2018 World Championship

HisJills wrote: »

Well done to MJW, best player of the tournament and probably the season! Will never ever forget the red he potted in the middle using another red to go up and down to clip in the red that was over the middle pocket. That shot was just incredible, wouldn’t be on most other players radar at all as it’s not really a shot they would even consider, yet he goes for it and makes it, outrageous really! A true legend of the game with an amazing snooker brain. Fantastic to watch

To be fair, Barry "Bottler" Hawkins should have beaten him and he was playing great stuff, demolished Ding and was beating Williams well but then went and did his usual bottling. Sure, if he had scraped through, he would have done the same thing against Higgins. It's a massive weakness of Hawkins, don't know he can cure it, especially after all the scars over the years.

Well that turned into a great final session at the Crucible. Neither player missing much once they were in amoung the balls. Both old stagers well able to handle any pressure from final night at the Crucible.

Happy to see Mark get over the line and John made a fair fist of it in the final session considering where he was. Can't be too dissapointed to lose like that, he was never ahead in the final.

It is amazing how people age, even compared to a generation ago. MJW is 8 years older than Dennis was when he won in '85. Yet Mark is a bit of a rejuvenated teenager with his towel prank. In Dennis's generation you were expected to be an old serious man before your time once you got married and settled. Well apart from his jokey routine. Players of that era seemed older in their 30s and finished in their 40s.

Crucible withdrawal symptoms today onwards. At least we will have the World Cup along soon.

I think that’s a very pertinent point about the younger players. Increasingly they are not being conditioned for the gruelling test that is the world championships. Hawkins isn’t young in that sense but found it revealing how shattered he was after that sf. I’d say his personal circumstances had a lot to do with that, he had invested a lot of emotional energy over the two weeks, indeed over the whole season, and I felt it just finally caught up with him. He seemed relieved that the torture was at an end.

The problem for players is that there’s really no other way to get that conditioning other than at the Crucible itself. Playing best of 7s all year isn’t going to help develop much of a matchplay mindset and that’s how they are learning the game these days. The UK was at least one format that could give them a taste of what’s required but the authorities, in their wisdom, ruined that. Would love to see an injection of new blood at the top but, as things stand, can’t see any reason why the veterans won’t be competitive for a few years yet.

sligeach wrote: »

To be fair, Barry "Bottler" Hawkins should have beaten him and he was playing great stuff, demolished Ding and was beating Williams well but then went and did his usual bottling. Sure, if he had scraped through, he would have done the same thing against Higgins. It's a massive weakness of Hawkins, don't know he can cure it, especially after all the scars over the years.

Ya, Barry bottled it alright, had fancied him to win it from 2nd round onwards! Surely his bottle job though means he wasn’t the best player over the whole tournament!?
The shots that Mark made throughout the tournament and even in the final are some of the greatest (and most outrageous pots, some with safety in mind) I’ve ever seen in the WC! Amazing viewing for the entire tournament.
The way Higgins kept coming back in that final session though was truly remarkable.

It must be some sort of record in any sport to win world championship 15 years apart

Probably something comparable in some minority sport or other, but cant think of it. I know it didnt happen, but one of greatest ever feats of age for me was Tom Watson at the 2009 British Open, just falling narrowly short nearly a quarter of century after his previous major victory and at the age of 59. The epitome of heroic failure, if that's even the right word!

There were 15 years between Roger Federer’s first major win and his most recent. In a sport as physically taxing as tennis, that is absolutely remarkable.

Permabear wrote: »

This post had been deleted.

Maybe, 12 years is impressive but he'll need a few more injections to get to 15!

George Foreman lost his title in 74 and regained “a” title in 94.

mdwexford wrote: »

What a stupid thing to say.

Why is it a stupid thing to say........tats and in particular those full arm/leg ones as Williams has are Absolutely hedious.....total ‘Chav’ symbols why sports people and celebs are obsessed with them is beyond me....it’s his own business and he can decorate his skin how he pleases But tats are beyond classless

in terms of coming back from a slump; Darren Clark won the Open in 2011, 10 years after his previous top 10 finish in a major.

Road-Hog wrote: »

Why is it a stupid thing to say........tats and in particular those full arm/leg ones as Williams has are Absolutely hedious.....total ‘Chav’ symbols why sports people and celebs are obsessed with them is beyond me....it’s his own business and he can decorate his skin how he pleases But tats are beyond classless

You've already won the prize for most nonsense poster in this thread so I'm not surprised you come out with another doozey.