Snooker Shoot-Out Championships 2015: Daily Results, Schedule, Prize Money Info

The Snooker Shoot-Out returned on Wednesday for the start of three days of electric, one-frame clashes at the Blackpool Tower Circus Arena.

Dominic Dale entered as defending champion having overcome Stuart Bingham in last year's final, joined by a group of big-name players that includes Ronnie O'Sullivan, Judd Trump and Shaun Murphy. 

Now in its fifth year, the Shoot-Out is unique in the world of snooker due to the rapid-fire format, which sees each 10-minute match broken down into just one frame, with a shot clock of 15 seconds reduced to just 10 seconds in the second five minutes of each encounter.

As a result, the clashes are often frenzied and unpredictable, making it almost impossible to pick a winner who will walk away with the cool £32,000 top prize on Friday.

Read on for a full schedule, results and daily recaps as the 64-man field is gradually cut in Blackpool.   

Updated Schedule

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The 2015 Snooker Shootout has finished. 

Day 3 Recap

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Evening Session

Quarter-Finals

Michael White 84-8 Ben Woollaston

Jamie Jones 22-10 Shaun Murphy

Kyren Wilson 71-0 Michael Holt

Xiao Guodong 23-10 Alfred Burden

Semi-Finals

Guodong 19-18 Jones

White 76-53 Wilson

Final

White 54-48 Guodong

Whereas the afternoon session of the final day of the 2015 Snooker Shootout was filled with high breaks, the evening session was a scrappy affair. Michael White eventually emerged as winner, beating China's Xiao Guodong in a close final.

The top quarter-final match was undoubtedly Shaun Murphy's battle with Jamie Jones, one of the lowest-scoring matches of the day. The favourite managed just 10 points, losing to the much younger Jones 22-10 after neither player had much success on the colours.

Guodong had a similar battle with Jones in the semi-final, where the safety game ultimately decided the match in favour of the World No. 19. Guodong's long-range potting was impressive throughout the tournament, and with the shot-clock ever buzzing, the Chinese youngster showed the most composure.

He faced an early deficit in the final against White, as the Welshman came to the table with plenty of open space. White's break of 39 came to a sudden end after a routine miss on red, but Guodong returned the favour on a straight ball.

Another miss from White gave Guodong a final chance, and after missing a plant, the ball somehow traveled to and found the middle pocket, keeping him alive. Leading by nine with just one minute on the clock, he was forced into a safety. White missed along the cushion and Guodong missed from range, as White took over, potting red-pink-red-black to win one of the most exciting finals in years.

To watch the final, click here.

John Parris, one of the finest cue-makers in the world, congratulated the young Welshmen on his win:

"

Congratulations to @michaelwhite147 for winning the snooker shootout with his Parris Cue #Snooker pic.twitter.com/TXboaCVYvc

— John Parris (@ParrisCues) March 6, 2015"

White is widely regarded as a future star of the sport, and while a win in the Snooker Shootout is by no means a guarantee he'll be successful in the longer format, it's an incredible title to have on your resume at the age of 23.

This year's Snooker Shootout was one of the finest we've seen, with four relatively unheralded semi-finalists and one of the closest, best finals in recent memory. While it's little more than a niche tournament, fans should be glad the event continues to attract star players, as it's a fantastic change of pace to the schedule.

Afternoon session

Kyren Wilson 52-6 Barry Hawkins

Martin Gould 4-105 Shaun Murphy

Alfred Burden 88-0 Sam Baird

Joe Perry 24-35 Ben Woollaston

Tom Ford 16-107 Michael White

Michael Holt 83-0 Rod Lawler

Xiao Guodong 64-8 David Morris

Jamie Jones 50-12 Mark Williams

Friday's afternoon session saw two century breaks, as Shaun Murphy trashed 2012 winner Martin Gould 105-4 and Michael White beat Tom Ford 107-16.

Alfred Burden came agonisingly close to matching the feat, cruising to an 88-point lead before growing careless, playing the black with too much spin and seeing it rebound out of the jaws to end his break.

This year's Snooker Shootout is shaping up to be one for the underdogs, as none of the former champions have qualified for the quarter-finals and only one player currently in the World Snooker top 16 is still going strong.

