An EGM of the players has today resulted in a change to the WPBSA constitution allowing the board to freeze a player's ranking for a whole season for medical reasons.
The vote went through 19-5, meaning Paul Hunter, still fighting cancer, will not have to play this season (assuming the board, as expected, grants his request).
This is a humanitarian issue and one on which the players and WPBSA should be congratulated for getting right.
Paul's ranking will be frozen at 34th and, hopefully, he can pick up his career in a year's time.
24.7.06
22.7.06
RONNIE STILL AN ENIGMA
As I write this, Ronnie O'Sullivan is in Las Vegas preparing for his debut on the IPT Pool circuit.
Despite what you may have read, though, we are not losing him to the American game. Ronnie will be back in good time for the Northern Ireland Trophy, which starts in Belfast on August 13.
It's hard to predict what sort of season he will have. In theory, he should probably win everything. At his best, he's the best. For me, there's only John Higgins and Stephen Hendry at their very best who can beat him.
However, we all know there's more to Ronnie - and by extension his on-table fortunes - than this raw ability. His mental state is precarious to say the least and this makes following his progress a fascinating business.
During the 2004/05 season he won five titles; last season he won just one. There's no way of knowing which extreme will apply during the new campaign, or whether he will fall somewhere between the two.
I have a theory, though, that Ronnie will actually become more successful as he gets older, in contrast to most players. At 30, he is no longer the wild child of snooker and having become a father in February has some stability in his life.
He seems to be more at ease, even if he is still capable of cracking up - as witnessed against Graeme Dott at the Crucible.
You'll recall he gave his cue away to a boy in the crowd at the end of that match, but I'd fancy him to knock in a century with a broom handle.
With Ronnie, only one thing can truly be predicted: the unpredictable.
That's why he's such a positive for snooker.
Despite what you may have read, though, we are not losing him to the American game. Ronnie will be back in good time for the Northern Ireland Trophy, which starts in Belfast on August 13.
It's hard to predict what sort of season he will have. In theory, he should probably win everything. At his best, he's the best. For me, there's only John Higgins and Stephen Hendry at their very best who can beat him.
However, we all know there's more to Ronnie - and by extension his on-table fortunes - than this raw ability. His mental state is precarious to say the least and this makes following his progress a fascinating business.
During the 2004/05 season he won five titles; last season he won just one. There's no way of knowing which extreme will apply during the new campaign, or whether he will fall somewhere between the two.
I have a theory, though, that Ronnie will actually become more successful as he gets older, in contrast to most players. At 30, he is no longer the wild child of snooker and having become a father in February has some stability in his life.
He seems to be more at ease, even if he is still capable of cracking up - as witnessed against Graeme Dott at the Crucible.
You'll recall he gave his cue away to a boy in the crowd at the end of that match, but I'd fancy him to knock in a century with a broom handle.
With Ronnie, only one thing can truly be predicted: the unpredictable.
That's why he's such a positive for snooker.
17.7.06
ROCK 'N' ROLL 'N' SNOOKER
Last week I went to Nottingham to interview The Spinto Band (l-t-r Tom, Nick, Joe, Jon, Jeff, Sam) for the magazine. You probably know we don't have a music column but I enjoyed myself so much that I'm thinking of pushing for one.
The band, who are into snooker in a big way, couldn't have been nicer guys and they did a great show for an enthusiastic audience (any night that ends with an up tempo cover of Tiffany's 'I Think We're Alone Now' has to be considered a success). Check out their album 'Nice and Nicely Done' and their blog http://shark-dance.blogspot.com/
I should apologise to Jon for the photo which shows him with demonic red eyes. Perhaps it was all the talk of Alex Higgins.
Meanwhile, here's a slightly shortened version of the article which will appear next month...
ROCK 'N' ROLL 'N' SNOOKER
Wilmington, Delaware has a population of around 73,000 and, it’s safe to assume, not a single snooker table. It does, however, now have six snooker obsessives in the shape of The Spinto Band, a delightfully energetic indie group fast accruing a large following in Britain.
The sextet, whose album ‘Nice and Nicely Done’ earned a 9/10 review in the NME, landed in the UK during the Wembley Masters and were immediately entranced, if confused, by what they saw.
“We were in the UK in January, put the TV on and they were showing this game called snooker,” said guitarist Jon Eaton. “We watched it for about three hours before we started to figure out what was going on. Early on, it was really just a puzzle.
“We couldn’t understand why the guy in the white gloves kept putting the pink back on the table, but it seemed kind of cool.”
Despite their puzzlement, the band, which features two sets of brothers, Tom and Sam Hughes and Jeff and Joe Hobson, plus Eaton and Nick Krill, quickly became hooked.
So quickly, in fact, that it wasn't long before they were dedicating a gig to Ronnie O’Sullivan at Centrepoint Snooker Club in London.
“Ronnie has become our inspiration,” said Krill. “We had banners which read ‘what would Ronnie do?’ at our record release gig. We had stickers with it on, too, and someone made me a t-shirt. Ronnie’s the man.”
