Ronnie O'Sullivan doubles down on controversial view on new 20-point snooker ball

Ronnie O’Sullivan has defended Saudi Arabia’s introduction of a new ‘golden ball’, which was a controversial addition at last month’s Riyadh Season World Masters of Snooker.

Ahead of the tournament, the Saudi organisers added a new ball worth 20 points and any player who managed to hit a 167 break would have earned almost £400,000 in prize money. Nobody managed to achieve the feat this year and the prize money has been upped to £800,00 next year.

O’Sullivan won the tournament after beating Luca Brecel in the final and he is a big supporter of Saudi Arabia’s involvement in the sport, having recently signed a three-year ambassadorial deal that will see him compete at every WST event in the country and mentor aspiring players.

And the Rocket has also given his seal of approval to the ‘golden ball’ idea, telling the Daily Mail : “I don’t like what when people are quick to judge. I am quite an honest person and I think people know that.

“I will say what I think is right. I think once you start tampering with the rules of the game, then you start to cause a problem. I don’t even know what the rules are so if I am out there thinking I don’t know what’s going on it’s bad.

“I am also a bit of a purist at heart but I understand things need to evolve and change. You have to keep up with the times. So, there is (a) mixture with getting that balance right. I don’t think you can start tampering with the rules of the game and that’s what I liked with Saudi.

“They said we aren’t going to do that, but what are going to do is add a ball. It doesn’t affect the game. If someone is good enough to make a 167 and get that, there is a massive bonus. So nothing actually really changes with the game except there is an extra ball which could be life-changing money for one of these players.

Ronnie O’Sullivan

“I like that. It’s good. I was on board with it. I liked it yeah. The first time I met his Excellency [Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia’s general entertainment authority] was in Saudi Arabia.

“There was this big thing about the golden ball but my main priority was to win the tournament. Then when I realised how passionate he was about the golden ball, I saw he was a little bit disappointed no one got it and he wasn’t able to give away the big prize.

“So, he went and doubled it. So then next year I was thinking maybe I go there and just try and put all my eggs in one basket and give it a go.”

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