Shanghai Masters betting
Shanghai masters betting offers punters the chance to start the new snooker campaign by landing a profit; the event is already one of the highlights of the season, described by one snooker pro as being “one of the fixtures of a new-look sport.”
Shanghai masters betting odds invariably portray a fascinating contest between British and Irish players who have dominated the sport for many years and a fresh generation of players coming from the new world of snooker.
Ordinarily, Shanghai masters odds would focus upon Ronnie O’Sullivan. The Londoner won the event in 2009 and was runner up the year before, a record which ensures his dominance of Shanghai masters betting.
But UK punters should also turn their attention to a clutch of home players before placing a Shanghai masters bet.
China’s Liang Wenbo reached the final in 2009 and it’s odds on he’ll challenge again this year. But there are others besides Wenbo – in other words, if you place a Shanghai masters bet on a home player, there’s a great chance of you enjoying a strong run in the tournament.
Shanghai masters betting is designed to enhance punters’ entertainment of the event. Indeed, as the final is only the first to 10 frames, shock results are possible – worth bearing in mind before staking your bet on Shanghai masters’ upsets.
Although O’Sullivan was absent from the 2010 event because of personal reasons, there are any number of players capable of making a fast start to the season and dominating the Shanghai masters betting markets.
The world standings would suggest John Higgins should start as the favourite, but the Scot has been suspended from all tournament play, making predictions of who will win the final all the more open – a feature reflected in all snooker betting markets.
With television coverage across the world, live Shanghai masters betting has increased in popularity with online bookmakers rewarding UK internet customers with a plethora of free bets throughout the course of the tournament.
As one online bookmaker said: “Snooker in China has little history, but that is all changing with the emergence of a raft of new players who are charging up the world standings and producing results.
“Shanghai masters betting offers great scope if you are looking for unlikely winners. A lot of the players will have downed tools over the course of the winter and snooker betting often lends itself to supporting performances likely to upset the odds, especially in the early fixtures where betting on Shanghai masters upsets can result in decent profits.
“Snooker betting offers great variety. Punters can bet on the highest break, the margin of victory, or even which player will commit most fouls. The list of Shanghai masters bets is virtually endless.
“But Shanghai masters betting odds also highlights the strength in depth of world snooker.
“There are plenty of players capable of rewarding the bold predictor willing to back a relative unknown and the depth and extent of Shanghai masters odds reflects this strength.”
Of course, as the vast majority of the world’s leading 16 players hail from the British Isles, Shanghai masters odds will favour those players, but it is worth keeping a close eye on the online Shanghai masters betting markets as they take shape as one day soon, the eastern players are going to start to dominate.
One pro punter suggests using a free bet on individual matches during the early stages of the competition as a way of hedging one’s bet.
History tells us that tournaments in China are always keenly anticipated by snooker players, as the warm and enthusiastic reception they get from fans is second to none. Within the past decade, the popularity of snooker in China has grown at a phenomenal rate, with TV audiences for big matches sometimes topping 100 million. The leading players are idolised by the thousands of supporters who flock to venues, particularly the day before the event when an opening ceremony takes place. This sense of occasion adds variety and excitement to Shanghai masters bets.
The world ranking circuit first stopped at Shanghai in 1999 and last year, O’Sullivan came out on top. The 2009 event was the first ranking tournament of the season and Ronnie had a tough route to the final, but got the better of Graeme Dott, Marco Fu, Ding Junhui and John Higgins, then beat home favourite Liang Wenbo 10-5.
Five wins gives the tournament winner their title, but the scope to profit from Shanghai Masters betting odds means punters can enjoy an equally fruitful time en route to the final.