“Maybe Ronnie could do our album artwork. That’d be cool,” added drummer Jeff Hobson before Eaton, somewhat hopefully, asked, “do you think Ronnie would like to be in one of our videos?”
The band has only seen action from the Masters and 888.com World Championship but already have their favourites outside of O’Sullivan.
“We liked seeing (Ryan) Day jumping over the ball twice (against O’Sullivan),” said Jeff Hobson. “It was a classic moment. He got really flustered.”
“And we like ‘Cueman Fu’,” added his brother.
“Yeah, we really wanted a Ronnie-Fu final,” said Tom Hughes.
Some felt this world final, contested in the end by Graeme Dott and Peter Ebdon, was one of the worst ever seen at the Crucible. For the Spinto Band, as the only world final they’ve witnessed, it was gripping fare right until the last ball.
“We were actually happy our show ended so we could watch the match,” said Sam Hughes.
“As soon as we were done we ran out because we wanted to watch it,” added Krill.
“We were on our tour bus and stuck a big aerial up so we could get the TV working,” said Eaton. “They had that longest ever TV frame. I think that lasted about as long as our whole set.”
Tom Hughes added: “Half an hour in, I went out to get Indian food, which took half an hour, and when I came back it was still the same frame. I couldn’t believe it.”
“Maybe Dott and Ebdon aren’t the most exciting people to watch. They’re a bit dry but we had some money on the match,” Eaton said. “We’ve got a bit of a love-hate relationship with the pair of them.”
In fact, the band has nicknamed Ebdon ‘The Robot’ and say he’s unlikely to have any future gigs dedicated to him.
Inevitably, the Spinto Band wanted to take to the green baize themselves but despite their enthusiasm found it tough going.
“We sort of know the rules but sometimes when we play crazy things happen, like two balls go in at the same time and then we’re not sure what to do,” said Sam Hughes.
“We love all the nicknames like the ‘Rocket’ and Alan ‘Angles’ McManus,” said Jeff Hobson. “We gave ourselves little nicknames when we went to play. We called Tom ‘the Fluke’ because he was lucky.”
Krill added: “We’re not very good and sometimes something happens and we ask each other ‘what the heck was that? Is there even a rule for it?’ because we’ve never seen it happen on TV, like when the cueball flies off the table or something. We also take a really long time to play a frame.”
They were honest when asked who the best player in the band is. “Nobody’s good,” said Tom Hughes. Eaton added: “I think my highest break is four. I’ve potted a red and a colour but the next red is the problem.”
Snooker has never been big in America and there seems to be little immediate prospect of this situation changing.
In the 1980s, Steve Davis and his manager Barry Hearn went to Dallas for exhibitions and the game has attracted some interest in New York, which the American association is trying its best to foster.
The International Billiards and Snooker Federation are staging its inaugural World Team Championship in San Jose, California this month but the USA is such a vast place that the notion of Snooker suddenly hitting it big seems almost absurd. Snooker usurping pool in America would be like Billiards usurping snooker in Britain.
The Spinto Band, though, are doing their best to change this. “We’ve got a few other people into it, so we’re doing our best to spread the word,” said Eaton.
“At the moment, there seems to be a big push by ESPN for dominos because poker has been so successful,” said Sam Hughes. “If dominos can get on TV so much then I don’t see why snooker can’t.”
Joe Hobson added: “It might have a chance with such great characters. If people got to know them they’d take to it.”
“A couple of years ago I’d have said Americans wouldn’t be patient enough for something like snooker but I think now people have more time for niche sports,” said Krill.
“The only thing is that it might be looked at as a curiosity. People would be saying, ‘look at this crazy game British people play.’
“I was thinking I could probably become the Snooker champion of Wilmington, Delaware as long as I can find a guy to play.”
The band, perhaps naturally, have become fascinated by Alex Higgins, who lived what is often described as a rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle.
“We were hoping John Higgins was related to him in some way,” Eaton said. “I’ve looked the Hurricane up on the internet and I guess he’s out of control. I’d like him to make a comeback.”
The Spinto Band isn’t the first rock outfit to be seduced by snooker. Ronnie Wood of the Rolling Stones is a good friend of Jimmy White and the Stones are so into the game that they have a man on their tour whose sole job it is to erect a table wherever they are.
Bernard Butler, formerly of Suede, now of The Tears, has attended a few tournaments, such is his fascination with the sport.
For sheer enthusiasm, though, The Spinto Band take some beating.
“It’s a great game and it seems to be on all the time when there’s a tournament happening,” said Sam Hughes. “We can’t get enough of it.”
The Spinto Band’s album ‘Nice and Nicely Done’ (Virgin Records) is out now.
Their new single ‘Oh Mandy’ is released on August 14.
12.7.06
JOHN SPENCER: 1935-2006
John Spencer, the three-times world champion, died on July 11 at the age of 70.
