Snooker is a sport that has undergone a big revival in recent years following its heyday in the 1970s and 1980s. Today, countless snooker tournaments are taking place worldwide annually. So, there is no shortage of betting options on snooker and win money. In recent years, superstars like Ronnie O’Sullivan, Ding Junhui, and Neil Robertson have globalized the sport. This means more and more people want to know where and how to bet on snooker online. This article will help you find the best sites for snooker betting and provides the best betting tips and tricks to win real money.
Snooker Vs. Pool And Billiards
If you are among those who think snooker, billiards, and pool are the same, you should know you are mistaken. Although the terms ‘billiards’ and ‘pool’ are often used interchangeably, the two are not the same. Meanwhile, snooker differs from the other two. The three sports are played with the same types of equipment, but their rules, balls, and even tables are not the same.
Balls
The main difference is in the number of balls used. Snooker uses twenty-two balls, including a white ball known as the ‘striker’ ball. The rest are fifteen red balls, and one each of yellow, brown, blue, pink, black, and green. Each ball is 2 1/16 inches in diameter. On the other hand, Billiards uses only three balls: one each of white, yellow, and red. In Billiards, both the white and the yellow can act as the striker ball. The balls are 2 7/16 inches in diameter. In Pool, the number of balls changes depending on the variant of the game. However, a full set of balls consists of sixteen balls, each 2 1/4 inches in diameter: eight balls of solid color numbered one to eight, seven balls with a stripe of color numbered nine to fifteen, and a solid white ‘cue’ ball.
Tables
Typically, carom billiards and pool games are played on either a seven-foot table (also known as a bar table), eight-foot table (sometimes called home or recreational table), or nine-foot table (known as a pro or tournament table). Also, carom billiard tables do not have pockets, but pool tables have pockets. For snooker, pocketed tables are used. American tables are ten-foot tables, whereas English snooker tables are massive twelve-foot tables.
Rules
The objective of carom billiards games is to score points, called ‘counts’, by bouncing one’s own ball, called a cue ball, off of the other two balls on the table. In snooker, however, the games are organized into frames. You can win a frame by scoring the most points, using the cue ball to pocket the red and colored balls. The red balls are each worth one point, whereas the yellow is worth two points, the green three points, the brown four points, the blue five points, the pink six points, and the black seven points. Rules dictate which ball can be pocketed on a given turn. Balls that may be pocketed on any given turn are the “on” balls. For instance, if a red ball is pocketed, this must be followed by a colored ball, which must in turn be followed by a red ball. If the wrong ball is pocketed, this is considered a ‘foul’ and you do not receive points for pocketing the ball.
Many games can be counted as ‘pool’, however, in straight pool, you can score points by shooting the balls into the table’s pockets (called ‘pocketing’ the ball). Before the game, you and other players agree to reach a certain number of points to be declared the winner (a typical game is one hundred points, whereas a professional game is usually one hundred fifty points). Unlike snooker, here, players can pocket any ball on the table, and each successfully pocketed ball awards the player one point.
Snooker Betting Explained
To successfully bet on snooker, you should know the answers to the following questions:
- How to join a snooker betting market?
- What betting markets are available for snooker tournaments?
How to join a snooker betting market?
To successfully place your bets on sports on online platforms, you must choose the right bookmaker. There are infinite options out there and finding the best online sportsbooks can be challenging. The good news is that at Playnowpros, we have done the hard work for you. Our experts have analyzed the internet for the very best snooker betting sites. This means all the recommendations on this website are reliable, safe, secure, and legal. Below, I guide you through how to register and make a deposit, so you can start placing your snooker bets online immediately.
- Step 1: Select a bookie – your first job is to choose the right site to bet on snooker. I strongly recommend using only the best snooker betting apps and sites like the ones you find in this guide.
- Step 2: Sign up – signing up is quick and effortless. Just enter your email address, create a password, and add some personal details.
- Step 3: Verify Your Account – provide one or two forms of identification like an ID or driver’s license and confirm your account.
- Step 4: Select the Payment Method
- Step 5: Claim your bonus
- Step 6: Make your first deposit.
- Step 7: Start Betting – After you have completed all the above steps, you can bet on snooker for real money.
What betting markets are available for snooker?
