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This is a truly essential guide if you want to uncover the best and most insightful snooker betting tips! Here, we’ll take a closer look at the most popular snooker betting markets and wager types. We’ll also offer some key strategic snooker betting tips.
We’ll also explore the biggest and best tournaments, ensuring that betting on snooker can be as enjoyable as it is rewarding!
How Does Snooker Betting Work?
Whether you want to engage in pre-match or live snooker betting, three markets stand out. These include the match winner, tournament outrights, and the over/under on the total number of frames contested. Each is highly accessible and offers competitive odds.
However, snooker also unlocks a host of other markets and betting lines, especially with points scored at relatively short intervals during frames. This is particularly true when betting in-play.
Regardless of how you intend to bet on snooker, there’s a universal, three-step process to help you get started!
- Choose your tournament – Firstly, you’ll need to select your tournament. There are competitions of variable length and pedigree scheduled each season between June and May. The highest-profile events tend to offer the most markets and highly competitive odds.
- Choose your match – Once you’ve identified your preferred tournaments, you’ll have to select which matches you want to bet on. The precise number of matches that you wager on will be based primarily on the size of your bankroll.
- Choose your bet type – You can also choose from a diverse selection of betting markets on professional snooker, both before and during specific matches. Remember, moneylines and totals bets are particularly popular. You can also handicap heavy betting favorites during the early rounds of tournaments.
Top 5 Snooker Betting Tips
While betting on the snooker and accessing markets can be relatively straightforward, it’s much harder to predict outcomes successfully and maximize your bankroll.
So, we’ve identified the best snooker tips and insights to simultaneously minimize your risk of loss and generate optimal P/L (profit and loss) values.
#1 Bet on Player Head-to-Head Stats?
When engaging in any type of sports betting in the UK, the analysis of data and statistics is usually key. However, the precise datasets that you target will depend on your chosen betting markets.
If you intend to engage in match or moneyline betting, for example, player head-to-head statistics are the most crucial. For example, let’s say that you wanted to bet on an upcoming match between Gary Wilson and Mark Davis in the Northern Ireland Open. Basic analysis shows us that the former has won five of the pair’s seven previous encounters.
In the betting market, he can be backed to win at odds of 1.53, implying a 65.35% probability of this outcome occurring. However, you may believe that this percentage should be higher given the head-to-head data, identifying a potential opportunity for value betting.
You can also use similar historical datasets to pick match winners. You could identify how a snooker player is likely to perform in specific circumstances (such as deciding frames). Below, we’ve highlighted some interesting H2H and performance statistics to keep in mind.
- Player Statistic 1 – Ronnie O’Sullivan has beaten fellow veteran John Higgins 41 times, more than any other opponent. He also has a 100% win rate against Dave Harold, beating him all 12 times the pair have done battle.
- Player Statistic 2 – O’Sullivan has played fellow entertainer and current world number one Judd Trump 34 times. The ‘Rocket’ has won 18 of these encounters (52.94%), with the ‘Juddernaut’ triumphing in the other 16 (47.06%).
- Player Statistic 3 – Of all current players, O’Sullivan has the highest overall win rate among current players. He has won 1,151 of the 1,539 matches he has contested, prevailing 74.79% of the time overall.
- Player Statistic 4 – Like O’Sullivan, John Higgins and Mark Williams have each completed 30 seasons as professionals. They’ve also met on 61 occasions, with Higgins winning 37 (56.92%) of these encounters.
- Player Statistic 5 – O’Sullivan and Mark Selby have met 34 times on the tour, with the Rocket winning 21 of these matches (61.76%). However, Selby leads the head-to-head 6-3 in finals, and this may guide your pick when wagering later in tournaments.
