2019 World Snooker Championship

[Odrl]

I'd say yes. That was accurate enough to go in at that speed. Pocket would have spat it out any harder though.

Well, fair enough if you think that. I would expect a very high level of accuracy to be needed for balls to go in along the side cushion at a reasonable pace, but as we see in the video, there was a lot of margin for error on this particular table. I think the two deep screw shots that Trump smashed into the corner pockets early on in the match were fair enough though, it would have been a little harsh for those two to stay out. :smile:

[peterpackage]

There is always a line on just about any decent table where a ball down/near the rail will go in even at pace. The pace just reduces the tolerance and at high pace, it may need to be millimetre perfect

Practice just shooting the cueball straight into pockets from near the cushion at speed and it's amazing how hard they can be hit

[crocodile]

I guess the biggest disappointment this year was that so many of the big favourites were completely out of sorts, particularly O'Sullivan and Allen who had been playing really well this season, and also Selby and Ding of course. As much as people love the underdogs, they can't quite fill the gap when so many top players go out early, especially if all the surprises happen in the same half of the draw, as was the case here. Trump was left as the one and only big favourite in the bottom half fairly early in the event, so most of the excitement was limited to the top half, at least for me.

Same here. If you think about it Trump had quite a bit of jam on it. He just about scraped through against Un-Nooh and from then onwards, due to the above-mentioned unfortunate circumstances, didn't exactly have to contend with the cream of world snooker on the way. Just a thought ....

[Mark187187]

Same here. If you think about it Trump had quite a bit of jam on it. He just about scraped through against Un-Nooh and from then onwards, due to the above-mentioned unfortunate circumstances, didn't exactly have to contend with the cream of world snooker on the way. Just a thought ....

Yeah, I would have liked to see him play Ronnie or Robertson, but (on paper at least) Ding, Maguire and Higgins isn't exactly an easy draw.

[gavpowell]

This is getting silly now:

"The Crucible has seen and entertained all sorts of have-a-go heroes in 43 years of hosting the annual potting jamboree, but has never witnessed a talent like Trump. Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O’Sullivan and Higgins, with 16 world gongs between them, were and remain exceptional players, but they do not come near to what Trump can produce when he is fully loaded."
...
There is only one title in snooker that means anything, and only one place where the legend of snooker players are forged and celebrated. It is what you do at the World Championship that dictates legacy, nothing else even comes close.

- Desmond Kane on the Eurosport website.

Trump's an incredible potter who's now got a very good safety game, but to suggest O'Sullivan can't get near his standard?? And none of the other titles matter? Barry Hearn will be pleased.

[the lone wolf]

Not my favourite player, but it takes some doing to beat up the rest of the world over 17 days!
Well done and congratulations JT!!!

[Mark187187]

This is getting silly now:

"The Crucible has seen and entertained all sorts of have-a-go heroes in 43 years of hosting the annual potting jamboree, but has never witnessed a talent like Trump. Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O’Sullivan and Higgins, with 16 world gongs between them, were and remain exceptional players, but they do not come near to what Trump can produce when he is fully loaded."
...
There is only one title in snooker that means anything, and only one place where the legend of snooker players are forged and celebrated. It is what you do at the World Championship that dictates legacy, nothing else even comes close.

- Desmond Kane on the Eurosport website.

Trump's an incredible potter who's now got a very good safety game, but to suggest O'Sullivan can't get near his standard?? And none of the other titles matter? Barry Hearn will be pleased.

I sort of agree the point made about legacy and the WC. Judd was considered an underachiever and has been panned by pundits and on this forum, and that is no longer the case overnight, based on 4 average and one very good performance in this years WC. Ding Junhui has won more (13 ranking + masters including 2 UKs), but no WC, and is still considered an underachiever, and gets plenty of criticism. If he won a WC his record would suddenly look a hell of a lot better.

[snookerball]

To those criticising the hyperbole around Judd, at the end of the day flair players like him are the games selling point to the outside world. Of course the BBC and Eurosport, who have a vested interest in increased ratings for the sport are going to tout him as the best things like spliced bread. Ronnie isn't getting any younger and World Snooker need someone to sell tickets to events. I'm sure he will win several more titles to be honest.

[gavpowell]

To those criticising the hyperbole around Judd, at the end of the day flair players like him are the games selling point to the outside world. Of course the BBC and Eurosport, who have a vested interest in increased ratings for the sport are going to tout him as the best things like spliced bread. Ronnie isn't getting any younger and World Snooker need someone to sell tickets to events. I'm sure he will win several more titles to be honest.

These people sell themselves - the hyperbole just irritates and serves to devalue someone of unparalleled magnificence like O'Sullivan in full flow. For all his brilliance, Trump made quite a few positional errors, it's just he turned into Alex Higgins and potted them regardless!