You can find lots of different snooker betting markets online. You have a lot of options for betting. Following is a breakdown of snooker betting markets:
Match Bet or 1×2 Market
Match betting is the most common of all market bets. It involves wagering on which player will win the match. Snooker does not have a “draw”, so the only two options for your match bet are whether Player A or Player B wins.
Handicap or Frame Handicap
Like all sports games, snooker matches also feature players with unequal skills. In other words, one player will be favored to win, while the other is the underdog. In handicap betting, the player with the (-) negative sign is favored to win. But, the player with the (+) positive sign is the underdog in the match. With this betting option, bookmakers allow you to pick whether the underdog will win, given the advantage of a lead, or the favored player will triumph despite the handicap.
Outright
Outright betting allows you to wager on the outright winner of a tournament. So, in this bet, it’s crucial to look at player stats throughout the tournament duration to gauge the player’s value before placing your bets.
To Win the Quarter
You can wager on a player you think will win the quarter of the tournament and eventually advance to the semi-finals.
To Reach the Final
You can simply gamble on whether a player will reach the tournament’s finals.
Total Frames (Match or Tournament)
In this type of bet, you gamble on the possible total number of frames in the entire match or event. This bet may be presented in an Over/Under.
Highest Break (Match or Tournament)
You can make this bet in either a match or a tournament. Here, you gamble on which player you think will make the highest break in a match or in the tournament. Also, you can bet on the highest break score, or what the highest break score will be in the competition.
Correct Score
This market is gaining popularity among snooker gamblers. In this bet, you must wager on what the match’s correct score will be. However, this market may be challenging to predict. So, it suits players who like high-risk, high reward kinds of wagers.
Total Points
You must bet on how many total points will be scored in a frame between two players.
Session Betting
Typically, in snooker, the bigger tournaments like the World Snooker Championship or the Masters are usually broken into mini-sessions. So, there will be 4 frames in each mini-session. In session betting, you wager on the possible outcome of the first or second session. However, remember that this type of bet requires research on snooker players and their way of playing. Because The number of possible outcomes for each frame can be restrictive.
Maximum Break or 147
You wager on whether there will be a maximum break or a 147 break record in a tournament. There are only two options in this break: yes or no. But this is not as easy as it looks. Because the maximum break is the highest possible feat a player can do within a frame of snooker and achieving this involves great skill. So, only the best snooker players ever have managed a maximum break.
Best Sites To Bet On Snooker
As I mentioned earlier, plenty of sports betting sites offer snooker betting markets. However, not all of them are safe and worth your time and money. Below are the top bookmakers offering snooker betting. They all have checked all the boxes, and you can choose any of them with confidence. To read more about each bookmaker, you can read our comprehensive reviews.
- Betonline
- BetMGM
- FanDuel
- 888 Sports
- Bovada
- TigerGaming
Snooker Odds And Predictions
An important step toward successful snooker betting is underestanding how betting odds work. Bookies present betting odds in either the American odds, fractional, or decimal format. But for snooker, they always list the latest snooker odds in the fractional format. For example:
| Winner | Handicap | Total | |
| Ronnie O’Sullivan | 1/14 | -6.5 5/6 | O 27.5 5/6 |
| Liang Wenbo | 9/1 | +6.5 5/6 | U 27.5 5/6 |
Fractional odds use fractions to represent the bet odds or probability of happening. So, you can see how much you can win versus how much money you need to bet in the fractional odds format. The denominator (figure to the right or under the / bar) features your total stake or how much money you need to bet. On the other hand, the numerator (figure to the left or above the / bar) shows how much your profit will be if you win the bet.
Snooker World Championship 2022 Odds
The 2022 World Snooker Championship starts on April 16 in Sheffield, England at the Crucible Theatre and runs until May 2. There are eight former champions among the top 16 seeds for this tournament to highlight the quality of the field that will tussle for top honors. To summarize, the 2022 World Snooker Championship betting odds are as follows:
| Player | Odds |
| Ronnie O’Sullivan (England) | 7/2 |
| Neil Robertson (Australia) | 7/2 |
| Judd Trump (England) | 5/1 |
| Mark Selby (England) | 13/2 |
| Mark Williams (Wales) | 10/1 |
| Zhao Xintong (China) | 10/1 |
| John Higgins (Scotland) | 16/1 |
| Kyren Wilson (England) | 16/1 |
| Yao Bingtao (China) | 22/1 |
| Ding Junhui (China) | 28/1 |
Snooker Betting Tips And Tricks
Although some of the tips below are general sports betting tips, they are applicable for snooker betting and very important to follow.
