Should the UK Championship return to BO17 matches?

I've actually got two questions here. Firstly, should the UK Championship have best of 17 matches returned? Secondly should they return to the format that existed prior to 2013, when the flat 128 draw was brought in?

BO17 from the semis, qualification stays the same, should be an option.?

Dan-cat wrote:BO17 from the semis, qualification stays the same, should be an option.?

I did consider that, but it's such a small change to the current format that I didn't think people would be interested in it. It's partially why I opted for an alternative choice option in the poll.

Best of 17 Quarters and Semis, Final like it is now.

At least they could still have the Best of 11s until Last 16. I know for this to be possible probably an extra day would need to be added to the event but still.

Flat 128 is fine but I'd prefer best of 17 in SF and the final the same. No more or less.

Look at the number of frames vs prize money for seeded players.

Worlds 2019 = 71 frames you need to win £500k
UK 2018 = 46 frames to win £175k

It's actually currently fair.

Ofc the UK is 200k this year so who knows if the format has changed.

Dan-cat wrote:BO17 from the semis, qualification stays the same, should be an option.?

I don't get that it has to be flat draw. I actually do think the flat draw is a positive move for every other tournament, but this is a major. The UK Championship should be treated as special, like the World Championship. Top 16 + 16 qualifiers. I think I heard it described as the pre-Christmas World Championship before, and that's exactly what it used to be. Now it's just another tournament.

For me, it's slightly more prestigious than the Players Championship and Masters. But it lags behind the World Championship, Tour Championship, China Open, and International Championship. buck history. It's all about format for me.

Would any of this be unworkable? Tournament remains the same length: 13 days. I'd like to start on a Monday, which would probably make more sense anyway, to include a two-day final, but if we're sticking with 13 days, this is a perfectly good format:

Day One (Tuesday):
10am: R1-1 (Session One) and R1-2 (Session One) – Best of 17
2.30pm: R1-3 (Session One) and R1-4 (Session One) – Best of 17
7pm: R1-1 (To a Finish) and R1-5 (Session One) – Best of 17

Day Two (Wednesday):
10am: R1-2 (To a Finish) and R1-3 (To a Finish) – Best of 17
2.30pm: R1-4 (To a Finish) and R1-6 (Session One) – Best of 17
7pm: R1-5 (To a Finish) and R1-7 (Session One) – Best of 17

Day Three (Thursday):
10am: R1-6 (To a Finish) and R1-8 (Session One) – Best of 17
2.30pm: R1-7 (To a Finish) and R1-9 (Session One) – Best of 17
7pm: R1-8 (To a Finish) and R1-10 (Session One) – Best of 17

Day Four (Friday):
10am: R1-9 (To a Finish) and R1-11 (Session One) – Best of 17
2.30pm: R1-10 (To a Finish) and R1-12 (Session One) – Best of 17
7pm: R1-11 (To a Finish) and R1-13 (Session One) – Best of 17

Day Five (Saturday):
1pm: R1-12 (To a Finish) and R1-14 (Session One) – Best of 17
7pm: R1-13 (To a Finish) and R1-15 (Session One) – Best of 17

Day Six (Sunday):
10am: R1-14 (To a Finish) and R1-16 (Session One) – Best of 17
2.30pm: R1-15 (To a Finish) and R2-1 (Session One) – Best of 17
7pm: R1-16 (To a Finish) and R2-2 (Session One) – Best of 17

Day Seven (Monday):
10am: R2-1 (To a Finish) and R2-3 (Session One) – Best of 17
2.30pm: R2-2 (To a Finish) and R2-4 (Session One) – Best of 17
7pm: R2-3 (To a Finish) and R2-5 (Session One) – Best of 17

Day Eight (Tuesday):
10am: R2-4 (To a Finish) and R2-6 (Session One) – Best of 17
2.30pm: R2-5 (To a Finish) and R2-7 (Session One) – Best of 17
7pm: R2-6 (To a Finish) and R2-8 (Session One) – Best of 17

Day Nine (Wednesday):
1pm: R2-7 (To a Finish) and QF-1 (Session One) – Best of 17
7pm: R2-8 (To a Finish) and QF-2 (Session One) – Best of 17

Day Ten (Thursday):
10am: QF-1 (To a Finish) and QF-3 (Session One) – Best of 17
2.30pm: QF-2 (To a Finish) and QF-4 (Session One) – Best of 17
7pm: QF-3 (To a Finish) and QF-4 (To a Finish) – Best of 17

Day Eleven (Friday):
1pm: SF-1 (Session One) – Best of 19
7pm: SF-1 (To a Finish) – Best of 19

Day Twelve (Saturday):
1pm: SF-2 (Session One) – Best of 19
7pm: SF-2 (To a Finish) – Best of 19

Day Thirteen (Sunday):
1pm: Final (Session One) – Best of 21
7pm: Final (To a Finish) – Best of 21

Pink Ball wrote:

Dan-cat wrote:BO17 from the semis, qualification stays the same, should be an option.?

I don't get that it has to be flat draw. I actually do think the flat draw is a positive move for every other tournament, but this is a major. The UK Championship should be treated as special, like the World Championship. Top 16 + 16 qualifiers. I think I heard it described as the pre-Christmas World Championship before, and that's exactly what it used to be. Now it's just another tournament.

For me, it's slightly more prestigious than the Players Championship and Masters. But it lags behind the World Championship, Tour Championship, China Open, and International Championship. buck history. It's all about format for me.

The format is and always has been one of the unique selling points of the UK Championship, even now they try and put out this idea that the early rounds over best of 11 frames are longer than the vast majority of the events.

The reason why the UK Championship's two reductions have been so disappointing is one because the UK at the time was the only other event beyond the World Championship that had more than just the one multi-session match. If such a reduction from 17 frames to 11 frames went was brought in now, with the Tour Championship, the International, the extended format for the China Open, admittedly there would indeed be some criticism (probably from me) but also it wouldn't be as lambasted as it was back in 2011 when other than for broadcast requirements there didn't seem to be much call for it.

The changes made in 2011 were given the reasonable view that it ensured that a full field could play on the television tables - that much is fair enough, having come through qualifying in cubicles, the last thing the players want would be to get put back into a cubicle situation. The changes made in having all 128 players at the venue and thus having four matches each session in the first and second rounds played away from the television tables almost go against why the format was reduced to 11 in the first place.

It should, but it won't.

I'd love a BO17 until the semis, BO19 in the semis and a BO21 final. Not that it'll ever happen