Power Snooker returns in extended form this weekend with the whole of the world’s top 16 taking part in its second staging.
Good for them. It’s a chance to win £25,000 in just two days without the intense pressure of championship snooker. It’s a chance to have some fun.
You can never tell what will be popular. Jimmy White tweeted Philip Schofield yesterday with a picture of the line-up for Tenball, an ITV innovation 20 years ago presented by Schofield that ultimately failed to catch on.
Like Power Snooker, Tenball took the traditional elements of snooker and attempted to speed things up with new rules, extra balls etc.
Schofield’s reply to White on Twitter was: “I thought it would make us all rich!”
Power Snooker may well make various people rich but it depends on public support. What matters at the Trafford Centre in Manchester is not how full the arena is but how many of the people there have bought their tickets rather than been given them.
Viewing figures will also determine levels of sponsorship support in the future, though I understand Power Snooker is well backed already.
As for the action, Ronnie O’Sullivan is defending champion and an obvious favourite again, although the format also favours other fast, instinctive players such as Judd Trump or Mark Allen.
To be honest, it favours all of them because they are all talented potters, and that it what this variant of the game is mainly about.
Mark Williams could be struggling, though. He has injured his ankle, which is severely swollen. Perhaps he could emulate Alex Higgins, who won the 1989 Irish Masters after breaking his ankle.
The tournament is screened live in the UK on ITV4 with some coverage also on Eurosport International for those on the continent.
Power Snooker website.
13 comments:
At least with it being held in Manchester we won't have to put up wih the London chavs from last year. Snooker always gets more respect oop north.
I'll be at Newcastle General Hospital having my piles lanced while this is on.
I thought it would be the lesser of the two evils.
Yes looking forward to this tournament enjoyed it immensely last year it was a breath of fresh air and great fun.It would be great to see a ranking event on itv4 it seems a natural home for snooker.
OT: Dave, is the English Open still running? Quite a few pros played in it but I haven't heard anything about it for a while. Global only has results going up to 2009, so has it been ditched?
Hi David. The 2011 Power Snooker event, should be a great one. I can not wait.
No more comments Dave. I think the majority of your readership have committed Hari Kiri. I'm polishing me sword as I write.
Mat Wilson
It really is not that bad. I think the worry is that it 'infects' the conventional game. Do we trust the guardian of the game to keep it in tact in th face of dollar signs?
The entrances are simply ludicrous and the weakenesses of the format mean that it will not threaten the game the way limited overs cricket has to tests,
We can't escape from the magnificence of Power Snooker.
Power Snooker's biggest problem is that it's just plain dull. It isn't remotely exciting until it winds down to the last five minutes and the scores are close, which is Power Snooker's equivalent of a deciding frame; in that sense the Shoot-Out works much better as quick-fire entertainment.
That said what a difference the crowd makes. The good natured banter from the crowd this year as opposed to the loud mouthed abuse of last year has turned it into inoffensive Sunday afternoon entertainment. Power snooker organisers would be wise to keep it to one tournament per year though, otherwise the flaws of the format will become all too apparent; there simply isn't a tournament circuit in this format.
agree
its still bad, but much better than last time.
hope its a rating fail
well said mark allen
it is as if ronnie phoned up itv and amde up pwer snooker.
joke rules
joke game
made up for joke snooker (ronnie) fans
Do we need bimbos?
Enjoyed this Power Snooker, and at least ITV4 got all the ads out of the way and gave the full, uninterrupted coverage of each 1/2 hour match.
It has a place in the snooker calendar, and it is a more exciting variation to the classic version of the game.
I Just hope it doesnt lead to dumbing down of the prestige tournaments, if its going to try and attract much younger audiences, who don't want to see tactical play etc.
I see this has already happened with the UK, by shortening the matches, which I definitely dont approve of.
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