World Snooker Championship 2008

The 2008 888.com World Snooker Championship took place between 19 April and 5 May at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield. Ronnie O'Sullivan became the champion for the third time after beating Ali Carter 18-8.

Notable happenings

First round

* Debutants at the Crucible this year were Jamie Cope, Liu Chuang and Liang Wenbo.
* Steve Davis became the first player aged 50 or over to play at the Crucible since Doug Mountjoy in 1993.
* The previous year's runner up Mark Selby was knocked out by qualifier Mark King 10–8.
* Matthew Stevens's 10–5 defeat to John Higgins was the first time he had ever lost in the first round. Matthew Stevens attempted a 147 after fluking a black in the middle pocket but failed narrowly on 112.
* Ding Junhui's 10–9 victory over Marco Fu was his first ever win at the Crucible. Marco Fu also attempted a 147 but failed narrowly when the cue ball inadvertently fell into the bottom left pocket, after executing a canon on 2 reds.
* Ken Doherty's 10–5 defeat to qualifier Liang Wenbo caused him to drop out of the top 16 of the World Rankings for the first time since the 1992/93 season.
* Liu Chuang dropped off the main tour as a result of his defeat in Round 1 by Ronnie O'Sullivan.
* Debutant Liang Wenbo fast became a crowd favourite when he accidentally entered the arena with the match officials during his match against Ken Doherty and had to quickly scurry back to be introduced.
* Stephen Maguire took the first eight frames in the first session of his first round match against Anthony Hamilton. Hamilton then won the last frame of the session, thus avoiding a whitewash.

econd round

* Ryan Day reached the quarter-finals for the first time in this tournament by beating the 2007 defending champion John Higgins 13–9.
* Stephen Hendry reached the quarter-finals for the seventeenth time in his career but for the first time since 2005.
* Liang Wenbo caused further amusement during his Second Round match against Joe Swail by sitting down after taking a shot, not realising he had fluked a red into the corner pocket. Liang suffered embarrassment when he punched the air in premature celebration of a 13-10 victory over Swail, only for Swail to gain a snooker and take the frame. Swail recovered to level at 12-12, only to miss the brown while clearing the colours in the final frame and lose the match 13-12. The result meant that he would not be in the top 16 the following season. After the match Swail complained bitterly that in the final frame the referee had incorrectly replaced the cue ball after calling a miss, giving Liang an easier escape from a snooker, and accused Liang of unprofessional conduct for not pointing out the referee's mistake. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/snooker/7370116.stm "Liang edges out Swail in classic"] , BBC Sport, 28 April 2008]
* Ronnie O'Sullivan scored a 147 against Mark J Williams in the final frame of their match, the ninth of his career in competitive competition, beating Stephen Hendry's record of eight. This was Ronnie's third at the Crucible. Ironically Mark Williams was the last player to make a maximum break at the Crucible in 2005.
* Following his loss to Ronnie O'Sullivan, Mark J Williams dropped out of the top 16 of the World Rankings after twelve seasons in it.
* Stephen Maguire repeated his first round feat by winning the first eight frames in the first session of his match against Neil Robertson.

Quarter-finals

* Ali Carter made the third maximum break of the year (seventh of the 2007/2008 season). This came just a day after Ronnie O'Sullivan's maximum—the first time there have been two 147 breaks in the same ranking tournament. Peter Ebdon came very close to a 147 of his own just a frame earlier but narrowly missed the fifteenth black. Just minutes before on the other table, Stephen Hendry was also attempting a maximum of his own but missed the fifteenth red.
* Stephen Hendry reached the 12th Crucible semi-final of his career (the first time since 2004), surpassing Steve Davis' record of 11.
* Liang Wenbo became the first Chinese national to reach this stage.

emi-finals

*Ronnie O'Sullivan whitewashed Stephen Hendry 8-0 in their second session, extending O'Sullivan's streak to eleven consecutive frames against the former seven-time world champion (he also took the opening frame of the third session, for a winning streak of twelve consecutive frames). This was the first time Hendry had lost every frame in a full session at the Crucible. After the match, Hendry said that he considered O'Sullivan's performance to be "the best that anyone has played against me". [http://www.worldsnooker.com/news_latest-19382 World Snooker Latest News - O'SULLIVAN 17 HENDRY 6 ] ]
*Ali Carter reached his first ever ranking final by beating Joe Perry 17-15.

