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Re: Dafabet Masters Pre Tournament Discussion !!!

Postby Wildey

SnookerFan wrote:
Cloud Strife wrote:Looking forward to this. Feels like ages since we had some proper snooker on.


Before Christmas, it was on every day practically. rofl

3 weeks seems a long time these days.

Dont know about anyone else but i feel the year should finish at the UK Championship or throw in a novelty (non ranking) event like Shoot Out or like the 80s the Doubles.

having the year finish with a qualifying round for Germany feels wrong.

The Championship league is clogging up 4 Weeks between January and April far too long for a field of 25 players

they could have played the Scottish Open 1st to 7th of jan and incorparate Hogmanay in to it lol and German Masters Qualifying 9th to 12th of Jan

Re: Dafabet Masters Pre Tournament Discussion !!!

Postby Cloud Strife

SnookerFan wrote:
Cloud Strife wrote:Looking forward to this. Feels like ages since we had some proper snooker on.


Before Christmas, it was on every day practically. rofl

3 weeks seems a long time these days.


Hearn has spoiled us lol.

Re: Dafabet Masters Pre Tournament Discussion !!!

Postby Dan-cat

SnookerFan wrote:
Dan-cat wrote:
PLtheRef wrote:Prediction contest to be launched tonight


I'm gonna give it a stab. With so few players I reckon I can manage this one! Thank you PL :hatoff:


I'm the defending World Champion. <ok>



will you be my mentor? Hold my hand? I got lost last time I entered and gave up half-way through.

How do you get better at something? By doing it.

Re: Dafabet Masters Pre Tournament Discussion !!!

Postby TheSaviour

Shaun also has impressed me. Obviously he was destined to win that group of his straight away. But he impressed me before he won that by the way he was playing quite erracticly. It would be a dead game if every do-able ball would be made by the top players.

HANG ON!! It will be the mid-April what we will have to wait. A year ago Shaun was only stopped by Ronnie in a Crucible SCORING Classic. It certainly seems that Shaun is a remarkable stronger and better player now than a year ago. Which is quite strange but Shaun wouldn´t be Shaun if he wouldn´t. If Shaun would had got past Ronnie he would had had an another quite difficult game against Ding. A difficult yes, but not that difficult. And Ronnie wouldn´t be Ronnie if he hadn´t already threating to withdraw from the WC. I don´t quite know how all that promotes this Masters. If it even does. Or then they are just humans, and we will have to wait how the Media showcases the Masters.

Re: Dafabet Masters Pre Tournament Discussion !!!

Postby SnookerFan

Mark Selby admits that Mark Williams was one of the players he wanted to avoid in the opening round as he looks ahead to next week’s Dafabet Masters.

The opening match of the tournament at 1pm on Sunday will see Selby go head to head with Williams; two players with five world titles between them. They also met in the first round at Alexandra Palace last year, Selby edging a 6-5 win thanks to a break of 89 in the last frame.

Williams heads into 2018 full of confidence having won the Northern Ireland Open in November, his first ranking title since 2011.

Selby said: “Mark was one of the players I wanted to avoid in the draw because he has been playing well. We had a great match in the first round last year and I’m sure it will be the same this time.

“Alexandra Palace is one of the best venues on the circuit and all the players strive to play in the big tournaments in front of big crowds.”

The highlight of Selby’s 2017-18 season so far was victory in the International Championship in China in November. But the world number one has not reached the semi-finals of any other tournament this term and suffered a surprise 6-3 defeat against Scott Donaldson in the last 64 of the UK Championship.

“To win five ranking events last season was phenomenal and it was always going to be hard to repeat that,” said Selby. “Just to win one means it is a good season so it was great to win the International. I was disappointed to lose to Scott in York but he played fantastic snooker.”

Leicester’s Selby has won the Masters three times and names his 10-9 final victory over Ronnie O’Sullivan in 2010 as his favourite moment in the tournament. He could meet O’Sullivan in the final this year and is wary of the Rocket’s current form.

“Ronnie is always the man to beat,” added Selby. “If he turns up and wants to play snooker then more times than not he performs to a really high level and he’s very difficult to beat. It’s no surprise the way he is playing at the moment.”

http://www.worldsnooker.com/selby-willi ... ill-tough/

Re: Dafabet Masters Pre Tournament Discussion !!!

Postby SnookerFan

Shaun Murphy is heading into next week’s Dafabet Masters off the back of a superb first half of the 2017/18 World Snooker Tour season.

Murphy puts his form down to persistence which has seen him recover from two final defeats early on in the campaign, to pick up his first ever Champion of Champions title, thanks to a stunning 10-8 defeat of Ronnie O’Sullivan last November.

Overall the Magician has reached four finals so far this season. He lost out in showpiece ties at the China Championship against Luca Brecel and the Paul Hunter Classic where he faced Michael White, before recording his win at the Champion of Champions. Murphy then went on to make a third UK Championship final, but was this time on the wrong end of a 10-5 scoreline against O’Sullivan.

Murphy said: “I think it is a nod to perseverance. You have to keep going. If you are going through hell then keep battling away. Losing isn’t easy and especially in finals. As a sportsperson you will always have to feel that horrible sense of loss more often than you will the elation of winning. So, if you do get that moment to lift a trophy and see the confetti bomb with the family there, then you really do have to enjoy it and celebrate as it doesn’t come along that often.

“There’s no doubt it has been the best first half to a season I have ever had in my life. Of course it would’ve been nice to have won more of the finals I’ve been in so far this season. One out of four is a lower strike rate then I’d have hoped for. But without being too critical it has been a great start to the season. I think whatever I have been doing is working. I’m not entirely sure what that is! It is hard to repeat a winning formula when you don’t know what it is. But whatever it is I am loving it and enjoying my snooker.”

Murphy is now hoping to carry his momentum into the first event of the calendar year at Alexandra Palace, where he faces a tough opening round clash with Ali Carter.

“The Masters is one of the three marquee events for our sport. It is going to be a big crowd for every match and the whole event is a great occasion in our capital city. I don’t have a very good record against Ali and he is a bit of a bogey player for me. I’ve prepared well over Christmas and am going to give it my all,” said the 2015 Masters Champion. “I’m definitely in the legacy building stage of my career now. I can sleep easy knowing I have won the Triple Crown and not many others have. It would be lovely to win them again. I relished every second of the final in York. I want to be involved in more of those occasions and hopefully next time, I can come out on top.”

http://www.worldsnooker.com/persistence ... rphy-form/

Re: Dafabet Masters Pre Tournament Discussion !!!

Postby SnookerFan

Dan-cat wrote:
SnookerFan wrote:TWITTER ATTACK!

World Snooker @WorldSnooker1
John Higgins was 60-0 down against @ronnieo147 in the '06 final, but what he did next puts this down as of the greatest moments in Master history!


WHAT HAPPENS NEXT WILL SHOCK YOU


Well, it won't. Because I was watching the match at the time.