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Best Snooker Tournaments To Bet

Steven D. Thompson

Updated:

Snooker is a popular sporting event with several tournaments running throughout the year. For most punters, it provides an excellent opportunity to place bets and get returns often. To pick the best snooker tournaments to bet on, there are various things you need to know, and you will learn about them in this snooker betting guide.


Snooker is a straightforward game that is played on a billiard table. Players use a snooker cue to hit a cue ball. The aim of the game is to get the cue ball to drive other balls into a pocket. There are fifteen red balls and six coloured balls in a snooker game.


Apart from the most basic rules, there is still a lot to learn about snooker. If you also want to learn more about this curious game, join us in this Betpack guide for major snooker tournaments.

Table of Contents

    Top-Tier Snooker Tournaments

    The best snooker tournaments give players a chance to boost their world rankings. In snooker, tournaments with the largest pot prize don't necessarily have to be the best.

    Top-Tier Snooker Tournaments Top-Tier Snooker Tournaments

    Triple Crown Events

    The triple crown events are the three highly revered and top-tier events in the snooker world. These events include the World Championship, UK Championship, and Masters Tournaments. The Masters event is an invitational tournament, and players who win all triple crown events get to put an embroidered crown on their waistcoat. 

    World Championship

    The Snooker World Championship is the top event in the snooker community. This event takes place at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England. For many players, the prize fund is one of the reasons why they put in their best effort during this tournament.

    The total prize fund surpasses £2 million, and the event's winner pockets £500,000. This is one of the triple crown events that all fans mark on their snooker calendar. Players must compete in qualifying matches to be a part of the main event.

    The first round of qualifying matches determines an initial 32 players, and this number reduces to 16 by the next stage. Players then must compete for slots in the quarter-final, semi-finals, and final match. The number of frames increases as players advance further into the tournament as follows:

    • Qualifying Matches – 19 frames
    • Round of 16 – 25 frames
    • Quarter-finals – 25 frames
    • Semi-finals – 33 frames
    • Finals – 35 frames

    Players who compete in the World Championship tournament include top-16 ranked players in the World Rankings, which is very exciting.

    UK Championship

    Any snooker lover that has an opportunity to visit the city of York, England, during the UK Championship mustn't miss out on this exceptional event. It is the second-largest snooker tournament globally, taking place in the Barbican Centre.

    The winner of this leading snooker tournament takes home prize money of £200,000, and the total prize fund is just slightly above £1,000,000. One of the famous snooker players to grace this event is Ronnie O'Sullivan, a seven-time winner of the tournament.

    Masters Snooker Championship

    Among the top snooker tournaments, the Masters Snooker Championship is one of the Triple Crown Events. Although the total prize fund is lower than the UK Championship, the winner gets a higher amount - £250,000.

    The tournament format consists of matches that test players on the best of nine frames until they get to the semi-final stage. The semi-final matches are a best of 11 frames, while the final match is a contest to determine the best of 17 frames.

    Any player that gets to win these three tournaments – the World Championship, UK Championship, and Masters Snooker is regarded as a Triple Crown Winner.

    China Open

    The China Open is a popular snooker event that takes fans and players away from the UK. The event welcomes players from various parts of the world, with most winners coming from outside China.

    The winner of the China Open tournament gets £225,000 out of a total prize fund of £1,000,000. This tournament has been on since 1997 and is one of the few major events whose total prize fund surpasses the £1 million mark.

    International Championship

    The International Championship doesn't have a long history like many other tournaments on the list. Still, the total prize fund of £802,000 has played a considerable role in the rise of its status. The event has been on since 2012, and notable winners of this championship include Judd Trump.

    Shanghai Masters

    The Shanghai Masters now offers spots to up to 24 competitors with a prize pool of £751,000. It is higher than the Masters event in terms of the total prize fund, but the payout to the winner is lower.

    Snooker Ranking events Snooker Ranking events

    Snooker Ranking events

    Professional players engage in tournaments in snooker to win prize money and boost their standings. This is known as the Snooker World Rankings. Depending on the rank of a professional player, they can get automatic seeding and qualification into various tournaments on the World Snooker Tour.