Final

*For the first time in the history of any snooker tournament, both finalists had scored 147 breaks in earlier rounds. No other player made a 147 break in the tournament.
*For the first time since 1991 two Englishmen played in the final. In 1991 John Parrott defeated Jimmy White 18-11.
*Ronnie O'Sullivan became only the third player after Steve Davis and Stephen Hendry to win more than two World titles at The Crucible.
*The start of the final session was briefly interrupted by a streaker who ran onto the stage and then crawled under the snooker table. He was quickly removed by stewards. [ [http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=RFamHD90FRQ Streaker at 2008 World Championship Snooker Final] , YouTube]
*In post-match interviews, both players admitted to not having played particularly well, with O'Sullivan commenting "Ali and I are disappointed not to put on a better performance". Carter's performance was described as "jaded". [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/snooker/7383131.stm BBC Sport] ]

Prize money

The prize breakdown was as follows:

* Winner: £250,000
* Runner-up: £125,000
* Semi-finalists: £52,000
* Quarter-finalists: £22,000
* Last 16 (round 2): £14,000
* Last 32 (round 1): £10,600
* 147 break: £147,000*
* Highest break: £10,000*

* Split between tying players Ronnie O'Sullivan and Ali Carter.

Results

Shown below are the results for each round. The numbers in brackets beside some of the players are their seeding ranks (each championship has 16 seeds and 16 qualifiers).

