2015 Masters Round 1 Mon 12th Jan

Judd Trump (Eng) 4-6 Stephen Maguire (Sco)


Neil Robertson (Aus) 6-4 Robert Milkins (Eng)

Stephen Maguire and Neil Robertson reached the Masters quarter-finals, both with 6-4 wins at Alexandra Palace.

Judd Trump, among the favourites after reaching last month's UK Championship final, capitulated against Maguire having won the first two frames.

World number one Robertson was made to work hard against Robert Milkins, after losing the opening frame.

Australian Robertson, who last won the Masters title in 2012, recorded three successive frames to seal victory.

In the earlier game, 25-year-old Trump, from Bristol, watched Maguire win four consecutive frames which included a break of 96.


World number seven Trump levelled, but let the Scot, 33, back in. The match turned in the third frame with Maguire just avoiding going 3-0 down.

After fighting back to go 5-4 ahead, Maguire was gifted the chance for victory - which he took with a run of 64 - in the 10th frame when Trump missed a simple black off the spot as he focused on shattering the pack of reds to all corners.

"How I was 2-2 at the interval, I'll never know," Maguire told BBC Sport, as he looked forward to meeting Shaun Murphy, conqueror of world champion Mark Selby, in the last eight.

"I think it will be a good match against Murphy. We've had some right good games in the past."

2015 Masters Round 1 Sun 11th Jan

Mark Selby (Eng) 5-6 Shaun Murphy (Eng)

World champion Mark Selby was knocked out in the first round of the Masters as he was beaten 6-5 by Shaun Murphy.

Murphy, 32, held a 5-1 lead, before fellow Englishman Selby won four frames, including a break of 120, to level the scores at Alexandra Palace.


But 2012 runner-up Murphy took the decider to reach the quarter-finals.


It was the first match of the 16-man competition, with England's Stuart Bingham taking on Hong Kong's Marco Fu at 19:00 GMT.


Selby, 31, lost the 2014 Masters final to Ronnie O'Sullivan, before defeating him last May to win the World Championship for the first time.

Stuart Bingham (Eng) 3-6 Marco Fu (HK)

Hong Kong's Marco Fu made a maximum 147 break during his 6-3 first-round win against England's Stuart Bingham on the opening day of the Masters.

World number 10 Fu compiled the third maximum of his career in the fourth frame of his game at Alexandra Palace.

He made two further century breaks, both worth 103.

In the quarter-finals of the 16-man tournament, Fu will face reigning champion Ronnie O'Sullivan or Ricky Walden, who play on Tuesday.

Fu, who has won two ranking events in his career, reached the final of the Masters in 2011, but lost 10-4 against China's Ding Junhui.

Reports on UK Championship Final Sun 7th Dec

Four-time champion Ronnie O'Sullivan opened up a 5-3 lead over Judd Trump in the final of the UK Championship.

Both players were knocking in superb long pots early on but it was O'Sullivan who stroked in 82 as he went 3-1 ahead at the interval.

   "Absolute poop so far, need to play 10 times better to have a chance," Trump tweeted during the break in York.

But O'Sullivan punished mistakes to go 5-2 up, with Trump taking the last frame ahead of the evening's session.

Trump said prior to the final that he needs to play 'perfect' snooker to beat O'Sullivan, but unexpected misses and poor safety shots allowed his opponent to capitalise.

'The Rocket' was barely at his best but the Bristol man needs a considerable improvement to overturn the deficit against the best frontrunner in the game - although it could have been much worse at 5-1 down.

The sixth frame typified Trump's performance in the match thus far, doing all the hard work before missing a routine red into the middle, allowing O'Sullivan to clear up and guaranteeing himself a lead going into the final session.

A tactical seventh frame went Trump's way, and he clinched the vital eighth to stay in touch before the resumption at 19:00 GMT.

Ronnie O'Sullivan withstood an epic Judd Trump comeback to claim a fifth UK Championship title with a 10-9 victory.

