Now Shaun Murphy has surprisingly gone my vote goes to Peter Ebdon. I know he bores the pants off alot of people but I Love the way you can literally see him clinically make his way through a game. His tactics against Ronnie O'Sullivan a few years ago to literally make him fall asleep were class. Come on Peter.

O'Sullivan 147 sees off Williams

 

 

Ronnie O'Sullivan hit a quite brilliant 147 to seal a 13-7 victory over Mark Williams and cruise into the last eight of the World Championship in Sheffield.

 

O'Sullivan led 9-7 going into the final session and continued to cue beautifully as he extended his lead.

 

Breaks of 71 and 60 added to the lead before a 100 took him to the brink.

 

O'Sullivan then polished his opponent off with the ninth and possibly best maximum of his career, which puts him in line for a prize of £157,000.

 

 

The break took O'Sullivan eight minutes and 47 seconds to complete, three minutes longer than the world record time of 5:20 he set against Mick Price 1997.

 

"As soon as I got on the first red I thought that I had to go for the 147," O'Sullivan told BBC Sport.

 

"Obviously it's more important to win the game but that money gives me a few options in the summer. I'll be getting a Bentley Convertible now - I've been dying to get one.

 

"The difference between this season and the last 13 seasons is that I've stumbled across a couple of things and kept my discipline with it and stayed patient.

 

"So I've never hit disastrous standards - before as soon as it went wrong I just wanted to get out of there."

 

O'Sullivan now has the record for the most competitive maximum breaks, having previously been tied with Stephen Hendry on eight.

 

His 147 was only the seventh maximum at the venue - he has now made three of them - and earns him a bonus of £147,000 as well as £10,000 for the highest break.

 

O'Sullivan, who will face either China's Liang Wenbo or Northern Ireland's Joe Swail in the quarter-finals, added: "I really did think I was going to get beaten.

 

"I expected Mark to really make it count because he's a big game player. I had packed my bags because I thought it was one of those games that was going to get away from me."

 

Defeat for two-time world champion Williams means he will now drop out of the world's top 16, and will thus have to go through qualifying to make the ranking tournaments.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/snooker/7369420.stm

The black on 97 to split the red & pink was probably one of the best shots I've ever seen.

 

Flawless...

 

Just a shame he's going to join the 'man utd's & buy a bentley.

 

What next 'snooker wags!!'

Liang edges out Swail in classic

 

Wenbo displayed a suspect temperament in the closing stages

 

Liang Wenbo became the first Chinese player to reach the quarter-finals at The Crucible as he won 13-12 in an enthralling match over Joe Swail.

 

Swail fought back from 12-8 behind to force a deciding frame, but a missed brown with the rest allowed Liang, 21, to clinch a classic encounter.

 

Liang celebrated prematurely in the 23rd, thinking he had won the match.

 

But Swail pinched the frame to keep the match alive and continue his fightback, only to fall at the final hurdle.

 

Liang, who will face tournament favourite Ronnie O'Sullivan in the next round, punched the air with delight after potting the blue to go 59-44 ahead in the 23rd frame, with only pink and black remaining.

 

But he went on to miss a difficult pink and Swail snookered him and went on to win the frame and close to just one frame behind.

 

A break of 66 eventually proved enough to make it 12-12 and set up what must go down as the most thrilling frame of the tournament so far.

 

Both players had chance after chance in a desperately tense atmosphere.

 

Liang led by 27 points with only 27 left on the table, only to again fail to get out of a snooker by playing cushion first.

 

He hit the yellow direct at the second time of asking, but Swail was clearly unhappy at the way the balls had been replaced.

 

"It's very, very hard to take," Swail said. "There was absolutely no way he could see the yellow. If that was the case why not play that shot in the first place?

 

"I'm absolutely fuming at that. I think it was a very unprofessional thing to do and I told him (Liang) that. I will have to look at it again but I'm 99% sure he could not see the yellow.

 

"Any player would be honest enough to say I can't see the yellow. When I put him back in I was taking it for granted he would come off the side cushion again."

 

Swail was asked to agree that he was happy with the placement at the time, but admitted: "When you are out there you are all scrambled."

 

But Liang insisted he had not tried to gain an unfair advantage.

 

"I could see the yellow but it was so thin I was worried the ball could go in-off so that's why I played off the cushion the first time," he said.

 

Liang went on to knock the green in when attempting to pot the yellow, but Swail missed a simple brown with the rest and the Chinese youngster finally sealed a remarkable victory.

 

"I am delighted to make the quarter-finals and I am looking forward to playing O'Sullivan," he added.

 

"In the last frame I had calmed down a bit because there was nothing to lose but before then I was very tense."

