The World Snooker Championship is the biggest, oldest and most prestigious tournament in World Snooker, drawing attention of both fans and punters. In this article, we'll take a closer look at the betting opportunities this event offers and list some useful tips and predictions.
- 1 Best Betting Sites for the World Snooker Championship
- 2 Tournament Structure for the World Snooker Championship
- 3 Snooker World Championship Betting Odds, Promotions, Tips & Predictions
- 4 5 Reasons To Bet on the Snooker World Championship
- 5 Popular World Snooker Championship Betting Markets
- 6 History of the World Snooker Championship
- 7 Similar Tournaments to the World Snooker Championship
- 8 ThePuntersPage Final Say
- 9 World Snooker Championship Betting FAQs
Best Betting Sites for the World Snooker Championship
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Tournament Structure for the World Snooker Championship
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The governing body that organises this event is the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA). They have been in charge of the professional game since 1968, although the event didn’t relocate to Sheffield until 1977. This is an annual ranking snooker competition and the third of the three Triple Crown events of the season after the UK Championship and the Masters.
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The World Snooker Championship is now, and has been since 1982, a knock-out format tournament featuring 32 players. Play takes place over 17 days and typically ends on the first Monday in May, which is known in the United Kingdom as May Day. This is also the first recognised bank holiday Monday of the year. Matches in the first round are all played in two sessions and contested over a best-of-19-frames format.
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By the second round and quarter-finals, matches have been lengthened to best-of-25 frames and three sessions per game. When we get to the last four players, we have reached the semi-finals which are played over four sessions and best-of-33 frames, while the final is played over 35 frames. This essentially means that the winner is the player who wins 18 frames.
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The contestants will be battling it out for a slice of almost £2.4 million, £500,000 of which goes straight into the pocket of the tournament winner. The runner-up will receive £200,000, while semi-finalists each pick up £100,000.
Snooker World Championship Betting Odds, Promotions, Tips & Predictions
The 2023 Snooker World Championship gets underway on the 15th April. As ever, the event will be held at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England, with the tournament running until 1st May.
Snooker World Championship Betting Odds 2023
Check out our table below for the latest odds, and the following section for our best World Snooker Championship betting tips.
2023 World Snooker Championship Winner Odds
Player | Odds | Bookmaker |
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Ronnie O’Sullivan | 4/1 | bet365 |
Judd Trump | 9/2 | William Hill |
Neil Robertson | 13/2 | Betfair |
Mark Selby | 8/1 | BetVictor |
Shaun Murphy | 10/1 | Paddy Power |
Mark Williams | 16/1 | Ladbrokes |
Kyren Wilson | 18/1 | Unibet |
John Higgins | 20/1 | 888sport |
Jack Lisowski | 20/1 | Coral |
Stuart Bingham | 33/1 | Betfred |
Ali Carter | 33/1 | bet365 |
Ding Junhui | 40/1 | William Hill |
Luca Brecel | 40/1 | BoyleSports |
Anthony McGill | 50/1 | BetVictor |
Snooker World Championship Betting Tips 2023
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The World Championship always makes for fascinating viewing, and it is a key leg of the Triple Crown. Over the years, the Crucible crowd has seen it all from super quick maximum breaks to that epic final in 1985 between Dennis Taylor and Steve Davis, when Davis won on a re-spotted black ball.
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Fast forward to 2023, and Ronnie O’Sullivan remains the man to topple. After sweeping aside Judd Trump 18-13 in the Final 12 months ago, O’Sullivan will be looking to be crowned world champion for the eighth time. The clear favourite at 4/1 with most bookmakers, O’Sullivan is always a threat among the balls, and if he can maintain his focus, then he could well take some stopping.
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Meanwhile, Mark Selby will be eager to add another title to his collection. The four-time world champion, who is known as the ‘Jester’, ended a 19-month barren run by lifting the English Open last year. In terms of season stats, Selby has won over 50% of frames played (314), but he would like to add a few more century breaks (28). Interestingly, he is trading around the 8/1 mark, and he will see a quarter-final spot as the minimum target.
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As you might expect, this star-studded field is packed with champions. Mark Williams is among those lurking, with the three-time world champion having an affinity with the Crucible. He has been a consistent performer, and it would be amiss to rule out the Welshman, who is equally adept with his safety play as he is compiling big breaks. Although he’s available at 16/1 with most bookmakers, he would no doubt be happy to get through the first few rounds.
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Elsewhere, if you are looking for value, then you might be tempted by John Higgins. The ‘Wizard of Wishaw’ is a four-time world champion, and has triumphed in all the Triple Crown events. Given he reached the semi-final last year, perhaps he should be shorter than his current 20/1 price.
Snooker World Championship Betting Promotions 2023
5 Reasons To Bet on the Snooker World Championship
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It is the biggest event in snooker.
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The winner will walk away with a cheque for £500,000.
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It is one of the longest running tournaments in snooker.
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The biggest names in snooker will be there.
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It never fails to deliver nail-biting matches.
Popular World Snooker Championship Betting Markets
With a history that reaches back to India and the Gentleman’s Clubs of the British Officers, today snooker offers its many fans more than 40 events in a calendar year to sink their teeth into. Each of these generate all manner of fantastic betting opportunities for outcomes that might develop when the players take to the baize.
Outright Betting
Outright betting is a super simple form of wagering, even for beginners to make. In order for this bet to win, there is nothing more required than your chosen selection winning outright on whichever market you have backed them in. If you have picked a player to win a match in the outright market, then all they need to do is win that match.
