Our Preview and Tips of the Forthcoming World Snooker Championship

If you are looking for a good value longer term bet this week then Coral Sport have some outstanding value prices to enjoy on the World Snooker Championship, which gets underway in Sheffield at the Crucible Theatre in a few days’ time.

Currently, there’s plenty of money on Ronnie O’Sullivan to land his sixth world title. The Rocket has been in superb form this season, winning five big ranking events (the third player to win five in a season following Stephen Hendry and Mark Selby) and he is a very short priced favourite to lift the title in Sheffield in a few weeks time.

Let’s now take a look at how this week’s tournament in Sheffield structured and set up with a look at how the tournament will play and the prize money on offer:

Tournament Structure

• First Round – Best of 19 (16 matches)
• Second Round – best of 25 (8 Matches)
• Quarter Finals – Best of 25 (4 Matches)
• Semi Finals – Best of 33 (2 Matches)
• Final – Best of 35 (1 Match)

Prize Pool

A total of £1,968,000 is available to be won and will be divided amongst the players as follows:

• Winner – £425,000
• Runner Up – £180,000
• Semifinalist – £80,000
• Quarterfinalist – £42,500
• Last 16 – £27,500
• Last 32 – £18,000
• Last 48 – £13,500
• Last 80 – £9,000
• Televised Highest Break – £10,000
• Non-Televised Highest Break – £1,000

In addition to these cash prizes there is a guaranteed prize of £40,000 for a 147 maximum break in the tournament although this will be split if there is a number of players who achieve the feat from Round 1 onwards. A £10,000 prize has already been won by Liang Wenbo after he achieved a 147 during qualifying (and almost achieved a second 147 in the same game, only missing the rare feat after missing the final black).

The Seeds

The tournament structure sees the top 16 players in the world rankings seeded in the First Round of the tournament with 16 players earning a place in the first round proper (and a guaranteed cash prize of $£18,000) through the qualifying tournament which is taking place in the week leading up to the tournament starting.

The current rankings and seeds for the tournament are as follows:

1. Mark Selby (England)
2. Ronnie O’Sullivan (England)
3. Ding Junhui (China)
4. Judd Trump (England)
5. John Higgins (Scotland)
6. Barry Hawkins (England)
7. Mark Williams (Wales)
8. Shaun Murphy (England)
9. Kyren Wilson (England)
10. Neil Robertson (Australia)
11. Marco Fu (Singapore)
12. Stuart Bingham (England)
13. Luca Brecel (Belgium)
14. Anthony McGill (Scotland)
15. Ali Carter (England)
16. Mark Allen (Northern Ireland)

The quality of players in this year’s event has never been higher with a total of seven of the top 16 having been previous World Champions.  Ronnie O’Sullivan has five wins, John Higgins four, Mark Selby three, Mark Williams two and Shaun Murphy, Neil Robertson and Stuart Bingham have each been World Champion on one occasion.

In addition to this there are three former World Champions trying to qualify for the main event through qualifying Ken Doherty, Peter Ebdon and Graeme Dott.

Other big-name players trying to earn a place in the last 32 at the Crucible in the First Round include six-time finalist Jimmy White, Stephen Maguire, Alan McManus, Ryan Day, Ricky Walden, Dominic Dale, Matthew Stevens, Joe Perry and Liang Wenbo.

Coral’s Latest odds on the World Snooker Championship

Outlined below are the latest odds on players rated 50/1 or better for the World Snooker Championship Outright Winner market with Coral.

• Ronnie O’Sullivan – 15/8 favourite
• Mark Selby – 4/1
• Judd Trump – 8/1
• John Higgins – 9/1
• Ding Junhui, Neil Robertson, Mark Williams– 14/1
• Barry Hawkins, Shaun Murphy – 22/1
• Mark Allen, Stuart Bingham – 25/1
• Kyren Wilson – 33/1
• Luca Brecel – 40/1
• Marco Fu, Ali Carter, Ryan Day – 50/1

• 66-1 Bar

Who is the best bet to win the World Snooker Championship?

It’s a simple question and one that many fans of the sport are asking themselves and there is no doubt who the bookies think will do it. With Ronnie O’Sullivan in great form and the winner of five events this season, the bookies feel he has the best chance in many years of taking his sixth World Championship title.

However, I think O’Sullivan could face some stiff opposition on his route to the final. He could face one of his final opponents Ali Carter in the second round and then the prospect of a quarterfinal against Mark Williams or Neil Robertson is on the cards and both of those games will be very tough even for a player of Ronnie’s calibre.

In the Semi Final, if Ronnie comes through then his most likely opponent is either Ding Junhui or Barry Hawkins, both of whom have performed well at the Crucible previously and who won’t be fazed at taking on Ronnie even in his prime.  Then in the final, if the ranking events are right it will be Mark Selby awaiting O’Sullivan, although Judd Trump, Shaun Murphy, John Higgins and Luca Brecel will all fancy their chances too.

For me though, O’Sullivan is the sensible bet if you are seeking a win. However, that is not to say that you cannot get some great value in the Each Way market.

Who is the best Each Way chance to reach the final?

The smart money each way will likely be on Mark Selby and it is worth noting that Coral will pay out an each way bet at half the stated odds if your chosen player reaches the final but doesn’t win the event.

However with Selby a 4/1 chance (meaning a 2/1 return on each way bets should he reach the final) there are some better value options. Both Trump (8/1) and Higgins (9/1) are excellent shouts with Higgins a finalist last year. Trump’s form is a little erratic but he is blessed with immense talent like O’Sullivan and if he can find his best form, those odds will be snapped up.

A solid outside option though for me is Shaun Murphy who is a 22/1 shot with Coral. He’s reached several finals this year and won the Champion of Champions event (beating O’Sullivan in the final). He’s a former World Champion and he has the ability to raise his game against any opponent.  He has a solid all-round game and at those odds, I think he is a very nice each way option for punters seeking a longer odds option.