 

Earlier, world number 18 Joe Perry moved into the last eight after sealing a 13-9 win over fellow qualifier Stuart Bingham. Bingham took two of the opening three frames - with a 137 in the 19th the highlight - to close to 10-9 behind.

 

But Perry refused to be intimidated as he took the next comfortably.

 

A break of 69 took Perry to the brink of victory and a missed red by Bingham in the last let his opponent clinch the frame and match on the black.

 

It was the first time Perry has reached the last eight at The Crucible since 2004.

 

"It's been a while but I'm very happy to be back," said Perry, who will face Stephen Maguire in the next round.

 

"The first session was a non-event for me but I improved after that and stood up to the pressure and played some good stuff.

 

"It's the biggest tournament we play, it's every player's dream to lift the trophy and I'm no exception. The dream is still alive."

 

Perry added: "It does not come much tougher than playing Stephen in the next round but this is the World Championship and to be the best you have to beat the best.

 

"We've had a few tight tussles and he gave me a whipping here a couple of years ago but I think I'm a better player now than I was then."

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/snooker/7370116.stm

Absolutely insane that Swail could made a snooker with pink & black in the 23th frame:D

 

The black on 97 to split the red & pink was probably one of the best shots I've ever seen.

 

Flawless...

 

Just a shame he's going to join the 'man utd's & buy a bentley.

 

What next 'snooker wags!!'

 

Absolutely,I could seen it live again! Ronnie is the best:dance:

Carter hits historic Crucible 147

 

Carter's 147 came moments after Ebdon missed out on a maximum

 

Ali Carter fired a superb 147 to become the second player in this year's World Championship to claim a maximum break.

 

The 28-year-old recorded his first 147 in competition play to take a 8-7 lead in his quarter-final clash against Peter Ebdon at The Crucible.

 

It came just a day after Ronnie O'Sullivan's maximum and is the first time there have been two 147 breaks in the same ranking tournament.

 

O'Sullivan will now have to share the £157,000 prize money on offer.

 

Carter will earn half of the £147,000 bonus for a maximum and the £10,000 for the highest break of the tournament, which could affect O'Sullivan's plans to buy a Bentley.

 

After claiming his 147 on Monday, O'Sullivan had said: "that money gives me a few options in the summer. I'll be getting a Bentley Convertible now - I've been dying to get one!"

 

Carter's break came in the frame immediately after Ebdon had missed his own chance for a 147, missing the 15th black.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/snooker/7373388.stm

Carter reaches semi-finals

 

Ali Carter reached his first World Championship semi-final with a 13-9 victory over 2002 champion Peter Ebdon at The Crucible.

 

The 28-year-old carried a 9-7 overnight lead, which included his historic 147, and eased through Wednesday's final session to wrap up a 13-9 triumph.

 

A break of 59 gave Ebdon the first frame but Carter hit back by winning four of the next five to prevail.

 

He will now face either Stephen Maguire or Joe Perry for a place in the final.

 

Carter never threatened a repeat of his heroics from Tuesday evening - making no breaks of 50 or more in the scrappy four frames captured subsequently - yet his passage to the last four rarely looked in doubt.

 

Carter admitted he had only managed a few hours' sleep following his magnificent 147 but said: "I don't need any, I'm pumped up on adrenalin.

 

"I watched the break again on TV last night, I was keen to see the celebration because I was quite pleased to say the least.

 

"It was always going to be a tough battle today after achieving that yesterday. The main objective was to win the match, you don't want to make a maximum and lose because that would take the shine off it."

 

A magnanimous Ebdon said: "The better man won on the day. There were three or four occasions when I should have cleared up to win frames but all credit to Ali, he put me under a lot of pressure and was a worthy winner.

 

"The 147 was a fantastic break and I was absolutely thrilled for him. He is a really nice guy and one of the players I go out to dinner with and share a bottle of red.

 

"I didn't play up to my capabilities so I'm going to have to work hard and come back next year because I'm determined to win this again."

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/snooker/7375459.stm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR9t1Q_G5rI

One frame earlier Peter Ebdon had a great chance to do a 147 break but missed the 15th black ball in frame 14 as you can see in the video. In the next frame Carter made then his first ever 147 break in competition and equalled the highest break at 888.com World Championship 2008 with Ronnie O'sullivan

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBHkemV6aPo

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZGAq83Sy5U

Brilliant O'Sullivan into final

 

O'Sullivan had too much for Hendry in their semi-final

 

Ronnie O'Sullivan completed a stunning 17-6 demolition job on Stephen Hendry to cruise into his third World Championship final at The Crucible.

 

O'Sullivan produced a masterclass as he overwhelmed the helpless Hendry with a quite brilliant display.

 

O'Sullivan had led 12-4 going into the evening session after winning all eight frames of a one-sided morning session.

