The Masters Snooker 2020 Odds

The 2019/20 Snooker season is in full swing and, when the players return to the green baize in the New Year, the countdown will be on for the World Championships, starting in April. January will give us the Masters – a non-ranking event but one that holds great importance for those taking part.

The best 16 players are eligible to enter and the tournament forms part of the prestigious Triple Crown. It’s hotly contested and always throws up plenty of drama as the world’s best descend on London’s Alexandra Palace. Who will come through with the top prize? Read on to discover our thoughts.

Event Date: January 12-19, 2020

History and Format

This is one of the oldest snooker tournaments on the circuit having been first held back in 1975. Known at the time as the Benson and Hedges Masters, the event has changed just slightly over the years and the format, as we know it, has been in place since 1984.

The top 16 players in the World Rankings are invited to The Masters and there are wild card options in case there are any issues over availability. It’s played as a straight knockout with the first round, quarter finals, and semi finals all held as a best of 11 frames. The final is extended to a best of 19.

Ronnie O’Sullivan is the most successful player in the history of this event with a record seven titles. Stephen Hendry follows with six while, from the current batch of cuemen, Mark Selby has won three Masters titles with John Higgins and Mark Williams each winning twice.

That concludes the background to the event so let’s see if we can find any value from the masters snooker betting odds for 2020.

Front Runners

A number of sportsbooks list two joint favourites at the top of the market at a figure of 3/1. As we’ve seen, Ronnie O’Sullivan holds the record for Masters wins while Judd Trump is our reigning champion. At other outlets, Trump is just ahead at that 3/1 price with Betway while Rocket Ronnie is close behind at 10/3 with William Hill.

Trump went on to win the World Title in 2019 as he finally delivered on his huge potential. However, a shock defeat to Nigel Bond in the UK Championships suggests he remains vulnerable and he may be uncomfortably short at that 3/1 price.

Meanwhile, it’s been a strange year for O’Sullivan who seems unable to raise his game for the minor ranking events. The Rocket can still deliver in the big tournaments but like Trump, he looks a little short here.

The Chasing Pack

Behind the top two cuemen we have a gap before the third favourite rolls in. Australia’s Neil Robertson is on offer at best odds of 11/2 with SportingBet and VBet and then we move out to Mark Selby at a top price of 10/1 with Coral.

Both men are former World Snooker Champions but recent form has deserted them. Robertson actually missed this tournament last year as he dropped out of the world’s top 16 but happily he’s rediscovered his touch and he’s featured in four ranking finals since the start of 2019. As for Selby, the fall from grace has been rather more dramatic but a win in this season’s English Open, where he hammered Dave Gilbert 9-1 in the final, suggests he might just be edging back to his best.

Also in the chasing pack are John Higgins at best odds of 14/1 with VBet and Ladbrokes while the 2018 Masters Champion Mark Allen can be picked up at 18/1 with SportingBet.

Outside Punts

At the time of writing, the top 16 has yet to be confirmed so we cannot be completely certain as to who will be taking part. In fact, only Judd Trump has confirmed his place as the reigning champion but we should certainly be looking to ignore some of the names at the bottom of the betting markets.

The player with the highest numbers in the masters snooker betting odds is James Cahill who is quoted at a best of 500/1 with Unibet and William Hill. Cahill started the season with no ranking points so we’re not sure why he is quoted and we would suggest avoiding any player with a price in excess of 100/1.

A more sensible option would be Kyren Wilson who drops in at more conservative best odds of 22/1 with Ladbrokes and Coral. The same two bookmakers are quoting a top price of 25/1 on Barry Hawkins but if there is any value to be had from the outsider options, we’d be looking at Shaun Murphy.

The new season has marked a big change in fortunes for the popular Englishman who is available in the outright masters snooker odds at 18/1 with 10Bet and SportNation. Murphy won the Masters in 2015 and a recent victory in the China Championship suggests the best days are set to return.

Verdict

There is an old saying in sport that suggests that form is temporary and class is permanent and we’re going to harness that opinion now as we take a look at Mark Selby. While it’s impossible to deny that form has been weak for the last 18 months, it should be remembered that the Jester from Leicester is a three-time World Champion and he has also won the Masters on three separate occasions. At the time of writing, Selby has also reached the last 16 of the UK Championship and if he reaches the final at the very least, we can expect those win odds of 10/1 to come down.

Of course, there is plenty of competition to this suggestion. Ronnie O’Sullivan and Judd Trump are obvious favourites but they have both shown their vulnerability in recent tournaments and their odds just don’t jump off the page.

As the Masters draws closer, there should be more options in the masters snooker betting odds. For now, it’s about picking a winner but we can take an Each Way punt so that’s what we’ll do with Mark Selby. He’ll need to reach the final for this tip to convert but we think that the Jester will be smiling again at the Alexandra Palace in January.

Best Bets:

• Mark Selby Each Way at 10/1 with Ladbrokes