That player is Murphy, who looked nearly unstoppable during the afternoon session. His safety game was on par, limiting Gould's opportunities in the early goings. And once the 32-year-old found his first colour, the match was all but over. With clean, long strokes, the Magician kept things simple and nearly bagged the day's highest score.

His quarter-final opponent will be Jamie Jones, one of two Welshmen remaining in the tournament. Compatriot and fellow snooker pro Andrew Pagett is rooting for the duo of Jones and White, who took the highest break of the afternoon:

"

Go on the boys! @michaelwhite147 @TheJonesKid147 it's still on! 2 of wales's finest in the final #snookershootout

— Andrew Pagett (@AndrewPagett) March 6, 2015"

Kyren Wilson upset Barry Hawkins in the first match of the day, and he's already looking forward to his match against Michael Holt, who held his opponent scoreless:

"

Playing In the quarters of the #snookershootout tonight around 7ish live on Sky have a butchers #banter

— kyren wilson (@KyrenWilson) March 6, 2015"

The Snooker Shootout remains one of the most unique events on the circuit, and the absence of all but one top 16 player in the quarter-finals underlines the unpredictable nature of the format.

Players like Wilson and Jones aren't used to making deep runs in tournaments against the best the sport has to offer, but the shot clock has the ability to rattle even the likes of Mark Selby and Ronnie O'Sullivan. Now the pressure is starting to build on these unheralded players, leaving veteran Murphy as the strong favourite for this year's title.

Day 2 Recap

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Evening Session

Jamie Jones 42-38 Stuart Bingham

Joe Perry 40-9 Luca Brecel

Sam Baird 56-51 Ricky Walden

Martin Gould 117-0 Rory McLeod

Ronnie O’Sullivan 0-55 Tom Ford

Alfie Burden 52-38 Fraser Patrick

Barry Hawkins 89-4 Anthony McGill

Michael White 40-17 Judd Trump

Jimmy White 1-71 Kyren Wilson

Graeme Dott 16-60 Rod Lawler

Anthony Hamilton 42-77 Shaun Murphy

Xiao Guodong 68-0 Mark Allen

Chris Wakelin 11-55 David Morris

Ben Woollaston 55-10 Aditya Mehta

Mark Williams 75-17 Peter Ebdon 

Ali Carter 15-48 Michael Holt

Ronnie O’Sullivan was sent packing in the second round of the 2015 Snooker Shootout, as Tom Ford got the better of the “Rocket” by an emphatic 55-0 scoreline.

The five-time world champion is a player who looks tailor-made to the dynamic, one-frame format. But even he isn’t immune to the cutthroat nature of this particular tournament and Ford took his chance with distinction against his more illustrious opponent when it came about.

Some of the aggressive, entertaining play delighted those in attendance in Blackpool and even England captain Wayne Rooney took to Twitter to confirm his interests in the Snooker Shootout:

"

Watching the snooker shootout it's brilliant.

— Wayne Rooney (@WayneRooney) March 5, 2015"

While the omission of O’Sullivan from the last-16 is an undeniable loss to the competition, there are still plenty of high-profile names in with a shout of triumphing in this ferocious tournament. Shaun Murphy is definitely one of them and he took what was arguably the clash of the evening by beating Anthony Hamilton 77-42.

Those in attendance were also treated to a brief match between two former world champions, with Peter Ebdon and Mark Williams going head-to-head. It was the latter who cruised to victory here however, winning by an emphatic 75-17 scoreline.

The highest score of the evening session came from Martin Gould, who bagged a whopping 117-0 win over Rory McLeod.

Afternoon Session

Mark Selby 19-52 Anthony McGill

Ken Doherty 17-77 Alfred Burden

Aditya Mehta 69-54 Noppon Saengkham

Thepchaiya Un-Nooh 0-104 Martin Allen

Kyren Wilson 36-27 Kurt Maflin

David Morris 78-0 Matthew Stevens

Peter Ebdon 16-10 Gary Wilson

Martin Gould 62-11 David Gilbert

Xiao Guodong 59-48 Peter Lines

Ali Carter 21-9 Mark King

Andrew Higginson 0-94 Ricky Walden

Jamie Cope 23-69 Ben Woollaston

Michael Holt 77-0 Ryan Day

Robert Milkins 0-75 Michael White

Dave Harold 16-81 Ronnie O’Sullivan

Ronnie O’Sullivan marched into the last-32 of the 2015 Snooker Shootout, capping off an engrossing afternoon session with a fine 81-16 victory over Dave Harold. The five-time world champion is the favourite in the eyes of many to flourish in this dynamic format and made no mistake as he got his campaign started.