O'Sullivan led from the off and went 5-1 ahead in the first session, before Trump pulled two frames back to stay within touching distance.

He then fell 9-4 behind but a superb revival saw Trump emerge from the brink, making breaks of 120 and 127 to level the contest at 9-9.

But Trump fouled from a snooker in the last allowing O'Sullivan to triumph.

"That is the hardest match I have ever played," O'Sullivan told BBC Sport. "I was going through the motions and accepted I was going to get beaten.

"I didn't know what day it was but I found something towards the end and was able to hold my position."

O'Sullivan - who has now won every UK final in which he has appeared - was the highest-ranked player left in the tournament after the surprise exits of world champion Mark Selby, defending champion Neil Robertson and Chinese number one Ding Junhui.

He broke his ankle while running before the tournament and was in significant discomfort in the early rounds, but the pain seemed to ease as he progressed through each match, compiling a magnificent maximum 147 break in the quarter-final.

The 39-year-old looks to be getting better with age and his success in the competition comes 21 years after winning it for the first time in 1993.

He has now won each of the UK, World and Masters titles on five occasions. His 27th ranking win leaves him one behind Steve Davis and nine behind Hendry in the all-time list.

This match up was billed as two players with attacking and aesthetic styles, and O'Sullivan was running away with it at 9-4 before Trump mounted a brilliant comeback.

But a lack of composure when in amongst the balls early on caused the damage, enabling O'Sullivan to pick him off.

"When your opponent is dishing up every time, it is demoralising and dents your confidence," said Trump.

"Towards the end I let go and I made a good clearance to go 9-9. I felt so relaxed and was waiting for the chance in the last but the good safety won it for him."

The pair met in the Champion of Champions final last month, with O'Sullivan emerging victorious after an outstanding performance in which he made four centuries and their first head-to-head ranking event final turned into a classic.

'The Rocket' was barely at his best yet managed to open up a 5-1 advantage, before Trump clinched the vital seventh and eighth frames to stay in touch.

He could have closed to within a frame but could only muster 48 and 56 in subsequent frames, and instead O'Sullivan's counter-attacking clearances put him 7-3 in front.

Trump pulled one back but O'Sullivan made his first century of the match - the 770th of his career - and took the next to go one away from victory.

World number 11 Trump said ahead of this encounter that he had to play 'perfect' snooker to beat O'Sullivan and remarkably, he found another gear to win five consecutive frames including two centuries and 86 to force a decider.

O'Sullivan had the first chance in the final frame but made only 20. Trump, though, could only respond with 14.

But O'Sullivan's excellent safety laid the platform for a match winning 51 break to lift the trophy and collect the £150,000 prize money, plus £44,000 for his 147.

The Masters 2015 1st Round Draw

Allen/Trump v Higgins*

Bingham v Fu

Allen/Trump v Maguire*

O'Sullivan v Walden

Robertson v Milkins

Selby v Murphy

Hawkins v Carter

Ding v Perry 

Ties to be confirmed later today

How I saw the UK Championship Final on Sun 7th Dec

Ronnie O'Sullivan 5-3 Judd Trump (best of 19 frames first to 10 is the UK Champion)

Frame 1: Ronnie starts with a 14 break after losing concentration on a pot, Judd the young pretender at the table on a break of 23 with 6 reds left, a few heavy contacts not helping Judd's positional play. He moves to 40 tried to disturb the pink & black didn't quite work.

Break ends on 44 after an attempt to nudge a red into a pottable position which almost worked out it was very close according to Stephen Hendry in the BBC Sport commentary booth. A safety battle at the moment, 3 reds left Judd leads by 30 with 51 on the table.

Ronnie with a beauty of a long pot gets on the black too cracking pot, the Rocket makes 13 after he misses a red gasps from the Barbican crowd in York.

Ronnie puts Judd behind the blue which Judd gets out of but sticks the red into a pottable position for Ronnie. The Rocket then takes the frame a tight one & leads 1-0.


