Well, it’s fair to say that the first round predictions didn’t go according to plan. There were a few near misses, like with Shaun Murphy, Ryan Day, and Graeme Dott bowing out in tight affairs with Jamie Jones, Anthony McGill, and Ali Carter respectively. But there were also some shockers,[Read More…]
Features
The latest feature articles, opinion pieces, and other commentary related to ongoing snooker news and headlines from the professional and amateur game.
Preview: 2018 World Snooker Championship
We’ve waited in expectation and the time has finally arrived – the start of the 2018 World Snooker Championship is less than 48 hours away and we now know how the draw is shaped this year at the Crucible Theatre. There has already been plenty of drama in Sheffield over[Read More…]
Who Will be the Crucible Debutants?
The excitement for this year’s World Snooker Championship is building and the general expectation received another jolt of energy on Monday with the announcement of the qualifying stages draw. A total of 128 players, made up of 113 professionals ranked outside the world’s top 16 and 15 additional wildcard amateurs[Read More…]
Sniper Shot: John Sutton
Over the course of this season, Jonathan “Sniper” Williams has been conducting a series of interviews with players from the Irish snooker scene. Many thanks to Jonathan for his contributions to SnookerHQ and to all the players who have agreed to take part in this feature. We hope you enjoy it.[Read More…]
Sniper Shot: Michael Judge
Over the course of this season, Jonathan “Sniper” Williams has been conducting a series of interviews with players from the Irish snooker scene. Many thanks to Jonathan for his contributions to SnookerHQ and to all the players who have agreed to take part in this feature. We hope you enjoy[Read More…]
O’Sullivan, Higgins, Williams: Snooker’s Trinity
Often written off. Yet, still going strong. There will come a time when snooker’s Trinity will inevitably have to put away their cues and call it a day, but that day still seems a long way off yet. Tennis has had the Federer-Nadal-Djokovic-Murray story arc, which is probably just about[Read More…]
Healthy Diet Aiding Ronnie O’Sullivan’s Success
Even for the great man himself, the recent sustained success of Ronnie O’Sullivan has taken everyone a little by surprise. The “Rocket” has long been heralded as the most gifted and naturally talented player the game has ever produced but, even so, O’Sullivan has rarely, if ever, demonstrated this kind[Read More…]
Berlin’s Brief: Mark Williams Owns the Tempodrom Again
The final of this year’s German Masters unexpectedly turned out to be an even more one-sided affair than the semi-final, where already Mark Williams had been the winner while conceding but one frame to his opponent. That he would sail to the championship with the same kind of dominance, taking[Read More…]
Berlin’s Brief: Inspired Graeme Dott Reaches Final
On Saturday in the German Masters, the Tempodrom presented itself in its familiar mode. Only one table left, the 2,500 capacity audience packed to the last seat, the famed earth-shaking applause complete with shouting, tramping, and every manner of noise that snooker fans are capable of making accompanying the entrances[Read More…]
Berlin’s Brief: Shaun Murphy Completes Late Night Tempodrom Drama
The third and thus the last day with the full five-table setup in the German Masters provided a nice dramaturgy, right to a late night climax finish on Friday in Berlin. The afternoon session with the second half of the last 16 saw Shaun Murphy taking pride of place at[Read More…]