Williams and snooker star slam email as £2.3m tournament cancelled | Other | Sport
Snooker star Mark Williams raised his concerns (Image: Getty)
Mark Williams and Barry Hawkins have been left unimpressed with the lack of communication after the World Snooker Tour (WST) decided to cancel this year’s Saudi Arabia Masters.
On Saturday, the WST announced in a statement that the Saudi tournament had been axed from the calendar, just two years after it was first held and despite a 10-year deal first being announced.
Judd Trump and Neil Robertson have won the only two editions of the event, with the duo winning £500,000 each. A prize pot of £2.3million was up for grabs, putting the tournament alongside the World Snooker Championship as the most lucrative.
Williams is concerned about the bigger impact cancelling the Middle East tournament could have, while Hawkins has slammed the “stupid email” which offered “no explanation” to players as to why the event has been called off.
“I suppose that’s one of the downsides to having a money ranking system, because it’s so top-heavy,” Williams said, after losing to Hawkins at the 2026 World Snooker Championship at the Crucible.
“Now these guys like Neil Robertson and Judd Trump, they haven’t got a chance to defend that £500,000, that’s just going to be wiped off, and there’s no tournament to replace that. Other people down the rankings are going to suffer as well. We all thought it (Saudi Arabia Masters) was on for 10 years, but for whatever reason it’s been called off.”
Hawkins, meanwhile, bemoaned with the lack of clarity around the decision.
The 47-year-old said: “What a disappointment. Without sounding rude, something’s gone wrong for us to lose that tournament. What’s happened to the 10-year contract? It’s just been blown out of the water.
“We don’t get no explanation, nothing, which is very, very annoying. We just get some stupid email saying it’s been stopped. No explanation, nothing. Very disappointing – it’s a massive tournament to lose. It’d be interesting to see the reason behind it.”
The WST have been approached for comment.
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Neil Robertson celebrates after winning the 2025 Saudi Arabia Masters (Image: Getty)
Announcing the decision on Saturday, the WST said: “Following constructive discussions between The Saudi Billiard and Snooker Federation and Matchroom following the conclusion of the 2025 editions, it has been mutually agreed not to proceed with future editions of the World Pool Championship and the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters.
“Across 2024 and 2025, the Kingdom successfully staged two major events in Riyadh and Jeddah, welcoming world champions and providing 18 Saudi players with the opportunity to compete on the same stage.
“Thousands of spectators attended from nearly 40 countries, many experiencing elite live snooker and pool for the first time.
“During this period, Saudi juniors also progressed through international events, including World Nineball Tour competitions, Q Tour Middle East, and Asian junior championships — important early steps onto the global stage.
“We extend our sincere thanks to all players, officials, and participants for their contribution to the success of these events.”
