Neil beat Graeme Dott by 10-8 in a very high quality and thrilling final. It was Neil third final, and second ranking title in three weeks.

This victory gives Neil his 18th ranking title, moving him ahead of Mark Selby on the all-time list into sixth place on his own, behind Ronnie O’Sullivan (36), Stephen Hendry (36), John Higgins (30), Steve Davis (28) and Mark Williams (22).

Neil scored heavily, he had 5 centuries in the match, and lead 9-5. He was on the verge of winning 10-5 when Graeme Dott, determined and gritty mounted a comeback that had the audience on the edge of their seats. Graeme stole two frames after needing snookers! Eventually though Neil prevailed by 10-8.

Neil said:

“At 9-5 I was cruising and it was looking like one of my best performances in a final. As Graeme came back I slowed down because I was so tired. Having reached three finals in a row I would have been very disappointed to lose two of them so that put a bit of pressure on me.
“Graeme kept fighting all the way and when the frames go scrappy, he is a master in that department. It’s great to see him back playing well and I’m sure he’ll win more tournaments.
“This is absolutely the best form of my life, I have carried on from the end of last season when I reached four finals in a row. I am always looking to improve.”

(source WST)

All detailed results are available on snooker.org

Neil will now head to Cardiff on a mission to defend his Welsh Open title.

Neil whitewashed his young opponent Zhou Yuelong in the final. It was only the second time in snooker history that a multi-session final produced a whitewash.

After the match, Neil was thrilled and declared:

It was a strange feeling tonight because if I had lost one or two frames I would have been disappointed not to join Steve Davis, 31 years after it had previously been done,” said Robertson. “That gave me an extra focus tonight, to really try and win that frame. On the colours I was just praying for one chance, and I knocked in a good green.
“The first two frames this afternoon could have gone either way, after that I played well, I was very aggressive. My long potting was ridiculous and I scored very heavily. From 2-0 to 8-0 he didn’t do much wrong.
“To win 9-0 is amazing. It’s just one of those rare things. I didn’t let him settle, I kept my foot down all the way. I was determined to win every frame. I feel a bit sorry for the crowd tonight because they didn’t see much snooker, but at the same time they got to witness a bit of history.
“As soon as I was shaking Zhou’s hand I told him not to worry about it. He has a lot of positives to take away from the week. I’m sure he will win a tournament before long.
“Winning a title early in the year gives me breathing space. I’m really proud of that record (winning a title in 15 consecutive years). I always try to improve every year because the whole tour is improving all the time.
“I’m really keen to press home my advantage (for the BetVictor bonus), a good run in Germany could almost secure it for me. You might see me in the Shoot Out as well.”

Ali Carter, who had made the Final at the 2020 Masters only the week-end before, did well too. He reached the SF where he was beaten by Neil.

All the detailed results are available on snooker.org.

Django said: “I’m so happy to work with Ding, and want to congratulate him for his achievements”.

Otherwise it was a bit of a strange tournament for the Grove players.
Judd Trump was bidding to win his 8th title of the year, and be the first player since Stephen Hendry to hold all the triple crown titles in a calendar year. But it wasn’t to be as Judd was beaten in the last 32 round by Nigel Bond. The 54 years old veteran had a miracle tournament … he reached the last 16, where he was only narrowly beaten by Gary Wilson. Nigel was also responsible for the demise of Luca Brecel in the first round.
Liang Wenbo showed tremendous courage: his mother passed away at the start of the tournament – she was only 56 – and Liang rushed back to China for the funerals. He took the decision to come back to continue to play in the tournament and reached the QF, the best of the Grove players in York. He only lost to the eventual Champion Ding Junhui. Hats off Liang! Ding had also beaten Ali Carter in the last 32 round.
Neil Robertson lost by 6-1 in the last 16, to young Yan Bingtao, who also sent Jack Lisowski home in the previous round. Oliver Lines fell at first hurdle, losing to Michael Georgiou.

