No plans to honour Hunter at The Masters

[Hendry the 8th]

From the BBC Snooker website: -

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/othe...er/6232319.stm

I am very disappointed about this. Paul won the tournament three times in four years and not only that, he won each of his titles 10-9 after being behind.

I would have thought that the least they could have done was to name the trophy after him.

It seems that Paul is being forgotten already - World Snooker might want to forget him but his memory will always live on with me.

I think about him every day and I miss him more every day. I still can't believe he has gone.

[Skypigeon]

Me too...it's not right....I would have thought they would honour him by renaming the Masters...was hoping for it...VERY disappointing!!

[PaulTheSoave]

It does not surprise me as this World snooker board is total cr*p in every department!

[Skypigeon]

well I guess I had a little more faith in the WSB than you PTS.....Looks like it didn't help much....

[Nina]

I wonder why they won't rename the Masters. I couldn't help noticing in the BBC article the mention of the decision and the sponsors in the same paragraph, could it be them who object?

[Ginger Freak]

Lets get this into perspective here, why would they re-name a tournament as prestigious as the Masters after a player?

If Phil Taylor died tomorrow, would they re-name the World Championships the Phil Taylor Classic?

If Roger Federer died tomorrow, would they re-name Wimbledon the Roger Federer Open?

Many great players have died and never had a tournament named after them, so it still shows what a getsture it is to re-name the German championships in his memory. Not only that, but it will give added exposure to a 'minor' event, and can only help the exposure of the game in Germany.

Besides, The Paul Hunter Masters sounds a little tacky to me.. (Granted, the Saga Insurance Masters is probably even worse but still....)

[Hendry the 8th]

I wasn't hoping they'd name the tournament after him - I thought it would be nice if the winner of The Masters was awarded say the Paul Hunter Memorial Trophy, or something like that.

[PaulTheSoave]

I agree the trophy could have been named after him, not necessarily a tournament.

[Ginger Freak]

I wasn't hoping they'd name the tournament after him - I thought it would be nice if the winner of The Masters was awarded say the Paul Hunter Memorial Trophy, or something like that.

Yes, I can see that would have worked, but how long are they going to hang on to the trophy for? It is a pretty rubbish trophy after all!

All this reminds me of my club's summer handicap, one year it was decided to name the tournament after a popular old member who had recently gone to the great snooker hall in the sky. The final, which I was involved in, was attended by his family members from all over the country, and everyone concluded that it was a fitting tribute to the man.

Six months later, another popular member went to join Big Bill Werbenuik and Eddie Charlton in the Heavens and the commitie decided that the next tournament shall be re-named in his honour. Unsurprisingly, the original chap's family were up in arms about this, and hae boycotted the club ever since.

Guess what has happened this year??!!

[The Statman]

Actually, and I may be letting myself in for some stick here, I am not going to be so hard on the Association.

A far more fitting memorial, to my mind, would be a charity event which would not only remember the bloke, but put some cash to a relevant cause as well.

OK, Paul three times won the Masters, but other players have won three Masters and Stephen Hendry has won double that. I realise this is the first time the sport has lost a player at the peak of his career, but even so, I think a new event would be the best thing – particularly since the Masters is an established event.

I know what you're saying about the trophy rather than the tournament itself, but I'm not so sure that it would be the right way to go.

[PaulTheSoave]

The most important thing is to remember what a great player he was and the entertainment he gave us. I come to mind that the rest is actual trivial to me.

[gingerale]

Former World Champion John Spencer died of cancer in 2006. He won the first Masters, formerly the Benson & Hedges Masters, in 1975. So what about him if they'd have renamed the trophy or tournament?

Concerning the German tournament it's a gesture that will definitely help the exposure of the game, as Ginger_Freak put it.

I consider the Paul Hunter sholarship a very good thing that will help upcoming players and will remain the player Paul Hunter unforgotten. So this is about help and the future of the game, not just about the name of a tournament.

As Jimmy Whiteis quoted in the BBC article, I'm sure whoever wins the Masters this year will dedicate it to Paul Hunter. And possibly commemorate John Spencer, too.

[Ellena]

To be honest i never expected them to do smth about this , rename the tournament or the trophy after Paul , but i am glad at least the German Open is now Paul Hunter Classics .
@ Statman , it is true there are other who also won the Masters 3 times , like Steve Davis , and is also true that Hendo won it more than 3 times , but the only difference between them and Hunter is that Paul is not longer here to be able to win it again. I don't see it like who won more deserves better to be mentioned in a title of a tournament , and i don't see either why tournaments once named after a great player has to change their name again once another one grater than the other , unfortunately, dies .
Maybe not the best example , but we have a stadium in Bucharest named after a great Romanian athlete - Lia Manoliu , she's not competing anymore , we had other great athletes in time , but the name of the Stadium is still the same.
I agree there are other great names who passed away , but i am pretty sure no other death shook the snooker world the way Paul's did. Maybe that is not enough to rename a tournament like Masters after him , but smth has to be done to keep his memory alive , as he was a great player.

Ginger , you mentioned the scholarship - it is a fantastic idea!

[rich45]

The scholarship is a good idea, but naming the German Open (??) after him is hardly fitting. What connection did Paul have to this German Open? It was his Masters triumphs which he will be remembered for, and any memorial should have been Masters-related, e.g. naming the trophy after him like Paulthesoave suggested.

Honestly, the German Open??

[Miss_S]

The scholarship is a good idea, but naming the German Open (??) after him is hardly fitting. What connection did Paul have to this German Open? It was his Masters triumphs which he will be remembered for, and any memorial should have been Masters-related, e.g. naming the trophy after him like Paulthesoave suggested.

Honestly, the German Open??

I absolutely agree that the Masters trophy should have been renamed,as this was the tournament poeple connected him to the most.

I think the decision to rename the German Open to honour Paul Hunter's memory is a great tribute,and also a smart move.
By associating it with a very popular player who helped popularizing snooker in the German speaking countries by playing in the tournament, it can boost interest around the game and around the tournament.
By renaming the event the organizers acknowledge Paul's role in promoting the sport in Germany (and internationally), as he was a very popular player in Germany.