Ronnie O’Sullivan and some of snooker’s biggest names have jetted to Saudi Arabia for the Riyadh Season World Masters, with a chance of history being made. The new tournament is offering players a whopping £395,000 for potting the ‘golden ball’, to be debuted in the Middle East.
The 23rd ball on the table is worth 20 points and can only be potted after a player has made a maximum break of 147. They can then attempt the gold ball, sat along the baulk cushion, to not only make history but earn a life-changing sum of money.
O’Sullivan has already stated his interest in pocketing near-£400k as the prize, but he could be cruelly denied even before he takes to the table. The Rocket famously turned down the chance of making maximum breaks in the past in protest of the nominal cash prize for doing so, but with the sums on offer in Saudi he will be preparing for some big breaks.
However, World Snooker Tour rules state that only the first player to make a 167 will be awarded the £395k bonus. That means those who take to the table before O’Sullivan have the opportunity to snatch the golden ball before he gets an opportunity to.
If O’Sullivan is the second, third or fourth player to make a 167, the current rules state that he would walk away without the huge prize on offer. Typical professional snooker tournaments give a cash prize away to each player that makes a 147.
The tournament gets underway on Monday with first-round action. Late additions Ding Junhui and John Higgins will take on wildcard entries Omar Alajlani and Ali Alobaidli for a chance to take on Ali Carter and Mark Williams in the second round.
That second round takes place on Monday evening, before quarter-finals take place the following day. This is the stage in which O’Sullivan enters the tournament against either Williams or a qualifier, but as many as seven matches will have taken place already.
