How many frames are there in the World Snooker Championship final?
THE World Snooker Championship is the most prestigious tournament on the calendar, with not only the highest prize money on offer but also the longest matches on the tour.
The biggest event on the baize culminates in the showpiece decider, held every year at the Crucible in Sheffield — but how many frames are in the World Snooker Championship final?
How many frames are there in the World Snooker Championship final?
The World Snooker Championship final takes place over two days.
The culmination of the tournament can be played over a maximum 35 frames and four sessions.
But players do not have to reach 35 to win — they only have to get over the half way mark to 18 frames, as it's the best of 35.
How many frames are their in the other World Snooker Championship rounds?
- Qualifying — best of 19 frames
- Round 1 — best of 19 frames
- Round 2 — best of 25 frames
- Quarter-finals — best of 25 frames
- Semi-finals — best of 33 frames
- Final — best of 35 frames
The event is played over two tables until the quarter-finals, before changing over to the one-table setup for the semi-finals and final.
Speaking about the effect this has on the players, snooker legend and seven-time World Champion Stephen Hendry said: "The quarter finals is always an exciting round because you know you're one match away from that one-table situation — where the magic really starts to happen at the Crucible and where it starts to come into its own."
Has the final always been played over 35 frames?
No, it has not.
The first tournament was in 1927 and was called the Professional Snooker Championship.
Most read in Sport
That is not to be confused with the English Amateur Championship, which started in 1916 — because historically us Brits have a weird relationship with amateurism and professionalism that is thankfully consigned to history.
Then matches were over 15 frames, the semi-finals 23 frames and the final 31 frames.
Before World War Two, matches were played out in their entirety, even if one player had already won the match, because it kept paying punters coming in to watch — and the star players being paid.
In 1975 the championships were held in Australia and Welshman Ray Reardon won a 31-30 thriller over Eddie Charlton on his home soil.
The Crucible era started two years later and it has not left Sheffield in 45 years.
In 1978 the final was played over 49 frames, with Reardon beating Perrie Mans 25-18 and a year later it was reduced to 47 frames, with Terry Griffiths beating Dennis Taylor 24-16.
The pattern for the modern tournament came in soon after with the first round played over 19 frames, the second round and quarters over 25 frames and the semi-finals 33 frames, with 35 in the final.
During the Covid-19 pandemic's height in 2020, the tournament was played in the summer with qualifying rounds one to three played over 11 frames.
But for the 2022/23 season World Snooker made the announcement that all qualifiers would return to the longer format of best of 19 frames.