Hawkins Wins Snooker Shoot-Out

Barry Hawkins claimed the 2012 Snooker Shoot-out and with it the top prize of £32,000 in Blackpool.

The Englishman beat Graeme Dott in the final of the single frame formatted event 61-23 to lift the biggest title of his career to date.

Hawkins has been a Main Tour regular for more than 15 years now and it is justified reward for a player that has a lot to offer in the sport.

The 32 year-old has enjoyed spells in the Top 16 of the world rankings and often threatened to make a breakthrough into the higher echelons before hitting stumbling blocks – proving how difficult it is to succeed in such a competitive circuit.

While this tournament will not rank alongside any of the major ranking events on the calendar and it is generally perceived as a little bit of a lottery, that will make no difference to Hawkins who was undeniably delighted at the conclusion of his victory.

In saying that it is somewhat of a lottery, the Kent cueist was easily one of the most consistent performers this weekend and thoroughly deserves to walk away as champion with a trophy and hefty winner’s cheque to his name.

Hawkins beat Stephen Maguire in the last 16 at the start of the day before seeing off countrymen Mark Davis and Dave Harold in his run to the final.

Dott also played very well with impressive wins over last year’s runner-up Robert Milkins and Dominic Dale before a tight triumph over Tom Ford in the semi-final stage.

In the final itself, Hawkins got in first with a break of 46 and, despite a late rally from the former world champion Dott, a fluked red with just over a minute still to play sealed his memorable moment.

Overall, it is has been another successful weekend for the Shoot-Out, televised on Sky Sports and in 3D for the very first time.

It comes across as a very enjoyable experience when there in person as the crowds seemed to love every bit of the action and the added banter that doesn’t usually come with the more traditional tournaments.

That said, there could be some scope in suggesting a revised format in some way shape or form for its return next year because, as a viewing spectacle, many of the matches become boring very quickly when one player runs away with proceedings in the first few minutes of a match.

Nonetheless, it is refreshing for everyone involved – from the players to the fans to the pundits – to have a couple of fun events like this one every now and then so there is definitely room for it during a season.

Either way, Barry Hawkins won’t mind returning to defend his crown this time next year and who knows what kind of confidence this taste of glory could instil in him for the rest of this campaign.

The full list of results can be viewed by clicking here.