Welsh Open Snooker – Selby looks to build upon Masters success

After all the excitement of the Master’s Final, in which Mark Selby produced an awesome comeback to beat Ronnie O’Sullivan, tournament snooker is back in action with the Welsh Open. The tournament runs from January 25th and concludes in the final next Sunday, January 31st. All of the big names are in action, along with some lesser known faces who will be looking to make a major impact in front of the camera. Andrew Higginson and Barry Hawkins have done just that, beating Marco Fu and Peter Ebdon respectively. Reigning Welsh Open Champion is Ali Carter who won last year’s final against Joe Swail, and had little trouble in his opening best of nine frames match against Mark Davis.

The first round of the Welsh Open keeps all the top seeded players apart, and Ronnie O’Sullivan starts his quest against Stuart Bingham. O’Sullivan didn’t appear very gracious in his defeat against Selby in the final of the masters, but that could be put down to being upset with himself, as he seems to be his own fiercest critic. For Masters winner Selby, this could herald in the start of a massive season for him. This is the perfect opportunity for him to build upon his early year success and push his game onto the next level. These are the tournaments which can help build form and confidence ahead of the big World Championships in March. That is the crown that most players will covet the most. Selby starts against the awesomely named Judd Trump in the First Round. Selby and O’Sullivan could clash again in the semi final of the draw.

Snooker has of course, a new man at the helm in the form of Barry Hearn, more famously known for his boxing promotions. O’Sullivan backed the move by Hearn, as he will no doubt inject some life into the game, which he has already done by having players walk out into the arena to music. Hearns helped secure a new sponsor for the Welsh Open, something Welshman Mark Williams was appreciate of. Online Bookmakers Totesport are backing the Welsh Open this year, a move which sets out the intentions of Hearn to push the profile of the game forward. Williams put in a great performance at the Masters, and if he can keep that kind of form up, he could give the home crowd in Newport something to really cheer about. He is the only Welshman to ever win the Welsh Open. Looking at the draw, there is every chance that Williams could go far again, his major hurdle could be Scot Stephen Maguire. One of snooker’s famous underdogs Tony Drago can be seen in action at the Welsh Open, the Maltese man playing Ryan Day in the First Round.

First Round Draw/Results
Neil Robertson 5-2 Liu Song
Peter Ebdon 0-5 Barry Hawkins
Allister Carter 5-1 Mark Davis
Marco Fu 2 – 5 Andrew Higginson
Ronnie O’Sullivan v Stuart Bingham
Mark Allen v Tom Ford
Mark King v Marcus Campbell
Stephen Maguire v Dominic Dale
Shaun Murphy v Matthew Stevens
Stephen Hendry v Dave Harold
Ryan Day v Tony Drago
Ding Junhui v Jamie Cope
Mark Williams v Feargal O’Brien
Joe Perry v Graeme Dott
Mark Selby v Judd Trump
John Higgins v Michael Judge

Welsh Open Outright Odds
Ronnie O’Sullivan – 9/2 at ExtraBet
John Higgins – 15/2 at Totesport
Mark Selby – 17/2 at SportingBet
Neil Robertson – 9/1 at Extrabet
Shaun Murphy – 12/1 at Boylesports
Stephen Maguire – 12/1 at Boylesports
Mark Williams – 14/1 at BetFred
Ali Carter – 16/1 at Paddy Power