Frame 2: Judd starts with a trademark long pot, break ends on 37 after a missed pink in the middle, Ronnie responds with 32. Judd knocks in another cracking red, and he gets over the line with a break of 50. 1-1.


Frame 3: 21 to start from Ronnie didn't come far enough to get position on the next red, Judd didn't make any addition to his score so Ronnie back in, clinches the frame in double quick time with a break of 82, 2-1 to the Rocket.


Frame 4: Another brilliant pot for Judd opening red but unfortunately he ran out of posiiton stuck on a red in the pack, Ronnie pots a red no colour available plays safe on the top cushion.

Judd makes only 6, Ronnie looking to take a 2 frame lead into the mid session interval, not yet he won't only a break of 12.

Judd sticks Ronnie behind the yellow, hits it 2nd time. Judd thin cuts a red into the corner can't get good position at the moment on a colour, nominates pink goes in-off.

100% long pot success for both players so far, Ronnie looking to make this a 2 frame lead now, a break of 48 clinches the frame for the Rocket.

After just over an hour it's 3-1 to Ronnie.


Frame 5: Ronnie opens up after the interval with a nice red, uncharateristic miss on the black from Ronnie on 6, Judd tweeted saying he felt he didn't play very well in the first 4 frames he misses an easy red, Ronnie makes a plant and is on his way, missed red in the right middle on 28.

Judd potted a nice red missed cannon on the black, eventually nominated the green, foul called, Ronnie elects for Judd to play from the same place & the black is hit this time.

Long pot number 7 in for Ronnie, cluster of 5 reds which Ronnie tried to open but missed the cannon, finds a plant makes it & seals the frame with a break of 81, it's 4-1 to the Rocket.


Frame 6: Safety shot goes wrong for Judd, Ronnie with an easy starter, 33 break for Ronnie, Judd pots the red Ronnie missed, blue goes in cannons into the pack not a lot on, plays safe,

O'Sullivan makes 8 has a 35 point lead in the frame.

Judd pots two cracking balls red & yellow gets the luck this time with a nice kiss on the red to open up a chance for his 2nd frame, misses a red in the right middle on 43, too much pace.

Ronnie wins the frame punishes Judd for a careless miss, it's 5-1.


Frame 7: Ronnie played a good safety but Judd found a red & he needs a confidence building, frame winning break here only 19 red over the left corner.

Rare miss on 16 for Ronnie, Judd gets a heavy contact missed black hard luck.

Bout of safety, Judd gives 4 away nice connection 2nd time around, nice pot on the red & position was good, Judd needs to win this frame in my opinion to give himself a chance in this final.

46 gets to snookers required stage, misses the red to definitely seal the frame.

One snooker needed for Ronnie, gets red & black, 30 behind 27 on.

Judd pots the yellow, green & brown, 5-2 to Ronnie


Frame 8: Good red from Judd he will want a frame winner for huge confidence going into the final session tonight. loses position on 39.

Few small breaks Judd has a 49 point lead in the frame.

O'Sullivan onto 18 points 2 reds left.

Ronnie finds a path for a red to pass the pink into the left corner snookers Judd behind the brown.

18 points given away by Judd (all hits on the pink), Ronnie pots the last red & the blue.

8 behind is Ronnie 27 on.

Ronnie puts the green behind the blue clever shot, Judd went in off.

Green, brown & blue potted - Session over 5-3 Ronnie.

UK Championship Sat 6th Dec Semi Finals

Stuart Bingham 5-6 Ronnie O'Sullivan 

Judd Trump 6-4 Stephen Maguire

UK Championship Fri 5th Dec 1/4 finals

Anthony McGill (Sco) 4-6 Ronnie O'Sullivan (Eng)

Graeme Dott (Sco) 5-6 Stuart Bingham (Eng)

Marco Fu (HK) 4-6 Stephen Maguire (Sco)

Mark Davis (Eng) 1-6 Judd Trump (Eng)