#2 – Snooker Betting Using the Kelly Criterion
If you want to set optimal stake amounts when wagering at snooker betting sites, you should also consider using the Kelly Criterion. This is a betting system that’s synonymous with efficient bankroll management, while there’s even a mathematical formula to help you calculate bet units. This reads as follows:
F = (BP – Q) / B
F = Bet size (which is expressed as a percentage of your bankroll)
B = Wager Odds – 1 (expressed in decimal format)
P = The implied probability of your wager being successful
Q = The implied probability of your bet losing (expressed as 1 – P).
But what does this mean in practice? Well, let’s use the aforementioned example of the clash between world number 12 Gary Wilson, and the 57th-ranked Mark Davis. Wilson is priced at 1.53 to win, revealing an implied probability value of 65.35%. However, your form and H2H analysis imply that Wilson has a 75% chance of winning. Here’s the revised equation:
0.2783% = (0.53*0.75 – 0.25) / 0.53
In this case, the Kelly Criterion suggests that you should stake 27.83% of your bankroll on this outcome. However, if your analysis shows that there is just a 65.35% probability of Wilson winning, you’d only stake around 1% of your bankroll and adopt a more risk-averse approach.
If the Kelly Criterion reveals a negative value, we’d recommend ignoring the relevant wager and seeking out alternative snooker betting tips.
- Statistic 1 – Use form and H2H analysis to identify accurate implied probability values. For example, John Higgins would probably start as an underdog against Judd Trump but has won 26 of their 51 previous encounters (50.98%). So, the Kelly Criterion may encourage you to back him with a higher stake.
- Statistic 2 – When appraising H2H data, pay attention to the dominant player’s win rate, which may reveal a significantly increased probability of them winning. For example, O’Sullivan has defeated Dominic Dale 11 times in 12 matches, equating to a superb win rate of 91.67%.
- Statistic 3 – A previous study, using the ELO ranking system and Kelly Criterion, produced a consistent ROI of 28% and prediction accuracy of 70%. This is exceptionally high for any betting model.
#3 – Playing Style Preferences
Like many sports, snooker matches are often defined by clashing playing styles. For example, players like O’Sullivan and 2023 World Champion Luca Brecel are known to have distinctly attacking styles, whereas John Higgins and Mark Selby are more tactical in their approach.
Often, more conservative and tactical players can frustrate their more attacking opponents. This is borne out in the H2H record between Higgins and Brecel, with the Scot winning five of their seven encounters (71.43%) so far. He has also won the two semi-finals they’ve contested, including during the 2022 Tour Championship.
Of course, an attacking player can also overwhelm and hurry a tactical opponent, so much will depend on the insight provided by head-to-head data and current form analysis. Below, you’ll also find a list of the top five attacking and safety players in the current game.
| Attacking Player | Safety Player |
|---|---|
| Ronnie O’Sullivan | Mark Selby |
| Judd Trump | John Higgins |
| Luca Brecel | Neil Robertson |
| Mark Williams | Mark Allen |
| Ding Junhui | Shaun Murphy |
#4 – The Qualifier Strategy
One of the best snooker tips that we can offer is to explore qualifier betting markets. Many major snooker tournaments, such as the World Championship, British Open, or Wuhan Open, host qualifiers immediately before the main event and create additional opportunities to wager.
What’s more, backing selected qualifiers to do well during the tournament proper, can also be a profitable endeavor. After all, they’re often hungry and already in the zone, having built their form during the qualifying matches. Occasionally, talented players who have recently seen their ranking slip may also make appearances in the qualifiers.
For example, world number 25 Stuart Bingham had to qualify for the 2024 World Championship. However, he has appeared during the tournament’s main stage at the Crucible every year since 2010 and subsequently reached the 2024 semi-finals.
In shorter or less prestigious tournaments, qualifiers are even more likely to prevail. This is especially true during the early rounds, when seeded players may be a little rusty or lacking concentration.
- Player 1 – Stuart Bingham emerged from qualifying in the 2024 World Championship and subsequently defeated Gary Wilson in the first round. He even defeated Ronnie O’Sullivan in a thrilling quarter-final, before being edged out by Jak Jones in the last four.
