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Times
04-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Times
Why we're hypnotised by snooker on TV
Ask people to name a groundbreaking example of man making contact with a chalky white sphere in July 1969 and they are likely to say Neil Armstrong's Apollo 11 moon landing. A snooker fan, however, will recall Ray Reardon's masterly control of the cue ball in the inaugural episode of BBC2's Pot Black. Half a century later, snooker remains synonymous with the medium of television. This, in many ways, should be unsurprising. Today and tomorrow, the most prestigious match in the snooker calendar, the final of the World Snooker Championship, will be watched by a smaller crowd than Weston-super-Mare AFC in the sixth tier of English football. The Crucible theatre, home to the championships since 1977, holds just 980 people. A game played on a 12x6ft table is not a natural mass spectator sport. So, the love affair between snooker and television is perfectly logical. But what great love affair was ever founded on logic alone? There is something more subtle, more primal going on. There is chemistry. In a recent essay for The New Yorker, the author Sally Rooney described a frame of snooker as 'an apparently chaotic jumble [that] slowly reveals its hidden form'. In his book Deep Pockets: Snooker and the Meaning of Life, Brendan Cooper says the game is like 'a kind of hearth, a breathing fire in the living rooms of the world'. The commentators certainly sound as though they could be sitting on the sofa beside you: Dennis Taylor working his way through a packet of Rich Tea, Steve Davis with the family dog asleep at his feet. With its brushed carpet surface, polished metal highlights and sturdy wooden frame, even the snooker table suggests a kind of domesticity, with much in common with the typical British living room. From the inception of snooker on TV, the footage has largely been captured from a single, recurring angle, the one you are likely to be picturing in your head as you read. The camera hovers overhead at the foot of the table, altering its rectangular shape into a kind of foreshortened parallelogram. Just as the action fits on to the table, so the table fits on to the screen. 'It's not exactly a bird's-eye view,' says Petra Szemán, a visual artist and lecturer at Newcastle University. 'If it was a fully top-down view, you'd really feel that it had nothing to do with your body — that the human is not in the equation.' Instead, we see the match both through the eyes of the player and as an observer. 'You're right in the middle of everything,' says Taylor, who is in his fifth decade of commentating for the BBC. 'You could be standing at the table yourself.' Each frame begins with an ordered image — the triangle of red balls, the pattern of other colours in their starting positions — which is immediately broken into chaos before sequentially being returned to another, emptier kind of order as the balls are potted and disappear. On the simplest of levels, this process is rewarding to watch. There is an inherent satisfaction to the image of a table being gradually cleared — one that, broadcast into our living rooms, could be seen as tidying up. Andrew Klevan, a professor of film aesthetics at Oxford University, draws a contrast with football, where aesthetic beauty is achieved by finding a rare moment of coherence — scoring a goal — amid 90 minutes of chaos and disorder. 'Snooker is about clearing up mess. There's something very satisfying in that.' For Alan Male, the head of illustration at Falmouth University, it's the appearance of the balls, which 'totally conflict with our psychological perceptions of colour'. The black, with its connotations of 'coldness, death [and] nothingness' is worth the most points; while the red ball — signalling 'passion, danger, aggression, energy [and] vigour' — is worth the least. It is no coincidence that snooker's popularity took off with the introduction of colour television, with Pot Black specifically commissioned by a young David Attenborough to showcase the BBC's colour service. Overnight the game turned from a working man's pastime into a national obsession. 'Once they started watching,' Taylor remembers, 'people got hooked.' • Read our coverage of the World Snooker Championship Snooker's audience is notably mixed. 