World Snooker

[Smokin Joe]

There have been some epic matches this year and this afternoon was no exception, with another one to come tonight. This is the best Championship I've seen for quite a few years and having competed at a much lower level myself I don't know how the players hold it together under that sort of pressure.

O'Sullivan looks to have the best game so far, but I've got a sneaking feeling that Trump will do it whoever he gets in the final. His game is coming good at just the right time.

 

[Slick]

Felt for Mark Williams, what a come back that would have been. You would imagine youth would come through in the end but really difficult to tell.

 

[Reynard]

It's been a fabby two weeks with some seriously epic moments.

Gutted that Mark didn't make it through, but to be fair, Ronnie and Judd have been the class of the field, and I couldn't wish for a more fitting final. I hope it doesn't disappoint.

So tomorrow it'll be time to sit back and in front of the telly.

 

[GuyBoden]

Trump should win today, but Ronnie could always pull something out of the bag, if he's in the mood. Looking forward to watching.

 

[markemark]

Quick question. As, presumablly unlike other sports, age is less of a factor, why do the greats from 20/30 years ago still not play? Talking Davis, Hendry, Taylor etc. Are the newer players better and they’ve been left behind or does age play a significant factor (eye sight, fine control etc)?

 

[Slick]

Quick question. As, presumablly unlike other sports, age is less of a factor, why do the greats from 20/30 years ago still not play? Talking Davis, Hendry, Taylor etc. Are the newer players better and they’ve been left behind or does age play a significant factor (eye sight, fine control etc)?

Hunger.

No longer willing to put the work in now they have earned enough to make them reasonably successful.

 

[Smokin Joe]

Quick question. As, presumablly unlike other sports, age is less of a factor, why do the greats from 20/30 years ago still not play? Talking Davis, Hendry, Taylor etc. Are the newer players better and they’ve been left behind or does age play a significant factor (eye sight, fine control etc)?

Age, eyesight and even the players weight. Stephen Hendry says that he couldn't play like he did in his best days because his body shape has changed and he can't cue like he used to.

Players also tend to be fearless when going for shots in their younger days but over time the number of misses they inevitably make build up in their minds and add to the nerves when they get down to take a shot. And of course each new generation learns from the previous one and builds on it.

 

[Smokin Joe]

In most sports offering an opinion on "Who was the greatest ever" will provoke a debate. Not so in snooker, O'Sullivan is in a Premier League of one.

 

[stephec]

I was about to start a thread on Ronnie when I saw this one first.

I know it's all been said about him already but, will there ever be anyone who can come close to him in the future, for me that's going to take some doing?

 

[Reynard]

It's an absolutely epic achievement - longevity, the calibre of the competition... You can't knock the achievements of the other snooker greats, but this is officially on another planet.

 

[stephec]

He looks like he's got the mental side of things under control now but about ten years ago he went through a bad patch there, can you imagine what he could've done if he had the mental part of the game that either Hendry or Davis had coupled with his ability?

 

[GuyBoden]

Excellent game, great achievement.

Ronnie's positional play can be unbelievably good, at times looking like "he has the cue ball on a string", yes, undoubtedly the best player ever.

Trump is a great potter, but his positional play isn't at the level of Ronnie's, but still, a great player.

 

[Electric_Andy]

Nice to see Ronnie back at the top. Never thought I'd see that to be honest. It goes to show how much of a mental game it must be, both in competition and putting the hours on the practice table. I still don't think we'll see anyone (Ronnie included) play such sublime snooker as when he was knocking in 147s in record time. Don't get me wrong, I do love a good safety battle, and there are some very good potters out there, but ROnnie just makes it look like he's a robot

 

[Beebo]

Nice to see Ronnie back at the top. Never thought I'd see that to be honest. It goes to show how much of a mental game it must be, both in competition and putting the hours on the practice table. I still don't think we'll see anyone (Ronnie included) play such sublime snooker as when he was knocking in 147s in record time. Don't get me wrong, I do love a good safety battle, and there are some very good potters out there, but ROnnie just makes it look like he's a robot

I’ve just listened to a podcast with Steve Davies, he thinks Ronnie would be top 10 without even having to practice.
And longevity is based on fitness, luck and genetics. Your fine motor skills fad over time and you can’t control that. His last partial success was when he was 51 and he won a few games at the crucibl, but once the touch has gone it’s never coming back.
The most surprising thing he said was that Dennis Taylor was only 35 when he won. My memory was him being late 40s.