The man know as “Rocket” was comfortable throughout his opening match, but there were a few big name casualties in a format that is expectedly cut-throat.

Arguably the biggest shock of the afternoon came in opening match of the session too, as reigning world champion Mark Selby was eliminated by Anthony McGill. Selby struggled to gain a foothold in the frame and that's extremely dangerous in this particular set-up; eventually lost by a scoreline of 52-19.

You suspect the world champion won't be too disheartened, though. Ahead of the tournament, Selby himself admitted that it’s a format not to be taken too seriously, per Alan Tyers of The Telegraph:

"

It’s a bit of fun, not to be taken too seriously. It’s impossible to predict a winner because anyone can beat anyone. The crowd get involved, there’s plenty of banter and a lot of noise.

I’m from a pool background so I like that side of it, the noise and the crowd. Snooker, well, that’s more of a gentleman’s game!

"

Indeed, it’s a chance for a lot of these players to let the shackles off and that was something wholly apparent when former world champion Peter Ebdon edged through in his clash with Gary Wilson, per Sky Sports Snooker:

"

WATCH: Peter Ebdon celebrated his #SnookerShootOut win in style as the #VeganPower paid off: http://t.co/3yevjgLm79 pic.twitter.com/0LtYgrISJZ

— Sky Sports Snooker (@SkySportsPool) March 5, 2015"

While the players were enjoying the raucous crowd and relaxed atmosphere, there were some standout performers. Ricky Walden’s 94-0 win over Andrew Higginson bristled with class, as did Martin Allen in his emphatic 104-0 win over Thepchaiya Un-Nooh.

Day 1 Recap

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Results

Luca Brecel 65-20 Dominic Dale

Judd Trump 69-23 Matt Selt

Rory McLeod 49-21 Nigel Bond

Shaun Murphy 60-6 Jamie Burnett

Anthony Hamilton 48-18 Alan McManus

Barry Hawkins 53-50 Joe Swail

Jamie Jones 46-34 Mark Joyce  

Sam Baird 53-9 Stephen Maguire 

Tom Ford 71-37 Jack Lisowski

Graeme Dott 77-13 Jimmy Robertson

Rod Lawler 75-25 Gerard Greene

Mark Williams 123-0 John Higgins

Fraser Patrick 61-52 Mark Davis

Joe Perry 51-30 Mike Dunn

Chris Wakelin 76-1 Marcus Campbell 

Jimmy White 61-36 Dechawat Poomjaeng  

Defending champion Dominic Dale did not last long in Blackpool in 2015, as he was ousted in the opening match by Belgium's 19-year-old sensation Luca Brecel.

A couple of decent long pots proved the difference for the youngster, who eventually came through with ease as the Welshman crashed out.

Masters champion Shaun Murphy showed his style, as he recovered from an unlucky cue-ball pot to put together a splendid 60 break and convincingly overcome the challenge of Jamie Burnett.

Another big-name player, Judd Trump also showed his quality in beating Matt Selt with ease, the Bristol player's trademark cue-ball control in clear evidence.

Arguably the finish of the night came from Barry Hawkins, who returned to the table with just over a minute remaining, trailing by 19 points to Joe Swail.

Hawkins potted the last red in fine style, followed by the black, then an immense long yellow opened up for the green, brown and blue to be sent home for victory with seconds to spare.

Mark Williams, World Seniors champion from Tuesday at the same venue, kept his form up as he thrashed John Higgins.

The Welshman produced breaks of 60 and 63 against his illustrious Scottish opponent to ease through to the last 32 of the tournament.

Sam Baird, the world No. 72, ousted Stephen Maguire in impressive fashion, the youngster taking advantage of an accidental snooker to build a lead and eventually take the match, 53-9.

Veteran Jimmy White finished off proceedings on Wednesday with a victory over popular Thai player Dechawat Poomjaeng.

Two misses of the black off the spot from Poomjaeng gave White his opportunities, and he made no mistake in stretching a healthy lead, which left his opponent unable to recover.

Ronnie O'Sullivan is in action for his first-round match on Thursday, along with the likes of Mark Selby, Mark Allen and Ricky Walden.