'Sullivan Repeat 2008 World Final

World Championship - O'Sullivan And Carter Lead In The Semis

World Championship - O'Sullivan Saw Off Robertson To Made Semi-Finals

Stephen Hendry Announced Retirement

World Championship - Captain Ali Carter Massive Turnaround on Judd Trump

World Championship - Superb Ronnie O'Sullivan Played His Best Snooker

World Championship - Stephen Hendry Defeated Higgins To Move On

World Championship - Neil Robertson Saw Off Gilbert To Progress

World Championship - Mark Williams To Meet Ronnie O'Sullivan In Last 16

World Championship - Judd Trump Battled Through To Second Round

World Championship - Ronnie O'Sullivan Advanced To Second Round

World Championship - Jamie Jones Stunned Shaun Murphy

World Championship - Cao Yupeng Upset Mark Allen

World Championship - Fantastic Maximum For Stephen Hendry

World Snooker Championship 2012 Results/Live, Draw & Match/TV Schedule

Ali Carter 11-18 Ronnie O'Sullivan

World Snooker Championship 2012 Draw

China Open 2012 - Peter Ebdon Sank Maguire in Marathon Final

Mark Selby has pulled out of China Open with a neck injury