John had been ill for many years. In 1985, he was diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis, a muscle wasting disease which effectively ended his playing career. Treatment for this condition led to severe depression. During the last few years, he had been battling stomach cancer.
John bore all these health problems with trademark good humour and did much to raise awareness of Myasthenia Gravis, including parachute jumps.
He was also WPBSA chairman during the early 1990s and a leading member of the BBC TV commentary team.
John loved snooker. He was grateful for the opportunities it gave him and was a good friend to many in the game.
Snooker is poorer without him. He will be sadly missed.
John had been ill for many years. In 1985, he was diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis, a muscle wasting disease which effectively ended his playing career. Treatment for this condition led to severe depression. During the last few years, he had been battling stomach cancer.
John bore all these health problems with trademark good humour and did much to raise awareness of Myasthenia Gravis, including parachute jumps.
He was also WPBSA chairman during the early 1990s and a leading member of the BBC TV commentary team.
John loved snooker. He was grateful for the opportunities it gave him and was a good friend to many in the game.
Snooker is poorer without him. He will be sadly missed.
6.7.06
PAUL HUNTER NEWS
Further to my post about Paul Hunter here, http://snookerscene.blogspot.com/2006/06/why-paul-hunter-deserves-break.html, an EGM will be held on July 24 to ask the WPBSA membership whether they want to change the constitution to allow a player's ranking to be frozen for a season.
3.7.06
TWO INTO ONE DOESN'T GO
What is the point in wildcards for the Masters? They can only be to boost ticket sales and media interest.
Two are available and, with almost perfect symmetry, there are two obvious candidates: Ding Jun Hui and Jimmy White. Yet World Snooker plan to run a qualifying tournament for the second place, meaning that unless Ding or White wins it one of them will miss out.
This has been done to ‘give all the members a chance’ of playing in the tournament. Actually, they already have this chance. All they need to do is get in the top 16. Obviously, this is tough but the Masters is supposed to be for the elite. That’s the whole point of the tournament.
Ding ludicrously missed out last year even though he’d won two of the previous four ranking titles. The decision to ‘give all the members a chance’ actually resulted in only 48 entries from a main tour of 96.
Snooker has long had global aspirations and, through Ding and the Chinese market, they are being realised. World Snooker did a fine job of establishing the China Open in Beijing two seasons ago and ran another excellent event earlier this year. Ding is key to this and, put simply, he must be given as much exposure as is possible.
White is very much on the back nine of his career having dropped to 35th in the world rankings but he remains a hugely popular figure and the game’s leading draw.
The Masters is likely to be played at the Wembley Arena, round the corner from the Conference Centre, which has been demolished is part of the stadium redevelopment. White’s continuing Wembley presence would guarantee plenty of press coverage and, despite his alarming decline in form, his fortunes in this tournament in recent years have been fairly good. He certainly wouldn’t just be making up the numbers.
No disrespect to whoever wins the qualifying event, but having, for example, the world no.40 – whoever he is (I’ve just checked, it’s Dominic Dale) – wouldn’t do as much for the event as having both Ding and White there.
As it transpires, one of them will now have to win the qualifying tournament to ensure this.
This attitude - making decisions not on commercial grounds but to keep the rank and file happy - is what has held snooker back for far too long.
Two are available and, with almost perfect symmetry, there are two obvious candidates: Ding Jun Hui and Jimmy White. Yet World Snooker plan to run a qualifying tournament for the second place, meaning that unless Ding or White wins it one of them will miss out.
This has been done to ‘give all the members a chance’ of playing in the tournament. Actually, they already have this chance. All they need to do is get in the top 16. Obviously, this is tough but the Masters is supposed to be for the elite. That’s the whole point of the tournament.
Ding ludicrously missed out last year even though he’d won two of the previous four ranking titles. The decision to ‘give all the members a chance’ actually resulted in only 48 entries from a main tour of 96.
Snooker has long had global aspirations and, through Ding and the Chinese market, they are being realised. World Snooker did a fine job of establishing the China Open in Beijing two seasons ago and ran another excellent event earlier this year. Ding is key to this and, put simply, he must be given as much exposure as is possible.
White is very much on the back nine of his career having dropped to 35th in the world rankings but he remains a hugely popular figure and the game’s leading draw.
The Masters is likely to be played at the Wembley Arena, round the corner from the Conference Centre, which has been demolished is part of the stadium redevelopment. White’s continuing Wembley presence would guarantee plenty of press coverage and, despite his alarming decline in form, his fortunes in this tournament in recent years have been fairly good. He certainly wouldn’t just be making up the numbers.
No disrespect to whoever wins the qualifying event, but having, for example, the world no.40 – whoever he is (I’ve just checked, it’s Dominic Dale) – wouldn’t do as much for the event as having both Ding and White there.
As it transpires, one of them will now have to win the qualifying tournament to ensure this.
This attitude - making decisions not on commercial grounds but to keep the rank and file happy - is what has held snooker back for far too long.
