The run of huge snooker tournaments begins on Tuesday when the 128 man tour heads up to York for the UK Championship, the first Triple Crown event of the season, and the last chance for the elite players to make it into The Masters in January.
Ronnie O’Sullivan won this title last year and he’ll be looking to make it three successive wins in the event over the 11 days of competition, but in many eyes Judd Trump is the man to beat which makes this a fascinating tournament.
Recent Winners
2018 – Ronnie O’Sullivan
2017 – Ronnie O’Sullivan
2016 – Mark Selby
2015 – Neil Robertson
2014 – Ronnie O’Sullivan
2013 – Neil Robertson
2012 – Mark Selby
2011 – Judd Trump
2010 – John Higgins
2009 – Ding Junhui
The Format
Unlike the old days the entirety of this tournament from the first round right up until the final is the best of 11 frames. The first round of the event is not on TV with the TV stages beginning on the first Saturday with the day before seeing no action to allow the TV rig to be set up. The final is the second Sunday of the event with the champion being crowned over two sessions and the best of 19 frames. The draw seeds player ranked 1 facing 128 in the first round, 2 against 127 and so on, so the big names will be expected to make the latter stages.
Top Quarter
Ronnie O’Sullivan might not be the number one in the world anymore but as the defending champion he is the number one seed here. That means he is in the top quarter and to be honest he looks to have a nice draw too. I say that because the other three men from the top 16 who are in this part of the draw are Shaun Murphy, who he thumped in the Northern Ireland Open recently, Kyren Wilson and Ding Junhui, both of whom have big question marks over them.
There are some dangerous outsiders in this quarter though. Ali Carter will be looking to go well and push for his place at Alexandra Palace while Sam Craigie, Noppon Saengkham and Anthony McGill are all more than capable on their day. Li Hang, Xiao Guodong, Liang Wenbo and Tom Ford are all capable of a few wins while if he can get back to his very best Marco Fu could be something of a dangerous sleeper.
Second Quarter
The second quarter of any draw tends to be the one which is something of a minefield and that is the case here with Neil Robertson seeded to make it into the semi-final from this section. John Higgins will be expected to have something to say about that however, while Stuart Bingham and Jack Lisowski are both members of the top 16 who will be looking to show their worth over the duration of this event.
There are a number of loaded outsiders in this quarter as well, not least the recent World Open finalist Thepchaiya Un-Nooh. Indian Open champion Matthew Selt is in here as is Michael Holt who is back in better touch in recent times. Martin Gould will look to break out of his slump here while Chinese pair Zhao Xintong and Yan Bingtao are both extremely competent. Alexander Ursenbacher had a decent run in Northern Ireland recently while experienced pair Peter Ebdon and Mark King will look for big runs.
Third Quarter
This could be the section that is the widest open because it is where Mark Williams is housed. He looks vulnerable based on the form of the season so far, which will interest Mark Selby as he is the next highest seed in the quarter. Dave Gilbert looks set to make his Masters debut and a few wins here will make extra sure of that. Stephen Maguire is the other man in the top 16 who is in this quarter. He could also do with a win or two just to be safe at Ally Pally.
There are some competent outsiders in this part of the draw as well with Ricky Walden more than capable of a few wins. Anthony Hamilton had a decent run in Northern Ireland which came at a good time while Ryan Day is in this quarter looking to find anything close to his best form. Yuan Sijun is making a decent name for himself as is his Chinese compatriot Si Jiahui. Experienced trio Graeme Dott, Mark Joyce and Mark Davis will all be looking to earn a decent pay cheque here with Zhou Yuelong also in that group. World Championship star James Cahill will be looking to make a name for himself again.
Bottom Quarter
The world champion Judd Trump will be looking to complete the sweep of the Triple Crown events this week and the Northern Ireland Open winner could barely be in better form right now. He heads up this bottom quarter but Mark Allen will show him no mercy were they to meet in the quarter final. Barry Hawkins and Joe Perry are the other members of the top 16 in this part of the draw with the latter needing to be careful if he is to play in The Masters.
