|
| Other Non-Ranking and Invition Events |
| First held before 1980* |
* Later events: � �1980-89 � 1990-99 � 2000 onwards
�� � � �
Bombay
International
This was the first
professional snooker tournament to be held in India. The first event in 1979 was
a six-man round robin but in 1980, the top two played a final to see who took
the first prize.
| Year |
Venue |
Sponsor |
Winner
|
Runner Up |
Score |
1st Prize |
| 1979 |
Bombay Gymkhana |
Gaware Paints |
John Spencer |
Dennis Taylor |
Round robin |
�2,000 |
| 1980 |
Bombay Gymkhana |
Gaware Paints |
John Virgo |
Cliff Thorburn |
13-7 |
�3,000 |
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Champion of Champions
Boxing
promoter, Mike Barrett, copied the
format he had used for his Dry Blackthorn Cup
the previous year to put on this event with sponsorship by the Daily Mirror
also at the Wembley Conference Centre. Again there were just four players and
the event was completed in a single day in front of a crowd of some 1,800. By
1979 the venue had been taken over by the Benson & Hedges Masters and the
event was not held but it did return in 1980, this time at the Master’s former
home, the New London Theatre. This time there were ten players split into two
round robin groups. The players did not like the format which involved them
playing ‘dead’ frames and the crowds did not turn up. There was no sponsor and
it turned into a financial disaster which was not repeated.
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| Year |
Venue |
Sponsor |
Winner
|
Runner Up |
Score |
1st Prize |
| 1978 |
Wembley Conference Centre |
Daily Mail |
Ray Reardon |
Alex Higgins |
11-9 |
�2,000 |
| 1980 |
New London Theatre |
none |
Doug Mountjoy |
John Virgo |
10-8 |
�5,000 |
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Daily Mail Gold Cup
The Daily Mail sponsored this event for four
seasons from 1936/37 and it was considered almost as prestigious as the world
championship. The events were played in a round robin format over a period of
fifteen weeks with all players handicapped. Joe Davis played off scratch and
had to concede as many as 45 points per frame to some of his rivals. After managing
to win the first two events, Joe was unable to compete against the crippling
handicap. There was no cash prize only a magnificent Gold Cup although there
were other prizes in the form of goods. The event was discontinued at the
outbreak of World War II and never revived.
| Season |
Sponsor |
Winner
|
Runner Up |
| 1936/37 |
Daily Mail |
Joe Davis |
Horace Lindrum |
| 1937/38 |
Daily Mail |
Joe Davis |
Willie Smith |
| 1938/39 |
Daily Mail |
Alec Brown |
Sidney Smith |
| 1939/40 |
Daily Mail |
Alec Brown |
Sidney Smith |
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Dry Blackthorn Cup
A one-off
tournament notable as the first snooker event to be held at the Wembley
Conference Centre. It was the brainchild of boxing promoter, Mike Barrett. There were only four players and the
event took place on a single day. The following year Barrett put on a similar
event at the same venue called the Champion
of Champions.
| Year |
Venue |
Sponsor |
Winner
|
Runner Up |
Score |
1st Prize |
| 1977 |
Wembley Conference Centre |
Dry Blackthorn |
Patsy Fagan |
Alex Higgins |
4-2 |
�2,000 |
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Forward Chemicals Tournament
This was one-off event which was run on the same
lines as the Park Drive 2000 a few years
earlier. Four invited professionals competed against each other three times on
a round robin basis with the top two meeting in the final at Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre.
| Year |
Venue |
Sponsor |
Winner
|
Runner Up |
Score |
1st Prize |
| 1979 |
Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester |
Forward Chemicals |
Ray Reardon |
John Spencer |
9-6 |
�3,000 |
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Holsten Lager International
Another event which
lasted for only one season, the Holsten Lager International had an unusual
format. There were sixteen players in a straight knockout but the first round
was decided by aggregate scores over four frames and the second by aggregate
over 6 frames. The semi finals and final were ‘Best of 11’ and ‘Best of 21’
respectively. It was however for the quarter final between John Spencer and
Cliff Thorburn that this event is remembered. In the afternoon session, John
made the first ever 147 in a professional tournament. Sadly, as it was the
afternoon, the TV cameras were not running and due to oversize pockets the
break was never officially ratified for record purposes. Spencer went on to
beat Graham Miles in the final.
| Year |
Venue |
Sponsor |
Winner
|
Runner Up |
Score |
1st Prize |
| 1979 |
Fulcrum Centre, Slough |
Holsten Lager |
John Spencer |
Graham Miles |
11-7 |
�3,500 |
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Kronenbrau 1308 Classic
A one-off event
held the week after the Limosin International (see below). It featured Eddie
Charlton, who won again, Ray Reardon, Perrie Mans and Jimmy van Rensburg.
