Snooker star prepared for Shoot Out win with ‘two-hour bottomless brunch’

Tom Ford is into the last 32 of the Snooker Shoot Out and he has credited a two-hour bottomless brunch for getting him there.

The world number 22 is playing in his hometown of Leicester in the unique event on the snooker calendar.

Every match is just one frame, played with a shot clock and a 10-minute limit, with the crowd free to be as noisy as they like, a million miles from the traditional atmosphere of a snooker event.

Knowing that they could literally play one shot in a match and find themselves beaten and out of the tournament, the players tend to go into Shoot Out contests with a more relaxed attitude.

However, few are as relaxed as Ford, who says he had a lovely old day before beating Paul Deaville in the last 64 on Friday night.

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Asked by Jimmy White on Eurosport how he prepared for the game, Ford said: ‘My preparation has been a two hour bottomless brunch with my friends, to be honest.

‘And I’m going back there as soon as I can. I’ve got a Christmas jumper that I’m going to put on and I’m straight out!’

Ford added: ‘Its one of these tournaments that you’ve just got to go out there and enjoy it what you can.

‘I don’t think any of us deep down enjoy it because it’s so hectic with the nerves just kick in, you’ve just got to try and get that over and get on with it.’

The Shoot Out splits opinions as it is so far removed from most snooker events and the fact it is a ranking event is the most contentious issue.

The champion crowned on Saturday night will win £50,000, which counts on the world rankings, so things will start to get serious as the winning line approaches.

MC Rob Walker told Eurosport: ‘This has been bonkers, everyone said to me the Shoot Out is good, the Shoot Out is nuts, I didn’t realise it was this good!

‘What I’ve really enjoyed about this is the players have been smiling and they’ve been able to see the mayhem and they’ve been able to revel in, enjoy and savour the atmosphere. A couple of fans a few times have gone a little bit over the line, however, this is just great fun.

‘It will get serious when they start thinking about the quarter-finals and 50,000 ranking points.’

Not every top player enters the Shoot Out, but there are some very big names still in the field as the last 32 begins on Saturday afternoon, including four-time world champion Mark Selby.

The Jester from Leicester has been to the final of the Shoot Out before and reckons there should be more than one of the chaotic event on the calendar.

‘There’ll be a few sore heads in the morning, I think, out there,’ said Selby of the noisy crowd at the Mattioli Arena.

‘You listen to the crowd, that’s like darts have every single match. It’s great. There’s room for it in the calendar, I think they should have another one.’