28.6.06
UP AND UP FROM DOWNER
A heavy thud on the office floor can mean one of only two things: either Clive has fallen over the shredder or Chris Downer's updated Crucible Almanac has arrived.
Chris has surpassed himself this year by cramming even more statistical information into a tome that now runs to almost 300 pages.
New for this edition is frame scores for every Crucible match.
I can't imagine a more complete record for any sporting event.
You can gorge on this statistical feast through our mail order pages in the magazine and, shortly, through our online shop.
Chris has surpassed himself this year by cramming even more statistical information into a tome that now runs to almost 300 pages.
New for this edition is frame scores for every Crucible match.
I can't imagine a more complete record for any sporting event.
You can gorge on this statistical feast through our mail order pages in the magazine and, shortly, through our online shop.
SNOOKER ROCKS
Who said snooker wasn't cool?
The Rolling Stones have a guy in their tour part whose job it is to erect a snooker table at every venue they play. Bernard Butler, the former Suede guitarist, wanted to turn professional. The first thing James Dean Bradfield of the Manic Street Preachers learned to play on the guitar was the BBC snooker theme.
And then, of course, there was Chas 'n' Dave.
Moving on...it seems that The Spinto Band are the latest converts to the 22-ball game
The Delaware sextet recently played a gig at Centrepoint Snooker Club in London and seem to have become weirdly obsessed with the game after seeing it on TV during their travels, even though they admit it took the best part of three hours to work out what was going on.
Their current album, Nice and Nicely Done, got 9/10 in the NME. They say they are considering dedicating their next album to Ronnie O'Sullivan.
Check out their views on the green baize below.
http://shark-dance.blogspot.com/2006/01/snooker.html
The Rolling Stones have a guy in their tour part whose job it is to erect a snooker table at every venue they play. Bernard Butler, the former Suede guitarist, wanted to turn professional. The first thing James Dean Bradfield of the Manic Street Preachers learned to play on the guitar was the BBC snooker theme.
And then, of course, there was Chas 'n' Dave.
Moving on...it seems that The Spinto Band are the latest converts to the 22-ball game
The Delaware sextet recently played a gig at Centrepoint Snooker Club in London and seem to have become weirdly obsessed with the game after seeing it on TV during their travels, even though they admit it took the best part of three hours to work out what was going on.
Their current album, Nice and Nicely Done, got 9/10 in the NME. They say they are considering dedicating their next album to Ronnie O'Sullivan.
Check out their views on the green baize below.
http://shark-dance.blogspot.com/2006/01/snooker.html
27.6.06
WHY PAUL HUNTER DESERVES A BREAK
Should Paul Hunter have his ranking frozen at 34th so that he doesn’t have to play during the 2006/07 campaign?
That is the unprecedented conundrum facing World Snooker while Paul continues his treatment for cancer.
Everyone has an opinion on this, so here’s mine: yes, it should be without a shadow of a doubt.
Why?
Firstly, because none of the other players would complain. The governing body of snooker is, for good or bad, a member’s club so the views of the players would need to be canvassed. There genuinely aren’t any players who dislike Paul. Everyone wishes him well in his treatment; everyone wants his back playing soon. There will not be uproar if his ranking is frozen; there will not be a revolt against the World Snooker board.
Secondly, there is nothing in the constitution specifically outlawing such a course of action. I’ve heard people argue that Chris Small – who suffered from a degenerative disease of the spine – or Anthony Hamilton – who missed two tournaments after breaking his wrist when he intervened in a mugging – were not considered for such special action. No, they weren’t, for one very good reason: neither of them asked to be.
Before he became ill, Paul Hunter was one of the game’s most reliable players when it came to promoting the sport. He gave loads of interviews, made dozens of media appearances and was always amenable with the paying public.
At the 2005 China Open in Beijing, he’d won a match and the press wanted to speak to him. Some 20 minutes passed and he hadn’t come in to the pressroom. We were told he was still in the arena so went in to see what was going on. And there he was, signing autograph after autograph for delighted Chinese fans. He signed every one, hundreds in total. This was only a couple of weeks after he discovered he had cancer.
If this, and his many other positive contributions to promoting snooker, aren’t taken into account then it will be a very sad day indeed.
Thirdly, nobody is greatly inconvenienced if his ranking is frozen. Being 34th in the world isn’t like being 16th, with special privileges such as entry into the Masters or automatic qualification for the 888.com World Championship. Assuming Paul returned for the 2007/08 season, he would still have to pre-qualify for all major events.
Fourthly, failure to give Paul some kind of protection would effectively end his career. Even if he played next season, little could be expected of him because his game has been obviously affected by his illness. Last season, he won just one match. He is down to 45th in the provisional rankings. Another campaign like this would see him relegated from the circuit.
One idea I’ve heard mooted is not to freeze his ranking position but give him a wildcard for the 2007/08 season. However, if this happened he would have to start in the very first qualifying round of every event and climbing back up the ladder would be a hugely draining, difficult business.