 

And breaks of 120 and 123 in the evening session saw him sweep to victory with a full day to spare.

 

He produced a masterful clearance of 120 to dominate the first frame of the night before Hendry finally struck back with a break of 85 to end his 12-frame losing streak.

 

When O'Sullivan missed a blue to the middle to let his opponent back in, Hendry cleared to the blue to drag it back to 13-6.

 

O'Sullivan held his nerve to win the next 75-0 with a break of 68 and then breezed through a wonderful break of 123 to go 15-6 in front.

 

He then benefited from two outrageous flukes to take control of the 22nd frame with a 56 and wrapped things up after a bad Hendry miss on the final black in the 23rd, meaning he had won 16 of the last 18 frames.

 

O'Sullivan had been in irresistible form in the morning, making breaks of 93, 57, 87, 133, 135, 85 and 70 to inflict Hendry's first ever session whitewash at The Crucible.

 

The seven-time world champion had never lost a session 8-0 in nearly 20 years of travelling to Sheffield.

 

Hendry made life difficult for himself by missing numerous chances early on, but O'Sullivan - who made a 147 maximum break in the second round against Mark Williams - continued his magnificent form with a breathtaking display.

 

The two-time world champion showed all his skills, effortlessly switching from left to right-handed as required, while keeping the cue ball under the tightest of control throughout.

 

The match will have brought back uncomfortable memories for Hendry, who lost 17-4 to O'Sullivan at the same stage of the tournament in 2004.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/snooker/7378321.stm

Carter holds nerve to make final

 

Ali Carter reached his first World Championship final by sealing an epic 17-15 win over Joe Perry at The Crucible on Saturday night.

 

Carter will now meet his former training partner Ronnie O'Sullivan after surviving a nerve-racked battle.

 

The two players had been locked at 12-12 going into the final session after a see-saw morning's play.

 

And Carter came from 15-14 down in the evening to win three frames in a row and end Perry's brave bid.

 

An emotional Carter told BBC Sport: "I was just trying to take one ball at a time - it was a really tough match, and to get over the line was extra special.

 

"It means everything to me. My two nans passed away in quick succession a few weeks ago and they would have loved to have seen this - but I've got two angels on my shoulders this week.

 

"I'm mentally tired but I'm sure Ronnie is too. I'll just keep punching and if I'm there in the final session we'll see what happens."

 

Both players made errors as the match entered its final stages and the prospect of the biggest prize of their careers loomed large.

 

Perry, who had begun the day 9-7 behind, had looked in complete control after winning the first four frames of the day.

 

Carter only scored 24 points before the mid-session interval but when play resumed, a 68 run reduced the deficit.

 

Perry responded with an 82 in the next but Carter dug in to win the next two frames.

 

Perry edged in front 13-12 with a break of 57 in the first frame of the evening before Carter hit back with a 63 to take the next 114-8.

 

Carter then played a poor positional shot in the 27th frame to let his opponent back in, and after an outrageous fluke a fluent break of 62 saw Perry take a 14-13 lead.

 

The pair struggled in the next, with straightforward pots missed by both before Carter doggedly brought it level at the mid-session interval.

 

Perry charged out of the blocks with his sixth century break of the championship to move within two of victory, only for Carter to compile a classy 77 to make it 15-15.

 

Carter went in front for the first time since 9-8 when Perry was disturbed over a pot by a mobile phone going off.

 

And he held on in a desperately tight frame at the death to receive a standing ovation from a packed Crucible.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/snooker/7378823.stm

O'Sullivan plans to avoid upset

 

 

The World Championship final between Ronnie O'Sullivan and Ali Carter has been billed as one of the biggest mismatches in recent Crucible history.

 

O'Sullivan is 8-1 odds-on favourite to win his third world title, while Carter is valued as a 5-1 outsider.

 

The last great upset came in 1986 when Joe Johnson beat Steve Davis 18-12.

 

"I'm going to try to win frames," Carter told BBC Sport. "If I'm still punching in the final session then we'll have a look at it then."

 

He added: "Ronnie has beaten me every time we've played but I'll trade all those defeats for a win in the final."

 

Carter, who along with O'Sullivan made a 147 maximum at this year's tournament, beat qualifier Joe Perry 17-15 to reach his first ranking final.

 

"If someone had told me I would defeat two former champions, make a 147 and reach a final, I probably wouldn't have believed them," said the Essex-based 28-year-old who is ranked 14th in the world .

 

"But I've played some good stuff these couple of weeks and I'm delighted to get to the final."

 

Carter made his maximum against Peter Ebdon, a day after O'Sullivan grabbed the first against Mark Williams.

 

"I guess getting the 147 at The Crucible gave me confidence. If I got it in Wales or Ireland it may have gone under the radar," added Carter, who has already won nearly £230,000 from this year's event.

