Familiar Names Head Snooker’s European Masters Betting
Author:
Roy Brindley
The Marshall Arena in Milton Keynes certainly came to snooker’s rescue during the height of the Covid pandemic. The venue hosted a remarkable 18 tournaments during 2020 and 2021. This week the 36,800 square-foot arena steps in once again. It plays host to the European Masters.
Originally due to be played in Fürth, Germany, the BetVictor European Masters has always been a nomadic event. Since 2016, the competition has been played in Romania, Belgium, Austria and, last season, Milton Keynes.
Mark Selby and Stuart Bingham: Two world champions that will hope to find their form in Milton Keynes this week. ©GettyImages
Without a static venue, the tournament lacks the prestige and stature enjoyed by many competitions. But it still boasts a £407,000 prize pool and with prize money equating to ranking points in this sport, the bulk of the 64 qualified players will take this event very seriously.
Robertson Seeking a Third Ranking Title of the 2021/22 Season
The European Masters is the 11th ranking event of the 2021-22 season. So far, only Neil Robertson and Zhao Xintong have won more than one ranking tournament. The Australian landed November’s English Open – in Milton Keynes – and the Players Championship less than a fortnight ago.
Xintong took the UK Championship and the German Masters. The Chinese player cannot add to those victories this weekend as he failed to qualify for the European Masters. Other competition winners have been Dave Gilbert, Mark Williams, Mark Allen, Luca Brecel, Ronnie O’Sullivan and Hossein Vafaei.
Remarkably Mark Selby, Judd Trump and Stuart Bingham – a trio that has landed six of the last eight World Championships – have failed to make a final table appearance in any 2021/22 ranking tournament.
It’s Time to Find Form
The 2022 World Championship is now less than two months away. There is plenty of snooker to be played beforehand. After the conclusion of the European Masters on Sunday, the Welsh Open will begin the following day.
This competition is immediately followed by the exciting Turkish Masters. The sport’s elite players will hope to find their best form during the coming weeks in one of these events.
The bookmakers have not lost faith in Judd Trump. Despite a relatively disappointing season, they believe ‘The Juddernaut’ is worthy of favoritism in this week’s European Masters. He is 4/1 with the the best online betting sites. Neil Robertson – a player who is currently at the top of his game – follows at 5/1. Mark Selby and the legendary Ronnie O’Sullivan are next on the betting list.
World Championship Betting
These prices mirror those available about the ‘big four’ in the 2022 World Championship betting list. The quartet are all previous World Championship winners, as is John Higgins. The Scott can be backed at 10/1 to take his fifth world title.
But could this be the year a Chinese player finally wins the world crown? Zhao Xintong and Yan Bingtao are currently ranked within the world’s top-16. It means they will automatically qualify for the final-32 stage of the Sheffield event.
Zhou Yuelong sits 20th on the ranking list but strong results in the coming weeks could push him higher and give him an automatic spot in the World Championship. The 24-year-old is 40/1 to score this week and 100/1 for outright victory at the Crucible on May 2nd.
