With its popularity across the globe, particularly in Northern Europe and Asia – Snooker is one of the most lucrative sports available for punters to stake on with its wealth of betting opportunities.

The World Snooker Association have developed an extensive Worldwide Calendar where the elite players on the planet, travel all over the globe, with huge prize money on offer – culminating in the World Championship at the Crucible in Sheffield, UK in May.

Here is our guide to how bet on Snooker intelligently:-

• Cash in with Snooker Bookmakers
With many of the main events in the snooker calendar being held in the UK, many of the big players on the UK Betting Scene provide sponsorship for the big events – such as the Ladbrokes Players Championship and the Betfred World Championship. As a result, the bookmakers often have a vested interest to entice new customers or reward existing customers by offering deals/enhanced odds around the big events on the snooker calendar.

• Avoid the Fast and Furious Events
As a game of great tradition, snooker has seen its popularity gradually wain since the height of its fame in the 1980’s and a number of innovations have been brought in – in an attempt to make the game more fashionable. Such events include the Snooker Shootout – a one frame tournament – featuring many of the world’s biggest names, where players have a 20 second shot clock and can be pitted against pretty much anyone, with no seeding system. The lottery of the event makes it almost impossible to pick a winner and such events should be avoided for the seasoned Snooker punter.

• Exploit the Handicaps
Most snooker knockout events implement a seeding system, protecting the highest ranked players in the world – as reward for their past performances at previous events. In the early stages of these events, the world’s elite may be pitted against relative unknowns – that have progressed to this stage through qualifying. The self-paced nature of snooker, allows players to compete with the world’s elite (provided they have the skill set) regardless of physicality or experience. Meaning, many of the world’s best are pushed all the way by talented amateurs in the early stages of big events. Capitalising on the Handicap market (giving the outsider a head start of 2/3/4 frames) is frequently an effective ploy – particularly in the big events.

• Back the Big Breaks
The maximum score a player can achieve in one break on a snooker table is 147 and many of the world’s top players have completed this feat – in front of the TV cameras – on multiple occasions. Pre-tournament betting on the outcome of a Snooker event can be tough but backing a 147 to be made in any event – is always a worthwhile outside punt as most of the world’s big names are more than capable.

• Embrace the In-Play Snooker Betting
Snooker’s complex scoring system makes it a dream for punters with its wealth of betting opportunities, within each frame and across the whole match – that allow the punter to bet without fear. The slow-paced nature of the game too puts less emphasis on impulsive betting and allows for a more measured decision making process that will hopefully maximise the winning potential.

• Become Informed through Live Snooker Streaming
As mentioned, many of the biggest events on the snooker calendar are backed by big UK Bookmakers meaning customers can indulge in live snooker whilst placing stakes on the outcome. Being able so visibly see player’s strategies as well as the state each game is in (e.g. the way in which the balls are spread) gives the punter a huge advantage when betting on Snooker.

• Build A Snooker Betting Strategy
With so many events on the snooker calendar and with most events featuring many of the biggest names in the game – week in, week out – building a database of results would be an effective ploy as most of the biggest names in the game play against each other regularly. Whilst some players are known for their swash-buckling approach (Ronnie O’Sullivan or Judd Trump) others are known for their staunch defence and safety play (John Higgins or Barry Hawkins) and game styles often pair off well against one and other. Knowledge of past results, player form and head to head history are all useful tools for Snooker punters and the extra knowledge can give punters the edge.