Moreover, if you are backing a player to win the entire tournament, including the World Championship, then this would also be classified as an outright bet; in fact, the latter is considered to be one of the most popular wagers in snooker betting.
Best Snooker World Championship betting site for outright betting: Betfred
Player to Pot First Red Betting
The first and only way to get the scores up and running in a game of snooker is to pot a red ball, which most professionals will do with their first break. This then, is essentially a First Player To Score bet, and will more than likely be the same player who breaks first. Of course, this isn’t guaranteed; the player might send the balls spreading out across the table instead of scoring. But, such is the skill level of the top professionals that they will likely get a score with their very first shot – and if they do, and you’ve backed them to do so, well done! You’ll be quids in.
Best Snooker World Championship betting site for First Red Potted: Paddy Power
147 Breaks Betting
This is basically a prop bet where you are staking on a random occurrence happening in a game or tournament – in this case, a break of 147. A 147 is snooker’s maximum break, and involves potting all 15 red balls followed by a black ball every time, and then the correct colour sequence thereafter. Importantly, a player doesn’t need to make a 147 to win the frame, but when the point of no return has been breached, the player making the humongous break can choose to stay at the table and continue on in their pursuit of history.
Best Snooker World Championship betting site for Maximum Break: Coral
Highest Break Betting
The Highest Break betting market is one of those specials that can be quite lucrative, if placed smartly. Usually, you will be offered odds for a player to score the highest break in a match. As the World Championship consists of games that are contested over a longer format, you can expect to see some significant breaks compiled, allowing you to locate some juicy prices.
Best Snooker World Championship betting site for Highest Break: William Hill
Century Breaks Betting
Here, you are required to place a bet on a match in which you think one of the two players competing will make a century break at any point during the match. This can either be hit by a nominated player or, like the prop bet above, has just to occur during the match, in which case it is irrelevant as to which of the two players hits the ton plus break.
Best Snooker World Championship betting site for Century Break: Paddy Power
History of the World Snooker Championship
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The first snooker world championship was held back in 1927 at Thurstons Hall, Leicester Square in London, and was called the Professional Snooker Championship. Back then, 10 professional players took part, and matches were played over as little as 15 frames. In 1969, the tournament became a knock-out event for the first time, having previously employed a challenge format in which players played each other to earn the right to challenge the Grandfather of Snooker, Joe Davis, in the final.
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There have been quite a few changes in venue over the years. In 1950, the final moved to Blackpool Tower Circus, leaving London for the first time since 1934. In 1970 and 1975, the championships were held in Australia, and in 1976 the event was split between two venues: Middlesbrough and Manchester. However, since 1977, the championships have been played exclusively at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield and last over 17 days, usually between late April and early May, with the final often coinciding with the British May bank holiday.
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In 2022, the pre-eminent Ronnie O’Sullivan powered past Judd Trump in the final, as he reeled off four of the remaining six frames in the evening session to clinch an 18-13 victory, equalling Stephen Hendry’s record of seven world titles. O’Sullivan enjoyed a near-perfect tournament, racking up around 200 centuries and averaging about 60 points per visit in the final. One for the history books indeed.
Recent World Snooker Championship Winners
Year | Champion | Country |
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2022 | Ronnie O’Sullivan | England |
2021 | Mark Selby | England |
2020 | Ronnie O'Sullivan | England |
2019 | Judd Trump | England |
2018 | Mark Williams | Wales |
2017 | Mark Selby | England |
2016 | Mark Selby | England |
2015 | Stuart Bingham | England |
2014 | Mark Selby | England |
2013 | Ronnie O'Sullivan | England |
2012 | Ronnie O'Sullivan | England |
World Snooker Championship Key Stats
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The most successful player at the Championship is Joe Davis, who won 15 consecutive titles between 1927 and 1946, although this was under a challenge format.
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Ray Reardon won the championship for the sixth time at 45 years of age, making him the oldest ever World Champion.
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Stephen Hendry became the youngest World Snooker Champion when he won the event for the first time in 1990 aged just 21.
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Stephen Hendry’s 16 centuries during the 2002 championships remains a record for the most tons by one player in a tournament.
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With seven titles in 27 appearances, the most successful player in the modern era is also Stephen Hendry.
Similar Tournaments to the World Snooker Championship
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25th November – 3rd December 2023, UK Championship: The first of snooker’s three Triple Crown events of the season and always a massive occasion.
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7th – 14th January 2024, Cazoo Masters: This is an invitational snooker tournament that takes place each year at the Alexandra Palace in North London.
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15th – 21st January, 2024, World Grand Prix: The top 32 snooker players in the world will face off in the Centaur Cheltenham Race course in a week-long event.
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19th – 25th February 2024, Players Championship: Featuring 128 players, this is the second ranking event of the season and the middle leg of snooker’s Triple Crown.
ThePuntersPage Final Say
Watched over by a global audience of more than 300 million, the Snooker World Championship is the biggest and most illustrious tournament in world snooker. Taking place each year at Sheffield’s Crucible Theatre, it makes up the third part of the Snooker Triple Crown after the UK Championship and the Masters. This, though, dwarfs the pair of them, offering the biggest prize pool in the game and a chance to go down in snooker legend forever.
World Snooker Championship Betting FAQs
The WSC will be shown live on the BBC.
Oh yes, very much so. This is a WPBSA ranking event and, what’s more, snooker’s most prestigious event.
The total prize pool is upwards of £2 million, with £500,000 set aside for the winner.
The World Snooker Championship is very old, with the inaugural tournament taking place in 1927.
Since 1977, the Snooker World Championships have famously been held in the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England.
Yes, the best online bookies will be running live and real-time markets on the World Championship.