World Snooker Championship Rounds
19 April|flagicon|SCO John Higgins (1)| 10 |flagicon|WAL Matthew Stevens | 5
20 & 21 April|flagicon|WAL Ryan Day (16)|10|flagicon|IRL Michael Judge | 6
22 April|flagicon|PRC Ding Junhui (9)|10|flagicon|HKG Marco Fu | 9
20 & 21 April|flagicon|SCO Stephen Hendry (8)|10|flagicon|NIR Mark Allen | 9
23 & 24 April|flagicon|ENG Ronnie O'Sullivan (5)|10|flagicon|PRC Liu Chuang | 5
21 & 22 April|flagicon|WAL Mark J. Williams (12)|10|flagicon|ENG Mark Davis | 3
19 & 20 April|flagicon|ENG Stephen Lee (13)| 4 |flagicon|NIR Joe Swail | 10
23 April|flagicon|IRL Ken Doherty (4)| 5 |flagicon|PRC Liang Wenbo | 10
22 & 23 April|flagicon|ENG Shaun Murphy (3)| 10 |flagicon|ENG Dave Harold | 3
19 & 20 April|flagicon|ENG Allister Carter (14)|10|flagicon|ENG Barry Hawkins | 9
21 & 22 April|flagicon|ENG Mark Selby (11)| 8 |flagicon|ENG Mark King | 10
19 & 20 April|flagicon|ENG Peter Ebdon (6)| 10 |flagicon|ENG Jamie Cope | 9
19 & 20 April|flagicon|AUS Neil Robertson (7)|10|flagicon|ENG Nigel Bond |4
23 & 24 April|flagicon|SCO Stephen Maguire (10)| 10 |flagicon|ENG Anthony Hamilton | 3
21 April|flagicon|ENG Steve Davis (15)| 8 |flagicon|ENG Stuart Bingham | 10
22 & 23 April|flagicon|SCO Graeme Dott (2)| 7|flagicon|ENG Joe Perry | 10
24, 25 & 26 April|flagicon|SCO John Higgins (1)| 9 |flagicon|WAL Ryan Day (16) | 13
25 & 26 April|flagicon|PRC Ding Junhui (9) | 7 |flagicon|SCO Stephen Hendry (8)| 13
26, 27 & 28 April|flagicon|ENG Ronnie O'Sullivan (5) | 13 |flagicon|WAL Mark J. Williams (12)| 7
27 & 28 April|flagicon|NIR Joe Swail| 12 |flagicon|CHN Liang Wenbo | 13
25 & 26 April|flagicon|ENG Shaun Murphy (3) | 4 |flagicon|ENG Allister Carter (14)| 13
24 & 25 April|flagicon|ENG Mark King| 9 |flagicon|ENG Peter Ebdon (6)| 13
26, 27 & 28 April|flagicon|AUS Neil Robertson (7) | 7 |flagicon|SCO Stephen Maguire (10) | 13
27 & 28 April|flagicon|ENG Stuart Bingham| 9 |flagicon|ENG Joe Perry| 13
29 & 30 April|flagicon|WAL Ryan Day (16) | 7 |flagicon|SCO Stephen Hendry (8)|13
29 & 30 April|flagicon|ENG Ronnie O'Sullivan (5)|13|flagicon|CHN Liang Wenbo|7
29 & 30 April|flagicon|ENG Allister Carter (14) |13|flagicon|ENG Peter Ebdon (6)| 9
29 & 30 April|flagicon|SCO Stephen Maguire (10) |12|flagicon|ENG Joe Perry|13
1 & 2 May|flagicon|SCO Stephen Hendry (8)|6|flagicon|ENG Ronnie O'Sullivan (5)|17
1, 2 & 3 May|flagicon|ENG Allister Carter (14) |17|flagicon|ENG Joe Perry|15
("Best of 35 frames") Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, 4 May & 5 May, 2008. Referee: Jan Verhaas
Ronnie O'Sullivan (5) flagicon|ENG
18 - 8
Allister Carter (14) flagicon|ENG
81-56, 127-0, 99-0, 0-104, 86-4, 62-76, 65-18, 73-0, 78-0, 36-60, 86-4, 28-93, 45-80, 123-0, 77-32, 110-5, 66-48, 74-0, 25-64, 85-0, 0-84, 58-42, 4-89, 68-39, 75-32, 61-16
2 Century Breaks: 1 (Carter) 1 (O'Sullivan)Highest break by O'Sullivan: 106
Highest break by Carter: 104
81-56, 127-0, 99-0, 0-104, 86-4, 62-76, 65-18, 73-0, 78-0, 36-60, 86-4, 28-93, 45-80, 123-0, 77-32, 110-5, 66-48, 74-0, 25-64, 85-0, 0-84, 58-42, 4-89, 68-39, 75-32, 61-16
Ronnie O'Sullivan wins 2008 888.com World Snooker Championship
"Best of 19 frames"
"Best of 25 frames"
"Best of 25 frames"
"Best of 33 frames"

List of centuries

This is a list of century breaks made during the televised stages of the tournament. The highest break received a prize of £10,000, and a 147 break received a prize of £147,000 - a total of £157,000. This prize was shared, as two players made a 147, thus winning £78,500 each. 63 centuries in total were made. The record is 68 centuries, achieved twice, in 2002 and 2007.

Round 3

Qualifying

The qualifying rounds for the tournament took place in Pontin's Prestatyn, Wales between 6 January and 11 January 2008. The final round of qualifying took place at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield between 7 March and 10 March.