A couple of outsiders who could put an early spanner in the chances of Trump completing that sweep are Hossein Vafaei and Luca Brecel, the latter potentially a last 32 opponent for the world champion. World Championship semi-finalist Gary Wilson will be looking for a big week which if it comes could force him into The Masters. Kurt Maflin, Mei Xiwen, Jimmy Robertson and Scott Donaldson have all had deep runs in tournaments over the last 18 months or so and will want another here. Jimmy White is also in this quarter.
Outright Betting
I’m only going to go for one outright bet in this tournament because it is one where the cream tends to rise to the top. The last 10 winners are all in the top five in the world on their day so it seems pointless chasing the big outright prices with the format this week suiting the big stars much more than the Home Nations events, as we saw in the International Championship recently which has the same format.
The man I like is John Higgins. I wouldn’t say he has got an easy draw but he’s good enough that he doesn’t need one. Higgins hasn’t won a tournament yet this season but it hasn’t been for the want of trying. It has taken Ronnie O’Sullivan and Judd Trump at their best to deny him in his last three tournaments but he won’t be facing either of those until the semi-final at the very least. Trump has a few hurdles to overcome before then though and Ronnie is in a weird mind-set at the minute. Higgins is probably the fourth best player in the game right now so 18/1 on him looks big to me, especially with a nice run to the quarter final at least.
Quarter Betting
I will chance my arm and a couple of outsiders to come through their quarters though. They say everyone has their price and I just wonder how well Ali Carter will go at 20/1 in the first quarter. Carter needs a big week here. He is currently the last man into The Masters but he’s only five grand ahead of Stephen Maguire which is basically one win more for Maguire this week. That should keep Carter motivated here and although it hasn’t been the best season for him so far, we’ve seen throughout his career that he brings it in the big events. Ronnie O’Sullivan is the main danger in the quarter but it is hard to gauge his mood these days. I’ll pay to see how Carter goes here.
Graeme Dott is another one who can still make it to The Masters. He needs to make the final to have any chance of doing so, so it is a remote hope going into the event, but he is good enough to go that deep in these events. The longer format tournaments tend to suit him as he showed when dumping Stuart Bingham and John Higgins out of the International Championship earlier in the season. I think he is a big price to come out of a wide open quarter. Mark Selby is probably the dangerman in it, but even he isn’t as ruthless and unbeatable as he once was. The Scot is 22/1 to win this quarter and given that he doesn’t face Selby until the quarter final if both get there I would say that is a big price. I’m happy to see how he gets on.
Specials Betting
The sponsors Betway have priced up a ‘to make the quarter final’ market which is basically to win four matches and I’m going to indulge in that with a couple of punts. As I eluded to above, Graeme Dott has a good draw. His route to the quarter final reads: R1 Barry Pinches, R2 Yuan Sijun/Hammad Miah, R3 one of Stephen Maguire/Billy Joe Castle/Mark Joyce/Jordan Brown and then the money match sees him against one of Mark Williams/Fraser Patrick/Michael White/Fergal O’Brien/Zhou Yuelong/Fan Zhengyi/Mark Davis/Si Jiahui. There isn’t too much there to scare him so the 9/1 looks a big price.
The other man I like in this market is Joe Perry. He might have to face Judd Trump in the last 16 but he has already beaten him this season and were that to be the match Perry would not be the 6/1 to win it that he is in this market. Perry is another who needs a big week to secure his spot at The Masters which should make sure he is right up for it here. His path to the last 16 comes through R1 Simon Lichtenberg, R2 Sunny Akani/Lee Walker and R3 Chris Wakelin/Ashley Carty/Gary Wilson/Bai Langning. I expect him to come through that run and I’ll take my chances that a) he doesn’t face Trump in the last 16 or b) he repeats his win over him at the China Championship.
Tips
Back J.Higgins to win UK Championship (e/w) for a 1.5/10 stake at 19.00 with Boylesports (1/3 1-2)
Back him here:
Back A.Carter to win 1st Quarter for a 1/10 stake at 21.00 with Coral
Back him here:
Back G.Dott to win 3rd Quarter for a 1/10 stake at 23.00 with Betway
Back G.Dott to make the quarter final for a 2/10 stake at 10.00 with Betway
Back J.Perry to make the quarter final for a 1/10 stake at 7.00 with Betway
Back them here:
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2019