 

The qualified pilot has never played so many frames in competition before, but said he was undaunted by the possible 35 frames left to play.

 

"I've played snooker since I was six. It doesn't matter if it's 35 frames, 350 frames or 3,500 frames - it's my job to play snooker."

 

O'Sullivan produced some of the best snooker of his career to thrash Stephen Hendry 17-6 and book a place in his third Crucible final.

 

But despite many insisting that the tie is a foregone conclusion, O'Sullivan is not counting his chickens.

 

"I'm not taking anything for granted," he said, ahead of the £250,000 showdown.

 

"Coming here I felt confident I could do something and since I've been here, there have been occasions where I've found it hard.

 

"I could have dug my own grave at times but have instead battled through."

 

O'Sullivan has suffered in the past from not producing his best form against slower, tactical players - a ploy that Carter could adopt.

 

But the 32-year-old is adamant he would not suffer any problems against "plodders".

 

"If I'm comfortable over the table then slower players won't thrash me or take five or six frames in succession off me," he said.

 

"I've beaten my share of plodders in my time."

 

The best-of-35 final begins at 1500 BST on Sunday and finishes on Monday.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/snooker/7382539.stm

O'Sullivan strolls to third world title

 

O'Sullivan tops the prize-money list for the fifth straight season

 

Ronnie O'Sullivan has claimed his third World Championship crown after completing a comprehensive 18-8 win over Ali Carter in the final.

 

Resuming the final session 16-8 in front, O'Sullivan wasted little time in securing the two frames he needed.

 

The 32-year-old started the evening's play with a 69 break and after Carter missed a chance to claw a frame back, O'Sullivan's 34 sealed the win.

 

O'Sullivan was always in control and had led 11-5 after the opening day.

 

He has joined Steve Davis, Stephen Hendry and Mark Williams in winning the UK Championship and the world title in addition to clinching the number one spot in the rankings in the same season.

 

And the victory is fine reward for O'Sullivan, who has been in scintillating form over the past two weeks.

 

He fired a superb 147 in his second-round win over Mark Williams and had 12 century breaks, with five in the top 10, during a memorable tournament.

 

And in his semi-final against seven-time Crucible champion Stephen Hendry, O'Sullivan produced what the Scot called "snooker perfection" as he claimed a stunning 17-6 victory.

 

In the final, O'Sullivan only showed glimpses of the form that defeated Hendry but was never really tested by a player competing in his first ranking event final.

 

"I'm just happy to have won, it was tough," said O'Sullivan. "When you get ahead you are always thinking at the back of your mind, if you lose it from here it is going to be a killer.

 

"Sometimes it is better when it is closer, sometimes when trying to protect a lead it is hard.

 

"I wasn't playing fantastic every session, but you don't need to be to win this. It is about doing it in some sessions.

 

"Ali and I are disappointed not to put on a better performance but we love the pressure and excitement at The Crucible."

 

O'Sullivan, who this week faces a disciplinary hearing after his comments at the recent China Open, also said that he might take a break from the game in order to recharge his batteries.

 

"Hopefully it is not the last title, hopefully there are a few more to come," he added. "I said I would like to win more, but it is quite well documented that I struggle with the game.

 

"Sometimes I think it would be good to go out on a high. I will have a think and it might be a good time to take a break."

 

Carter, who was making his first appearance in a ranking final, looked jaded after a gruelling fortnight which saw him edge past Joe Perry in a marathon semi-final.

 

Against O'Sullivan, he was undone by a failure to make the most of a number of opportunities that came his way as his opponent struggled to hit top gear.

 

But he will satisfy himself with a runners-up cheque of £125,000, plus a half share of the £157,000 awarded for claiming a maximum break during the quarter-final against Peter Ebdon.

 

"I am pleased to get to the final," he said. "I am disappointed not to perform at my best but it is very tiring.

 

"Ronnie made it very difficult. His safety was brilliant and the better man won on the day.

 

"The top eight in the world, a maximum and the final of the World Championship - I would have taken that at the start."

 

O'Sullivan had a six-frame advantage overnight and he went into the final two sessions odds-on favourite to complete the job - no-one has ever recovered from such a heavy overnight deficit in snooker's most prestigious tournament.

 

He extended his lead with runs of 52, 71 and 69 although Carter made sure the match went into the final session with breaks of 84 and 71.

 

The start of an evening session was delayed after a streaker entered the auditorium and spread-eagled himself under the match table.

 

But the interruption did not put O'Sullivan off his stride and a break of 69 in frame 25 left Carter needing snookers, taking him to the verge of victory.

 

And in the next O'Sullivan sealed the win after being let in when Carter missed a blue into the middle pocket.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/snooker/7383131.stm

absolute ownage in final and it could have ended with bigger difference