2018 World Championship

[DeanH]

Ha ha ha superb sport

Brilliant
man of his word

so what was the important subject he previous said he would discuss?


[got snooker into the press big-time]

[Dark]

Congratulations to Mark Williams on winning his third World title. He showed his true character in the final frame with that break and fully deserved the title.

It is going to be interesting to see if Williams or Higgins can keep their fabulous performances going next season, O'Sullivan as well.

[Dark]

People can have their own opinion. Resorting to abusing people is actually rather unpleasant and just shows people’s level. I personally really don’t want to see him win it.

You make a totally ridiculous, idiotic comment so of course I abused you and I will abuse you again, ********.

[doorag]

I don't know how people enjoy these games, I just find it torturous to watch players lose massive leads like that. Can't imagine how Williams family felt. This game took several years away from my life I think. That pink, jesus.

I like a nice 18-12 final scoreline

[gavpowell]

That's it then... This might be my last post of any substance for a while, so I hope everyone has a great summer. :smile:

Thank you for your heroic efforts over the years - your summaries have become a hallmark of major tournaments and I have no idea how you even remember it all!

[Odrl]

Well, what can you say after a match like that...

Unfortunately I had to miss the start of the session, but I made an excellent decision to watch it in full with an hour's delay, so I almost got my midnight finish in the end. :smile: It has to be said that John Higgins is an amazing player in these situations, he played almost perfect snooker before the interval, and he showed no nerves whatsoever when he made all those clearances from behind. It reminded me of the way he came back against Maguire in the SF of the 2007 World Championship, and also against Trump in the 2012 Shanghai Masters final. The only difference was, Williams stood up to the pressure and played well himself after the interval. Higgins won the session 6-3, and if he had played to that standard throughout the final, he would have won it, but there is no doubt Williams was the better player over four sessions.

I've mentioned before that my mother likes to hate on Williams whenever he is losing, pretending as if she doesn't really like him, but I know she will be delighted he was able to win tonight. "You idiot! You led 14-7 and now you are going to lose. This was your last chance to win something, so you may as well retire tomorrow!" :smile: Those were her words when the score was 15-13 I think, and I know she couldn't stand to watch the ending, so she will be pleasantly surprised tomorrow. I have to confess I was getting worried for Williams myself, especially with those setbacks he suffered against Higgins in the 2010/2011 season in similar positions, but tonight he finally got some redemption. All in all, he didn't quite play to the same standard as he did in the German Masters, but it was still enough to get the title. We've been lucky to see some really great final sessions in the WC in the time I've been watching snooker, and tonight ranks very high on my list of favourites. Couldn't really have wished for a better ending to the season. As Higgins very graciously said, Williams is a worthy champion.

All in all, this year's Championship didn't really have too many classic moments, but I still enjoyed most of it. I would have preferred a few of the top players playing better than they did, but I suppose one can't have everything. :smile: I don't wish to dwell on anything negative after such a fine evening of snooker, but I can't resist complaining about the Eurosport coverage again. They clearly don't have much respect for viewers on the continent, because they repeatedly cut to commercials in the middle of a commentator's sentence, and we don't even get any introduction at the start of the broadcast anymore. Also, there were several sessions where they were showing one table and had sound from the other one, or even sound from another sport altogether. I have no problem with mistakes like that happening from time to time, but to go on for several frames without anyone noticing and correcting it is unprofessional and lazy to the extreme. On the positive side, the channels on the Eurosport Player had BBC commentary throughout the tournament, which I'm sure must have been unintentional. I didn't want to comment on that before, just in case someone at Eurosport read my comment and corrected the issue, but I can now say that I was very happy to be offered a choice of commentators for a change, especially when Yates was commentating. :wink: It was also interesting to hear Ronnie O'Sullivan commentating for extended periods, and while his commentary leaves a lot to be desired, he was still quite interesting at times, and I can't imagine anyone more fitting to commentate on a final between Higgins and Williams. :smile:

It was also unfortunate to hear so much talk about table conditions again... I've long ago given up any hope that the pockets will be consistent from tournament to tournament, but they could have at least made an effort to not have them be overly generous in the World Championship. Also, O'Sullivan mentioned in commentary that Higgins complained to him about the table being "terrible" during the final. It's a little poor to have anything other than perfect conditions for a World final in all honesty, although I have to confess I didn't really see anything unusual myself. But then again, Higgins would know better, wouldn't he...

That's it then... This might be my last post of any substance for a while, so I hope everyone has a great summer. :smile:

[Shockerz]

Great final, totally blown away by both of their games.

I wonder what the odds were of both of them at their age getting to the final!

[narl]

I meant on yips.

As you can see its unknown teritory..

Its basically the same as dartitis, unable to let go of the dart properly.

[j6uk]

There werent great safety battles, were there?

Not many, but there was some great single-ball potting and break building going on, especially today.

the 90s style of attacking snooker imposed on the game by hendry, and the lads of 92 took it to another level, as we saw toninght, played fast and fluent by middle age men with x6 nuts between them.

[cidermaster]

A brilliant final,fantastic standard,and well done Mark Williams who is a deserved champion,who written himself off not that long ago,now this is his 4th title of the season,surely the player of the year!

[kibo]

What issue with hand muscles? He claimed he had the yips but that's more of a mental thing than anything muscle related.

I meant on yips.

The yips is the loss of fine motor skills in athletes. The condition occurs suddenly and without apparent explanation, usually in mature athletes with years of experience. It is poorly understood and has no known treatment or therapy

As you can see its unknown teritory..

[gavpowell]

Maybe he didnt find motivation to train as hard as he used to anymore?
.

He said as much on several occasions - it must be difficult when you own almost every record, have made millions in prize money plus sponsorship etc. you have a family and other things you can do with your time. Plus, he never changed his attitude to safety play, and that left him way off the pace when Higgins, O'Sullivan, Williams etc. were all able to play wonderful tactical shots.

[narl]

Maybe he didnt find motivation to train as hard as he used to anymore?
Or that issue with hand muscles might have been very legit...

What issue with hand muscles? He claimed he had the yips but that's more of a mental thing than anything muscle related.

[jrc750]

Ha ha ha superb sport

[kibo]

Hendry was nowhere near the same player by time he retired - he was still a threat and could raise his game against O'Sullivan in particular, but he wasn't winning tournaments, wasn't even getting past the early rounds. You could argue the same of Williams, but Hendry lacked the tools for the modern game.

Thankfully, his much-vaunted comeback was smashed to bits when he was soundly beaten at the world seniors last season.

Maybe he didnt find motivation to train as hard as he used to anymore?
Or that issue with hand muscles might have been very legit...