Is it really good enough simply to say: ‘sorry you’re ill, but bad luck’
This is a special case, just as when Monica Seles was forced out of women’s tennis after being stabbed on court. She had her ranking position frozen and the game did not implode.
Paul’s illness has taken a heavy physical toll on him. We hear some encouraging news about his latest treatment and continue to wish him well.
He loves snooker and loves playing, but he was in pain at the table last season and can’t seriously compete at the moment.
World Snooker has a chance to help alleviate his suffering by giving him the time off he needs.
They should take it.
That is the unprecedented conundrum facing World Snooker while Paul continues his treatment for cancer.
Everyone has an opinion on this, so here’s mine: yes, it should be without a shadow of a doubt.
Why?
Firstly, because none of the other players would complain. The governing body of snooker is, for good or bad, a member’s club so the views of the players would need to be canvassed. There genuinely aren’t any players who dislike Paul. Everyone wishes him well in his treatment; everyone wants his back playing soon. There will not be uproar if his ranking is frozen; there will not be a revolt against the World Snooker board.
Secondly, there is nothing in the constitution specifically outlawing such a course of action. I’ve heard people argue that Chris Small – who suffered from a degenerative disease of the spine – or Anthony Hamilton – who missed two tournaments after breaking his wrist when he intervened in a mugging – were not considered for such special action. No, they weren’t, for one very good reason: neither of them asked to be.
Before he became ill, Paul Hunter was one of the game’s most reliable players when it came to promoting the sport. He gave loads of interviews, made dozens of media appearances and was always amenable with the paying public.
At the 2005 China Open in Beijing, he’d won a match and the press wanted to speak to him. Some 20 minutes passed and he hadn’t come in to the pressroom. We were told he was still in the arena so went in to see what was going on. And there he was, signing autograph after autograph for delighted Chinese fans. He signed every one, hundreds in total. This was only a couple of weeks after he discovered he had cancer.
If this, and his many other positive contributions to promoting snooker, aren’t taken into account then it will be a very sad day indeed.
Thirdly, nobody is greatly inconvenienced if his ranking is frozen. Being 34th in the world isn’t like being 16th, with special privileges such as entry into the Masters or automatic qualification for the 888.com World Championship. Assuming Paul returned for the 2007/08 season, he would still have to pre-qualify for all major events.
Fourthly, failure to give Paul some kind of protection would effectively end his career. Even if he played next season, little could be expected of him because his game has been obviously affected by his illness. Last season, he won just one match. He is down to 45th in the provisional rankings. Another campaign like this would see him relegated from the circuit.
One idea I’ve heard mooted is not to freeze his ranking position but give him a wildcard for the 2007/08 season. However, if this happened he would have to start in the very first qualifying round of every event and climbing back up the ladder would be a hugely draining, difficult business.
Is it really good enough simply to say: ‘sorry you’re ill, but bad luck’
This is a special case, just as when Monica Seles was forced out of women’s tennis after being stabbed on court. She had her ranking position frozen and the game did not implode.
Paul’s illness has taken a heavy physical toll on him. We hear some encouraging news about his latest treatment and continue to wish him well.
He loves snooker and loves playing, but he was in pain at the table last season and can’t seriously compete at the moment.
World Snooker has a chance to help alleviate his suffering by giving him the time off he needs.
They should take it.
THE LINKS EFFECT
There isn’t a great deal of news in between seasons because there are no professional tournaments going on. Also, the likes of me are spending their time watching the World Cup.
We forget, though, that snooker doesn’t merely exist on the pro tour. There are thousands of players around the world competing in all manner of tournaments at all levels.
We endeavour to report as many as these as we can in Snooker Scene but don’t always receive the necessary information.
However, one excellent source of results is www.globalsnookercentre.co.uk. This is the best website in the game because it’s rammed full of useful information from events that would otherwise be overlooked.
Janie Watkins is constantly updating content, including live scores from various events, not least the endless stream of tournaments being played at Pontin’s, Prestatyn.
Also worth checking out is www.worldsnooker.com, the WPBSA’s site, which carries various stories and features.
I should also mention www.laboremus.no/snooker, a site maintained by Hermund Ardalen, who had snooker on the internet long before most of us cold use a computer.
Snooker Scene’s own website (see link on the right) is being revamped to include various features we don’t have room for in the magazine itself.
For news on the professional scene, I’d recommend www.sportinglife.com and www.bbc.co.uk/snooker as the best places to visit.
I’m surprised more players don’t have a web presence in the form of sites. I know Ronnie O’Sullivan is having one developed but this is an area that remains largely untapped.
One player to have ventured into it is Neil Robertson (doubtless drowning his sorrows after Australia’s last minute exit from the World Cup). You can read all about Neil at www.neilrobertson.net.
We forget, though, that snooker doesn’t merely exist on the pro tour. There are thousands of players around the world competing in all manner of tournaments at all levels.
