Ronnie O’Sullivan makes history with snooker prize money despite losing latest final | Other | Sport

Ronnie O’Sullivan has already banked a record prize money figure thanks to his run to the Tour Championship final. The Rocket was defeated by Mark Williams in Sunday’s final but still took home £60,000 due to that appearance.

O’Sullivan has enjoyed some remarkable form this season and is heading into the World Snooker Championship as one of the favourites. The 48-year-old can win a record eighth title at The Crucible in May.

He will be in line for the £500k prize pot in Sheffield and that money would be added to an eye-watering sum pocketed by O’Sullivan this season. The seven-time world champion has raked in £1.16million this term.

O’Sullivan’s prize money earnings for this season smash the previous record held by Judd Trump, who earned £1.01m in 2018-19. That figure was largely helped by his triumph in that season’s World Championship.

For O’Sullivan, victories at the UK Championship, Masters and World Masters were worth £250,000 each. He also won £100k at the World Grand Prix and £210k at the Shanghai Master.

Reaching the International Championship semi-finals saw O’Sullivan bank £33k while a further £16k followed for reaching the last eight of the Wuhan Open.

A run to the final of the Players Championship ensured O’Sullivan another £15k. He also earned £21k for his performances at the World Open, the English Open and the Championship League.

It means that O’Sullivan has won a record-breaking £1.16m in prize money this year – even before he plays at the World Championship. His previous biggest prize pot was £922k.

O’Sullivan has attempted to manage expectations ahead of the World Championship, predicting several other players as potential winners ahead of himself. After being beaten by Williams in the Tour Championship, O’Sullivan said that his opponent had been the best player of the last half-decade.