[Mark187187]

To those criticising the hyperbole around Judd, at the end of the day flair players like him are the games selling point to the outside world. Of course the BBC and Eurosport, who have a vested interest in increased ratings for the sport are going to tout him as the best things like spliced bread. Ronnie isn't getting any younger and World Snooker need someone to sell tickets to events. I'm sure he will win several more titles to be honest.

But, the only people who see or read this hyperbole are people who choose to watch snooker or to seek out information on it. Would you read the Eurosport or BBC sport snooker pages if you weren't already a fan? If Trump gained the sport more fans during the championship, it is people who happened to tune in and liked what they saw. All the press hype doesn't serve much purpose after the event.

[MrRottweiler]

I admit I have said in the past Judd isn't capable of being a world champion because the difference with the WC over any other tournament is the distance. Best of 19 is the first round and that is the final for a lot of other tournaments so you can never really know how it's going to pan out. You have a lot of frames to play to get over the winning line and need to play the percentage game and play the right shots. Even players like Ronnie and Robertson have the percentage game going on in the background and don't get sucked in to risky pots. I've been shouting at the TV for years when Judd chooses the wrong shot and misses sending balls all over the table and wondering why he doesn't tighten up his safety game. He did that this year and won. I don't recall seeing a single shot he played that wasn't overdoing the risks. He got the pots anyway and never seemed like missing. I don't think I've ever seen a player breeze through the final like that and not let the occasion get the better of them. He really gave it everything and it was nice to see him with his family and manager during the photos. Judd now knows for certain that when he plays like that he is the best in the world so I will be interested to see how this affects his future seasons. He seems like a genuine lad who never complains and is always respectful of other players so I've never disliked him but I always knew he could be devastating if he stopped with the flash shots. Granted he has amazing cue power and it helped him a few times in the final but the fact is you very rarely need such cue power to be able to make frame winning breaks and he showed in the final just how good he is with the soft stuns and run throughs.

[presprout]

He played to a superb standard, and well deserved his win. Shot selection, and safety, were the missing components (previously) that stopped him from being a winner with his amazing ability. He'll never be a favourite of mine though, his cue action does my head in. If I cue'd it up like that I'd be lucky to hit the object ball....and when he's a fraction off his game, that's still a problem for him.

[The Artful Dodger]

His cue action will be his undoing. Granted, when he is on song then he has an excellent game but, he will be affected more than someone that has a good action when not firing on all cylinders. He will not be the type of player that rules the roost for a great length of time but will be sporadic in his greatness.

[Mark187187]

His cue action will be his undoing. Granted, when he is on song then he has an excellent game but, he will be affected more than someone that has a good action when not firing on all cylinders. He will not be the type of player that rules the roost for a great length of time but will be sporadic in his greatness.

Don't agree with this. He's used this cue action for 20+ years, it's automatic, second nature. Its like a professional violinist. They spend 20 years playing in an unnatural position, with their left arm contorted, but it becomes natural, and they don't fall apart under pressure every time they go on stage.

I don't think Judd on an off day is any worse than any one else on an off day, with the exception of Higgins maybe. He got to the final of the WC on his B game, and has won plenty more playing below par.

[ken147]

I admit I have said in the past Judd isn't capable of being a world champion because the difference with the WC over any other tournament is the distance. Best of 19 is the first round and that is the final for a lot of other tournaments so you can never really know how it's going to pan out. You have a lot of frames to play to get over the winning line and need to play the percentage game and play the right shots. Even players like Ronnie and Robertson have the percentage game going on in the background and don't get sucked in to risky pots. I've been shouting at the TV for years when Judd chooses the wrong shot and misses sending balls all over the table and wondering why he doesn't tighten up his safety game. He did that this year and won. I don't recall seeing a single shot he played that wasn't overdoing the risks. He got the pots anyway and never seemed like missing. I don't think I've ever seen a player breeze through the final like that and not let the occasion get the better of them. He really gave it everything and it was nice to see him with his family and manager during the photos. Judd now knows for certain that when he plays like that he is the best in the world so I will be interested to see how this affects his future seasons. He seems like a genuine lad who never complains and is always respectful of other players so I've never disliked him but I always knew he could be devastating if he stopped with the flash shots. Granted he has amazing cue power and it helped him a few times in the final but the fact is you very rarely need such cue power to be able to make frame winning breaks and he showed in the final just how good he is with the soft stuns and run throughs.

He needs the cue power because the countless times he's out of position he needs a power shot to recover the break. He's not a master break builder like O'Sullivan, Higgins, Hendry or Ding.