World Snooker Championship 1927 (The First One!) – Throwback

The year 1927 was significant for a few reasons. It was witness to the formation of Pan American Airlines; the start of Mount Rushmore; the birth of Sir Roger Moore; and the world’s population was just over 2 billion. It also happened to be the year of the inaugural World Snooker Championship, or as it was known then, Professional Snooker Championship.

Many are aware of Joe Davis and his impact on the table with his commanding 15 WSC victories, however his contribution off the table is what led to the development of the first professional snooker championship. Having shifted his interest laterally from English Billiards to Snooker, Davis was the key figurehead in the arranging of this first snooker tournament.

Davis partnered with billiard club owner, Bill Camkin, whose hall would host a majority of the matches that took place for this WSC. Davis formulated the draw and format which was then approved by the governing body at the time, BACC (Billiards Association and Control Council). Although their focus was primarily on billiards, public interest was slowing due to its repetitive nature, while snooker became increasingly popular as the years followed.

The thing I found most interesting about this tournament was that even though there were only nine matches, the entire WSC spanned the duration of around 6 months – from end of November through to May. Matches took place in halls across Birmingham, Liverpool, London and Nottingham. The venues had to be arranged by the players involved which is likely the main reason for the length of the whole tournament.

This tournament involved stars that mainly transitioned from being proficient billiards players, such as the three Tom’s (Newman, Carpenter and Dennis, who reached the final against Davis on many occasions). Other players included 1928 finalist, Fred Lawrence; seasoned professional, Albert Cope, who made the tournament high break of 60; World Billiards Champion, Melbourne Inman; and Joe Brady.

Unlike the decades that followed, this initial iteration of the WSC were contested over what we would consider, a shorter format. The most that matches were played up to (including the final) were a best-of-31 (first to 16). And Davis had a comfortable voyage to victory as he secured the first World Championship with scores of 16-7 in both the semi’s and final.

The players had to pay entry fees for the tournament, which were partly used by the BACC to purchase a trophy. Entry fees were 5 guineas per player – guinea being a currency made of a small ounce of gold which had an equivalent value of just over £1. Davis’ notable winnings of £6 and 10 shillings which encompassed the gate receipts is roughly equivalent to £6 and 120p or £15.60 as the conversions of pounds to pence were different back then.

It was a very different time, played under different circumstances and conditions nevertheless, the Professional Snooker Championship in 1927 paved the way for the snooker events that followed. It was also the beginning of the rising popularity that snooker experienced as well as the unbeatable force that was Joe Davis. If this wasn’t arranged, who knows how the landscape of snooker would look like today?

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World Snooker Championship 1976 – Throwback

It was the final World Championship before the introduction of the Crucible. It was also the first year of a long three-decade relationship between the WSC and Embassy cigarettes (click here to read the Short looking at the impact of the tobacco industry on snooker). Ray Reardon was in the middle of his storm through the 1970s where he happened across a Hurricane for the first time in a world final.

Prior to the Crucible, the WSC was held in clubs and venues scattered across various locations primarily in the UK. On rare occasions, the tournament would be held across international waters such as South Africa or Australia. However, in this instance, the 1976 WSC was based in two UK locations: Middlesbrough and Manchester.

The two finalists had relatively differing troubles reaching the final. Alex Higgins fought through two deciders against Cliff Thorburn and John Spencer before running it close once again, this against multiple-time runner-up Eddie Charlton. On the other hand, Reardon having won the previous three WSC’s was unmatched as he passed by John Dunning, Dennis Taylor and Perrie Mans to set up the final against Higgins.

World finals were settled over multiple days as matches went on for longer before 1980. This was due to less players competing in the WSC. Once more players were permitted to compete, this is when the format changed to what we are familiar with nowadays. This year, the final was contested over a best-of-53 or first-to-27. Reardon held a lead throughout the course of the final as he won his fifth (out of six) World Championship 27-16, taking home the winning prize of £6000.

So what seemed to be another successful year at the World Championship may not necessarily have been the case. Prior to the Crucible, things weren’t as organised and up to standards. Table conditions were considered poor and inconsistent; lighting and camera equipment were obstructive; and the audience weren’t as respectful and courteous as they are currently. The audiences were akin to what would be expected in an exhibition match as opposed to the most important snooker event as they were given free roam.

Thankfully, this didn’t affect the following sponsorship arrangements World Snooker had with Embassy as they continued their long and prosperous partnership. The 1976 WSC was significant in that it saw two key figureheads of the 1970s go head-to-head for the first time in a world final. And quite possibly and more importantly, its significance resides in the impact for the years that followed. Because the rest is, well…history.

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Like this Short? Click here to read: World Snooker Championship 1977 – Throwback

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Mark Williams' World Championship 2018 Run – Throwback

It had been over 6 years since he was able to win a ranking event, and he was tiptoeing around the idea of retirement. However, the 2017/18 season saw the resurgence of Mark Williams as he was able to win 3 ranking titles, including the World Championship, which he last claimed in 2003. His record at the WSC hadn’t been significant for a number of years, yet he was able to overcome fierce opposition in order to go the distance in 2018.

