National news
UK Championship Snooker
It’s often joked that to find a sport where Britain dominates you need look no further than the local pub. Of course, whether you consider Darts and Snooker to be sports is an interesting debate. But there can be no doubt about the level of skill, patience, perseverance and steady nerves you need to play either game at the highest level.
So, while our members continue to enjoy playing in clubs and tournaments up and down the country, we’ll keep showcasing the best qualifiers and events near you.
On 26 November the UK Snooker Championship starts. The perfect place for experts, novices and the uninitiated to observe two weeks of nail-biting entertainment from the comfort of your own home.
The History of the Championship
The Championship was first held in Blackpool in 1977, open to only UK and Irish competitors. It’s since moved around the country several times and currently resides in York. It opened up to overseas competitors in 1984, although this doesn’t seem to have had much impact on the finals with only 5 out of the 42 winners coming from outside the UK.
The Rocket
The current champion and holder of the most titles is Ronnie ‘the rocket’ O’Sullivan. So called because of his lightning-fast play. This, together with his exciting style and natural ability to play left and right-handed, makes him a crowd favourite.
Nicknames are part and parcel of the snooker world, with every player having at least one. Such reflective and descriptive monikers include: Hurricane, Nugget, Golden Bairn, Cimla Quiff, Grinder and even Dracula. You get the idea.
Thanks to its simplicity, accessibility, inclusivity and spectator-friendly action for both TV and live audiences, snooker continues to grow in popularity around the world. This, coupled with several UK Champions winning in their late 40s, means you can be a world-class professional sportsperson for decades.
Get Involved
If you’d like to have a go or perhaps watch a local tournament, why not check out ‘snooker’ in our get active section, or type in ‘snooker’ in the search bar. Alternatively, if you’d rather watch the Championship on TV and you’re one of the 7,000 people still using a black and white set, we offer 8% cash back at several electrical retailers.
