Australian Goldfields Open Wild Card and Last 32 Discussion!

Wild wrote:i thought he was safe but having looked at matts blog there's less than 1,200 points between Ronnie in 11th and Lee in 17th

He isn't safe at all and he knows it. especially if the cut-off doesnt not take the GP into account. That makes the whole story about this being "fake" even more unlikely. He already said he wouldn't mind playing one qualifier too much. But surely not playing the Masters must annoy him. Actually he will not be safe for the whole season because even if he stays in top 16 at the next cut-off, he made the semis both in UK and Welsh in 2010 so he has a lot to defend for the next cut-off as well. He won only one event in 2009/10 but he made two other semis.

Monique wrote:

Wild wrote:i thought he was safe but having looked at matts blog there's less than 1,200 points between Ronnie in 11th and Lee in 17th

He isn't safe at all and he knows it. especially if the cut-off doesnt not take the GP into account. That makes the whole story about this being "fake" even more unlikely. He already said he wouldn't mind playing one qualifier too much. But surely not playing the Masters must annoy him. Actually he will not be safe for the whole season because even if he stays in top 16 at the next cut-off, he made the semis both in UK and Welsh in 2010 so he has a lot to defend for the next cut-off as well. He won only one event in 2009/10 but he made two other semis.

yeh if he survives in the top 16 at one cut off then as soon as the next window opens he is immediately back to square one and in danger again. this situation will continue until the end of the season, so he really has to play and do well in as many events as he can. Playing in Oz and doing well there would have eased the burden slightly but by missing this, hes right back in trouble, albeit his PTC1 win was just a step in the right direction but much more was still required.

By my calculations, if Ronnie loses the 700 minimum points, provisionally he's out of the Top 16. But not 100% sure my calcs are correct.

Dannyboy wrote:By my calculations, if Ronnie loses the 700 minimum points, provisionally he's out of the Top 16. But not 100% sure my calcs are correct.

without checking youd be wrong as he was about 1500 points clear of 17th after PTC1

PLUS if he has a sickline he will get to keep them 700 points anyway

but with all the players around about him likely to pick up more points in Oz, then yeh he could well end up out of the top 16 after this event.

Witz78 wrote:

Monique wrote:

Wild wrote:i thought he was safe but having looked at matts blog there's less than 1,200 points between Ronnie in 11th and Lee in 17th

He isn't safe at all and he knows it. especially if the cut-off doesnt not take the GP into account. That makes the whole story about this being "fake" even more unlikely. He already said he wouldn't mind playing one qualifier too much. But surely not playing the Masters must annoy him. Actually he will not be safe for the whole season because even if he stays in top 16 at the next cut-off, he made the semis both in UK and Welsh in 2010 so he has a lot to defend for the next cut-off as well. He won only one event in 2009/10 but he made two other semis.

yeh if he survives in the top 16 at one cut off then as soon as the next window opens he is immediately back to square one and in danger again. this situation will continue until the end of the season, so he really has to play and do well in as many events as he can. Playing in Oz and doing well there would have eased the burden slightly but by missing this, hes right back in trouble, albeit his PTC1 win was just a step in the right direction but much more was still required.

but winning PTC 1 has given him some breathing space without thoes points he would be looking down the barrel of mid 20s .......

the problem with being there is qualifying and getting Higgins first up......

davehendon David Hendon
Meanwhile it's wrong that Dominic Dale should have to play Steve Mifsud after O'Sullivan's withdrawal. He should receive a walkover.

Opinions ??

to be honest if that comment of Moniques about Ronnie saying "he wouldnt mind playing one qualifier" is right enough, then he may as well quit the sport i think.

He said at the Worlds that he would give it another season or 2 max and see if he was enjoying playing, and playing well but if he ends up in qualifiers then its clear his attitude is all wrong, as theres no way he should be out of the top 8, let alone the top 16 with the talent he still possesses

Witz78 wrote:to be honest if that comment of Moniques about Ronnie saying "he wouldnt mind playing one qualifier" is right enough, then he may as well quit the sport i think.

He said at the Worlds that he would give it another season or 2 max and see if he was enjoying playing, and playing well but if he ends up in qualifiers then its clear his attitude is all wrong, as theres no way he should be out of the top 8, let alone the top 16 with the talent he still possesses

Ronnie talks a good game don't think he will fancy going to sheffield in mid winter to play one match.

Witz78 wrote:to be honest if that comment of Moniques about Ronnie saying "he wouldnt mind playing one qualifier" is right enough, then he may as well quit the sport i think.