Round 1

Rounds 2-5

32TeamX4RoundBracket-NoSeeds
RD1 = Round 2
Best of 19 frames
RD2 = Round 3
Best of 19 frames
RD3 = Round 4
Best of 19 frames
RD4 = Round 5
Best of 19 frames

RD1-team01 = flagicon|ENG Alex Davies
RD1-score01 = 10
RD1-team02 = flagicon|AUS Steve Mifsud
RD1-score02 = 2
RD1-team03 = flagicon|ENG Mark Joyce
RD1-score03 = 10
RD1-team04 = flagicon|NIR Patrick Wallace
RD1-score04 = 8
RD1-team05 = flagicon|SCO James McBain
RD1-score05 = 10
RD1-team06 = flagicon|BEL Kevin Van Hove
RD1-score06 = 2
RD1-team07 = flagicon|CHN Tian Pengfei
RD1-score07 = 10
RD1-team08 = flagicon|ENG Ashley Wright
RD1-score08 = 4
RD1-team09 = flagicon|ENG Munraj Pal
RD1-score09 = 8
RD1-team10 = flagicon|CHN Xiao Guodong
RD1-score10 = 10
RD1-team11 = flagicon|ENG Matthew Selt
RD1-score11 = 10
RD1-team12 = flagicon|SCO Fraser Patrick
RD1-score12 = 6
RD1-team13 = flagicon|CHN Liu Song
RD1-score13 = 10
RD1-team14 = flagicon|ENG Jimmy Robertson
RD1-score14 = 6
RD1-team15 = flagicon|NOR Kurt Maflin
RD1-score15 = 9
RD1-team16 = flagicon|WAL Gareth Coppack
RD1-score16 = 10
RD1-team17 = flagicon|ENG Shailesh Jogia
RD1-score17 = 4
RD1-team18 = flagicon|WAL Michael White
RD1-score18 = 10
RD1-team19 = flagicon|ENG Lee Spick
RD1-score19 = 9
RD1-team20 = flagicon|IRL Rodney Goggins
RD1-score20 = 10
RD1-team21 = flagicon|ENG Jamie O'Neill
RD1-score21 = 8
RD1-team22 = flagicon|ENG Martin Gould
RD1-score22 = 10
RD1-team23 = flagicon|CHN Liang Wenbo
RD1-score23 = 10
RD1-team24 = flagicon|ENG Ben Woollaston
RD1-score24 = 3
RD1-team25 = flagicon|WAL Lee Walker
RD1-score25 = 9
RD1-team26 = flagicon|CHN Liu Chuang
RD1-score26 = 10
RD1-team27 = flagicon|IRL Leo Fernandez
RD1-score27 = 10
RD1-team28 = flagicon|ENG Alfred Burden
RD1-score28 = 4
RD1-team29 = flagicon|IRL David Morris
RD1-score29 = 9
RD1-team30 = flagicon|THA Supoj Saenla
RD1-score30 = 10
RD1-team31 = flagicon|MLT Tony Drago
RD1-score31 = 9
RD1-team32 = flagicon|THA I Kachaiwong
RD1-score32 = 10