The first two rounds for Williams included relatively comfortable victories over long-time professionals Jimmy Robertson (10-5) and Robert Milkins (13-7). Williams then proceeded to the quarter-finals where he faced Ali Carter in what turned out to be another solid performance in which he maintained a lead throughout the course of the match.

Williams’ first real test came in the semi-finals where he competed against Crucible specialist, Barry Hawkins. Hawkins was in the middle of a great run of form as he was in his 5th semi-final in 6 years at the World Championship. This was evident as this was the only match in Williams’ WSC run where he was on the back-foot for most of it. Williams was behind throughout the entire match, losing the first three out of four sessions. Keeping at the heels of Hawkins, Williams was able to level the score-line at 15-15 then pull away with a couple of closely fought frames.

The final was set up between Williams and Higgins, creating the ‘oldest’ final since 1977. In the 26 years these two have been professional, they have only competed in Triple Crown finals twice (both at the UK), with Higgins coming out on top on both occasions. Williams was in his first world final in 15 years, while Higgins (unknowingly, at the time) was in the second of his three consecutive world final runs.

It was a classic final contested by two of the most successful modern players, which will be remembered by many for the lead that Williams was able to build and that Higgins was able to claw back. And also the post-final press conference. Williams developed a 10-7 overnight lead, then extended this to 15-10 the following day. However, Higgins showed his class as he reeled off the following five frames to level.

Williams inched himself closer to the winning line as he got to 17-15 and looked ready to win 18-15 until he missed the crucial pink ball in Frame 33 that would have spared him some grief in the following couple of frames. Higgins was able to reduce arrears to 17-16 but Williams held his composure to make a break of 69 and win his third world title, at the age of 43.

Many, including Williams, questioned where this performance came from; with most crediting Sight Right and others referring to his successful season prior to the Worlds. Whatever the reason, Williams contributed to a WSC to remember, including moments such as his incredible no-look snooker-escape-turned-pot against J. Robertson. While everyone was focusing on O’Sullivan, Selby and other favourites, Williams was able to fly under the radar and return to the top of the game.

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Like this Short? Click here to read: Masters 2016 - Throwback

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Masters 2016 - Throwback

One of my personal favourite tournaments, filled with classic matches, moments and a sheer dominant performance by the eventual winner; the 2016 Masters showcased an event to remember.

The 42nd Masters involved Shaun Murphy as defending champion losing out in the first round to Mark Allen. One of Murphy’s lost frames was via a forfeit where he failed to hit reds for 3 shots in a row.

The quarter-finals saw 2 heavyweight contests. Firstly, Trump and Robertson clashed in an epic which consisted of 6 century breaks between the players in a best-of-11 matchup. Trump did come out on top with a century in the final frame decider although he did lose in the semis against a formidable Barry Hawkins.

The second QF showdown involved O’Sullivan and Selby. Although O’Sullivan scraped by Williams in the first round, every match following that was just dominance. This was displayed in his match against Selby and the winning frame was one of the best frames of snooker you could ever see.

When someone mentions a frame of snooker being ‘one of the best’, it generally involves a hefty amount of safety play leading to an eventual resolution. This frame wasn’t exactly that formula but it was, in my opinion, the best counter clearance you could ever hope to see. In short, Selby made a comfortable 70 break but then failed to develop any more reds. After a few rounds of safety play, this led to O’Sullivan clearing the rest of the table with 73 (from a fairly unfavourable position) to take the match and progress to the semi-finals. Honestly, who wins a frame when they are 70 points down?

(There will probably be a future Instant Classic Short looking at this frame alone because it was just that good)

O’Sullivan’s semi-final match against Bingham was another top notch contest which displayed some of the best single shots of the whole tournament. In order to try and keep this short, I’d suggest watching Tequila’s ‘Absolute Essence of Ronnie O’Sullivan – Masters 2016’ video on YouTube.

That leads us to the finals. Hawkins vs O’Sullivan. Unfortunately for Hawkins, he wasn’t able to reproduce the form he brought out against Trump – but in all honesty, it wouldn’t have made much of a difference that day. After losing the first frame, O’Sullivan had ascended to a state beyond the realm of human, where he was simply untouchable. Not much else to say besides: he won 10 in a row.

The Masters 2016 remains as a personal favourite of mine. It had top-tier matches, countless memorable moments, a couple of my favourite frames of all time and a performance from a champion that can be compared to Tiger’s 2000 US Open win. That is the only golfing reference I know; don’t ruin me. The entire tournament was an Instant Classic for me.

Fun fact: Ronnie O’Sullivan took 8 months off playing Snooker before coming back to compete in the Masters that year! It was his first televised event that season! His performance won him £200,000 as well as equalling Hendry’s 6 Masters titles!