Ronnie O’Sullivan may walk away after 147 madness
Ronnie O’Sullivan has hit back at his critics over his refusal to complete his 147 maximum break at the snooker World Open yesterday.
On his way to beating Mark King 3-0, he asked referee Jan Verhaas what the prize-money would be for making a 147, to which Verhaas said there would be no extra money on top of the £4,000 highest-break prize. With this is mind, O’Sullivan potted the final pink and refused to pot the 15th and final black. Verhaas persuaded him to do it, and the Rocket fired home the black to complete a record 10th official maximum break.
After the match, it was believed O’Sullivan refused to pot the black in protest of no additional money being made available, but speaking to radio station talkSPORT, he said: “I'm not going to change, I'll never change. I was talking to Barry Hearn [World Snooker chairman] yesterday and I told him, 'If you like, that can be my last game of snooker ever. I'm quite happy to walk away' – and I mean that.
“I'm not going to change. I'm going to carry on doing what I do. I don't hurt anybody. I love my sport. I'm not a cheat. I'm not into gambling. I play snooker because I love the game and try to play to the best of my ability. I said to Barry that I'm not the most confident person when I'm out there and it's hard for me to get up for playing. That's why I'm happy to walk away.
“I sometimes get frustrated with my own performance because I like to play at a high level all the time and, when I don't do that, my behaviour can reflect that because I do strange things.”
O’Sullivan, who has dropped down to No.6 in the world rankings, will now play Jimmy White in the last 16, and has admitted he was just “having some fun” yesterday.
“I just thought I'd have a bit of fun. The money wasn't an issue. I just thought I'd ruffle a few feathers to get everyone on their toes. The 147 was on and I fancied it, even though I'm not playing well. I don't fancy myself to win this tournament because I'm not playing well enough, but I can make a maximum.
“So I thought I'd go for it and I didn't mean anything malicious by it [the refusal to pot the black]. I really wasn't going to pot the black but I can't believe everyone's getting so crazy about it.
“My biggest buzz in my sport was when I was playing at 16 in front of my hero, Stephen Hendry, and it was the first time he'd seen me play. I was playing James Wattana and I made a 140 break and decided not to pot the black. And Hendry just looked as if to say, 'You know what, I like that.' It's something only other top sportsmen would appreciate.
“I'm a bit disappointed that everyone is finding the negative in it because it's about entertainment and expressing yourself, and that's all I was doing.
“It was about proving a point, not about the money. I'll give the £4,000 to charity because it's not the money. It would be nice if there was a bigger prize – I think there should be really – but I wasn't losing any sleep over it. It's just weird what some people read into it,” said O’Sullivan.
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