- Player 2 – In the recent 2024 Wuhan Open, world number 66 Long Zehuang stunned Mark Selby during qualifying. He also reached the last four before being defeated by eventual winner Xiao Guodong.
- Player 3 – In this season’s British Open, qualifier and world number 74 Thor Chuan Leong thumped defending champion Mark Williams 4-1 before the tournament proper. He also beat Neil Robertson in the third round, before eventually being whitewashed by John Higgins in the last 16.
#5 – High Break Strategy
If you’re looking for the best snooker tips today, one idea is to engage in high-break betting. Sportsbooks like Instant Casino, with its huge welcome bonus, offer several associated break-building markets, which may relate to individual frames, sessions, and matches. You can also bet on the identity of the player who makes the highest break during a game or tournament.
Some operators may also offer specials that let you bet on a player to make a 147 during a match or tournament.
In some instances, this type of market can unlock high implied probability values and boost your P/L value incrementally. For example, you could back Judd Trump to make the highest break against Ishpreet Chadha, at odds of 1.21 and an implied probability of 82.64%.
Remember, Trump has made a staggering 1,006 career centuries to date, second only to Ronnie O’Sullivan. He’s also known for his relentless attacking play and has been in exceptional form since the beginning of the 2023/24 season, so offers significant value even if you wager with a high stake.
What Are the Best Snooker Bets?
Before you act on these snooker betting tips, it’s important to understand the full range of lines and markets offered by sportsbooks. They include pre-match and snooker in-play betting options, the latter of which include picking the winner of the next frame.
So, let’s take a closer look at the most popular and profitable bets when wagering on snooker matches!
As with most sports, you’ll find the most competitive snooker betting odds in the outright market. This requires you to pick the winner of a particular tournament, often from a large field that includes several potential outcomes.
Betting early on outrights can also unlock the highest returns. For example, Judd Trump is currently priced at +400 (5.00) to win the 2024 UK Championship, despite being the world number one and having won seven titles (including six ranking titles) since the start of 2023/24.
Match betting is also incredibly popular in the sport of snooker. This straightforward market allows you to back both betting underdogs and heavy favorites. In the latter case, you can also leverage spread betting lines to back short-price favorites at enhanced odds.
For example, you can back defending world champion Kyren Wilson to defeat the unheralded David Grace in the NI Open at 1.15. These odds imply an 87.00% probability of a victory for ‘ The Warrior’, while a £100 stake will deliver a potential return of £115.00.
Interestingly, if you apply a -1.5 frame handicap to Wilson, you can wager at superior odds of 1.28. This increases your potential payout while lowering the implied probability slightly to 78.12%.
Across both pre-match and live snooker odds, betting the over/under on the total number of frames played is incredibly popular. In this market, sportsbooks set variable totals and individual betting lines, and you’ll have to select one (based on your analysis) before predicting whether the actual total will be over or under this threshold.
Using the same example of the NI Open clash between Wilson and Grace, you could bet on over 5.5 frames being played. This would mean that the best-of-7-frame match would go to at least the sixth frame. This unlocks competitive odds of 1.89 while reflecting the fact that Grace has won three of his seven career matches against Wilson.
As we’ve touched on, you can also wager on the player with the highest break in a particular match. This enables you to back heavy betting favorites and potentially identify value wagers, with players like O’Sullivan, Trump, and Wilson particularly popular in this market.
For example, they have competitively priced O’Sullivan at 1.48 to hit the highest break in his Northern Ireland Open match against Long Zehuang. This implies just a 67.60% probability of the Rocket achieving this aim, despite compiling an incredible 1,265 career century breaks and 15 maximums. In contrast, Zehuang has posted just 19 career centuries to date.
You can also bet the over/under on how many match centuries a competing player will compile. This market may also create value in some instances, especially in instances where prolific scorers and break builders may not be in the best form.