    The current ranking system uses a prize money list to determine the ranking of players, a transition from the points system in use previously. There are several aspects of the ranking system, and they include the following:

    Counting Prize Money

    The snooker world rankings require players to participate in ranking matches to boost their standings. In these ranking matches, players claim prize money based on their position at the end of the tournament. The money a player claims during the various events count towards their overall rankings.

    The ranking system doesn't consider a player's money from invitational events.

    Exchange Rates

    The base currency used to calculate the rankings is the British Pounds. Since not all competitions payout in this currency, any prize money collected in a different currency will be converted to the British Pounds Sterling.

    The ranking body will use standard rates to convert the currencies.

    Rolling Rankings

    The rolling system in snooker rankings implies that the points/prize money a player accumulates during the current season after each event will be added to the ranking list. However, any prize money for the same event that has been part of the ranking for more than two years will be removed.

    As a result, the snooker rankings consists of player earnings in various ranking tournaments for the last two years.

    Cut Off for Seeding and Provisional Seeding

    Other important things to note regarding the snooker rankings are the cut-offs and provisional seedings. In snooker, there is a seeding list that helps determine seedings for various events in the future. The seedings list isn't updated after every event like the world rankings but during the seeding cut-off points or seeding revisions. These refer to specific points when the seedings list is updated.

    The provisional seedings list is a forecast of what the seeding list will look like after the next seeding revision. It is an unofficial list, so don't expect to find it on pages such as the World Snooker's site.

    Players to Watch and Bet On

    The Snooker World Ranking list provides a clear picture of players to watch during various snooker tournaments. Although there might be upsets during some matches, this isn't always the case. If you decide to bet on snooker but need a few names to look out for, here are some of the top snooker players:

    • Mark Selby
    • Ronnie O'Sullivan
    • Judd Trump
    • Neil Robertson
    • Kyren Wilson

    Some of the players above have already made their mark on various major snooker tournaments, so you won't have trouble finding statistics on these players.

    Following the Snooker Schedule

    The snooker schedule consists of all events that make up a season. This schedule is usually tight for many players but is an excellent tool for bettors who intend tontify players taking time off or those preparing for other major tournaments.

    With the information from a schedule, you may be able tontify upsets, find rising stars, and more. Upcoming events on the schedule can significantly impact a tournament you intend to bet on.

    Snooker Markets in Various Tournaments

    Various betting sites offer excellent snooker odds with several popular snooker betting markets. The markets refer to the betting options available to players. Some of the common betting markets include:

    Match Bet

    This is the simplest and most popular snooker betting market. A snooker match can't end in a draw, so the only option available in a match bet is a win. Pick your favourite player to win, and you're done with this bet.

    Total Frames

    The total frames bet is open to anyone who wants to bet on the total frames in a match (short-term bet) or a tournament (long-term bet). Online betting sites provide this snooker bet with an over/under option.

    Total Points

    Snooker matches require players to accumulate points, so sports betting sites usually give players a chance to bet on the total points players will score in a frame.

    Maximum Break

    This is also referred to as the 147 Break. It is a snooker market that lets punters decide if there will be a maximum break or not in a match. Getting a maximum break is something highly skilled snooker players achieve, so be careful when placing this type of bet.

    Session Betting

    As you improve your snooker knowledge, you learn about mini sessions in snooker. This is a common feature of the Masters and World Snooker Championship. A mini session consists of four frames, and session betting allows players to bet on the outcome of a session.

    This betting market isn't straightforward, and punters must do a decent amount of studying on players.

    Outright Betting

    This bet allows you to pick the outcome of a tournament. Unlike the match bet, you need to wait till the end of an event to see if you win the bet or not.

    Finding Upsets to Bet on In Snooker Tournaments

    Although snooker punters thrive when the outcome of various matches align with their predictions from statistics, things don't always go according to plan. Like every other sport, upsets is another thrilling aspect of snooker matches. When the favourites fall to the underdogs, you still have a chance to earn returns.