RD2-team01 = flagicon|WAL Ian Preece
RD2-score01 = 10
RD2-team02 = flagicon|ENG Alex Davies
RD2-score02 = 9
RD2-team03 = flagicon|ENG Jimmy Michie
RD2-score03 = 10
RD2-team04 = flagicon|ENG Mark Joyce
RD2-score04 = 4
RD2-team05 = flagicon|SCO Marcus Campbell
RD2-score05 = 9
RD2-team06 = flagicon|SCO James McBain
RD2-score06 = 10
RD2-team07 = flagicon|ENG Mike Dunn
RD2-score07 = 10
RD2-team08 = flagicon|CHN Tian Pengfei
RD2-score08 = 2
RD2-team09 = flagicon|ENG David Roe
RD2-score09 = 10
RD2-team10 = flagicon|CHN Xiao Guodong
RD2-score10 = 5
RD2-team11 = flagicon|ENG Jimmy White
RD2-score11 = 10
RD2-team12 = flagicon|ENG Matthew Selt
RD2-score12 = 4
RD2-team13 = flagicon|SCO Scott MacKenzie
RD2-score13 = 10
RD2-team14 = flagicon|CHN Liu Song
RD2-score14 = 5
RD2-team15 = flagicon|WAL Paul Davies
RD2-score15 = 8
RD2-team16 = flagicon|WAL Gareth Coppack
RD2-score16 = 10
RD2-team17 = flagicon|ENG Barry Pinches
RD2-score17 = 10
RD2-team18 = flagicon|WAL Michael White
RD2-score18 = 4
RD2-team19 = flagicon|ENG Judd Trump
RD2-score19 = 10
RD2-team20 = flagicon|IRL Rodney Goggins
RD2-score20 = 4
RD2-team21 = flagicon|ENG Stuart Pettman
RD2-score21 = 4
RD2-team22 = flagicon|ENG Martin Gould
RD2-score22 = 10
RD2-team23 = flagicon|ENG Rod Lawler
RD2-score23 = 6
RD2-team24 = flagicon|CHN Liang Wenbo
RD2-score24 = 10
RD2-team25 = flagicon|IRL Joe Delaney
RD2-score25 = 5
RD2-team26 = flagicon|CHN Liu Chuang
RD2-score26 = 10
RD2-team27 = flagicon|SCO Drew Henry
RD2-score27 = 2
RD2-team28 = flagicon|IRL Leo Fernandez
RD2-score28 = 10
RD2-team29 = flagicon|FIN Robin Hull
RD2-score29 =
RD2-team30 = flagicon|THA Supoj Saenla
RD2-score30 = W/O
RD2-team31 = flagicon|ENG Tom Ford
RD2-score31 = 5
RD2-team32 = flagicon|THA I Kachaiwong
RD2-score32 = 10

RD3-team01 = flagicon|ENG Adrian Gunnell
RD3-score01 = 10
RD3-team02 = flagicon|WAL Ian Preece
RD3-score02 = 9
RD3-team03 = flagicon|IRL Michael Judge
RD3-score03 = 10
RD3-team04 = flagicon|ENG Jimmy Michie
RD3-score04 = 6
RD3-team05 = flagicon|IRL Fergal O'Brien
RD3-score05 = 10
RD3-team06 = flagicon|SCO James McBain
RD3-score06 = 4
RD3-team07 = flagicon|ENG Andrew Norman
RD3-score07 = 2
RD3-team08 = flagicon|ENG Mike Dunn
RD3-score08 = 10
RD3-team09 = flagicon|ENG Andy Hicks
RD3-score09 = 10
RD3-team10 = flagicon|ENG David Roe
RD3-score10 = 5
RD3-team11 = flagicon|ENG A Higginson
RD3-score11 = 7
RD3-team12 = flagicon|ENG Jimmy White
RD3-score12 = 10
RD3-team13 = flagicon|THA James Wattana
RD3-score13 = 8
RD3-team14 = flagicon|SCO Scott MacKenzie
RD3-score14 = 10
RD3-team15 = flagicon|ENG John Parrott
RD3-score15 = 10
RD3-team16 = flagicon|WAL Gareth Coppack
RD3-score16 = 3
RD3-team17 = flagicon|ENG Robert Milkins
RD3-score17 = 4
RD3-team18 = flagicon|ENG Barry Pinches
RD3-score18 = 10
RD3-team19 = flagicon|SCO Jamie Burnett
RD3-score19 = 2
RD3-team20 = flagicon|ENG Judd Trump
RD3-score20 = 10
RD3-team21 = flagicon|ENG Rory McLeod
RD3-score21 = 10
RD3-team22 = flagicon|ENG Martin Gould
RD3-score22 = 8
RD3-team23 = flagicon|ENG David Gilbert
RD3-score23 = 3
RD3-team24 = flagicon|CHN Liang Wenbo
RD3-score24 = 10
RD3-team25 = flagicon|ENG David Gray
RD3-score25 = 5
RD3-team26 = flagicon|CHN Liu Chuang
RD3-score26 = 10
RD3-team27 = flagicon|ENG Mark Davis
RD3-score27 = 10
RD3-team28 = flagicon|IRL Leo Fernandez
RD3-score28 = 9
RD3-team29 = flagicon|SCO Alan McManus
RD3-score29 = 10
RD3-team30 = flagicon|THA Supoj Saenla
RD3-score30 = 2
RD3-team31 = flagicon|ENG Ricky Walden
RD3-score31 = 10
RD3-team32 = flagicon|THA I Kachaiwong
RD3-score32 = 4