For example, you can back Belgian Luca Brecel at 1.84 to make over 0.5 centuries during his Northern Ireland clash against He Guoqiang. Brecel has struggled for form and consistency since winning the 2023 world title, but he has still made 214 career century breaks and should have plenty of scoring opportunities here.
Correct score betting is one of the highest-risk snooker gambling markets. However, it can also unlock enhanced odds and rewards, while you can use head-to-head results and historic scoring to help make your picks.
For example, Neil Robertson is doing battle with the durable Graeme Dott in the upcoming Northern Ireland Open. He has won 13 of his 21 career matches against the Scot, but Dott has managed to prevail in 91 of the 202 frames contested in total (45.05%).
So, you may want to consider backing Robertson to win 4-2. This unlocks competitive odds of 4.43 and a potential payout of £443 if you wager £100 successfully.
Where Can I Livestream Snooker Matches?
If you’re going to engage in snooker live betting, we’d recommend that you watch the action as it unfolds. After all, both odds and fortunes can fluctuate wildly during a match, so it’s important to monitor the game’s ebb and flow if you’re to time your wagers successfully.
You can access high-profile tournaments like the World Championship on terrestrial television channels like BBC1, BBC2, and Eurosport. You may also be able to live stream the action through selected sportsbooks, making it easier to leverage the best snooker betting tips in real time.
Pros and Cons of Betting on Snooker?
While we may have answered the question “how does snooker betting work?”, you may still be unsure if this pastime is right for you. There are certainly pros and cons to snooker betting today, including the following:
Pros
- Snooker betting unlocks a diverse selection of match betting markets. These include totals, handicaps, and player props (such as which competitor will make the highest break during a game)
- Snooker outright odds also tend to be highly competitive, especially when they’re first released. This is especially true in major tournaments like the World Championship, where there are numerous potential winners and outcomes.
- You can easily and affordably watch most snooker tournaments in real-time, through terrestrial channels like the BBC. This makes live betting far more accessible.
- There are often odds discrepancies in UK snooker odds. This creates opportunities for value betting while enabling you to engage in practices such as arbing.
Cons
- As snooker isn’t the most popular sport in the UK, there are fewer betting promotions available. It may also be difficult to access information and stats ahead of certain matches.
How Does In-Play Live Snooker Betting Work?
We’ve already touched on in-play snooker betting, which is increasingly popular and home to a large number of markets. These include ample fast markets, which are made possible by snooker’s quick and fluid scoring system.
We’ve summarized the most popular fast markets and snooker micro bets below. We’ve also provided a brief explanation of how each one works.
| Fast Market | How it works |
|---|---|
| Frame Over/Under | This enables you to bet on how many points will be scored during a particular frame (such as over 101.5) |
| Next Player to Make a Century | You can also pick the identity of the next player to make a century in a match |
| 147 Betting | If a proven break builder gets in among the balls early, he may have an opportunity to compile a maximum of 147. Betting on this can unlock highly competitive odds |
| Player to Make a 50+ Break in Frame 1 | Similarly, you could bet on a player to make a break worth 50 or more in the first frame. This should be based on the opening exchanges and how the balls are positioned. |
| Player to Make a 100+ Break in Frame 1 | You can also up the ante and back a player to make a century break in the opening frame (at enhanced odds). Your pick will also be informed by the position of the balls and the nature of the player in question |
| 1st Frame – First Red Potted | This is another fast market that allows you to pick the player who you think will pot the first red. You can access this market in the first or subsequent frames |
| 1st Frame – Total Points (Odd or Even) | This an opportunistic live market that usually unlocks identical odds (such as 1.80) on both sides. Simply pick whether the total number of points scored in a frame will be odd or even. |
| Race to Two or Three Frames | You can also bet on which player will be the first to win two or three frames. To pick successfully, be sure to watch the match live and see which player is in the best touch or form. |
