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Higgins takes Championship League in double Ricoh joy

higginswinswebThe Final

John Higgins 3-0 Ryan Day
106-21 (84), 142-0 (138), 62-27

Semi-Finals

Judd Trump 2-3 John Higgins
14-120 (Higgins 120), 60-69, 126-0 (Trump 113), 101-9 (Trump 58), 0-86 (Higgins 86)
Barry Hawkins 2-3 Ryan Day
68-17, 0-137 (Day 137), 12-123 (Day 123), 63-55, 20-66 (Day 56)

John Higgins is the 2017 Championship League Snooker winner as he defeated Ryan Day 3-0 in the final match of a long week at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry. It was the scene of Higgins Champion of Champions victory back in November and it is proving to be a happy hunting ground for the Scottish veteran.

“I love Coventry!” he said. “It is good to win Champion of Champions, win my group and then win the Championship League. I am looking forward to coming back for the Champion of Champions later in the year and try and defend that title.”

Higgins, who started the competition earlier in the week in Group Seven, took a first prize of £10,000 as well £300 per frame won in the semis and final and £200 per frame in the group stages. His total tally of £20,900 was a fair reward for four days graft.

By reaching the final Day enjoyed the most lucrative season in the ten year history of the Championship League. He won a total £32,600 which overtook Martin Gould’s £31,117 which he achieved in his winning year of 2013.

Earlier, Higgins had defeated Judd Trump who looked the best of a good bunch in the group stages while Day had got the better of Barry Hawkins.

Commented Higgins, “I was hitting the ball okay. Ryan was unlucky with a couple of kicks in the final frame but I was really happy how I played in the semi and the final, it was probably the best I have played all week.

“I was delighted to play like that this week. Any win is a great win, it doesn’t matter it if is the Championship League or the World Championship – I was struggling with confidence and winning a trophy gives you confidence. I have lost three first-round games recently so to come here and win is pleasing. It is great match practice and hopefully I can take that forward and do well in the last three or four big tournaments we have left and cap off a great season I have had.”

In the Group Stages today Mark Davis became the first man in snooker history to make two maximum breaks in the same tournament. The East Sussex man compiled a 147 against Neil Robertson back in January – the first of his lengthy career. He then followed that up today against John Higgins to double his maximum tally. It was the 11th max of this season, the 129th in snooker history and he broke his own record as the oldest player to make a 147 (44 yrs 202 days).

Championship League Snooker event is a venture between Matchroom Sport and Perform where 25 of the game’s elite players compete with all matches broadcast on a host of betting websites.

Each group features seven players with each man playing the other six once in a round-robin basis. Every match is the best of five and the winner gains one point with the loser getting zero.

At the end of the league phase the top four advances to that group’s semi-finals where the two winners meet in the final and the winner advances to the Winners’ Group in March.

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