- Research the Players –study all the players and use player stats to your advantage.
- Look for Value in the Snooker Odds – Don’t always rely on bookmakers favorite to win. Instead, find value in the betting odds to land bigger profits.
- Explore the snooker rules – the more you learn the sport rules the higher your chances of winning will be.
- Avoid Common Sports Betting Mistakes – Snooker gambling may be difficult, especially if you are a newbie. So, I recommend learning about the most common sports betting mistakes to minimize risk.
- Consider the Importance of the Tournament- Every snooker tournament is important. But obviously, some competitions are more important than others. For this reason, you must know which tournament you are betting on.
- Examine the Tournament Schedule- Although many of the major snooker tournaments feature a limited number of players, some of the smaller events have hundreds of competitors and include various preliminary and qualifying rounds.
- Think About the Prize Money-The value of prizes varies drastically from tournament to tournament. So, you must know how much money players win at each event. Because the bigger the prize fund, the bigger the incentive. In other words, players’ motivation tends to be higher when there is more money on the line.
- Study the History of the Tournament- For some reasons, some players enjoy competing in certain tournaments more than others. Simply, certain events suit specific players better than others.
Best Snooker Tournaments To bet On
Throughout the year, you can find countless snooker tournaments to bet on worldwide. However, not all these competitions receive widespread coverage. Although I recommend trying your luck at a variety of different events, the major tournaments are always the best for snooker betting. Below are some of the best snooker tournaments to bet on.
World Snooker Championship
- Inaugurated: 1927
- Location: Crucible Theatre, England
- Total Prize Fund: £2,395,000
- Winner Receives: £500,000
UK Championship
- Inaugurated: 1977
- Location: York Barbican, England
- Total Prize Fund: £1,009,000
- Winner Receives: £200,000
The Masters
- Inaugurated: 1975
- Location: Alexandra Palace, England
- Total Prize Fund: £725,000
- Winner Receives: £250,000
Champion of Champions
- Inaugurated: 1978
- Location: Coventry Building Society Arena, England
- Total Prize Fund: £444,000
- Winner Receives: £150,000
China Open
- Inaugurated: 1997
- Location: Beijing, China
- Total Prize Fund: £1,000,000
- Winner Receives: £225,000
Snooker Live Betting Tips
Although live snooker betting is very lucrative, it can also be risky. Just like all in-play sports betting, you must be fully prepared if you’re planning to bet on snooker live. Below is a list of helpful tips to aid your snooker live betting experience and increase your chance of making winning in-play snooker betting predictions.
Be Prepared
Before you start to bet on snooker live, make sure to get prepared for the match. This means you should study the players, analyze recent forms, and consider the match format. In other words, you should gather as much information as possible before the match gets underway.
Every Single Match Matters
When it comes to in-play snooker betting, you must watch the match. Of course, you can bet on a match without watching it. But you are far more likely to win money if you are following the event. By watching the match, you can pick exactly the right moment to place your in-play wagers.
Players’ Mental State Matters
A player’s mental state changes dramatically throughout a match, especially in longer formats. For this reason, I advise you to keep an eye on how each player is faring throughout the match. Because a player could be in control of a match but then miss a couple of easy chances and take a turn for the worse.
Don’t Miss out on In-Play Stats
You can follow in-play statistics on regular sports gambling apps. Also, you can keep up to date with all the latest live stats on specific betting apps for snooker. Stats like pot success % and safety success are great indications of how matches are going. So, you better always look at the in-play stats to discover developing trends.
Keep Your Emotions Out of Your Way
while placing in-play bets, It is pretty easy to get carried away. This is why I believe it is vitally important that you don’t get carried away. Long story short, don’t chase your losses. If your bets keep failing, it might be time to cut your losses and stop betting.
Wrap Up On Snooker Betting Tips
Ultimately, our aim at Playnowpros is to show you how to bet online and win cash. I understand that it can be difficult to know exactly where to place bets on snooker especially if you are new to sports betting. But if you start by our recommended sites, you can rest assured that you will not have a problem while wagering and you can increase your chances of winning real money.