Major Snooker Tournaments to Bet On
Many of the best snooker betting tips and bonuses will relate to World Championship snooker betting. However, there are plenty of other competitions you can wager on in 2024/25, including the following:
| Tournament | Venue | Dates | Current Champion | Prize Money |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 World Snooker Championship | The Crucible, Sheffield | 19 April – 5 May 2025 | Kyren Wilson | £2,395,000 |
| 2024 UK Championship | York Barbican, York | 23 November – 1 December 2024 | Ronnie O’Sullivan | £1,205,000 |
| 2024 Northern Ireland Open | Waterfront Hall, Belfast | 20–27 October 2024 | Judd Trump | £550,400 |
| 2024 Scottish Open | Meadowbank Sports Centre, Edinburgh | 9–15 December 2024 | Gary Wilson | £550,400 |
| 2024 International Championship | South New City National Fitness Center, Nanjing | 3–10 November 2024 | Zhang Anda | £825,000 |
| 2024 Champion of Champions | Toughsheet Community Stadium | 11–17 November 2024 | Mark Allen | £440,000 |
| Snooker Shoot Out | Mattioli Arena, Leicester | 4 – 7 December 2024 | Mark Allen | £171,000 |
| German Masters | Tempodrom, Berlin | 27 January – 2 February 2025 | Ali Carter | £427,000 |
| Players Championship | Telford International Centre, Telford | 17 – 23 March 2025 | Mark Allen | £385,000 |
| Tour Championship | Manchester Central, Manchester | 31 March – 6 April 2025 | Mark Williams | £500,000 |
Readwrite’s Best Snooker Tips
We’ve already provided some detailed snooker tips to help improve your picks and wagering strategies. Here’s a concise summary of these insights!
- Tip 1 – Use historic head-to-head data and form analysis to make your snooker betting predictions
- Tip 2 – Leverage betting systems like the Kelly Criterion to set optimal stake amounts
- Tip 3 – Understand the impact of playing styles and appraise two players’ H2H records in finals and semifinals.
- Tip 4 – Identify tournament qualifiers who can be backed at enhanced odds in the competition proper. Look for skilled and proven players whose form may have dipped.
- Tip 5 – Be sure to leverage suitable fast markets in play. This could include picking the next frame winner or the player who will post the first red in a frame.
How to Find Value Snooker Bets
Value betting describes instances where the implied probability of an outcome occurring is higher than the published odds suggest. But how do you find value bets in the world of snooker? This takes time and research, but the following step-by-step guide may provide some help!
- Start by identifying your chosen snooker match and preferred markets
- Compare the odds across several trusted and licensed sportsbooks
- Once you’ve identified the best odds, conduct your analysis to determine the actual implied probability of certain outcomes occurring
- Use the equation ‘Value = (Probability * Decimal Odds) – 1’ to further analyze lines
- If the resulting value is positive, you’ve identified a potentially worthwhile value bet
Other Sports Betting Guides?
Is snooker betting for you? If not, we have created several alternative sports wagering guides here at ReadWrite! Here are some of the most insightful!
Conclusion
The content and snooker betting tips included in this guide are largely aimed at beginners. However, some of the strategies may also be suitable for advanced bettors, especially the application of the Kelly Criterion.
To put this information into practice, we’d recommend that you wager at market-leading snooker betting sites. Instant Casino is an exceptional snooker sportsbook. It combines competitive odds with a large selection of pre-match and fast markets!
References
FAQs
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Responsible Gambling
Whether you want to engage in match wagering at the NI Open or access outright World Championship betting odds, you must bet responsibly at all times. This involves disciplined bankroll management. This requires you to set a conservative bankroll and wager this using customizable deposit limits and stakes.
But what if you’ve already identified the early symptoms of a gambling addiction? In this case, it’s important to seek out advice and practical help as soon as possible. Here are some independent organizations to keep in mind:
Content suitable for 18+ readers only. Always gamble responsibly. The content found in this article is not to be taken as betting advice. Speculative gambling could lead to a loss of capital. It’s free to use this website, but we might receive a commission from companies featured within it. If you are having trouble with gambling then help and advice can be found at begambleaware.org
