Neil Robertson salutes toughest snooker era of all time after securing Tour Championship place

ByEurosport

Published 16/02/2022 at 13:16 GMT

Neil Robertson admits he is thrilled to have won the English Open, Masters and Players Championship this season in an era he describes as the toughest of all time. Australia's greatest player followed up his 10-4 win over Barry Hawkins in the Masters last month with a 10-5 victory over the Englishman at the Players Championship. The win ensures he will defend the Tour Championship next month.

The moment Neil Robertson won the Masters

Neil Robertson will defend his Tour Championship title next month in what he describes as the most competitive era in snooker history.

Robertson hit four centuries and four breaks over 50 in an impeccable performance that saw him overwhelm World No 9 Barry Hawkins 10-5 in a memorable Players Championship final in Wolverhampton on Sunday.

It was the 2010 world champion's third trophy of the season following victory at the English Open final (9-8 against John Higgins) and Masters, where he also overcame Hawkins 10-4 at the elite invitational event in London last month.

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Robertson's 22nd career ranking title and £125,000 top prize ensures he will defend his Tour Championship title at Venue Cymru in Llandudno next month (March 28-April 3) with only the top eight on the sport's one-year list guaranteed a spot on the starting list.

The European Masters, Welsh Open, Turkish Masters and Gibraltar Open (live on Eurosport) all count towards qualifying for the Tour Championship that carries a £150,000 first prize.

UK and German Masters winner Zhao Xintong is top of the standings on £301,000 with Robertson moving up from sixth to second on £243,000. Third-placed Luca Brecel (£193,000) and Ronnie O'Sullivan (£190,000) in fourth can cement their places at the Tour Championship with solid runs at the European Masters next week.

Mark Williams (£160,000), Mark Allen (£149,500), Higgins (£129,000) and Hawkins (£109,500) hold the remaining four places with Champion of Champions holder Judd Trump (£78,000) and world and defending European Masters champion Mark Selby (£58,000) in 16th and 17th places respectively and needing to find form over the next month to muscle their way in on the top eight.

World No 1 Selby remarkably failed to quality for the Players Championship after occupying 17th place on the one-year list from his trip to the German Masters in Berlin.

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Robertson believes the game's leading players cannot take anything for granted otherwise they will lose early in events.

The Melburnian lost 6-2 to amateur John Astley in the opening round of his UK title defence in November amid a battle with pulsatile tinnitus.

"If you look further down the rankings, there are guys there who can beat the top players on their day," said Robertson, who enjoyed a glorious 10-4 win over O'Sullivan in last year's Tour Championship final.

"I remember being in the top 16 in the mid-2000s and it being relatively easy to negotiate your way to the last 16 and quarter-finals.

"Now it is tough to win even the opening rounds. It could be an up-and-coming Chinese star, and there are more and more of them coming through.

You’ve also got the mix, with the experience of the Class of 1992 of John, Ronnie and Mark Williams. You have myself, Mark Selby and Judd.

“Then there is Barry Hawkins, Stuart Bingham, some super hungry players who want to win more than they have like Kyren Wilson and Jack Lisowski, and the new young winners like Yan Bingtao and Zhao Xintong.

"It all means that every tournament win should be savoured and enjoyed.”