Everything to Play for as Tom Ford Becomes Snooker Winner
The 2024/25 Snooker season passed its halfway point last weekend when Tom Ford landed the Snooker Shootout.
Tom Ford was having a dire season until Shootout success gave him his first ranking victory. © Getty Images
Key Facts:
- Popular local player claims his maiden ranking title 23 years after turning professional.
- Tom Ford came from 20 points behind with just 80 seconds left to play.
- Eight ranking tournaments remain on the 2024/25 season calendar.
- The Scottish Open is ongoing, but big guns are aiming for big money in Riyadh.
After 23 years on the World Snooker Tour, Leicester’s Tom Ford landed the first ranking tournament of his professional career when taking the 2024 Snooker Shootout in Leicester last weekend.
His last-gasp three-point victory over 20-year-old Liam Graham in the £171,000 tournament saw Ford deliver an emotional post-match interview before collecting the winner’s trophy. “That’s tough, that is,” Ford said on Eurosport.
“I lost my sponsor and really good friend a few weeks ago. I went to his funeral on Wednesday, and that was really difficult. That’s for you, Brian Todd,” said the 41-year-old while holding back tears.
“To win on my home turf with a home crowd. You’ve got to feel for Liam. The tournament that he’s had, and he’s got the crowd going. To be part of the final like that, obviously, I’m the home favourite, but to be fair, when Liam walked out, I actually thought he was the favourite. Unlucky for him at the end of the day.”
“The money’s going to be absolutely fantastic. I’ve won two games all season. To be honest, standing here and not having Brian come up here is hard; it really is.” In addition to the £50,000 winner’s prize came a valuable 50,000 ranking points.
Ford Gets Champion of Champions Award
His Shootout victory means Tom Ford has risen back up the World Rankings to 20th from 22nd. His career highest ranking was 13th. However, Ford’s recent form had been dire, and he had not qualified for four of the past five ranking events.
Ford now has a free ticket into 2025’s Champion of Champions competition and is in contention for a spot in the 2025 World Grand Prix in Hong Kong. Eight ranking competitions remain on the 2024/25 season calendar as the Shootout marked the halfway point. The BetVictor-sponsored Scottish Open began the following day.
Snooker’s Remaining 2024/25 Ranking Tournaments
- December 9-15 – Scottish Open
- January 27-February 2 – German Masters
- February 10-16 – Welsh Open
- February 24-March 2 – World Open
- March 4-9 – World Grand Prix
- March 17-23 – Players Championship
- March 31-April 6 – Tour Championship
- April 19-May 5 – World Championship
Big Guns Getting Ready to Fire at Riyadh
There are three additional ‘non-ranking’ events on the calendar: The elite-field Riyadh Season Snooker Championship, which begins on December 18, the 16-player Masters (January 12-19) and the Championship League final, which will conclude on February 4.
The Riyadh competition carries a £250,000 winner’s prize. It is restricted to the top 10 Professional Players based on the world rankings following the 2024 UK Championship: Ronnie O’Sullivan, Judd Trump, Luca Brecel, Mark Selby, Neil Robertson, John Higgins, Mark Williams, Shaun Murphy, Ding Junhui and Mark Allen.
Its proximity to the ongoing Scottish Open probably inspired Judd Trump’s and Mark Williams’ decision to withdraw from the Home Series event staged in Edinburgh at the eleventh hour.
Wilson Drops, Wakelin on His Way Up
Defending champion and 2023 Scottish Open winner Gary Wilson did take his place in the competition. However, the threepeat is now impossible as he was eliminated in the first round by China’s Long Zehuang.
Wilson finished the 2023/24 season on a high note with a series of strong results, including victory in the Welsh Open. The former taxi driver reached No. 10 in the World Rankings, but a poor 2024/25 has seen him drop to 15th, and he could slip further this week.
Chris Wakelin is in prime position to overtake Wilson. The current number 16 enjoyed an exceptional run to the final of November’s International Championship and has booked himself into the second round of the Scottish Open with a 4-nil victory over Scott Donaldson on Monday.
