With the World Championship now just a few weeks away, the best players in the game have one more opportunity to play themselves into form ahead of snooker’s biggest tournament.
The Tour Championship is an exclusive tournament reserved for just the top 16 in the rankings and it provides an opportunity for the game’s best players to earn some valuable prize money which could see their seeding for the Crucible improved.
With the level of competition set to be so high this week, there will be an abundance of close matches and if you are wanting to get involved in the betting this week - there should be plenty of value that can be found.
Here is how the current betting looks.
The Favourites
Due to his position at the top of the World Rankings, Judd Trump finds himself in his customary role of being the top seed but he certainly has plenty to prove ahead of a crucial few weeks.
Whereas last season, Trump had already enjoyed tournament success with victories at the World Open and German Masters, 2025 has been a different story altogether and it has largely been a year of frustration.
As the image above demonstrates, Trump is yet to get off the mark this season when it comes to a title and will be wanting to amend that record this week, before he heads over to the Crucible.
For the last few years Trump has been a real force when it comes to regular season play and he is currently well on track to become the all time ranking tournament leader and currently sits in fourth place just eleven titles behind Ronnie O’Sullivan.
Where Trump needs to improve is at the Crucible. A man of his talents should have won more than just one world title and his contemporaries such as Mark Selby, John Higgins, Mark Williams and Ronnie O’Sullivan have all won more. Although its cruel, greatness in snooker is often defined by World Championship success and in this arena Trump needs to do more.
The one man standing in Trump’s way is Kyren Wilson. Wilson will head to Sheffield as the defending World Champion and of late seems to have got the better of his rival.
Having beaten Trump 10-9 in the final of the Players Championship, Wilson has also beaten Trump in the semifinals of the Masters, final of the World Grand Prix and Northern Irish Open. When the lights have shone brightly, Wilson seems to know what it takes to get over the line.
Having had such a dominant 2024, Trump will be wanting to beat Wilson on the big stage and the two are set to be on a collision course at the Crucible. Nothing short of overall success will be enough for Trump and he will hope to head to the Crucible off the back of a first win of the season at the Tour Championship.
Kyren Wilson
No one in World Snooker has been in as good form as Kyren Wilson. Having shown that he belongs with the very best in the game with his World Championship success in 2024, Wilson will be confident that he can become the first man to defend his title since Mark Selby achieved the feat in 2018.
At the end of 2024, few would have believed that Trump could be caught at the top of the world rankings but with victories at the German Masters and the Players Championship the gap between Wilson and Trump is closing all the time.
A solid showing at the World Championship could see Wilson close the gap further and if Trump fails to live up to expectations, Wilson could overhaul his great rival at some point later in the season.
The one area which has made Wilson so successful in recent times is his ability to hold his nerve when the pressure is at its highest.
Wilson has won both the German Masters and Players Championship via final frame thrillers and his career record of winning well over 50% final frame shootouts bodes well for the next few weeks.
Whilst Wilson has been quick to downplay his overall prospects for repeating his World Championship success, he is playing some of the best snooker of his life and he will want to cement his authority on the rest of the field at this wee’s Tour Championship.
As the second seed, he won’t potentially play against Trump until the final and if the two lock horns again this week, he will want to beat Trump again and create real seeds of doubt for the world number one ahead of his mission to win a second World title.
Wilson looks to be the value play of the week.
One player to watch
With the top four seeds this week advancing to the quarterfinals, there are some highly established players that will need to battle through to the quarter final stage. One man who will be wanting to win through his first round is Mark Selby.
Selby hasn’t really got the recognition he deserves for the career he has managed to build.
Eighth in the all time ranking list when it comes to ranking titles won, with his four World Championship victories only Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O’ Sullivan, Steve Davis and Ray Reardon have won more than the man from Leicester.
Having won the Welsh Open earlier this season, Selby has come off the boil a little in recent weeks, falling early in the World Open, Players Championship and World Grand Prix.
A multiple World Champion, Selby knows what he needs to do in order to peak for the Crucible at exactly the right time and he will be hoping to do exactly that this week. Drawn against the talented Chinese youngster Si Jiahui in the opening round, he will then face off against old rival Neil Robertson should he advance.
A price of 13/2 looks big for overall victory this week and if you don’t fancy either Judd Trump or Kyren Wilson, Selby could be a brilliant pick as he looks to provide plenty of value.
Andrew Blakely
At 35, Andrew Blakely stands as a seasoned expert in both snooker and its betting intricacies. A dedicated player and analyst, he offers keen insights derived from years in the field. Through his writings, Andrew aspires to guide enthusiasts navigating the captivating world of snooker betting.
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