He said at the Worlds that he would give it another season or 2 max and see if he was enjoying playing, and playing well but if he ends up in qualifiers then its clear his attitude is all wrong, as theres no way he should be out of the top 8, let alone the top 16 with the talent he still possesses

He said that after winning the PTC1 and added that it wouldn't prevent him to win tournaments if his game is there. I don't think it's the wrong attitude. It's being realistic and easing the pressure on himself: he has an awful lot of points to defend. I know that people went on all of 2009/19 saying how poor a season he had but that was tezzies. Yes he did win only one ranking event, Shanghai, but he made the semis in the UK and Welsh and quarters in the WC. Only two players have more points to defend this season: Higgins and Ding. Where he is now is due to last season. If Ronnie manages to survive this season and finish it inside the top 16, he will soar next season because then he will have about nothing to defend while others will have a lot.

for simplicity if we go on the basis that all the seeds win their games and the tournament goes according to the seedingss then the following points will be gained by all at the tournament.

Higgins 4300
Williams 3300
Ding, Selby 2,500
Murphy, Carter, Maguire, Robertson 1,700
Hendry, Ebdon, Allen, Cope, Trump, Stevens 1200
Dale, Gilbert 500

by adding these to the current provisional rankings, heres the likely impact on Ronnies ranking come the end of the Australian Open.

1 Mark Selby 58745
2 Mark J Williams 58200
3 John Higgins 55840
4 Ding Junhui 51040
5 Ali Carter 47440
6 Stephen Maguire 45900
7 Shaun Murphy 44985
8 Neil Robertson 43600
9 Judd Trump 42985
10 Graeme Dott 41125
11 Mark Allen 35705
12 Matthew Stevens 35015
13 Peter Ebdon 34880
14 Ronnie O’Sullivan 34680
15 Stuart Bingham 33860
16 Martin Gould 33675
--------------------------------------------------
17 Stephen Lee 33595
18 Jamie Cope 33500
19 Stephen Hendry 32980
20 Mark Davis 32125

All this talk about O'Sullivan is quite boring. Just let him disappear. The game doesn't need his whining. He is getting on now, and his days as a relevant force are over.

vodkadiet wrote:All this talk about O'Sullivan is quite boring. Just let him disappear. The game doesn't need his whining. He is getting on now, and his days as a relevant force are over.

O'Sullivan has done a lot of good for the game, outweighing the bad by far in my opinion, but I think his days as the biggest draw in snooker at least are coming to an end. He is no longer the World's best player, he can still play alright, but he ain't the O'Sullivan of old. The aura has lifted quite considerably, players aren't afraid when they walk into an arena anymore knowing that they're up against a freak of nature.

The 2011 World Championship was a turning point. Judd Trump won a hell of a lot of fans, and his game is a clear successor in the line of Higgins-White-O'Sullivan. I think he's about to assume the mantle of crowd favourite, maybe it's happened already.

Monique wrote:

Witz78 wrote:to be honest if that comment of Moniques about Ronnie saying "he wouldnt mind playing one qualifier" is right enough, then he may as well quit the sport i think.

He said at the Worlds that he would give it another season or 2 max and see if he was enjoying playing, and playing well but if he ends up in qualifiers then its clear his attitude is all wrong, as theres no way he should be out of the top 8, let alone the top 16 with the talent he still possesses

He said that after winning the PTC1 and added that it wouldn't prevent him to win tournaments if his game is there. I don't think it's the wrong attitude. It's being realistic and easing the pressure on himself: he has an awful lot of points to defend. I know that people went on all of 2009/19 saying how poor a season he had but that was tezzies. Yes he did win only one ranking event, Shanghai, but he made the semis in the UK and Welsh and quarters in the WC. Only two players have more points to defend this season: Higgins and Ding. Where he is now is due to last season. If Ronnie manages to survive this season and finish it inside the top 16, he will soar next season because then he will have about nothing to defend while others will have a lot.

i doubt he will soar next season cos if he does survive in the top 16 this season, then has fewer points to defend next season than those around him, then hes under no pressure to enter all the events and gain loads of points.

this is what he should be doing this season to protect his status when its most at risk.

but Ronnies not really caring about rankings one way or another so hard to see that he'll care about soaring up the rankings next season.

not a dig at you Monique as i know you know the rankings workings better than most, infact its just a general rant this and also i know the rankings cut off points are of interest in terms of each ranking window and who is at risk etc but it kinda annoys me at times when people think the rolling rankings are unfair, as players can rise or fall dramatically and suddenly due to "losing" a lot a points or having nothing to defend so rising etc

At the end of the day the rankings are always based on the last 2 years results so its the same for all the players, if your suddenly in danger cos youve a lot of points to defend then youve only yourself to blame for not maintaining good form since the period you earned a lot of points. Consistency the key in this rolling rankings set up.

Tubberlad wrote:

vodkadiet wrote:All this talk about O'Sullivan is quite boring. Just let him disappear. The game doesn't need his whining. He is getting on now, and his days as a relevant force are over.

