The absence of Ronnie

[DannyC]

Ronnie is great to watch, however snooker is bigger than ROS. Robertson, Ding, Murphy, Trump are equally as entertaining (possibly in different areas) and all in the PL.

[Gerry Armstrong]

And make sure you tune in at half 6 on SS2, before the PL Snooker there is a tribute to the Voice of Darts.

[Particle Physics]

Ronnie is great to watch, however snooker is bigger than ROS. Robertson, Ding, Murphy, Trump are equally as entertaining (possibly in different areas) and all in the PL.

I can't agree with this in total. The other players are entertaining but the quality isn't as high as it would be with ROS. Imagine if Usain Bolt had missed the games, would the sprint results be worth a bean?

[nrage]

I can't agree with this in total. The other players are entertaining but the quality isn't as high as it would be with ROS. Imagine if Usain Bolt had missed the games, would the sprint results be worth a bean?

That's a bad analogy. Has Bolt ever lost a 100m race since rising to the top of his sport? If he has (I can't say I've followed his career closely) what percentage of them does he lose/win. Compare that to ROS's frame win/loss ratio against players in the top 16/32/64.. not in the same ballpark I believe you'll find.

[Edit #1]
I can't find non-international results, but for international:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usain_B...etition_record
Usain hasn't lost anything since before 2008 (barring the one disqualification).

Can you really say the same is true of any snooker player?

[Edit #2]
Ok, my bad, I should have read more of this thread and gotten the context

You probably can compare ROS's performance in the Premier League with Usain Bolt's on the track.

[coomsey76]

Ronnie is great to watch, however snooker is bigger than ROS. Robertson, Ding, Murphy, Trump are equally as entertaining (possibly in different areas) and all in the PL.

I would totally agree with you there bud.....

I love to watch Ronnie play and when he's in full swing its amazing to watch, but there is also a lot talent out there in so many different ways. I'd watch Ronnie play all day but I can also appreciate all the other great players out there as well!!

[coomsey76]

And make sure you tune in at half 6 on SS2, before the PL Snooker there is a tribute to the Voice of Darts.

Now watching it, what a truly great commentator....

R.I.P Sid Waddell

[Odrl]

I don't really care whether O'Sullivan is in it or not, because I don't plan to watch much of the League.

I did miss him in proper tournaments though, but I miss every top player when they are absent. I missed Higgins as well, and I would miss someone like Murphy or Maguire if they didn't enter events. :wink:

[PaddyLowson]

I think that this actually could be a positive for the Premier League. I freely admit that one of the reasons for my inconsistent interest was because it's quite clearly become a one man show in recent years.

Having the ten man league I think will work well it gives the format a bit more credibility, even if I do think that matches should be curtailed if someone has a 4-0, or 4-1 lead.

[renniwevarb]

Yes I do agree that snooker is not Ronnie, but Ronnie is a big part of snooker.

Just can't help but be expectant when you are going to watch him play. It feels like he is going to try his very best to make a 147 every time he comes to the table. That may jolly well not be true, but this is just what I feel when I watch him play.

People from this part of the world where I am relates to that. When I talk to people who doesn't know much about snooker, the names of players they can rattle off would either be Stephen Hendry or Ronnie O'Sullivan. The experienced players all marvel at the way he makes this game look so simple.

So I would say that there is certainly something missing when you don't have Ronnie in the tournament, although I like watching John Higgins and Mark Selby.

[Particle Physics]

Not having Ronnie in PLS or any major snooker competition is like the Queen attending functions without any underwear on; it's just wrong!

Folk have said snooker has moved on. Really? Who's the World Champion? Snooker has moved on since Hendry and Davis yes, but Ronnie is still the greatest player on earth, the best player of all time. How has snooker moved on? Even if he retired tomorrow, I wouldn't call it moving on, I'd call it going backwards. Selby and co. may be efficient operators, but there aren't many players who can equal Ronnie's shotmaking, break-building and all round game and no-one in the history of the game has as much talent. Judd still has a long way to go, but he's the only one in my mind who can ever own snooker the way Ronnie does right now.

Ronnie is the like the Arnie of snooker, wiping out the robots sent from the future to destroy the game.

[armstm]

Trump is close to being as entertaining but the others not really. Ronnie has a combination of beautiful break building and vulnerability under pressure that is box office gold

[SnookerFan]

Not having Ronnie in PLS or any major snooker competition is like the Queen attending functions without any underwear on; it's just wrong!

How would you know?

[Particle Physics]

How would you know?

Just close your eyes and image that old lady without underwear on....................

[SnookerFan]

Not having Ronnie in PLS or any major snooker competition is like the Queen attending functions without any underwear on; it's just wrong!

Folk have said snooker has moved on. Really? Who's the World Champion? Snooker has moved on since Hendry and Davis yes, but Ronnie is still the greatest player on earth, the best player of all time. How has snooker moved on? Even if he retired tomorrow, I wouldn't call it moving on, I'd call it going backwards. Selby and co. may be efficient operators, but there aren't many players who can equal Ronnie's shotmaking, break-building and all round game and no-one in the history of the game has as much talent. Judd still has a long way to go, but he's the only one in my mind who can ever own snooker the way Ronnie does right now.

Ronnie is the like the Arnie of snooker, wiping out the robots sent from the future to destroy the game.

What point are you trying to make? That the sport can't survive without the World Champion? That the World Champion is the sports biggest name? Seriously, I don't understand what Ronnie being World Champion has to do with this discussion one bit.

What about the years he didn't win it. Was Neil Robertson a bigger name than Ronnie when he won the 2010 World Championship?

[SnookerFan]

Just close your eyes and image that old lady without underwear on....................

I'd have sex with The Queen. Not because I'd want to. But imagine you could hand over a fiver in a shop and go; "I've had her." The bragging rights would be immense.