'The way the game was played fascinated everybody,' says Taylor, who says just as many women watch the sport as men. Taylor partially attributes this to the players' smart waistcoats. The game's popularity may have dipped since its 1980s heyday, but for devotees it remains more than a sport. Both snooker and its TV coverage are throwbacks. They are reassuring. Like the smell of home-cooked food wafting in from the kitchen or the crackle of a stylus nestled into a well-worn groove. Snooker doesn't happen in 60-second bursts. Even its surprises seem to happen in slow motion. The balls sound just as you would hope they would sound, just as you would imagine if you had been watching on mute. They are potted. And then they are respotted by the spectral presence of a white-gloved referee to sit obediently atop their marker until the laws of physics crash into them and send them rolling towards their destiny once again. The sport itself can be beautiful. The broadcast's greatest virtue is knowing not to get in the way. It is, says the 2005 world champion, Shaun Murphy, 'a safe space. It feels like the TV's giving you a cuddle.' The final of the 2025 World Snooker Championship is live from the Crucible on BBC2 and iPlayer, today and on Monday
The Irish Sun
02-05-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
‘I'm so confused.. it's a struggle' – Ronnie O'Sullivan gives worrying interview after World Snooker Championship KO
RONNIE O'SULLIVAN feels dazed and confused and is unsure if he will ever recover from his most crushing Crucible loss. The Rocket, 49, was hammered 17-7 in the semi-finals by magnificent Zhao Xintong, who won with a session to spare, and is in line to become China's first world snooker champion. Advertisement 2 Ronnie O'Sullivan gave a worrying interview after exiting the World Snooker Championship 2 He was well beaten by Zhao Xintong in the semis Credit: Getty It is 31 years since Qualifier Xintong, 28, O'Sullivan – 'I have lost what I used to have. I'm so confused. It feels really a struggle. Advertisement READ MORE IN SNOOKER 'I don't know if it was me, the cue tip or the ferrule. I didn't know where the white ball was going. 'I tried something different with my cue. I tried to go back to the old brass ferrule. 'I wasn't surprised (by the session loss). I've been playing like that in practice. It's hard to get my head around it. I can't even fix it, that's the problem. I don't know if I can fix it. 'I want to give it two years but if you play like that, it's pretty pointless. It's not good. Advertisement Most read in Snooker BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS 'I have been like that for four years, trying to grind it out. I didn't have a clue where the cue ball was going. I have been willing it into the hole. 'I don't know how to correct the fault. That's the worrying thing. I'm so far away – I don't even know where to begin. Ronnie O'Sullivan's match descends into chaos as table BREAKS during World Snooker Championship semi-final List of all-time Snooker World Champions BELOW is a list of snooker World Champions by year. The record is for the modern era, widely considered as dating from the 1968-69 season, when the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) took control of the sport. The first World Championships ran from 1927 - with a break from 1941-45 because of World War II and 1958-63 because of a dispute in the sport. Joe Davis (15), Fred Davis and John Pulman (both 8) were the most successful players during that period. 1969 - John Spencer 1970 - 1971 - John Spencer 1972 - Alex Higgins 1973 - Ray Reardon (2) 1974 - Ray Reardon (3) 1975 - Ray Reardon (4) 1976 - Ray Reardon (5) 1977 - John Spencer (2) 1978 - Ray Reardon (6) 1979 - Terry Griffiths 1980 - Cliff Thorburn 1981 - 1982 - Alex Higgins (2) 1983 - Steve Davis (2) 1984 - Steve Davis (3) 1985 - 1986 - Joe Johnson 1987 - Steve Davis (4) 1988 - Steve Davis (5) 1989 - Steve Davis (6) 1990 - 1991 - John Parrott 1992 - Stephen Hendry (2) 1993 - Stephen Hendry (3) 1994 - Stephen Hendry (4) 1995 - Stephen Hendry (5) 1996 - Stephen Hendry (6) 1997 - 1998 - 1999 - Stephen Hendry (7) 2000 - 2001 - 2002 - 2003 - Mark Williams (2) 2004 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (2) 2005 - Shaun Murphy 2006 - Graeme Dott 2007 - John Higgins (2) 2008 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (3) 2009 - John Higgins (3) 2010 - Neil Robertson 2011 - John Higgins (4) 2012 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (4) 2013 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (5) 2014 - 2015 - 2016 - Mark Selby (2) 2017 - Mark Selby (3) 2018 - Mark Williams (3) 2019 - 2020 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (6) 2021 - Mark Selby (4) 2022 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (7) 2023 - 2024 - Most World Titles (modern era) 7 - Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O'Sullivan 