O'Sullivan has done a lot of good for the game, outweighing the bad by far in my opinion, but I think his days as the biggest draw in snooker at least are coming to an end. He is no longer the World's best player, he can still play alright, but he ain't the O'Sullivan of old. The aura has lifted quite considerably, players aren't afraid when they walk into an arena anymore knowing that they're up against a freak of nature.

The 2011 World Championship was a turning point. Judd Trump won a hell of a lot of fans, and his game is a clear successor in the line of Higgins-White-O'Sullivan. I think he's about to assume the mantle of crowd favourite, maybe it's happened already.

It is still early days regarding Trump. He played extremely well the last 2 tournaments last year, but aside from that hasn't done a great deal, flattered to deceive mainly. He has great talent, but he is a scalp now, and how will he fare when he is the hunted one?

Tubberlad wrote:

vodkadiet wrote:All this talk about O'Sullivan is quite boring. Just let him disappear. The game doesn't need his whining. He is getting on now, and his days as a relevant force are over.

O'Sullivan has done a lot of good for the game, outweighing the bad by far in my opinion, but I think his days as the biggest draw in snooker at least are coming to an end. He is no longer the World's best player, he can still play alright, but he ain't the O'Sullivan of old. The aura has lifted quite considerably, players aren't afraid when they walk into an arena anymore knowing that they're up against a freak of nature.

The 2011 World Championship was a turning point. Judd Trump won a hell of a lot of fans, and his game is a clear successor in the line of Higgins-White-O'Sullivan. I think he's about to assume the mantle of crowd favourite, maybe it's happened already.

Trumps tweets of the last 2 months have lost him most of the new fans he gained i think

vodkadiet wrote:

Tubberlad wrote:

vodkadiet wrote:All this talk about O'Sullivan is quite boring. Just let him disappear. The game doesn't need his whining. He is getting on now, and his days as a relevant force are over.

O'Sullivan has done a lot of good for the game, outweighing the bad by far in my opinion, but I think his days as the biggest draw in snooker at least are coming to an end. He is no longer the World's best player, he can still play alright, but he ain't the O'Sullivan of old. The aura has lifted quite considerably, players aren't afraid when they walk into an arena anymore knowing that they're up against a freak of nature.

The 2011 World Championship was a turning point. Judd Trump won a hell of a lot of fans, and his game is a clear successor in the line of Higgins-White-O'Sullivan. I think he's about to assume the mantle of crowd favourite, maybe it's happened already.

It is still early days regarding Trump. He played extremely well the last 2 tournaments last year, but aside from that hasn't done a great deal, flattered to deceive mainly. He has great talent, but he is a scalp now, and how will he fare when he is the hunted one?

Well, he has made the breakthrough at least. That's a lot of pressure off, because there was so much attention to how he wasn't delivering. He's now got a ranking title to his name and a great run at the Crucible. Not bad. I'm not saying he's destined to be the all-dominant player of the next fifteen years, but the People's Champion tag could be assure, he doesn't need to have outstanding success to achieve that.

Witz78 wrote:

Tubberlad wrote:

vodkadiet wrote:All this talk about O'Sullivan is quite boring. Just let him disappear. The game doesn't need his whining. He is getting on now, and his days as a relevant force are over.

O'Sullivan has done a lot of good for the game, outweighing the bad by far in my opinion, but I think his days as the biggest draw in snooker at least are coming to an end. He is no longer the World's best player, he can still play alright, but he ain't the O'Sullivan of old. The aura has lifted quite considerably, players aren't afraid when they walk into an arena anymore knowing that they're up against a freak of nature.

The 2011 World Championship was a turning point. Judd Trump won a hell of a lot of fans, and his game is a clear successor in the line of Higgins-White-O'Sullivan. I think he's about to assume the mantle of crowd favourite, maybe it's happened already.

Trumps tweets of the last 2 months have lost him most of the new fans he gained i think

What about his tweets? I never look at twitter.

I hope ronnie gets his act together soon, i really think snooker needs players and characters like ronnie.

I really dont want to think of snooker without Hendry and ronnie (and unless results start to change for both, this looks likely pretty soon)

It will be a sad day when these 2 hang up their cues

At least the Snooker Legends tour will be making a fortune

vodkadiet wrote:

Witz78 wrote:

Tubberlad wrote:

vodkadiet wrote:All this talk about O'Sullivan is quite boring. Just let him disappear. The game doesn't need his whining. He is getting on now, and his days as a relevant force are over.

O'Sullivan has done a lot of good for the game, outweighing the bad by far in my opinion, but I think his days as the biggest draw in snooker at least are coming to an end. He is no longer the World's best player, he can still play alright, but he ain't the O'Sullivan of old. The aura has lifted quite considerably, players aren't afraid when they walk into an arena anymore knowing that they're up against a freak of nature.