    To give you an edge when picking upsets, here are some things you should consider:

    Favourites with Poor Performance

    We've seen it in basketball, football, rugby, and horse racing. Sometimes, the best players don't have the best outing. In snooker, various factors can influence player performance in an event. A few factors are events outside the snooker world, more crucial upcoming tournaments, and a busy schedule.

    More Underdogs in an Event

    Certain events are open to many competitors, giving room for more underdogs. Since many of these underdogs aren't considered for a win by most snooker betting sites, you have a chance to profit from upsets.

    Pay Attention to Up-and-Coming Talents

    Since snooker is an individual sport, it is straightforward tontify a rising star. All you need to do is go through the statistics of past events for young, unnoticed players showing signs of upsetting the odds in upcoming tournaments.

    Find Short Matches

    Matches that have fewer frames are great for upsets. Many of the top players enjoy longer matches in which they can dominate, but short-formatted matches take away this option. Underdogs do well in overcoming favourites when playing in these conditions.

    Free Bets in Snooker

    Many of the top sportsbooks know how popular snooker is worldwide and do their best to attract many bettors to their sites. One way to do this is by offering snooker free bets. Most sites have the free bets credited to your account once you sign-up on the platform. You can find the best free bet offers bookmakers have on Betpack!

    Pros and Cons of Snooker Betting

    Snooker betting is an activity that has its ups and downs. Before engaging in this high-risk activity, here are some of the things you should know:

    Pros

    Pros

    • There are various snooker tournaments to bet on, so it is easy for players to find an event to bet on at different times during the year.
    • Online snooker betting sites provide a low entry-level that makes snooker betting accessible to most punters.
    • There are various snooker betting markets that are great for players.
    • Many bookmakers offer bonuses that are immensely beneficial to players.
    Cons

    Cons

    • With so many events, players who fail to follow a budget or gambling principle will end up wasting a lot of money.
    • Without learning to gamble responsibly, individuals may attract financial issues.
    • There have been problems with match-fixing in the sport.

    How to Pick the Best Snooker Betting Sites

    There are several factors to consider when you decide to place your first qualifying bet on snooker. We have listed the most critical factors that you need to consider while choosing from the best snooker list of bookmakers:

    1

    Checking the events snooker betting site cover

    Snooker has many events that you can bet on, so the first thing to do is to check all the events provided on the bookmaker.

    2

    Checking the sportsbook markets variety

    Apart from snooker, you would like to try your luck on different sportsbook markets occasionally, so be sure that the bookmaker provides a good deal of markets.

    3

    Checking the snooker odds

    Various snooker betting sites offer different odds on their platforms. Be sure the platform you choose offers the best odds.

    4

    Assessing the snooker betting bonuses

    Bonuses are one of the crucial factors when choosing a betting platform. Make sure that the betting platform provides you with various betting bonuses.

    5

    Looking for a live snooker betting option

    Live betting is a great opportunity for adjusting your bets during the games. Check if the bookmaking platform has a live betting option.

    Excellent Bookmakers to Place Snooker Bets

    There are several high-quality snooker betting sites with mouth-watering bonus offers. However, when selecting a betting site, there are certain things you should consider. The following are the most critical considerations:

    • Welcome bonuses
    • Free bets
    • Existing user offers
    • Licenses
    • Terms and conditions
    • Wagering requirements

    Snooker Betting Tips

    Betting on snooker is like betting on other sports. There are various useful snooker betting tips you can apply to improve your potential returns when placing your first sports bet, and these include the following:

  • Learn to manage your bankroll effectively.
  • Look out for players who are on top form.
  • Read and learn about every tournament you will be betting on.
  • Always use bonus funds when available.
  • Snooker Live Betting

    Virtual sports bets give you a chance to access unique betting options. One of these is live snooker betting. Live snooker betting is a feature you must search for when choosing to bet on snooker. It allows you to perform in-play betting through sports betting apps, a form of bet you place on a match that is already in progress. The current performance of a player is a huge factor in most snooker live bets.

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