Snooker – UK Championship, York Preview

Published: 22nd November 2019
Author: Joe Kizlauskas
Last Updated: 25th February 2021
Snooker - UK Championship

Snooker –  A Look at the UK Championship

We are approaching December and it’s a busy time for most major sports as we edge towards the festive period. Football, horse racing, tennis and boxing are just some of the favourites preparing to crank up the interest and with most fixtures, races and fights are shown live on TV, it’s a great time to be an armchair fan. There’s no need to brave the winter cold and head outside.

Snooker is another which is putting the finishing touches to a massive event. The UK Championship gets underway on Tuesday 26 November and runs to Sunday 8 December when a new champion will be crowned. Two weeks of the highest quality snooker, boasting some of the very best names on the circuit at the moment.

The Barbican Centre in York, England plays host to what will be the 43rd renewal of this world-famous tournament run by the WPBSA. With over £1,000,000 in prize money set aside, £200,000 of it promised to the champion, it’s little wonder the standout names on the modern snooker circuit will be in attendance, as well as a sprinkling of emerging talent, determined to become an overnight sensation to supporters of UK snooker.

Bookmakers React to the Interest

This first leg of the 2019/20 Triple Crown will be shown live on BBC and Eurosport which is great news for armchair fans who can follow on their television screens at home or through mobile apps when out and about. Modern technology means you never have to miss a game. It’s also a big deal to sports bettors with the top online betting firms seizing on the increased levels of interest. They have put together a package of exciting betting markets on the 2019 UK Championship.

Bet on the outright winner. Will Ronnie O’Sullivan build on last year’s success and regain the title? Or will one of his main rivals edge the great man aside? Perhaps we will see a plucky underdog take the tournament by storm and force their way to the head of the queue. It’s anyone’s guess at this stage but there’s little doubt it will be great fun finding out over the course of the next fortnight. As well as predicting the 2019 champion you can also bet on outright markets including

  • name the finalists
  • to reach the final
  • winning quarter
  • winning half
  • 1st quarter winner
  • 2nd quarter winner
  • 3rd quarter winner
  • 4th quarter winner
  • First time winner
  • Will there be a 147 break?

There really is something for everyone there and the prices available are designed to suit a range of different budgets. You can back one market and give yourself an interest for the entire tournament or back a couple of different markets, spreading your interest out and giving yourself more chances of coming out of the play with a profit to show for your efforts.

judd trump

Mouth-Watering Fixtures to Look Forward To

The first round of matches gets started on Tuesday 26 November from 2.30pm and we have some mouth-watering fixtures to look forward to. Some of the standout games from the first two days include…

  • Ali Carter v Brandon Sargent
  • Liang Wenbo v Dominic Dale
  • Neil Robertson v Alex Bjorg
  • Stuart Bingham v Peifan Lei
  • John Higgins v Peter Lines
  • Ding Junhui v Duane Jones
  • Graeme Dott v Barry Pinches
  • Marco Fu v Craig Steadman
  • Stephen Maguire v Billy Joe Castle
  • Mark Selby v Andy Hicks
  • Peter Ebdon v John Astley
  • Ryan Day v Soheil Vahedi
  • Mark Davis v Si Jiahui

Each match scheduled on the opening day and throughout the UK Championship has dozens of betting markets attached. You can place your stake on the outcome before a cue has been chalked or take advantage of the in-play betting. The best of the original markets remain live throughout the course of the game, allowing you to jump in and make your predictions at any stage. Some of the markets you can expect to find on each and every game include…

  • Match winner
  • Correct score
  • First four frames
  • Handicap
  • Frame one winner
  • Highest break score
  • Total centuries
  • Total centuries exact
  • Total frames
  • Total frames three-way
  • Total frames odd/even
  • First four frames score
  • To win two or more frames
  • To win three or more frames
  • First ball potted
  • Frame one 100 break

The final will be decided over the best of 19 frames in York on Sunday 8 December with an afternoon and evening session. Punters looking to solve the betting may want to take their lead from the stats and there’s plenty to go on from recent times.

