The qualifiers are nearly over. So far, only one player from the top 16 has fell short – Mark Allen. Near the completion of qualifying, the assumption that the favourites will take the matches very seriously turned out to be true. As of day 3, I can’t imagine Mark Williams, John Higgins or Judd Trump losing. But the odds on their win are mediocre. To make them attractive, it is necessary to add something. I’m afraid to take Oliver Lines victory over Noppon Saengkham. Oliver is talented, but Noppon was a junior world champion that underlines his abilities. The victory of Ken Doherty over gifted Welshman Rhys Clark seems more possible. The odds on that are 1.28, and on Lines they are 1.50. So, the acca on Williams, Higgins, Trump and Doherty with 1.85 is, in fact, a bet on the victory of Ken Doherty (the other favourites are unlikely to lose), and the odds are not too small for such a bet.
I won’t give tips on the shoot-out tournament, which is more of a show. It’s not possible to predict matches consisting of one frame with limited time for a shot. Welsh Open starts on Monday, stay tuned.