The 2011 World Championship was a turning point. Judd Trump won a hell of a lot of fans, and his game is a clear successor in the line of Higgins-White-O'Sullivan. I think he's about to assume the mantle of crowd favourite, maybe it's happened already.

Trumps tweets of the last 2 months have lost him most of the new fans he gained i think

What about his tweets? I never look at twitter.

doesnt bother me, but he was getting a lot of grief off folk for perceivedly acting like a bigshot by posting loadsa pictures of his flashy 80k motor, blahing about going shopping, and generally acting like he loved himself. Exiting the PTC in round 1 then coincidentally heading to Magaluf later that day just gave the haters / conspiracy theorists a field day that hes thrown that PTC match and couldnt give a jacksies about snooker, more interested in living the highlife of an international playboi

In other words, he's a bit of a legend

Trump isn't the brightest guy in the world, so maybe this explains a lot. I have a feeling he is not going to be as successful as a lot think he will.

He may become the new hate figure, to replace O'Sullivan.

Sonny wrote:At least the Snooker Legends tour will be making a fortune

Witz78 wrote:i doubt he will soar next season cos if he does survive in the top 16 this season, then has fewer points to defend next season than those around him, then hes under no pressure to enter all the events and gain loads of points.

this is what he should be doing this season to protect his status when its most at risk.

but Ronnies not really caring about rankings one way or another so hard to see that he'll care about soaring up the rankings next season.

not a dig at you Monique as i know you know the rankings workings better than most, infact its just a general rant this and also i know the rankings cut off points are of interest in terms of each ranking window and who is at risk etc but it kinda annoys me at times when people think the rolling rankings are unfair, as players can rise or fall dramatically and suddenly due to "losing" a lot a points or having nothing to defend so rising etc

At the end of the day the rankings are always based on the last 2 years results so its the same for all the players, if your suddenly in danger cos youve a lot of points to defend then youve only yourself to blame for not maintaining good form since the period you earned a lot of points. Consistency the key in this rolling rankings set up.

I never suggested that the rolling system is unfair. If Ronnie is where he is it's because his lack of commitment last season. Simple as that and he knows it very well. Whatever the reasons behind this lack of commitment, it doesn't change the facts or the situation he has to deal with now. BTW himself never said anything different, never complained about the new system or suggested it's not fair.
It's just that I see this statement about playing one qualifying match if needed as a positive attitude in the light of giving himself a bit of time to see where he stands and if he can rebuild his love for the game. It's a case of not throwing the baby with the tub water (I don't know if this expression exists or makes sense in English "Jeter l'enfant avec l'eau du bain") ...

markking147 mark king
What a surprise THE ROCKET has pulled out of OZ, I reckon he has found a bone in his leg,what a load of bullocks,it must be nice to choose.

Sonny wrote:

markking147 mark king
What a surprise THE ROCKET has pulled out of OZ, I reckon he has found a bone in his leg,what a load of fluffy bunnies,it must be nice to choose.

Well having had to fly to Bangkok to find it must make it the most valuable bone in his body...

Ronnie will win enough matches in the UK events to stay in the top 16.

Of course he wasn't going to play in this event but its no odds to me. I'm sure his fans are dissapointed but he isn't getting any younger.

Casey wrote:Ronnie will win enough matches in the UK events to stay in the top 16.

Of course he wasn't going to play in this event but its no odds to me. I'm sure his fans are dissapointed but he isn't getting any younger.

i think he is slowly winding down i think he needs a world tour like a hole in the head.

Casey wrote:Ronnie will win enough matches in the UK events to stay in the top 16.

Of course he wasn't going to play in this event but its no odds to me. I'm sure his fans are dissapointed but he isn't getting any younger.

UK rankings events?

We have the UK, Worlds and Welsh in the UK, other than that theres 6 PTCs in the UK.

The 3 proper rankers in the UK all fall later in the season after the next rankings cut off period. Ronnie may well have to be qualifying for these big events to get points.

the problem for Ronnie is that the tour is moving away from the UK, the Aussie Open, Shanghai, China, Germany, 6 EPTCs, PTC Finals, World Open possibly will all be abroad so if he misses out on all of them, then thats potentially 45,000 less ranking points he has to aim for than other players, plus by playing only UK events he only has 35,000 points total to aim for so he really has to almost win or reach at least the semis in these events.

Plus the invitiationals abroad like the Wuxi, that other Chinese one , Brazilian etc are other events hes missing out on.

Its ok playing the Premier League and Snooker Legends, but these wont keep him sharp enough to compete with the rest in the rankers he does decide to enter.

Last season his form slumped badly, in the main part due to him missing so many events. Youd have thought hed have learnt his lesson by now.

Forget the 'Rocket', I reckon he should change his nickname to 'Rest Home' Ronnie.