6 - Ray Reardon, Steve Davis 4 - John Higgins, Mark Selby 3 - John Spencer, Mark Williams 2 - Alex Higgins 'I've been awful for quite a while. I never gave him a game and that's disappointing. Advertisement 'Zhao played good and deserved his victory. He played better than me.' O'Sullivan, the seven-time world champion, came into the evening session 12-4 down after a horror show and opened up by winning frames 17 and 18. Yet every time he missed a ball, Xintong invariably punished him, sometimes in one visit, and often with an outstanding long pot. The fans who cried 'come on, Ronnie' soon fell silent as Xintong claimed the five frames he needed in the evening session to book his spot in a maiden final. Advertisement The pair embraced at the end and Xintong, who top scored with a 128, wanted the crowd to clap off O'Sullivan. Inside Ronnie's colourful career FROM his lightning breaks to blasts at officials, Ronnie O'Sullivan has fired snooker into the spotlight. The seven-time world champion makes almost as big an impact away from the table as on it. O'Sullivan And the Rocket's He has While the controversial cueist reckons he Despite His And Ali Carter had his nose knocked out of joint by the Rocket in their Check out all our But the defeated man 'tried to get off as quick as I could because it was his moment to enjoy'. He added: 'If Zhao wins the world title, it would be amazing. He would be a mega star. Amazing for snooker and his life as well.' Stephen Hendry, who was on BBC commentary duties, will be very pleased that his joint record of seven world crowns will remain intact for another 12 months at least. Advertisement Amateur Xintong – who returned from a 20-month corruption ban last September – has the advantage of a day off before facing either Judd Trump or Mark Williams over 35 frames on Sunday and Monday. He said: 'I can't believe this. I want to play like an exhibition. I want to enjoy this. 'Sometimes the crowd are cheering for Ronnie and it was nervous for me. But he deserved that. He's a legend. 'I have to say thank you to Ronnie, he helped me a lot before. I don't want to win at the Crucible like this. Hopefully he can go to No.8 here. He's my idol. Advertisement 'It's an amazing time for me. I will have a big lunch. Don't think about snooker.' World Snooker Tour will now stage a Big Break-style exhibition on Saturday afternoon in the session where this match would have been played and are not offering refunds.
The Sun
02-05-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
‘I'm so confused.. it's a struggle' – Ronnie O'Sullivan gives worrying interview after World Snooker Championship KO
RONNIE O'SULLIVAN feels dazed and confused and is unsure if he will ever recover from his most crushing Crucible loss. The Rocket, 49, was hammered 17-7 in the semi-finals by magnificent Zhao Xintong, who won with a session to spare, and is in line to become China's first world snooker champion. 2 2 It is 31 years since O'Sullivan exited the World Snooker Championship in such embarrassing fashion with a spare session left. Qualifier Xintong, 28, won EIGHT frames in a row over 82 minutes in the second session on Friday – the fourth time O'Sullivan had endured a session whitewash. O'Sullivan – who changed his cue tip THREE times and ferrule once in the contest – said: 'I'm at a loss to be honest with you. 'I have lost what I used to have. I'm so confused. It feels really a struggle. 'I don't know if it was me, the cue tip or the ferrule. I didn't know where the white ball was going. 'I tried something different with my cue. I tried to go back to the old brass ferrule. 'I wasn't surprised (by the session loss). I've been playing like that in practice. It's hard to get my head around it. I can't even fix it, that's the problem. I don't know if I can fix it. 'I want to give it two years but if you play like that, it's pretty pointless. It's not good. 'I have been like that for four years, trying to grind it out. I didn't have a clue where the cue ball was going. I have been willing it into the hole. 'I don't know how to correct the fault. That's the worrying thing. I'm so far away – I don't even know where to begin. List of all-time Snooker World Champions BELOW is a list of snooker World Champions by year. The record is for the modern era, widely considered as dating from the 1968-69 season, when the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) took control of the sport. The first World Championships ran from 1927 - with a break from 1941-45 because of World War II and 1958-63 because of a dispute in the sport. Joe Davis (15), Fred Davis and John Pulman (both 8) were the most successful players during that period. Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O'Sullivan share the record for the most titles in the modern era, with seven each. 1969 - John Spencer 1970 - Ray Reardon 1971 - John Spencer 1972 - Alex Higgins 1973 - Ray Reardon (2) 1974 - Ray Reardon (3) 1975 - Ray Reardon (4) 1976 - Ray Reardon (5) 1977 - John Spencer (2) 1978 - Ray Reardon (6) 1979 - Terry Griffiths 1980 - Cliff Thorburn 1981 - Steve Davis 1982 - Alex Higgins (2) 1983 - Steve Davis (2) 1984 - Steve Davis (3) 1985 - Dennis Taylor 1986 - Joe Johnson 1987 - Steve Davis (4) 1988 - Steve Davis (5) 1989 - Steve Davis (6) 1990 - Stephen Hendry 1991 - John Parrott 1992 - Stephen Hendry (2) 1993 - Stephen Hendry (3) 1994 - Stephen Hendry (4) 1995 - Stephen Hendry (5) 1996 - Stephen Hendry (6) 1997 - Ken Doherty 1998 - John Higgins 1999 - Stephen Hendry (7) 2000 - Mark Williams 2001 - Ronnie O'Sullivan 2002 - Peter Ebdon 2003 - Mark Williams (2) 2004 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (2) 2005 - Shaun Murphy 2006 - Graeme Dott 2007 - John Higgins (2) 2008 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (3) 2009 - John Higgins (3) 2010 - Neil Robertson 2011 - John Higgins (4) 2012 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (4) 2013 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (5) 2014 - Mark Selby 2015 - Stuart Bingham 2016 - Mark Selby (2) 2017 - Mark Selby (3) 2018 - Mark Williams (3) 2019 - Judd Trump 2020 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (6) 2021 - Mark Selby (4) 2022 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (7) 2023 - Luca Brecel 2024 - Kyren Wilson Most World Titles (modern era) 7 - Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O'Sullivan 6 - Ray Reardon, Steve Davis 4 - John Higgins, Mark Selby 3 - John Spencer, Mark Williams 2 - Alex Higgins 'I've been awful for quite a while. I never gave him a game and that's disappointing. 'Zhao played good and deserved his victory. He played better than me.' O'Sullivan, the seven-time world champion, came into the evening session 12-4 down after a horror show and opened up by winning frames 17 and 18. Yet every time he missed a ball, Xintong invariably punished him, sometimes in one visit, and often with an outstanding long pot. The fans who cried 'come on, Ronnie' soon fell silent as Xintong claimed the five frames he needed in the evening session to book his spot in a maiden final. The pair embraced at the end and Xintong, who top scored with a 128, wanted the crowd to clap off O'Sullivan. Inside Ronnie's colourful career FROM his lightning breaks to blasts at officials, Ronnie O'Sullivan has fired snooker into the spotlight. The seven-time world champion makes almost as big an impact away from the table as on it. O'Sullivan has three children - two daughters and a son. And the Rocket's on-off relationship with British actress Laila Rouass has also hit the headlines. He has opened up on battles with his weight and addiction. While the controversial cueist reckons he wasted NINE YEARS of his career by partying too hard. Despite being worth £14million, O'Sullivan is renowned for his love of canal boats and snubbing flashy cars. His rivalry with fellow star Judd Trump has been branded 'snooker's greatest feud'. And Ali Carter had his nose knocked out of joint by the Rocket in their infamous 'Snotgate' row. Check out all our latest Ronnie O'Sullivan articles. But the defeated man 'tried to get off as quick as I could because it was his moment to enjoy'. He added: 'If Zhao wins the world title, it would be amazing. He would be a mega star. Amazing for snooker and his life as well.' Stephen Hendry, who was on BBC commentary duties, will be very pleased that his joint record of seven world crowns will remain intact for another 12 months at least. Amateur Xintong – who returned from a 20-month corruption ban last September – has the advantage of a day off before facing either Judd Trump or Mark Williams over 35 frames on Sunday and Monday. He said: 'I can't believe this. I want to play like an exhibition. I want to enjoy this. 'Sometimes the crowd are cheering for Ronnie and it was nervous for me. But he deserved that. He's a legend. 'I have to say thank you to Ronnie, he helped me a lot before. I don't want to win at the Crucible like this. Hopefully he can go to No.8 here. He's my idol. 'It's an amazing time for me. I will have a big lunch. Don't think about snooker.' World Snooker Tour will now stage a Big Break-style exhibition on Saturday afternoon in the session where this match would have been played and are not offering refunds.
