Latest news with #SNOOKER
The Irish Sun
11-06-2025
- Business
- The Irish Sun
Record-breaking snooker star Jackson Page launches new side hustle after landing £147,000 bonus
SNOOKER star Jackson Page has put his historic £147,000 prize money to good use - and opened up his own shop. The 23-year-old made history earlier this year after becoming the 2 Jackson Page has put his £147,000 bonus to good use Credit: Getty Page achieved the feat during a World Championship qualifying win over Allan Taylor in April. The Welsh star bagged a £147k bonus for his trouble - a figure he Page declared he will use some of the cash to get on the housing ladder. But he's also poured some of the bonus into a new business venture. READ MORE ON SNOOKER Page is now the proud owner of a trading card and collectables shop. He opened AJs Trading Cards in Brynmawr, south Wales, late last month. The store stocks collectables and toys ranging from Pokémon card to Lego. Page told the WST earlier this year: "Everyone on tour knows that I am really into collectable stuff like Pokémon Cards and other things. Most read in Snooker BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK "I just decided it would be great to open up a shop as a bit of a thing on the side. "'It is a bit of an interest for me and something I like to do when I'm not focusing on snooker. Stephen Hendry hails most underrated rival who 'should have won a lot more' "It has been a brilliant experience seeing it open up, I obviously can't work in there as I'm a snooker player but I've got someone to work there and it is a good hobby to have. "We've got all sorts of things in there like Lego sets and Plushies, as well as the trading cards. "We've got a few cards in there worth over £2,000. The most valuable and rare Pokémon card we have is called a Moonbreon." Page is currently ranked as the world No.33. He turned pro in 2019 and this year reached his first final at the Championship League. 2 Despite bagging the huge 147 jackpot, Page claimed he would have swapped the money for a place at the Crucible. The Welshman narrowly missed out on qualifying for the Worlds, losing 10-7 to Joe O'Connor on Judgement Day. Page said: "Obviously the titles mean more than the money, so I'm still gutted. "You've got a chance of winning if you're there and I was here to win the tournament. I'm not now. 'I know this might sound silly but I think I'd rather be at the Crucible. 'Last year I was hammered (by Ronnie O'Sullivan) but I was there. I would like to end there, but I've just got to say to myself that I don't want to play at qualifying again."
The Irish Sun
07-06-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
‘Blessed' – Snooker icon reveals new business venture after becoming third world champ to take residency in Hong Kong
SNOOKER star Neil Robertson has revealed he has taken up residency in Hong Kong. The 2010 world champion has been based in Cambridge with his Norwegian 3 Neil Robertson has revealed why he has moved to Hong Kong Credit: Alamy 3 He becomes the third snooker legend to have a place in Hong Kong Credit: Alamy But on his Asian switch, The Aussie continued in a post written on Chinese social media site Weibo: "This is not only a significant moment for me personally, but also an honour for our entire family. "Hong Kong has always been my blessed land. "I have achieved many great successes here and have forged a deep friendship with this city. READ MORE IN SNOOKER 'This identity will make it easier for me to travel to Hong Kong more frequently and expand business cooperation. "Regarding future development plans in Hong Kong, I have made full preparations and will share them with you soon.' Robertson has followed in The trio have moved following the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme, which aims to attract "highly skilled or talented persons" to Hong Kong to boost the economy. Most read in Snooker BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK O'Sullivan's residency was confirmed in 2019 and The world No1 is dating Hong Kong figure skater and TV presenter 3 Robertson's wife Mille and their kids have residency cards too Credit: Instagram
The Irish Sun
03-05-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
‘Daylight robbery' – Snooker fans fume after being denied Crucible refunds as World Snooker forced to put out statement
