THREE time champion John Higgins blasted format changes to the Coral UK Championship - claiming they have “devalued” the tournament.

The Wizard of Wishaw booked his place in the last 64 with a 6-2 victory over Lee Walker but said the event, the second biggest in snooker, was now a “much of a muchness” thanks to repeated tinkering with the length of matches.

The traditional best-of-17 frames format was shortened to best-of-11 through the quarter-final stages, when the competition returned to York following a five year break.

This year, the semi-finals are also best-of-11 and Higgins believes the UK has lost a lot of his lustre.

“Now it is a much-of-a-muchness,” he argued.

“Obviously it is great the BBC are covering it but it lost its shine when they put it down to best-of-11 a few years ago. It was never the same again.”

Higgins added: “Obviously Barry Hearn came in and had to look at the paying public.

“He obviously had discussions with the BBC and that’s the reason but, in my eyes, it is really devalued now.”

Higgins also had sympathy for Graeme Dott, who will play his second round match in the sports hall and described the setting as a “toilet”.

“I’d love to see the size of his toilet,” Higgins joked, before continuing: “For an ex-world champion, as he says, to be thrown out into the toilet he is now understandably upset, which he should be, because it is not a great place to play.

“He has got every right to be upset.”

Higgins, a 25-time ranking event winner, has struggled for form in recent years - his last big win coming in the Shanghai Masters in 2012.

At 39, he is at the age where many players have seen their form decline and the four-time world champion needs a big week at York to ensure a place in the Masters in January.

On his travails, he said: “I am trying. I am obviously low on confidence just now. In the last couple of tournaments, the credit has to go to my opponents - Barry Hawkins and Marco Fu - I didn’t really do much wrong.

“You can’t beat yourself up about it so, hopefully, I will come here and have a run. That’s what I am planning to do.

“As you get older, you don’t know if the win will kick-start you - if you will start playing well again. That’s what I am hoping. I have not really done much in the last two or three years.

“I’ve never done well at York. I’ve always been put out pretty early.”

Higgins added: “You just never know. Most of my career, it has been up and down. There has been a few tough spells and a few good spells.

“Obviously I am trying. I still want to play and the competitive desire is there. That’s still the same as always, but you just don’t know if it will return.

“This week is important for me. If results go against me, I probably won’t be in the Masters. That would be a big blow now. Normally, that’s taken for granted.”