The Irish Sun
25-04-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Lucky Crucible fan bags £25,000 prize as Mark Allen makes history with 147 at World Championship despite trailing 10-2
MARK ALLEN had the Crucible crowd on their feet and he celebrated the first 147 of this year's World Snooker Championship. The 2 Mark Allen hit the first 147 of the World Snooker Championship this year Credit: PA The Northern Ireland potter managed to keep the cue ball under control and put his hand up in the air in celebration before the final black went down just before Noon. The 980 fans were on their feet in jubilation and one lucky punter, selected pre-game by sponsors Midnite, earned themselves £25,000. Allen, the world no.8, will receive a £40,000 bonus from the World Snooker Tour for this perfect frame. It is the 217th 147 ever in professional snooker, the 15th seen at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield and the fifth of Allen's competitive career. READ MORE ON SNOOKER He will also share the £15,000 highest break prize with Welshman Jackson Page -- who made two 147s in qualifying but then failed to make it to the main draw. Should Allen hit one more maximum break in this encounter, then he will get a £147,000 prize – a cash incentive for the feat across the Triple Crown events and the Saudi Arabia Masters. The way he raised his right hand in the air was reminiscent of how his hero Wakelin – who dominated the frames on Friday morning and threatened to win with a session to spare – rose from his chair and shook Allen's hands. Most read in Snooker JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS It was a remarkable feat given that Allen had not scored a single point in frames 10-13 before one of the best moments of his life. The crowd roared in approval and Moment Mark Selby pretends to hit snooker rival Mark Allen with cue during Masters defeat 2 It's a moment you can only dream of, to make a 147 at the Crucible. 'It is something you dream of all your life as a snooker player, a moment he will never ever forget in his life. 'The person who probably didn't enjoy it the most was Mark Williams's good friend, Jackson Page, who had two 147s at the qualifiers. 'Though he won £147,000 for that, he will now have to share the high break prize of £15,000 with Mark, who also wins the £40,000 for making a 147.' List of all-time Snooker World Champions BELOW is a list of snooker World Champions by year. The record is for the modern era, widely considered as dating from the 1968-69 season, when the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) took control of the sport. The first World Championships ran from 1927 - with a break from 1941-45 because of World War II and 1958-63 because of a dispute in the sport. Joe Davis (15), Fred Davis and John Pulman (both 8) were the most successful players during that period. 1969 - John Spencer 1970 - 1971 - John Spencer 1972 - Alex Higgins 1973 - Ray Reardon (2) 1974 - Ray Reardon (3) 1975 - Ray Reardon (4) 1976 - Ray Reardon (5) 1977 - John Spencer (2) 1978 - Ray Reardon (6) 1979 - Terry Griffiths 1980 - Cliff Thorburn 1981 - 1982 - Alex Higgins (2) 1983 - Steve Davis (2) 1984 - Steve Davis (3) 1985 - 1986 - Joe Johnson 1987 - Steve Davis (4) 1988 - Steve Davis (5) 1989 - Steve Davis (6) 1990 - 1991 - John Parrott 1992 - Stephen Hendry (2) 1993 - Stephen Hendry (3) 1994 - Stephen Hendry (4) 1995 - Stephen Hendry (5) 1996 - Stephen Hendry (6) 1997 - 1998 - 1999 - Stephen Hendry (7) 2000 - 2001 - 2002 - 2003 - Mark Williams (2) 2004 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (2) 2005 - Shaun Murphy 2006 - Graeme Dott 2007 - John Higgins (2) 2008 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (3) 2009 - John Higgins (3) 2010 - Neil Robertson 2011 - John Higgins (4) 2012 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (4) 2013 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (5) 2014 - 2015 - 2016 - Mark Selby (2) 2017 - Mark Selby (3) 2018 - Mark Williams (3) 2019 - 2020 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (6) 2021 - Mark Selby (4) 2022 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (7) 2023 - 2024 - Most World Titles (modern era) 7 - Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O'Sullivan 6 - Ray Reardon, Steve Davis 4 - John Higgins, Mark Selby 3 - John Spencer, Mark Williams 2 - Alex Higgins
