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2006 World Snooker Championship

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World Snooker Championship
Tournament information
Dates15 April–1 May 2006
VenueCrucible Theatre
CitySheffield
CountryEngland
OrganisationWPBSA
FormatRanking event
Total prize fund£896,240
Winner's share£200,000
Highest breakEngland Ronnie O'Sullivan (140)
Final
ChampionScotland Graeme Dott
Runner-upEngland Peter Ebdon
Score18–14
← 2005
2007 →

The 2006 World Snooker Championship (also referred to as the 2006 888.com World Snooker Championship for the purposes of sponsorship) was a professional ranking snooker tournament that was held at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England. It was scheduled to take place from 15 April through 1 May 2006, but continued into the early hours of 2 May 2006, ending at 12:52 am BST. The final broke the record of the time for the latest finish in a World Snooker Championship final, at over half an hour later than the 1985 final, which finished at 12:20 a.m., although it was not the longest ever final.

Shaun Murphy was the defending champion, but he lost in the quarter-finals against eventual runner-up Peter Ebdon and became another World Champion who fell to the Crucible curse and could not defend his first World title.[1]

The final was contested between Ebdon and Graeme Dott, and the victor was Dott by 18 frames to 14, earning him his first professional title in his 12-year career, and a £200,000 cheque. The tournament was sponsored by online casino 888.com.

Tournament summary

Sponsorship

  • Following new EU and UK legislation banning tobacco advertising, the 2006 World Snooker Championship could not be sponsored by Embassy as had been the case for the previous three decades. In January 2006 World Snooker – the sport's governing body – announced that the online casino 888.com would be the new sponsors of the event in the next five years.[2][3]
  • However, this decision has led to conflict with some players who lost income from their own personal sponsors (seen on their waistcoats), who are rival firms of 888.com.[4] Concerns were expressed among the sport's elite at the decrease in prize money and also in the number of ranking events (down to six for the 2005/06 season) since the loss of tobacco sponsorship.[5] For the 2006 World Championship the winner's cheque was down 20% on what it was in 2005.[6]

Pre-final

  • Barry Hawkins made his Crucible debut this year.[7] This was the first time that just one player made his Crucible debut.[8]
  • Paul Hunter's first round defeat to Neil Robertson would turn out to be his last match as a professional.[9] He was playing in pain from chemotherapy treatment for a rare form of stomach cancer.[10][11] He eventually died of the disease on 9 October 2006.[12]
  • In the last frame of the first round match between Stephen Hendry and Nigel Bond, Bond potted the black for what would have been a win, but the cue ball dropped in a middle pocket to tie the frame at 48–48. Bond still won, after the re-spotted black.[13]
  • The Crucible Theatre was evacuated due to a fire alarm. This occurred at the end of a frame 11 in the match between Steve Davis and Shaun Murphy.[14] Meanwhile, on the other table Mark Selby was playing Mark Williams and was on a break of 26 when required to leave.[15]
  • Ronnie O'Sullivan compiled the highest break of the tournament with a 140 in his 13–10 win over Ryan Day.[16]
  • In the quarter-finals Graeme Dott was 12–8 up with only one more frame required to reach the semi-final of the tournament. First time quarter-finalist Neil Robertson then won the next four frames to level the match at 12–12 and take the match to the deciding frame,[17][18] which Graeme won, after Neil was left needing a snooker with only the pink and black left and ended up accidentally potting the pink instead of setting up a snooker.[19]
  • Marco Fu defeated Ken Doherty 13–10 and became the first player from Asia, since James Wattana in 1997, to reach the semi-finals.[20]
  • Defending world champion Shaun Murphy lost to Peter Ebdon in the quarter-finals.[16] This was the second year in a row that Peter Ebdon defeated the defending world champion in the quarter-finals.[21]
  • In the semi-finals Ebdon was 15–9 up and needed just 2 frames to go through to the final. Fu won the next six frames to level the match at 15–15. Eventually Ebdon won 17–16, playing the final balls with tears in his eyes.[22]
  • The tip of O'Sullivan's cue came off during the 14th frame of his semi-final match with Dott. There was a 15-minute break for emergency repairs, after which O'Sullivan made a 124 break.[23] Dott won all 8 frames of the third session of the semi-final, going from 8–8 to 16–8.[24] He eventually won 17–11 to enter his second World Championship final.[25]
  • Ebdon became the first player to reach the final without meeting a top 16 player. Murphy was the top seed as the reigning World Champion, but was not ranked within the top 16.[26]
  • To date this is Jimmy White's last appearance in the World Championships.[citation needed]