We endeavour to report as many as these as we can in Snooker Scene but don’t always receive the necessary information.
However, one excellent source of results is www.globalsnookercentre.co.uk. This is the best website in the game because it’s rammed full of useful information from events that would otherwise be overlooked.
Janie Watkins is constantly updating content, including live scores from various events, not least the endless stream of tournaments being played at Pontin’s, Prestatyn.
Also worth checking out is www.worldsnooker.com, the WPBSA’s site, which carries various stories and features.
I should also mention www.laboremus.no/snooker, a site maintained by Hermund Ardalen, who had snooker on the internet long before most of us cold use a computer.
Snooker Scene’s own website (see link on the right) is being revamped to include various features we don’t have room for in the magazine itself.
For news on the professional scene, I’d recommend www.sportinglife.com and www.bbc.co.uk/snooker as the best places to visit.
I’m surprised more players don’t have a web presence in the form of sites. I know Ronnie O’Sullivan is having one developed but this is an area that remains largely untapped.
One player to have ventured into it is Neil Robertson (doubtless drowning his sorrows after Australia’s last minute exit from the World Cup). You can read all about Neil at www.neilrobertson.net.
25.6.06
WHAT'S THE STOREY?
I'm happy for Sean Storey that World Snooker has given him a wildcard to play on the circuit next season.
Sean has been suffering from an unpleasant and thus far undiagnosed respiratory condition for the last year, which seriously affected his form to the extent that he was relegated from the main tour.
I think World Snooker deserve credit for showing its humanitarian side in granting Storey another chance after he wrote to them asking for the invite.
He tells me he's feeling better now, if not completely fit again, and is naturally delighted that his career is able to continue.
Sean has been suffering from an unpleasant and thus far undiagnosed respiratory condition for the last year, which seriously affected his form to the extent that he was relegated from the main tour.
I think World Snooker deserve credit for showing its humanitarian side in granting Storey another chance after he wrote to them asking for the invite.
He tells me he's feeling better now, if not completely fit again, and is naturally delighted that his career is able to continue.
NOT QUITE FLYING HIGH ENOUGH
The skies over Tiptree are set to become unexpectedly crowded with the news that Brian Morgan is following Ali Carter’s example by training to be a pilot.
Are the pressures of professional snooker really so severe that players feel the urge to take themselves several thousand feet up into the air to escape? Apparently so.
Carter is newly installed in the top 16 but for Morgan, now relegated from the main tour, the decision is born out of financial necessity.
In the early to mid 1990s, Brian certainly looked good enough to be a top 16 player but the best he managed was 27th.
Looking back, his narrow failure to win the 1996 Asian Classic – in which he lost 9-8 in the final to Ronnie O’Sullivan – may well have taken a heavy psychological toll.
It got me wondering about the best player never to have been in the top 16. I’m talking here about players who could have made it but didn’t, not the likes of Ding Jun Hui who surely will soon.
Andy Hicks is an obvious candidate. He reached the semi-finals of the game’s leading three events within the space of ten months and looked set to become a major force in the game.
For whatever reason, this didn’t happen. He started the 1995/96 campaign 17th in the world but dropped down the list in each of the next eight seasons before producing some kind of resurgence.
His cause wasn’t helped by the huge weight of expectation placed upon him every time a tournament was staged in Plymouth, close to his Tavistock home. OK, so it wasn’t quite Tim Henman at Wimbledon but the pressure of delivering home success inevitably took its toll.
How about Dominic Dale? He won the 1997 Grand Prix and has since appeared in three further ranking tournament semi-finals but could do no better than 19th.
Dominic has always seemed better than the results he’s managed. Perhaps his title victory came too soon, perhaps fate has merely conspired against him. Either way, he failed to make the step up.
Aside from Ding, the only other ranking event winner to fail to join the top 16 was Bob Chaperon, the surprise 1990 British Open champion. The Canadian failed to replicate this success, going no further than the last 16 of any subsequent ranking events.
There are other players, too, who at various times looked good enough to become members of the elite group: Eugene Hughes, Robin Hull, Mick Price, Drew Henry and Dene O’Kane to name but five.
Hicks, though, stands out. Of course, his chance has by no means gone and it would surely be all the sweeter if he could achieve promotion so late on in his career.
Are the pressures of professional snooker really so severe that players feel the urge to take themselves several thousand feet up into the air to escape? Apparently so.
Carter is newly installed in the top 16 but for Morgan, now relegated from the main tour, the decision is born out of financial necessity.
In the early to mid 1990s, Brian certainly looked good enough to be a top 16 player but the best he managed was 27th.
Looking back, his narrow failure to win the 1996 Asian Classic – in which he lost 9-8 in the final to Ronnie O’Sullivan – may well have taken a heavy psychological toll.
It got me wondering about the best player never to have been in the top 16. I’m talking here about players who could have made it but didn’t, not the likes of Ding Jun Hui who surely will soon.
