Snooker
The Masters
The most important invitation tournament on the circuit, The Masters is second only to the World Championship in its longevity. It is the only major event held in London and traditionally attracts the larger crowds than any other tournament in Britain. Only the top 16 players in the world rankings qualify automatically for this prestigious event.
The first tournament was held in the West Centre Hotel with 10 players taking part, a foprmat continued from 1976-78 at the New London Theatre.
The growing popularity of the sport took The Masters to the Wembley Conference Centre in 1979, its home right through to 2006 - the year of its demolition.
In 1981 the tournament was extended to 12 players before growing to a 16-strong invited field in 1983. The first time The Masters was restricted to the top 16 in the rankings was 1984 and a further development came in 1990, with the introduction of two `wildcards` who played preliminary round matches against the 15th and 16th ranked players. One of these wildcards is the winner of the Masters qualifying event and the other is invited.
From 2007 to 2011 the event was held at the Wembley Arena, moving to Alexandra Palace for the first time in 2012.
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YEAR
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VENUE
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WINNER
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RUNNER-UP
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1975
|
London, Eng
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JOHN SPENCER (Eng)
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Ray Reardon (Wal)
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1976
|
London, Eng
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RAY REARDON (Wal)
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Graham Miles (Eng)
|
|
1977
|
London, Eng
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DOUG MOUNTJOY (Wal)
|
Ray Reardon (Wal)
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|
1978
|
London, Eng
|
ALEX HIGGINS (Nir)
|
Cliff Thorburn (Can)
|
|
1979
|
London, Eng
|
PERRIE MANS (Rsa)
|
Alex Higgins (Nir)
|
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1980
|
London, Eng
|
TERRY GRIFFITHS (Wal)
|
Alex Higgins (Nir)
|
|
1981
|
London, Eng
|
ALEX HIGGINS (Nir)
|
Terry Griffiths (Wal)
|
|
1982
|
London, Eng
|
STEVE DAVIS (Eng)
|
Terry Griffiths (Wal)
|
|
1983
|
London, Eng
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CLIFF THORBURN (Can)
|
Ray Reardon (Wal)
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1984
|
London, Eng
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JIMMY WHITE (Eng)
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Terry Griffiths (Wal)
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1985
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London, Eng
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CLIFF THORBURN (Can)
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Doug Mountjoy (Wal)
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1986
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London, Eng
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CLIFF THORBURN (Can)
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Jimmy White (Eng)
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|
1987
|
London, Eng
|
DENNIS TAYLOR (Nir)
|
Alex Higgins (Nir)
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1988
|
London, Eng
|
STEVE DAVIS (Eng)
|
Mike Hallett (Eng)
|
|
1989
|
London, Eng
|
STEPHEN HENDRY (Sco)
|
John Parrott (Eng)
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|
1990
|
London, Eng
|
STEPHEN HENDRY (Sco)
|
John Parrott (Eng)
|
|
1991
|
London, Eng
|
STEPHEN HENDRY (Sco)
|
Mike Hallett (Eng)
|
|
1992
|
London, Eng
|
STEPHEN HENDRY (Sco)
|
John Parrott (Eng)
|
|
1993
|
London, Eng
|
STEPHEN HENDRY (Sco)
|
James Wattana (Tha)
|
|
1994
|
London, Eng
|
ALAN MCMANUS (Sco)
|
Stephen Hendry (Sco)
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|
1995
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London, Eng
|
RONNIE O'SULLIVAN (Eng)
|
John Higgins (Sco)
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|
1996
|
London, Eng
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STEPHEN HENDRY (Sco)
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Ronnie O'Sullivan (Eng)
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1997
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London, Eng
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STEVE DAVIS (Eng)
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Ronnie O'Sullivan (Eng)
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1998
|
London, Eng
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MARK WILLIAMS (Wal)
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Stephen Hendry (Sco)
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1999
|
London, Eng
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JOHN HIGGINS (Sco)
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Ken Doherty (Rir)
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2000
|
London, Eng
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MATTHEW STEVENS (Wal)
|
Ken Doherty (Rir)
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2001
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London, Eng
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PAUL HUNTER (Eng)
|
Fergal O'Brien (Rir)
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2002
|
London, Eng
|
PAUL HUNTER (Eng)
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Mark Williams (Wal)
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2003
|
London, Eng
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MARK WILLIAMS (Wal)
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Stephen Hendry (Sco)
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2004
|
London, Eng
|
PAUL HUNTER (Eng)
|
Ronnie O'Sullivan (Eng)
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|
2005
|
London, Eng
|
RONNIE O'SULLIVAN (Eng)
|
John Higgins (Sco)
|
|
2006
|
London, Eng
|
JOHN HIGGINS (Sco)
|
Ronnie O'Sullivan (Eng)
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2007
|
London, Eng
|
RONNIE O'SULLIVAN (Eng)
|
Ding Junhui (Chn)
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|
2008
|
London, Eng
|
MARK SELBY (Eng)
|
Stephen Lee (Eng)
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2009
|
London, Eng
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RONNIE O'SULLIVAN (Eng)
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Mark Selby (Eng)
|
|
2010
|
London, Eng
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MARK SELBY (Eng)
|
Ronnie O'Sullivan (Eng)
|
|
2011
|
London, Eng
|
DING JUNHUI (Chn)
|
Marco Fu (Hkg)
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| 2012 | London, Eng | NEIL ROBERTSON (Aus) | Shaun Murphy (Eng) |
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