Ronnie O’Sullivan announced his decision on the new Saudi Arabia’s gold ball after it was revealed that players managed to hit a record 167 at the tournament in March
Ronnie O’Sullivan will appear at an invitational event in Saudi Arabia in March
Ronnie O’Sullivan revealed that he is more interested in what break it is rather the benefits of its deployment in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia will host the opening tournament of the Riyadh season of the World Snooker Masters on 4-6. March and O’Sullivan, Judd Trump and Luca Brecel are among the 10 players in the tournament. Normal World Snooker Tour rules apply during each match, with the exception of a new feature that is expected to be added.
A 23rd ball is added, known as the Riyadh Season Ball, worth 20 points. However, the golden ball cannot be hit until every other ball has been hit and the player is at maximum break. This would take the score from 147 to 167, making it the highest possible break ever in snooker history.
Asked about the tournament in Saudi Arabia, O’Sullivan replied: andquot;What’s prize for 167? Did they report it? I’m sure it will be a great reward.
“Look, the Saudis can do whatever they want. They are a power suit. All the other sports seem to work in Saudi Arabia, so it’s great to go there”
In a statement released last week by the World Snooker Tour, HE Councilor Turki Aalshikh said: “We are delighted to host our first professional snooker tournament in the Kingdom. Snooker is watched and played by millions around the world and we look forward to welcoming some of the best players and snooker fans to our country and what Saudi Arabia and Riyadh have to offer”
Ronnie O’Sullivan poses with the World Grand Prix trophy
Ronnie O’Sullivan poses with the World Grand Prix trophy (
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(Photo: Tai Chengzhe/VCG) through 4 to 0 Image 24) great start 4 to 0 O’Sullivan, who was crowned World Grand Prix Champion in Leicester to add to his Masters success earlier this month. On Sunday, the 48-year-old beat Judd Trump 10-7 4-0 in a thrilling final at Morningside Arena.
After Trump won, O’Sullivan told ITV4: andquot;I loved it. At the beginning of the week I felt a little tired and then I bought myself an air cooker and a smoothing machine. I started eating a little better.
“I don’t like eating junk food, it puts me in a funny place. As the week progressed, I started to feel better. I played my best snooker ever [in the semi-finals] against Ding Junhui.”
O’Sullivan booked his place at the World Open in China after defeating Alfie Burden 5-3 on Tuesday..