Andy Hicks is an obvious candidate. He reached the semi-finals of the game’s leading three events within the space of ten months and looked set to become a major force in the game.
For whatever reason, this didn’t happen. He started the 1995/96 campaign 17th in the world but dropped down the list in each of the next eight seasons before producing some kind of resurgence.
His cause wasn’t helped by the huge weight of expectation placed upon him every time a tournament was staged in Plymouth, close to his Tavistock home. OK, so it wasn’t quite Tim Henman at Wimbledon but the pressure of delivering home success inevitably took its toll.
How about Dominic Dale? He won the 1997 Grand Prix and has since appeared in three further ranking tournament semi-finals but could do no better than 19th.
Dominic has always seemed better than the results he’s managed. Perhaps his title victory came too soon, perhaps fate has merely conspired against him. Either way, he failed to make the step up.
Aside from Ding, the only other ranking event winner to fail to join the top 16 was Bob Chaperon, the surprise 1990 British Open champion. The Canadian failed to replicate this success, going no further than the last 16 of any subsequent ranking events.
There are other players, too, who at various times looked good enough to become members of the elite group: Eugene Hughes, Robin Hull, Mick Price, Drew Henry and Dene O’Kane to name but five.
Hicks, though, stands out. Of course, his chance has by no means gone and it would surely be all the sweeter if he could achieve promotion so late on in his career.
19.6.06
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BAPTISM OF FIRE
It will be interesting to see how some of the new, younger faces fare in this new season.
With only seven ranking events being contested and 16 players for the chop at the end of the campaign, there isn’t much time to get settled in to life on the circuit. A couple of early defeats and you spend the rest of the season playing catch-up.
This happened to Judd Trump last year. Following a fine junior career, his first match as a professional was against Fergal O’Brien, the vastly experienced former top 16 player and 1999 British Open champion.
Fergal had too much of an all-round game and so Trump was quickly 0/1. This soon became 0/2 when he drew Ding Jun Hui in the first round of the UK Championship. Ding, of course, would go on to win the title.
Trump started to string a few results together as the season continued, extending Michael Holt to 5-4 in the final qualifying round of the China Open before reaching the final stages of the Welsh Open. At 16, he became the youngest ever qualifier for a main venue.
All this helped Trump remain on the circuit, but for those new to ranking event snooker it’s a big ask to stay on for a second year.
Jamie Jones, an 18 year-old Welsh prospect, and David Morris, 17 from Kilkenny, Ireland, are two to watch this season, both having impressed in their national events and in European and world amateur tournaments.
Mark Joyce, the new English amateur champion, also joins the fray and could be one newcomer worth following. He is level-headed enough not to expect too much but possesses a pretty lethal game on his day.
What doesn’t help these players is the labyrinthine qualifying process. For most tournaments they will need to win three matches to reach the final stages; for some it is four.
Because of the uniformly high standards on the circuit, this is akin to swimming through glue.
I wish them all well, but can’t help thinking they’re going to find it a baptism of fire.
With only seven ranking events being contested and 16 players for the chop at the end of the campaign, there isn’t much time to get settled in to life on the circuit. A couple of early defeats and you spend the rest of the season playing catch-up.
This happened to Judd Trump last year. Following a fine junior career, his first match as a professional was against Fergal O’Brien, the vastly experienced former top 16 player and 1999 British Open champion.
Fergal had too much of an all-round game and so Trump was quickly 0/1. This soon became 0/2 when he drew Ding Jun Hui in the first round of the UK Championship. Ding, of course, would go on to win the title.
Trump started to string a few results together as the season continued, extending Michael Holt to 5-4 in the final qualifying round of the China Open before reaching the final stages of the Welsh Open. At 16, he became the youngest ever qualifier for a main venue.
All this helped Trump remain on the circuit, but for those new to ranking event snooker it’s a big ask to stay on for a second year.
Jamie Jones, an 18 year-old Welsh prospect, and David Morris, 17 from Kilkenny, Ireland, are two to watch this season, both having impressed in their national events and in European and world amateur tournaments.
Mark Joyce, the new English amateur champion, also joins the fray and could be one newcomer worth following. He is level-headed enough not to expect too much but possesses a pretty lethal game on his day.
What doesn’t help these players is the labyrinthine qualifying process. For most tournaments they will need to win three matches to reach the final stages; for some it is four.
Because of the uniformly high standards on the circuit, this is akin to swimming through glue.
I wish them all well, but can’t help thinking they’re going to find it a baptism of fire.
12.6.06
IN PRAISE OF GRAEME DOTT
The manner in which Graeme Dott laboriously ground out victory at the Crucible did not win him legions of fans but much of the criticism levelled his way since has been unfair.
OK, so his final against Peter Ebdon wasn’t pretty. Nobody is suggesting it was. There were times when it felt as if it would never end. I had an appreciation as to what it must feel like to be a character on the Channel 4 show Lost: marooned in a surreal place with no prospect of escape, surrounded by oddballs and malcontents. To be honest, though, the press room feels like that at the best of times.
