In Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, world champion Luca Brecel is eagerly anticipating the opportunity to potentially achieve the first-ever 167 break in snooker history after the introduction of the new golden ball at Saudi Arabia’s inaugural professional snooker event this week.
The Riyadh World Masters of Snooker’s debut season offers players the chance to win a substantial prize of $500,000 if they can successfully complete a maximum 147 break and then pot the elusive golden ball.
The golden ball, valued at 20 points, remains on the top cushion throughout a frame as long as a player is on course to achieve a maximum break, and is only removed once the opportunity is no longer feasible.
Prominent players participating in the event include Ronnie O’Sullivan, Shaun Murphy, Mark Williams, and Ding Junhui.
Expressing his excitement about the golden ball challenge, Brecel shared with Reuters, “Yeah, it’s exciting the golden ball. Obviously it’s a big prize and well, it’s going to be very difficult. It’s a nice challenge and I’d love to have a go at it. Even if I don’t make it I would just like to have a try.”
He added, “The 147 in itself is really difficult but now you need to be perfect on the black as well to go to the golden ball which is even more difficult.”
Former world champion Judd Trump is also embracing the new challenge, emphasizing the significance of attempting a unique break in the form of a 167.
Trump noted, “I think the 167 is just that little bit harder now and with that comes a bigger prize. So, I think that 167 is very special for the first time.”
In light of the recent announcement regarding the establishment of the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters as the ‘fourth major’ tournament, Brecel welcomed the expansion of the sport into new territories.
He remarked, “(It’s) very good for us and for snooker. It’s nice to be able to come to these countries and hopefully maybe Qatar and Dubai will follow and in the future maybe go up to the U.S. as well and make snooker really, really big in all the countries in the world.”
With a 10-year agreement in place, the inaugural edition of the Riyadh World Masters of Snooker is set to take place from August 31 to September 7, featuring a ranking event open to all tour players alongside six local wild cards.
(Reporting by Mohammed Benmansour, Writing by Angelica Medina; Editing by Toby Davis)
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