The Sun
22-04-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
Controversial snooker star Zhao Xintong reveals he had major surgery during ban as he eyes World Championship crown
AMATEUR ace Zhao Xintong has set his sights on a controversial Crucible crown – thanks to eye surgery. The day after three-time world champion potter Mark Williams said he was booked to have a lens replacement op, the part-time Chinese cueist announced he had his eyes corrected during his exile from the sport. 1 Xintong, 28, is third favourite for the title – at odds of 9-2 – behind Judd Trump and Mark Selby and now faces debutant Lei Peifan in the second round. Yet the elephant in the room is the 20-month suspension he served after he was done for betting breaches in a match-fixing storm that involved nine other countrymen. Xintong hit a 142 in frame five of his 10-4 win over last year's runner-up Jak Jones and he said: 'For two years I had no tournament. 'But I kept practising and I had laser surgery because although I won the UK Championship and the German Masters, I could not see properly. 'Now I can see everything and I think I'm stronger than I was two years ago. 'I'm very happy [that people say I can win it] but I will just try my best. I've played four qualifying matches so it gives me some confidence.' Jones, 31, said: 'Xintong is a top-16 player who played the qualifiers and you could see it in his sharpness. 'He put me under so much pressure and he will be hard to stop. 'I don't see anyone who's playing better than him. His long potting is good, his scoring is good, and he's good tactically. 'I don't see anyone better than him in this tournament.' Higgins breaks down No.8 seed Mark Allen made round two for the 14th time in 19 appearances as he beat qualifier Fan Zhengyi 10-6, having been 3-0 behind. The Pistol, who hit breaks of 105 and 102, now faces Chris Wakelin on Thursday afternoon. List of all-time Snooker World Champions BELOW is a list of snooker World Champions by year. The record is for the modern era, widely considered as dating from the 1968-69 season, when the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) took control of the sport. The first World Championships ran from 1927 - with a break from 1941-45 because of World War II and 1958-63 because of a dispute in the sport. Joe Davis (15), Fred Davis and John Pulman (both 8) were the most successful players during that period. Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O'Sullivan share the record for the most titles in the modern era, with seven each. 1969 - John Spencer 1970 - Ray Reardon 1971 - John Spencer 1972 - Alex Higgins 1973 - Ray Reardon (2) 1974 - Ray Reardon (3) 1975 - Ray Reardon (4) 1976 - Ray Reardon (5) 1977 - John Spencer (2) 1978 - Ray Reardon (6) 1979 - Terry Griffiths 1980 - Cliff Thorburn 1981 - Steve Davis 1982 - Alex Higgins (2) 1983 - Steve Davis (2) 1984 - Steve Davis (3) 1985 - Dennis Taylor 1986 - Joe Johnson 1987 - Steve Davis (4) 1988 - Steve Davis (5) 1989 - Steve Davis (6) 1990 - Stephen Hendry 1991 - John Parrott 1992 - Stephen Hendry (2) 1993 - Stephen Hendry (3) 1994 - Stephen Hendry (4) 1995 - Stephen Hendry (5) 1996 - Stephen Hendry (6) 1997 - Ken Doherty 1998 - John Higgins 1999 - Stephen Hendry (7) 2000 - Mark Williams 2001 - Ronnie O'Sullivan 2002 - Peter Ebdon 2003 - Mark Williams (2) 2004 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (2) 2005 - Shaun Murphy 2006 - Graeme Dott 2007 - John Higgins (2) 2008 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (3) 2009 - John Higgins (3) 2010 - Neil Robertson 2011 - John Higgins (4) 2012 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (4) 2013 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (5) 2014 - Mark Selby 2015 - Stuart Bingham 2016 - Mark Selby (2) 2017 - Mark Selby (3) 2018 - Mark Williams (3) 2019 - Judd Trump 2020 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (6) 2021 - Mark Selby (4) 2022 - Ronnie O'Sullivan (7) 2023 - Luca Brecel 2024 - Kyren Wilson Most World Titles (modern era) 7 - Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O'Sullivan 6 - Ray Reardon, Steve Davis 4 - John Higgins, Mark Selby 3 - John Spencer, Mark Williams 2 - Alex Higgins