Eventually, wee Dotty summoned up one final gulp of inspiration and scrambled over the line. Much has been said about the lateness of the hour but it must be pointed out that some bizarre scheduling decisions meant that the final session started two frames short of the number which should have been played, some 45 minutes later than planned.
A generally slow pace of play – a big thanks, by the way, to Dott and Ebdon for chucking in the longest ever televised frame during the final session – obviously didn’t help but there was much absorbing snooker in evidence as the match came down to the wire.
To win at this late hour after all that had happened took a tremendous amount of nerve, resolve and sheer bloody determination, which Dott has in spades. Winning at professional snooker is about far more than just potting balls.
Put more crudely, nobody who wins the world title can be said not to have earned it and Dott, it should be remembered, was appearing in his second Crucible final in three years. Hardly a flash in a pan, unless the pan is especially big and given to flashing with great regularity.
I interviewed Dotty on the first Friday of the Championship. No sooner had I started that the fire alarm sounded and we were ushered out of the Crucible for our own safety. They let the players in the arena carry on for a bit, which suggests the press is more highly thought of than we are generally led to believe.
Outside in the street, Graeme, in his distinctive high-pitched Glaswegian voice, told me the one thing he loves about the World Championship is the psychological warfare that comes with it. I could see he meant it, too, even if the idea of him becoming champion seemed a distant prospect at this point.
It is, of course, this very mental attrition that causes many a great player to lose the plot at Sheffield. Dott, though, held firm to the end. He came close to cracking when Ebdon started to come back at him but kept it together. His 68 break to lead 17-14 was as good a contribution as you are ever likely to see under the circumstances.
Dotty proved himself a champion by the way he reacted to this pressure, quite apart from the fact he beat players of the calibre of Neil Robertson, Ronnie O’Sullivan and Ebdon to win the thing.
After 17 days, he was the last man standing. At the Crucible, the ultimate snooker testing ground, this doesn’t happen by accident.
However you look at it, Dott is a worthy world champion.
OK, so his final against Peter Ebdon wasn’t pretty. Nobody is suggesting it was. There were times when it felt as if it would never end. I had an appreciation as to what it must feel like to be a character on the Channel 4 show Lost: marooned in a surreal place with no prospect of escape, surrounded by oddballs and malcontents. To be honest, though, the press room feels like that at the best of times.
Eventually, wee Dotty summoned up one final gulp of inspiration and scrambled over the line. Much has been said about the lateness of the hour but it must be pointed out that some bizarre scheduling decisions meant that the final session started two frames short of the number which should have been played, some 45 minutes later than planned.
A generally slow pace of play – a big thanks, by the way, to Dott and Ebdon for chucking in the longest ever televised frame during the final session – obviously didn’t help but there was much absorbing snooker in evidence as the match came down to the wire.
To win at this late hour after all that had happened took a tremendous amount of nerve, resolve and sheer bloody determination, which Dott has in spades. Winning at professional snooker is about far more than just potting balls.
Put more crudely, nobody who wins the world title can be said not to have earned it and Dott, it should be remembered, was appearing in his second Crucible final in three years. Hardly a flash in a pan, unless the pan is especially big and given to flashing with great regularity.
I interviewed Dotty on the first Friday of the Championship. No sooner had I started that the fire alarm sounded and we were ushered out of the Crucible for our own safety. They let the players in the arena carry on for a bit, which suggests the press is more highly thought of than we are generally led to believe.
Outside in the street, Graeme, in his distinctive high-pitched Glaswegian voice, told me the one thing he loves about the World Championship is the psychological warfare that comes with it. I could see he meant it, too, even if the idea of him becoming champion seemed a distant prospect at this point.
It is, of course, this very mental attrition that causes many a great player to lose the plot at Sheffield. Dott, though, held firm to the end. He came close to cracking when Ebdon started to come back at him but kept it together. His 68 break to lead 17-14 was as good a contribution as you are ever likely to see under the circumstances.
Dotty proved himself a champion by the way he reacted to this pressure, quite apart from the fact he beat players of the calibre of Neil Robertson, Ronnie O’Sullivan and Ebdon to win the thing.
After 17 days, he was the last man standing. At the Crucible, the ultimate snooker testing ground, this doesn’t happen by accident.
However you look at it, Dott is a worthy world champion.
BLOGGING ON
Snooker Scene has, month by month, year by year, for 35 years, formed an historical record of the game on and off table.
Now we are launching this blog as part of our redesigned website.
The blog will be updated throughout the season from tournaments, bringing you behind the scenes news, results and stories of interest.
We welcome your feedback and hope to, in our small way, enhance your enjoyment of the coming snooker season.
Now we are launching this blog as part of our redesigned website.
The blog will be updated throughout the season from tournaments, bringing you behind the scenes news, results and stories of interest.
We welcome your feedback and hope to, in our small way, enhance your enjoyment of the coming snooker season.
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