Rob Francis

Normal sport.

@longformsnooker @mattjones2856 @ILoveSnooker_ Yeah, the controversy of it all would mean I'd walk away satisfied, I think. A 146 rarer than a 147 as well.

@mattjones2856 @ILoveSnooker_ To be fair this break is talked about more than 15 of his 17 maximums (5min one obvs + the World Open v Mark King where he asked re prize after 1 red). In my opinion it would be amazing to say "I was there" for this one so he didn't actually do the fans over...

It’s been 10 years since Ronnie O’Sullivan asked about the prize for a 147 break. Learning it was only £10k, he continued building a flawless break. Then he deliberately potted the pink over black and made a 146 break instead. Legend 😅

@EvanthisG @ILoveSnooker_ Willie Thorne and Darren Morgan.

@ILoveSnooker_ Is it Mike Hallett on the commentary?

@ILoveSnooker_ We talk about players picking and choosing tournaments—Ronnie picks and chooses maximums 😂

Happy #LetterboxdFriday! Time to post your #LastFourWatched 👎

@KimKristensen72 Make sure to reply to those messages, Kim 🤭

@kellietext @Magician147 Very well said, Kellie. The guy's an absolute pro. Some very nice Instagram updates recently 👍

Have to say, what an amazing ambassador @Magician147 is for snooker. Lost the World Final in a decider but less than a fortnight later, is back at the 900 and seems in very decent spirits 👏👏. Snookers very lucky to have great people involved, on and off the table 👍

If I'd only listened for six more minutes.

@ChrisDSmyth Sadly true, Chris.

@RobJF24 It is what happens when the leading political party is so openly in favour of hate and division that the language they use becomes the norm. And of course since Covid people have lost all sense of society - because most of us never leave home / our echo chambers.

Massive shame a video like this needs to be made, but it is very sad how normalised this kind of behaviour has seemingly become. Wise words in the top comment: 'Being hated by idiots is the price you pay for not being one of them.' 👌 youtu.be/IEyCm7K5CMY?si…

@WeAreWST @nr147 Think he's grown his hair out a bit since then.

Neil Robertson produced something super rare at the 2023 World Championship: two 146 breaks in three frames! 👏 Hey, his teenage opponent looks kinda familiar...? 🤔 #TBT @nr147

@TheHuiXI God, yes. The stalking alone. Doing whatever it takes to justify their jealousy, I guess. Mad.

@RobJF24 The first thing I thought is how are people hating on Gary lol. Just shows how miserable people are. And somebody was bloody following him around shopping. What an absolute twerp 😂

@TheHuiXI It blows my mind that folk have been getting that wound up about him. Like, how do they go about their daily lives with that level of jealously within them? Absolutely unhinged people. Comment section very reassuring, though, as he says 👍

@RobJF24 Literally watched this video last night and thought the exact same. Bunch of idiots.

@TheCinesthetic How to do a previously on segment without doing a previously on segment 👌

The opening of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) immediately reminds you how massive that world feels. Gandalf and the Balrog falling endlessly through darkness still feels like fantasy cinema operating on another level.

Fouldsy was probably my favourite previous guest on The Snooker Hall, so this episode naturally doesn't disappoint. A terrific unpacking of World Championship talking points from two of the best voices we have in our sport. Definitely with Neal regarding not being as angry about phones as some 👍

@SnookerForce The beating of a twice-defending Mark Allen on home turf is still one of the best underdog stories I've seen. The season you're back will be extra special 👍

@RobJF24 Knowing my background, I overachieved 😆 But I'll hopefully still be back after a pause

Okay, so I've collated this data, and it does suggest that the term 'underachiever' is overused, which has been a prevailing opinion of mine for some time now. For underachievement to be a real thing in the capacity of which it's spoken about, there would also have to mathematically be a similar amount of overachievement, an area you don't really tend to see much spotlight on, but it would have to be there if underachieving is as much of a thing as is often suggested. It's all about balance, and there are only a finite number of tournaments to go around. As a wise man replied in the comments—something's gotta give. 14 of the current top 20 were among those listed, which is absurdly high, really, and leaves Zhao Xintong, Wu Yize, Kyren Wilson, Xiao Guodong, Chris Wakelin, and Zhang Anda as the only non-underachievers. Have they then significantly overachieved? 20 of the top 32 and 31 of the top 64 are also listed. Obviously, this is all personal views over a spread of various different people, but it still points to underachievement being a bit of a trite term, in my opinion. Where should these trophies be coming from? Whilst you can always argue that a player's talent means they've had the potential to win more, I think that being called an underachiever tends to imply that they SHOULD be winning more, which I think does a bit of a disservice to the guys that are taking home the trophies instead of them. What about the players that have essentially won exactly the right amount? There must be at least a few of them knocking about. Just looking at the World Championship in isolation, a lot of people say that Robertson should have won more, Ding should have won it, and even that Ronnie should have more than seven, but where would these all come from? The World Championship is only an annual event, and there simply aren't enough to go around to everyone that 'should' be winning them. There was a lot of chatter in recent weeks about Murphy underachieving, which basically inspired this waffle, so I'll fittingly leave with essentially the same thoughts that the Magician agreed with a few years ago.

absolutely sobbing on my couch rewatching the lord of the rings. i don’t trust a single soul that doesn’t enjoy or see the beauty in these movies

@siwebber2000 Now you're speaking my language, Simon! 😁 It's an interesting one, though. Nobody really argues against what everybody has won, yet there are so many that folk deem should've won more. Kinda paradoxical in a way. I guess there's just so much potential around.

@RobJF24 Oh I wouldn't. Over the course of a career you deserve what you end up with, not what someone else thinks you should have won. No, the trophies are staying put where they fell at the time and the 'underachievers', if that's what they are, are gonna have to live with it!

@zia954 @ILoveSnooker_ Haha, probably not! How many times has anyone ever even asked about the prize for a max during a break? Would take a very ballsy player to try and echo Ronnie here.

@ILoveSnooker_ People say 5:08 max cannot be done again. Thats about right but I think Asking for max break prize after 1 red and then going on to make one will never ever be done again.

It’s been 16 years since Ronnie O’Sullivan asked about the prize for a 147 break. Learning it was only £4k, he continued building a flawless break. Before the final black, he shook hands with Mark King to stop at 140, until the referee persuaded him to pot it. Legend 😅

@quench1985 I like the scientific approach. Not sure it would cover all requisite factors, but it would certainly be interesting.

@RobJF24 Award points for tournament finishing positions (eg Round 1 = 1 pt, Round 2 = 2 pts, etc.). Find each player's average performance over multiple tournaments. Then look for outliers in their data.