It is never good for our Industry when Sports betting takes a run through negative press but the popular betting market of correct score snooker betting has been thrust into the limelight following irregular betting patterns and in-match controversy that occurred between Stephen Maguire and Jamie Burnett in the UK Championship earlier this year. Betting had been suspended before the match when excessive amounts were wagered on a 9-3 victory to Maguire. New accounts had been opened from Glasgow and no bets were placed for Maguire to win 9-2 or 9-4, just the 9-3 scoreline (according to Victor Chandler’s Head of Sport Cliff Wilds).
Maguire was the heavy favourite to win this all Scottish encounter but with the score at 8-3 to Maguire, Burnett came to the table and had a cut on the black to give him victory in the frame and reduce his arrears to 8-4. Had he potted this black, the shot was rated around 5 out of 10 in terms of difficulty by experts, the wagers on the 9-3 scoreline would have been lost. Burnett then proceeded to miss the black by some distance prompting speculation that he deliberately missed the black. He had fluked the pink after a miss on a long shot, and said that he had been aware of the speculation of a betting coup which made him feel lots of pressure leading to his bad miss on the black.
Snooker professionals play everyday and “sighting” shots is second nature. I have played snooker and Pool for 20 years (semi-professional Pool in the UK) and have no problem with the sighting of the ball under any pressure. The difference between a professional and amateur player is the execution of the technique. I often joke to my friend that I am half an inch from being a World Champion at Snooker. For Burnett to miss any shot by that distance when seemingly cueing the ball straight is extraordinary as a professional is so proficient in that part of the game. He put it down to excessive pressure on the shot, which was certainly the case needing to pot the black to stay in the match. Unfortunately for Burnett under the circumstances even he may concede that a cynic could have the view he was making sure he missed it, such was the distance by which he missed the shot.
As recently as last week, both Maguire and Burnett were interviewed by Police regarding the incident and released without charge. Although suspicious it will be very difficult to prove or even accuse that either player was involved in any conspiracy to defraud the bookmaking Industry, beyond the circumstantial evidence we are aware of. Unfortunately whether innocent or guilty this paints a rather bleak picture for snooker which has been blighted with scandal throughout its modern history.
Peter Francisco was banned for match fixing for 5 years in 1995 and Quentin Hann for 8 years in 2006. A match between Liang Wenbo and Peter Ebdon is still under investigation when Wenbo won 5-0. This scoreline attracted a series of large bets which was unusual for Wenbo is ranked far lower than Ebdon and there is probably no player you would expect could beat Ebdon 5-0 should he be playing even average snooker.
Regarding the incident between Maguire and Burnett, it is rare in my research that large wagers are made on such specific bets without some prior knowledge; this goes for horses primed for a yard gamble in horse racing to irregular sports bets we know of. Hopefully the players were not involved, but a thorough investigation is warranted. For the sake of sports betting fans I hope that when a match begins it is a case of the best man on the day will win, without any player manipulation. If there is any suggestion of unfair play, then snookers correct score odds should be withdrawn as a market that punters can bet on. This would be unfortunate as the game of snooker is very popular and it is a completely skill based game. This gives punters a real chance to use their own knowledge of following players on the circuit to work out their bets. Any player who is found to be manipulating these betting markets will deserve the hefty bans they will receive when found guilty.
Fans can rest assure I will keep a close eye on this story and report any developments.
By Malcolm Clarke
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