RD4-team01 = flagicon|England Stuart Bingham
RD4-score01 = 10
RD4-team02 = flagicon|ENG Adrian Gunnell
RD4-score02 = 3
RD4-team03 = flagicon|England Michael Holt
RD4-score03 = 6
RD4-team04 = flagicon|IRL Michael Judge
RD4-score04 = 10
RD4-team05 = flagicon|England Jamie Cope
RD4-score05 = 10
RD4-team06 = flagicon|IRL Fergal O'Brien
RD4-score06 = 5
RD4-team07 = flagicon|England Dave Harold
RD4-score07 = 10
RD4-team08 = flagicon|ENG Mike Dunn
RD4-score08 = 4
RD4-team09 = flagicon|England Barry Hawkins
RD4-score09 = 10
RD4-team10 = flagicon|ENG Andy Hicks
RD4-score10 = 8
RD4-team11 = flagicon|England Mark King
RD4-score11 = 10
RD4-team12 = flagicon|ENG Jimmy White
RD4-score12 = 3
RD4-team13 = flagicon|England Anthony Hamilton
RD4-score13 = 10
RD4-team14 = flagicon|SCO Scott MacKenzie
RD4-score14 = 2
RD4-team15 = flagicon|England Joe Perry
RD4-score15 = 10
RD4-team16 = flagicon|ENG John Parrott
RD4-score16 = 8
RD4-team17 = flagicon|England Nigel Bond
RD4-score17 = 10
RD4-team18 = flagicon|ENG Barry Pinches
RD4-score18 = 7
RD4-team19 = flagicon|Northern Ireland Joe Swail
RD4-score19 = 10
RD4-team20 = flagicon|ENG Judd Trump
RD4-score20 = 9
RD4-team21 = flagicon|WAL Matthew Stevens
RD4-score21 = 10
RD4-team22 = flagicon|ENG Rory McLeod
RD4-score22 = 5
RD4-team23 = flagicon|England Ian McCulloch
RD4-score23 = 5
RD4-team24 = flagicon|CHN Liang Wenbo
RD4-score24 = 10
RD4-team25 = flagicon|WAL Dominic Dale
RD4-score25 = 9
RD4-team26 = flagicon|CHN Liu Chuang
RD4-score26 = 10
RD4-team27 = flagicon|Northern Ireland Gerard Greene
RD4-score27 = 2
RD4-team28 = flagicon|ENG Mark Davis
RD4-score28 = 10
RD4-team29 = flagicon|Hong Kong Marco Fu
RD4-score29 = 10
RD4-team30 = flagicon|SCO Alan McManus
RD4-score30 = 3
RD4-team31 = flagicon|Northern Ireland Mark Allen
RD4-score31 = 10
RD4-team32 = flagicon|ENG Ricky Walden
RD4-score32 = 8

ee also

*Snooker world rankings 2007/2008

References

External links

* [http://www.youtube.de/watch?v=GmR3ZlhYevk Live-Replay video of the 888.com last 32 players Drawing in the Crucible theatre at 11th March 08]
* [http://www.worldsnooker.com/tournament_latest_drawsheet-93.htm Qualifying Stages at worldsnooker.com]
* [http://www.worldsnooker.com/tournament_home-86.htm Main Draw at worldsnooker.com]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/snooker/7369420.stm Video of O'Sullivan's 147]