| Year |
Venue |
Sponsor |
Winner
|
Runner Up |
Score |
1st Prize |
| 1979 |
Johannesburg |
Kronenbrau |
Eddie Charlton |
Ray Reardon |
7-4 |
�1,373 |
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Limosin International
The first major
professional tournament in South
Africa for many years, this tournament featured
eight players, six of the top pros of the day plus the Francisco brothers,
Mannie and Silvino, who although they were professional had rarely competed
outside their home country at that time. It was a straight knockout tournament
with prize money totalling nearly �9,000 and although well supported and
covered on television, was not repeated. It gave Eddie Charlton his first major
international title.
| Year |
Venue |
Sponsor |
Winner
|
Runner Up |
Score |
1st Prize |
| 1979 |
Good Hope Centre, Capetown |
Kronenbrau |
Eddie Charlton |
John Spencer |
23-19 |
�2,747 |
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McEwans Lager Golden Masters
A four-man
invitation featuring Ray Reardon, Dennis Taylor, Doug Mountjoy and Graham Miles
played in June 1978 and again the following year with thesame four players.
| Year |
Venue |
Sponsor |
Winner
|
Runner Up |
Score |
1st Prize |
| 1978 |
Newtownards, Co. Down |
McEwans |
Doug Mountjoy |
Ray Reardon |
4-2 |
�750 |
| 1979 |
Newtownards, Co. Down |
McEwans |
Ray Reardon |
Graham Miles |
4-2 |
�750 |
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Men of the Midlands
A round robin
event palyed at various venues in the spring of 1972 and 1973. In 1972
there were eight players in two groups each playing the otheronce with
thetop two in each group progessing to the semi finals. In 1973 there
were just four players who played each other twice. The top two met in
the final.
| Year |
Venue |
Sponsor |
Winner
|
Runner Up |
Score |
1st Prize |
| 1972 |
Various |
M & B |
Alex Higgins |
John Spencer |
4-2 |
�300 |
| 1973 |
Various |
M & B |
Alex Higgins |
Ray Reardon |
5-3 |
�500 |
Norwich
Union Open
This was an invitation
event open to both amateurs and professionals. It was only held twice, on both
occasions at London’s
Piccadilly Hotel. There were 24 competitors the first year but this was reduced
to 16 for the second running.
| Year |
Venue |
Sponsor |
Winner
|
Runner Up |
Score |
1st Prize |
| 1973 |
Piccadilly Hotel, London |
Norwich Union |
John Spencer |
John Pulman |
8-7 |
�1,000 |
| 1974 |
Piccadilly Hotel, London |
Norwich Union |
John Spencer |
Ray Reardon |
10-9 |
�1,500 |
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Park Drive 2000
This was a four-man
invitation event where the players played each other three times in a round
robin format at venues all over the country. The top two played each other in a
final. The events were held twice a year, in the spring and autumn of both 1971
and 1972 before the sponsors transferred their support to the world
championship. In one of the round robin matches in October 1972, Ray Reardon
made a break of 146 against John Pulman which was the highest in professional
competition at the time.
| Year |
Sponsor |
Winner
|
Runner Up |
Score |
| 1971 - Spring |
Park Drive |
John Spencer |
Rex Williams |
4-1 |
| 1971- Autumn |
Park Drive |
Ray Reardon |
John Spencer |
4-3 |
| 1972 - Spring |
Park Drive |
John Spencer |
Alex Higgins |
4-3 |
| 1972 - Autumn |
Park Drive |
John Spencer |
Alex Higgins |
5-3 |
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Sunday Empire News Tournament
A season-long event which was only
held once, in 1948/49. A sealed handicap system was used which were not opened
until after the match. The final game between Joe and Fred Davis was effectively
the final as the situation was such that whoever won would top the points
standings. Fred beat Joe for the first time on level terms 36-35. However when
the handicaps were opened Joe surprisingly was given a two frame advantage
giving him the match 37-37, and the title.
Final Table
| Winner |
Joe Davis |
8 points |
| Runner Up |
John Pulman |
6 points |
| Third |
Fred Davis |
6 points |
| Fourth |
Walter Donaldson |
6 points |
| Fifth |
Sidney Smith |
6 points |
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Watney Open
This event involved
sixteen players, including one or two amateurs. It was played on a knockout
basis with one match each weekend from 7 September to 22 December 1974. Matches
up to and including the semi final were over the best of 25 frames and were
played over three sessions. All matches were played at the Northern Snooker
Centre in Leeds and there was a total prize
fund of �3,000.
| Year |
Venue |
Sponsor |
Winner
|
Runner Up |
Score |
1st Prize |
| 1974 |
Northern Snooker Centre, Leeds |
Watneys |
Alex Higgins |
Fred Davis |
17-11 |
�1,000 |
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