Final

  • With intense tactical play from both players, the first session saw only six frames played, and the first day's play continued until 12:45 am. The third session on the second day also finished after only six frames.
  • In the 24th frame as Peter Ebdon was attempting to pot the green ball, when clearing up the colours, he got a kick. The green, however, potted after hitting the jaws of the pocket. Ebdon reacted by doing a little pirouette movement and said jokingly to the Crucible crowd "now you know why I get them wiped so often!"
  • The 27th frame was the longest in Crucible history and the longest televised frame on record at that time, lasting 74 minutes. It was won by Ebdon 66–59, reducing his arrears to 12–15. The following frame was won by Ebdon 84–0 in 11 minutes, the quickest of the final.
  • Dott won his first frame of the evening session in the 29th frame, when Ebdon went in-off and conceded the frame, over five hours since winning his last frame and led 16–13.
  • Ebdon won frame 30, as the tournament entered its eighteenth day, with the record for the latest finish looking set to be broken. The 1985 final between Steve Davis and victor Dennis Taylor finished at 12:23 am.
  • Dott made a textbook clearance under tremendous pressure to win frame 31 with the last ball, which he celebrated with a loud "Come on!". The score became 17–14 at 12:22 am.
  • Dott took the closely contested 32nd frame at 12:53 am. to win his first professional tournament. Before potting his last ball, Dott went over to kiss the awaiting trophy. Ebdon joined the minute-long standing ovation for the new champion, later paying personal tribute.

Prize fund

The breakdown of prize money for this year is shown below:[6][16]

Main draw

Shown below are the results for each round. The numbers in parentheses beside some of the players are their seeding ranks (each championship has 16 seeds and 16 qualifiers).[16][27][28] Template:World Snooker Championship Rounds

Preliminary qualifying

The preliminary qualifying rounds for the tournament were for WPBSA members not on the Main Tour and took place on 6 and 7 January 2006 at Pontin's in Prestatyn, Wales.[16][29][30]

Round 1

India David Singh w/d–w/o England Ali Bassiri
England Del Smith 4–5 England Garry Baldrey
England Phil Seaton 5–2 Northern Ireland Dermot McGlinchey
England Les Dodd 2–5 England Tony Knowles
England Neil Selman 5–2 England Stephen Ormerod
England Ian Stark 2–5 Netherlands Gerrit bij de Leij

Round 2

Netherlands Stefan Mazrocis 5–0 England Ali Bassiri
Cyprus Mehmet Husnu 5–2 England Garry Baldrey
England Phil Seaton 0–5 England Tony Knowles
England Neil Selman 0–5 Netherlands Gerrit bij de Leij

Round 3

Netherlands Stefan Mazrocis 5–2 Cyprus Mehmet Husnu
England Tony Knowles 3–5 Netherlands Gerrit bij de Leij

Qualifying

The qualifying rounds 1–3 for the tournament took place between 8 and 13 January 2006 at the at Pontin's in Prestatyn, Wales.[29][31] The final round of qualifying took place between 14 and 15 March 2006 at the same venue.[16][30][32]

