The Royal London Watches Grand Prix has decided to change things up a bit during this year’s tournament. For the first time, this year’s snooker tournament will have a random drawing. All matches of the last sixteen to the semi finals will be drawn out of a hat. It will be similar to the style of a football cup draw.

The first round will consist of the top sixteen seeded players and sixteen qualifiers. The matches will be drawn at random to pit the two groups against each other. The qualifying rounds will be completed on September 25th and on the 26th the drawing will take place.

The playing schedule for the top sixteen seeds has already been placed so fans can buy tickets to see their favorite players in action. The tournament is set to begin in October on the 11th and continue until the 19th. The tournament will take place at the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre in Glasgow.

The Chief Executive of Glasgow City Marketing Bureau has stated that anything that differentiates the Glasgow tournament from any that has gone on before will only heighten the appeal. Marco Fu, the defending champion of the tournament stated the random draw is an exciting idea and that two top seeds could end up playing each other very early, which would raise the excitement and entertainment value. Fu also stated: “Having a draw after each round will also add an extra element to the tournament and I’m sure the players will be anxiously watching the names pulled out to find out who they will play next.

Several star players are set to attend The Royal London Watches Grand Prix this year including: Marco Fu, Shaun Murphy, Mark Selby, Ronnie O’Sullivan, Stephen Hendry, John Higgins, Stephen Maguire and Graeme Dott.


- 2008-08-13