The Masters 2012 – Snooker Betting (15 January – 22 January)

Selby to enjoy his favourite tournament again

Mark Selby
Mark Selby © GEPA pictures

This year’s Masters Snooker gets off to an explosive start this coming weekend at its new home, the Alexandra Palace, when defending champion, China’s Ding Junhui, takes on former title-holder Ronnie O’ Sullivan in the opening round. ‘The Rocket’ beat Ding in the 2007 final but is increasingly looking a light of former days. O’Sullivan had a poor 2011 and hasn’t won a ranking tournament since the start of the 2009/10 season. The demons he faces on a daily basis away from the table will always make him a risky proposition in ante-post lists, but those willing to take a chance on the hugely talented Essex native at ‘Ally Pally’ can get 6/1 at Boylesports and Ladbrokes. Ding Junhui is 133/10 on betfair for a second win in this prestigious invitational tournament and can’t be ruled out. Asia’s most successful-ever player knocked out Mark Williams and Graeme Dott among others en route to his defeat of Marco Fu in the final at Wembley12 months ago but has frozen on the big stages since and is worth taking on in The Masters with Mark Selby.

It was a case of so near but yet so far last season for the 28-year-old from Leicester after he was beaten in the final of both the German Masters and the China Open. But he’s already gone some way towards making amends by winning this year’s Shanghai Masters and The Masters is his favourite tournament and one in which he’s already been successful twice. The bottom half of the draw appears the weaker and gives Selby a great chance of making it to the final again, with veteran John Higgins (a general 7/1) apparently the biggest obstacle lying in his path. But Selby has a decent record against the former world champion and ended 2012 in decent form whereas the Scot had some indifferent results towards the end of last year. Betfred and totesport offer 7/1 against current world number one Mark Selby winning at Alexandra Palace and that will do for me.

As I’ve said, the top half of the draw looks much tougher than the bottom half but the redoubtable Mark Williams will probably make a bold bid to emerge unscathed and can be backed at 12/1 with Ladbrokes and sportingbet. The Welshman still maintains he was robbed in the final of the Shangai Masters and will be out for revenge on Selby but a tricky quarter-final against world champion Neil Robertson (a general 10/1) awaits if the seedings pan out and he could than face Ding Junhui in the semis.