All detailed results are on snooker.org

After the match Judd said: “It was an amazing atmosphere out there at the end. Both times I have played him here in the final it has been unbelievable. The arena is made for snooker. I managed to save my best for the final. I wasn’t feeling particularly great in the matches leading up to that. The end of that semi-final against John Higgins inspired me and that gave me the confidence to go out there against Ronnie and play my best.

“I can’t wait to get started at the UK Championship now. I am full of confidence after the last few events. It is one I’ve had my eye on since winning the World Championship. I’d love to be able to win all three in a row.” (source Worldsnooker)

The tournament was played in Belfast from 11th to 17th of November 2019. Neil Robertson, who had just won the 2019 Champion of Champions suffered a bit of a hang-over and lost in the first round. From the other Grove players, Luca Brecel was the most successful; he reached the last 16.

All detailed results are on snooker.org

After his win Judd declared:

“I’m very happy,” said Trump. “I didn’t play that well all week, I won a lot of close games 5-4 and 6-5, and then I played better today. I have worked very hard this season to try to replicate what I did last season. I try to enjoy myself every time I come to China.

“To win two titles already this season and to be number one in the rankings is very good. It puts me in a good position where I can just relax. I want to win the UK Championship so I can hold all three Triple Crowns at the same time.

“This event is at an excellent new venue, it looks amazing from the outside. The crowds all week have been great, much better than last year.”

You can listen to Judd’s interview here:

The full tournament results are available on snooker.org

Neil Robertson made the headlines for … driving to the “wrong” Barnsley: the one in Gloucester rather the one in Yorkshire. As a result he had to forfeit his match. It was the story of the week really, and quite extraordinary indeed considering he’s played in the “right” Barnsley countless times before. But then, a friend was driving him, this time he was behind the wheel and did set his satnav up wrong.

All other Grove players qualified, except Oliver Lines. Jack Lisowski made a 145 in the last frame of his match against Tian Pengfei. It’s already a goog candidate for the tournament high break.

All detailed results are on snooker.org

Neil was the most successful Grove player. He reached the semi finals where he lost by 10-6 to the eventual winner, Ronnie.
Jack Lisowski and Judd Trump both reached the QF stage, losing 6-1, to Shaun Murphy, the runner-up, and Mark Allen respectively.

Liang Wenbo narrowly lost to Mark Allen in round 2. He played well overall though.

Ali Carter surprisingly lost by 6-3 to wildcard Zhang Yi.

All detailed results are available on snooker.org

Here are excerpts from the report by Worldsnooker

Sunday 11 Aug 2019 01:46PM
World Champion Judd Trump produced a scintillating display to beat Shaun Murphy 10-3 and win the International Championship in Daqing.

The blistering nature of Trump’s victory stamps home his current dominance of the sport. The 29-year-old was equally impressive in a 9-4 demolition of three-time World Champion Mark Selby in the semi-finals. Trump compiled 12 centuries in total across the week. This is the 12th ranking event victory of his career.

The Ace in the Pack had already secured a return to the world number one spot, deposing Ronnie O’Sullivan by reaching the quarter-finals. It is the first time he has topped the world rankings since March 2013. His place as world number one will now be solidified further after picking up the £175,000 top prize.
….
“After the World Championship it was always going to be difficult,” said world number one Trump. “I went away and prepared as a World Champion should do. It is very easy to get a little bit carried away after wining at the Crucible and to drop off a little bit. So to get my foot back on the gas and win in the first event shows just how hard I’ve worked in the off season.

“You never know what is around the corner. I could go out early at the Shanghai Masters and go through a bad period. As long as I keep preparing how I have done, putting in the work and being mentally right out there then there is no reason why I can’t keep winning. Sooner or later everyone has a bad spell. Hopefully mine isn’t for another ten years.”

Jack Lisowski lost in the last 64, Ali Carter and Luca Brecel in the last 32, Neil Robertson and Liang Wenbo in the last 16. This is in fact a good result for Liang who has been struggling badly for some time now. Getting that far made sure of his spot at the Shanghai Masters next September.

You will find all detailed results on snooker.org