Round 1
Best of 19 frames		Round 2
Best of 19 frames		Round 3
Best of 19 frames		Round 4
Best of 19 frames
England Joe Jogia10England Jamie Cope10Republic of Ireland Michael Judge10England Ali Carter10
Scotland Hugh Abernethy3England Joe Jogia7England Jamie Cope4Republic of Ireland Michael Judge5
China Ding Junhui10England Brian Morgan7Scotland Drew Henry9England Barry Hawkins10
England Stuart Mann1China Ding Junhui10China Ding Junhui10China Ding Junhui6
England Nick Dyson10England Matthew Couch10Republic of Ireland Fergal O'Brien10Hong Kong Marco Fu10
Scotland James McBain8England Nick Dyson6England Matthew Couch4Republic of Ireland Fergal O'Brien7
Republic of Ireland David McDonnellw/oEngland Tom Ford10England Dave Harold10England Ian McCulloch9
Malaysia Moh Keen How/dRepublic of Ireland David McDonnell3England Tom Ford8England Dave Harold10
England David Roe10England Lee Spick10England Ricky Walden8England John Parrott10
England Gary Wilkinson9England David Roe6England Lee Spick10England Lee Spick9
England Simon Bedford6England Jimmy Michie8England Mark Selby10England Robert Milkins4
Malta Alex Borg10Malta Alex Borg10Malta Alex Borg4England Mark Selby10
Republic of Ireland Leo Fernandez8England Mike Dunn10England Rory McLeod8England Nigel Bond10
England Judd Trump10England Judd Trump7England Mike Dunn10England Mike Dunn0
Scotland Scott MacKenzie10Scotland Marcus Campbell10England Stuart Bingham10Wales Ryan Day10
Bahrain Habib Subah3Scotland Scott MacKenzie3Scotland Marcus Campbell7England Stuart Bingham7
England Alfie Burden10England Rod Lawler10Wales Dominic Dale6England Anthony Hamilton10
Belgium Bjorn Haneveer9England Alfie Burden7England Rod Lawler10England Rod Lawler8
Wales Darren Morgan8Scotland Jamie Burnett8Malta Tony Drago7Thailand James Wattana10
England David Gilbert10England David Gilbert10England David Gilbert10England David Gilbert6
England Sean Storey4Finland Robin Hull10England Mark Davis10England David Gray10
Netherlands Gerrit bij de Leij10Netherlands Gerrit bij de Leij6Finland Robin Hull7England Mark Davis9
England Adam Davies7England Justin Astley3Northern Ireland Patrick Wallace6England Andy Hicks10
Northern Ireland Mark Allen10Northern Ireland Mark Allen10Northern Ireland Mark Allen10Northern Ireland Mark Allen7
Wales Paul Davies10Pakistan Shokat Ali10Northern Ireland Joe Swail10England Barry Pinches8
China Jin Long9Wales Paul Davies6Pakistan Shokat Ali5Northern Ireland Joe Swail10
England Andrew Norman9England James Tatton10Northern Ireland Gerard Greene10Australia Neil Robertson10
England Gary Wilson10England Gary Wilson8England James Tatton4Northern Ireland Gerard Greene6
England Paul Wykes10Wales Lee Walker2England Adrian Gunnell10England Mark King10
Netherlands Stefan Mazrocis8England Paul Wykes10England Paul Wykes3England Adrian Gunnell5
Republic of Ireland Joe Delaney10England Chris Norbury6England Stuart Pettman10England Michael Holt10
China Liang Wenbo5Republic of Ireland Joe Delaney10Republic of Ireland Joe Delaney8England Stuart Pettman2

Century breaks

Qualifying stage centuries

There were 52 century breaks in the qualifying stage of the World Championship:[30]

Televised stage centuries

There were 46 century breaks in the televised stage of the World Championship.[16][33][34][35]