UK Championship Stats Sheet

Ronnie O’Sullivan has won each of the last two renewals of this competition and arrives confident he has what it takes to complete the hattrick. The Englishman is the competition’s most successful player with seven titles to his name as well as one runner-up slot. That is better than nearest rival Steve Davis, also of England, who was a six-time champion with four silvers. Stephen Henry of Scotland makes up the top three, coming in with five winners medals and five seconds.

O’Sullivan beat Shaun Murphy in 2017 by a score of 10-5 and followed that with a double last year when getting the better of Mark Allen thanks to a 10-6 result. There will be no lack of interest on Rocket doing the treble from avid followers of the sport, stats fans and even casual punters looking to increase their interest in the competition with an outright bet.

Rocket Ronnie has dominated the play in recent years, winning three of the last five renewals. That run started in 2014 when beating Judd Trump by the narrowest of margins. Neil Robertson claimed glory in 2015 when beating Liang Wenbo before Mark Selby handed O’Sullivan his only tournament final defeat in 2016 with a 10-7 upset.

ronnie o'sullivan

Last 10 winners of the UK Championship

  • Ronnie O’Sullivan 2018
  • Ronnie O’Sullivan 2017
  • Mark Selby 2016
  • Neil Robertson 2015
  • Ronnie O’Sullivan 2014
  • Neil Robertson 2013
  • Mark Selby 2012
  • Judd Trump 2011
  • John Higgins 2010
  • Ding Juinhui 2009

Champions by country stats prove it pays to keep on the right side of the locals with England leading the way on 21 previous champions shared out between nine players. Scotland sit in second place on nine trophies from three players before we find Wales on six and four, China’s two and one, Australia’s two and one, with Ireland and Northern Ireland enjoying one previous champion each.

Rocket Rates as a Great Bet

Bookmakers have priced up their outright betting, allowing backers to get in early and secure better odds about their player of choice. The earlier you get your cash down the better the price available should be with those getting involved before the first game rewarded for their foresight. The market caused a bit of surprise when going live as it was fiercely competitive but didn’t have Ronnie O’Sullivan as betting favourite to finish three-in-a-row. That caught the interest of value hunters, eager to take full advantage of any indecision.

Judd Trump has been marked as early outright betting favourite and those looking to get their cash down on the former champion will have to make do with the 11/4 offered by 888Sport as there’s not a lot better out there at the minute. That has him as jolly, but all the interest will come for Ronnie O’Sullivan who is next in line. The seven-time champion is market best price 4/1 at Betfair and that’s better than the 3/1 you’ll find with most other bookies.

The chance to back a defending champion at such great odds shouldn’t be passed up, in our opinion, and we’re more than happy to take a punt on Rocket upsetting the odds once again. For your stake money, you’re getting last year’s champion, the most talented player in the sport today and a living legend with followers. Ronnie performs best when written off and there’s no doubt this competition will have his full attention. He picks and chooses when he turns up but we are expecting maximum effort in York as he has already proven to us his love for the UK Championship. That’s one of the best bets on snooker you’ll see this season.

UK Championship Outright Betting:

  • Judd Trump 11/4 888sport
  • Ronnie O’Sullivan 4/1 Betfair
  • Neil Robertson at 11/2 Ladbrokes
  • Mark Selby 10/1 William Hill
  • Mark Allen 16/1 bet365
  • Shaun Murphy 18/1 Ladbrokes
  • John Higgins 20/1 Unibet
  • Barry Hawkins 28/1 bet365
  • Mark Williams 28/1 Ladbrokes

Each-way terms of ½ the odds a place 1-2

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About Joe Kizlauskas

Joe is a seasoned iGaming copywriter and speaker who has been in the business since 2015. He's written more words on all elements of iGaming than he likes to remember, and he's contributed material to a number of well-known brands. Joe may be seen playing 5 a side, at the gym or playing games on his Playstation when he is not writing.