York receives snooker plaudits (From York Press)

York receives snooker plaudits

10:37am Tuesday 13th December 2011 in Snooker By Steve Carroll, Sports reporter

YORK’S UK Championship has been hailed by World Snooker chiefs as a massive success.

The popularity of the nine-day tournament, with both crowds and players, “bodes well” for its return next year, said a spokesman for the game’s governing body.

Record pre-sales before the tournament, won on Sunday night by Judd Trump, were boosted by big crowds for every one of the 31 matches – something which has not been lost on World Snooker bosses.

“We were really pleased with how the ticket sales went before the tournament and, during the week, they continued in that vein,” a spokesman said.

“If it was not sold out, there were still big crowds every day. There was a really good atmosphere and the players really spoke very positively about the crowds, the venue and the city.”

Around 8,000 tickets were sold in total for the Barbican-based competition, the second biggest tournament in the snooker calendar, which returned to York following a five-year absence.

“When we announced we were coming back, we had a feeling that it would go well as we had been away for a long time,” the World Snooker spokesman added.

“But we were pleasantly surprised with how well it has gone. The format (best-of-11 frame matches in the early rounds) has really worked well, despite the controversy.

“While people love their snooker and would come along and see an eight-frame session, it is not as satisfying as seeing a match to its conclusion.

“When it has not been a two-table set up, there has not been the same sense of occasion for the players or fans.”

And he concluded: “We will be sitting down and analysing everything after the event but the success of it really bodes well for the future.”