SNOOKER fans have been denied a refund despite no play on Saturday afternoon at the Crucible. Zhao Xintong's Advertisement 3 Dennis Taylor and Steve Davis played an exhibition game at the Crucible on Saturday Credit: Alamy 3 Some fans were left unimpressed after shelling out for a ticket to watch Ronnie O'Sullivan Credit: Alamy 3 The Rocket was KO'd by Zhao Xintong on Friday night, leaving the schedule open Credit: Reuters FOLLOW ALL THE CRUCIBLE ACTION WITH OUR LIVE BLOG It meant there was no competitive action during Saturday's afternoon session at the Crucible. An The event ran from 2.30pm until approximately 4pm, including a short interval. Advertisement READ MORE ON SNOOKER The World Snooker Tour said its box office terms and conditions meant it was "unable to offer ticket refunds or exchanges" to fans. But that has not gone down well with spectators expecting to see seven-time champion Responding to the announcement on X, Andy Wilson wrote: "Like both Steve and Dennis but I paid £115 for my seat yesterday. "Endlessly rolling out the old guys isn't an answer today. But WST do like to keep their money. Refunds can and should be made." Advertisement Most read in Snooker Exclusive Another response, from Luigi di Falco, read: "It's pretty much daylight robbery. "Those semi-final tickets were so expensive to not offer refunds you should be ashamed." BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK While a third fan fumed: "£143 to watch Dennis & Steve play a s*** exhibition frame and waffle on about 1985 for an hour & a half. Advertisement "And no refunds offered from @WeAreWST. SHOCKING on both parts!" Ronnie O'Sullivan's match descends into chaos as table BREAKS during World Snooker Championship semi-final In a statement released to the PA news agency, the WST said: "We are putting together a fantastic exhibition this afternoon featuring all-time snooker legends. "We realise that fans come from all over the world to enjoy the Crucible experience so our intention is to provide the best possible entertainment in these circumstances. "This is the first time in over a decade that a semi-final has finished a session early. Advertisement "It is a very rare occurrence and unfortunately beyond our control." World Snooker Championship 2025 WE are now into the final days of what has been a THRILLING World Snooker Championship! A new world champion will be crowned this year after Heavyweights such as John Higgins and Mark Selby have also fallen as we head to the final on Sunday and Monday. In the other semi-final, World No 1 and tournament favourite You can follow every frame of the tournament LIVE - plus the latest news, interviews and reaction - as it happens with our dedicated BLOG. Latest News Snooker Explained FULL schedule and results for 2025 How much prize money can be won? Who are the BBC snooker presenters and pundits? What is on Zhao Xintong's bowtie? Zhao, 28, will face either Williams put together a strong run during Saturday's morning session, taking control of the match. He leads 13-11 going into this evening's session, which begins at 7pm. Advertisement
The Irish Sun
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
‘What did he say?' – Luke Littler leaves pals open-mouthed with cheeky four-word reply to girl in live video
LUKE LITTLER left his pals stunned with a cheeky reply during an Angry Ginge show. The darts star appeared alongside his pal at Baller League for matchday six. 3 Luke Littler had a cheeky reply to Jolie Sharpe Credit: X 3 He left his pals stunned with the comment Credit: X 3 Jolie wanted to know what was said as everyone started laughing Credit: X Angry Ginge is the manager of Yanited at the six-aside tournament and he invited The pair appeared in a stream together, with Baller League presenter Jolie Sharpe making a cameo appearance. Jolie made her introductions to Littler, saying: "Hi, I've never met you but I think you're really good at darts. Littler cheekily hit back, saying: "Do you? Yeah chill begging it." READ MORE IN SNOOKER That left his co-hosts stunned, with some breaking out in laughter. Fans watching on were also left a little shocked by Littler's retort. One reacted saying: "What a man." Another added: "What a lad." Most read in Darts BEST ONLINE CASINOS - TOP SITES IN THE UK A third wrote: "Some boy 🤣" And another commented: "Yeah he's goated 😭" Man Utd legend Wayne Rooney cheers on Luke Littler at Premier League Darts in Manchester
The Irish Sun
22-04-2025
- Sport
- The Irish 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 1 Zhao Xintong has revealed he has had a major eye surgery Credit: Alamy Xintong, 28, is third favourite for the title – at odds of 9-2 – behind Yet the elephant in the room is the 20-month suspension he served after he was done for betting breaches in a Xintong hit a 142 in frame five of '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. READ MORE IN SNOOKER '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. Most read in Snooker CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS '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.' FOLLOW ALL THE ACTION FROM THE CRUCIBLE WITH OUR WORLD SNOOKER CHAMPIONSHIP 2025 BLOG HERE 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. 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
