The Snookerbacker Blog

Keeping everyone guessing

It’s time once more to look forward to what we have in store on the baize in the coming few weeks. February is a month which sees play in three ranking events and the exciting culmination of the 2013 Snookerbacker Classic, which will see a new champion crowned in the tournament that nobody wants to come back and defend. Oh, and the last day I am sure will have journos far and wide in a right old lather as to which pre-written story they will post to the editor about the bloke on your right.

The first event of the month actually starts next Wednesday in Berlin as the fantastic German Masters enters its third season. I’m pleased to say that Mrs Snookerbacker and I have kept a promise we have been making to ourselves to combine a winter break in Berlin with a bit of top class snooker. We’ll be attending the event at the Tempodrom from the final Friday and we’re both really looking forward to it, as well as a nice break in one of the best cities in the world. Bring on the vegetarian sausages for me and the famed Currywurst for Mrs SB.

The day after this finishes, while we’re still in Berlin over-indulging in all things German it’s once again back to the Championship League at Crondon Park for the next installment of the armchaired snooker brigade and while all this is coming to an end the Welsh Open Qualifiers get underway leading to the main event itself from Newport on the 11th February.

It’s got a lot of history has the Welsh (I was so tempted to call it the Regal Welsh then), it somehow always reminds me of snooker in the 1980′s in the tone of its coverage. It just has something of a nostalgic, cosy feel and I was totally against the shortening of the matches and I remain so. It’s odd to think that nowadays there isn’t a tournament that plays best of nine frames at venues in the UK when this used to be the norm, I don’t think changing it back to this slightly longer and more enjoyable format and admitting it was a mistake to shorten it in the first place (which it was) effectively turning it into a glorified PTC is too much to ask. They could always just do away with mid session intervals to make it different.

Moving on, the 10th of February is the last day you can vote for the blog in the Shorty Awards on Twitter, strangely it now has an outside chance of actually doing very well so please take the time to vote if you feel the urge, it would be greatly appreciated and retweeted, to the immense and frankly hilarious annoyance of a great many of my followers, but sod them as I just want to win.

You can follow these instructions and tweet your vote.

Anyway, on the day of the Welsh final which thankfully they haven’t shortened to Best of 7, I am hosting this year’s Last Chance Saloon for the Snookerbacker Classic in Gloucester; the event that will decide this year’s eighth and final Grand Finalist. It will be the first event that I have tried with unlimited numbers so wish me luck with that, all matches will be the best of five frames (and I talk about Bazza shortening matches…). You can read more about this event which has extra prizes on offer here including details of how you can enter and grab that final qualifying slot.

Following this, we head back to Leeds for Grand Finals Day, which will decide who succeeds The MO’D as this year’s Snookerbacker Classic Champion and also who wins the two main prizes, so all in all it’s a pretty big week for amateur snooker in the UK.

Whooooo are you? Who Who Who Who, will be crowned the new SB Classic Champ?

The end of the month sees the top boys travelling back to the land of the dead cats and the World Open. Mark Allen will defend the title he won last season despite hating every second he spent there. I hope for the sake of the organisers that the toilet facilities have improved, the locals aren’t as ignorant and that the place has been thoroughly cleared of dead moggies or Marky will not be a happy bunny.

As a further twist and something which I am sure will attract the journos a lot more than the snooker ever could, the final day of the second month sees the deadline for entering the World Championship and we wait with baited breath to see if there will be more than one O’Sullivan in the hat, I reckon Sean will enter so it’s probably all about the other geezer, I forget his name.

And that’s or rather this is February…

FEBRUARY

Betfair German Masters
January 30 to February 3
Tempodrom, Berlin 

Championship League 3
February 4-7
Crondon Park 

Welsh Open qualifiers
February 6-9
World Snooker Academy, Sheffield. 

Deadline for voting for the blog in the Shorty Awards for Best Blog
February 10
Click here to find out how to vote

Welsh Open
February 11-17
Newport Centre 

Snookerbacker Classic Final Qualifying Heat
February 17
South West Snooker Academy, Gloucester.

Snookerbacker Classic Finals Day
February 22
Northern Snooker Centre, Leeds

Haikou World Open
February 25 to March 3
Hainan, China

World Championship Entry Deadline
February 28
No Fixed Abode.