References

  1. ^ "Reigning champion Murphy hit by the Crucible curse". Western Mail on TheFreeLibrary.com. Retrieved 6 April 2013.
  2. ^ Turner, Chris. "World Professional Championship". cajt.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk. Chris Turner's Snooker Archive. Archived from the original on 16 April 2013. Retrieved 11 May 2012.
  3. ^ "Snooker: Steve's defeat is a right sickener". Daily Record on HighBeam Research. Retrieved 6 April 2013.(subscription required)
  4. ^ Palmer, Bryn (13 April 2006). "Snooker stars in silent protes". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
  5. ^ "Stevens dubs snooker a 'shambles'". BBC Sport. 5 April 2006. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
  6. ^ a b Downer, Chris (2012). Crucible Almanac. p. 130.
  7. ^ "Barry Hawkins at the World Championship". Snooker Database. Retrieved 6 April 2013.
  8. ^ Downer, Chris (2012). Crucible Almanac. p. 142.
  9. ^ "Paul Hunter". The Independent. London. 11 October 2006. Retrieved 28 October 2010.
  10. ^ "Hunter admits to playing in pain". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 April 2013.
  11. ^ Day, Elizabeth; Robertson, Peter (22 October 2006). "I took Paul's hand in mine... it was time to let him go". Daily Mail. London. Retrieved 29 March 2011.
  12. ^ "Doherty tribute to 'great character' Hunter". Daily Mail. London. 10 October 2006. Retrieved 28 October 2010.
  13. ^ Dee, John. "Hendry runs into re-spot of bother as Bond triumphs". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 6 April 2013.
  14. ^ "Its flames and frames at the Cruicible". breakingnews.ie. Retrieved 6 April 2013.
  15. ^ "Alarm bells ring loud for Williams". South Wales Echo on TheFreeLibrary.com. Retrieved 6 April 2013.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g "World Snooker Championship 2006". Global Snooker. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
  17. ^ "Fu ends Doherty's dream of world crown". The Irish Times on HighBeam Research. Retrieved 6 April 2013.(subscription required)
  18. ^ "Neil Robertson at the World Championship". Snooker Database. Retrieved 6 April 2013.
  19. ^ "Snooker: O'Sullivan edges past Williams in duel of the dual champions". The Belfast Telegraph on HighBeam Research. Retrieved 6 April 2013.(subscription required)
  20. ^ "Rocket finally fires up to send Williams crashing out". Western Mail on HighBeam Research. Retrieved 6 April 2013.(subscription required)
  21. ^ Downer, Chris (2012). Crucible Almanac. p. 118.
  22. ^ "Snooker: Ebdon books final sport; Ex-champ edges in after thrilling Fu charge". Sunday Mercury on HighBeam Research. Retrieved 6 April 2013.(subscription required)
  23. ^ "Dott's coach backs Ronnie; O'Sullivan under fire after semi-final tip delay at the Crucible". Coventry Evening Telegraph on HighBeam Research. Retrieved 6 April 2013.(subscription required)
  24. ^ "Snooker: Rocket's blown off course". Birmingham Mail on HighBeam Research. Retrieved 6 April 2013.(subscription required)
  25. ^ "Snooker:Dott dashes Rocket hope; Graeme set up final with Ebdon". Sunday Mercury on HighBeam Research. Retrieved 6 April 2013.(subscription required)
  26. ^ Downer, Chris (2012). Crucible Almanac. p. 120.
  27. ^ "888.com 2006 World Championship". Global Snooker Centre. Archived from the original on 1 July 2007.
  28. ^ Downer, Chris (2012). Crucible Almanac. pp. 62–63.
  29. ^ a b "2006 World Championship Information". Global Snooker Centre. Archived from the original on 12 January 2006. Retrieved 6 April 2013.
  30. ^ a b c "888.com 2006 World Championship Qualifying". Global Snooker Centre. Archived from the original on 3 July 2007.
  31. ^ "2006 World Snooker Championship Rounds 1 to 3 draw". worldsnooker.com. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. Archived from the original on 14 January 2006. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  32. ^ "2006 World Snooker Championship Round 4 draw". worldsnooker.com. World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association. Archived from the original on 24 March 2006. Retrieved 23 June 2012.
  33. ^ "888.com 2006 World Championship Crucible Centuries". Global Snooker Centre. Archived from the original on 3 July 2007.
  34. ^ "Crucible Centuries". Snooker.org. Retrieved 21 May 2013.
  35. ^ Downer, Chris (2012). Crucible Almanac. p. 152.
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