Many of you know that there is a separate competition for snooker players or passionate that like to showcase their talent with the cue. The shots they pull are incredible but not in the tactical way, like the ones snooker players achieve. When you watch snooker trick shots it’s all about the show.

Trick shot players may or may not be snooker players but they do use snooker tables and snooker accessories like cues, balls or the cue rest. These shots are carefully planned and exercised as any mistake is unacceptable in competition. Sir Steve Davis, seven times World Snooker champion, is also a great trick-shot player. In trick-shot competition, player performance is observed by a jury based on the difficulty of the shots but, even in competition, players engage the audience describing what they are about to try and even telling jokes or humorous anecdotes, this gives trick-shot competition a much more relaxed mood than usual snooker or billiard tournaments where the public is required to remain silent and watch potentially long frames being disputed.

Bogdan Wolkowski is one of the best trick-shot players out there, he won an astonishing number of world titles in both billiards and snooker trick-shot competitions, let’s watch him at work, or at play, however you want to call it…

At first I considered this one a normal, well balanced, match between two former world champions. It started out that way so I didn’t have any reason to think otherwise. The first 8 frames ended at the score of 4 to 4, with a highest break of 123 achieved in the 7th frame of the match by Shaun Murphy. Matthew Stevens won 7 out of the 8 following frames and the score escaladed to 11-5, at this point the odds for Shaun Murphy to win the match got to 1:160 at some bookkeepers in the UK. That means for every pound on Shaun one would have won 160 pounds if Shaun won the match.

Just as Matthew Stevens won 7 out of 8 frames in the second session, Shaun Murphy achieved the same incredible feat in the third session and won back the frames lost, he put the match in its decisive frame in one of the most dramatic come-backs in snooker’s history. Matthew Stevens only got to win a frame when the score was 7-11, after that Shaun played on with no pressure on his shoulders. Matthew was one frame away from victory, only Shaun still believed in his chances and he fought back, he won 5 frames straight and the score was tied at 12.

The last frame… I will let you judge for yourselves.

Shaun Murphy, by winning this match in an extraordinary way, not only denied Matthew Stevens his place in the semifinals but also his place among the top 16 players in world rankings next year.

Stephen Hendry has a difficult match ahead, against Allister Carter. Carter is already in the lead with a score of 6-2. It’s not that Hendry played bad, he played really well but Allister Carter played excelellent. Allister Carter actually had a 99% success rate of the long-shots at one point in the morning session, at that rate there hardly is a player that would have stood up against him.

Depending on the score at this evening’s session, Handry may or may not have good chances of victory in this match. Maybe if he begins the session tomorrow at a score of 9-7 he could recover, but any bigger advantage to Carter will almost certainlty mean defeat for the great champion.

In the 10th frame the brown ball fools Allister Carter and the frame goes to Stephen Hendry, the score is 7-3 though and Hendry must focus better, he did make a few big mistakes in the last 2 frames and it was luck that kept Carter from winning them both.

The score is now 9-4 and Stephen Hendry looks less likely than ever to turn the score as Carter is about to win this frame, too. At the second table Higgins is also in the lead 11-4 against Fergal O’Brian. Thankfully, neither of the games is going to end this evening so the players have a good night sleep to put their game in order.

The evening session has ended, Allister Carter is in the lead with a score of 12-4. Stephen Hendry has the impossible job of winning 9 frames in a row.

In snooker there is genius, there is practice… and there is LUCK… But you know how it works, luck is with the bold. And we have here masters of the cue helped in their way to victory by hands god.

Snooker unwritten rules of fair-play require the players to pay apologies for any shot that was unintentionally successful. These people are forever in debt to the goddess Fortuna for some of these shots.

Mark Williams lost the 4-0 lead he had in the morning and the score is now 5-4. The “Welsh Potting Machine” (MArk Williams) may have lost his former glory but hi is no pushover in this match.

Update(s):

Joe Swail manages to catch up but Mark Williams is back in shape and wins the 11th frame, he is now in the lead.

Joe Swail wins the 12th frame with a 100+ break and the score is 6-6. Mark Williams is in the lead by 71 points but makes a mistake, Joe Swail needs only one snooker and does not concede, the game gets pretty tense now that it’s approaching its end. Mark Williams doesn’t loose and he’s again in the lead. The saga continues.

After the 14th frame the “Welsh Potting Machine”, Mark Williams is in the lead by two with a score of 8 to 6, will Joe Swail catch up or will Mark Williams win his place in the second tour?

If you’re watching this game… this is a snooker demonstration by Mark Williams, he’s pulling great shots, he’s a pleasure to watch. Another frame goes to Williams and the score is 9-8.

There is no drama like here at the Crucible, Joe Swail needs one red to send the game in its decisive frame. And the red find the pocket indeed, we’ll be watching the decisive frame of this dramatic match.

A match full of dramatism, a nerve wrecking last frame and, after he trailed behind Mark Williams for the whole match, Joe Swail wins in the decisive frame.

Stephen Hendry finds himself having a hard time in the match against 26 yrs old debutant David Gilbert. David Gilbert is leading the 7 times world champion Stephen Hendry by one frame and is playing great.

In spite of his statements for BBC, Stephen Hendry is not doing so great. If he is to win the championship he has to find his former game. Hendry used to win before the matches even started, when you were playing Hendry you’d pack your bags at the hotel before going to the tournament, that’s how feared he was by the other players.

Update:

David Gilbert secures a 2 frames lead against Hendry in the end of the first session. Hendry finds himself in difficulty now and shouldn’t allow Gilbert any more chances to victory.

Gilbert is still in the lead 5-3 but hendry is in pursuit, he managed to win the last two frames and is playing better and better. Gilbert did make mistakes that looked like he forgot who he was up against. No matter what shape he’s in, Hendry remains Hendry and he shouldn’t be taken lightly.

Hendry’s bad play may be caused by the nue cue he is using, he came to the world championship with a cue he’s only been using for three weeks, it takes a lotof courage to do that but I don’t know if it was a good decision for Hendry, especially if he wants a shot at the title.