The 2025 Snooker Masters has begun. The Masters is the second of the three major events this season and the only invitational event among them. The total prize money for the event is £1.015 million, equivalent to 9.12 million yuan in RMB, with the champion receiving £350,000, the runner-up £140,000, the semi-finalists £75,000, the quarter-finalists £40,000, the last 16 £25,000, and the highest break awarding £15,000. There is also a participation award of £25,000, equivalent to 230,000 yuan.
Only the top 16 players in the world rankings are eligible to participate in the Masters. The participants this time are John Higgins, Mark Williams, Judd Trump, Shaun Murphy, Mark Selby, Neil Robertson, Ding Junhui, Zhang Anda, Si Jiahui, Gary Wilson, Ali Carter, Barry Hawkins, Mark Allen, Kyren Wilson, Luca Brecel, and Chris Wakelin.
The final will be played over a best-of-19 frames format, while the rest will be best-of-11 frames.
Ronnie O'Sullivan withdrew from the Masters at the last minute, with Neil Robertson stepping in as a substitute to face Higgins in the opening match.
Neil Robertson, ranked 20th, is an outstanding player from the 80s generation, having won 24 ranking titles and is the only non-British Isles player to complete the Grand Slam. His most recent victory was in the English Open this season against Wu Yize. Higgins, ranked 14th in the world, has won a total of 31 ranking titles in his career, achieving the double circle Grand Slam feat.
The two have faced each other 31 times before, with Neil Robertson winning 16 and Higgins 15, making it an even split.
In the first game, Neil Robertson started the match, and both sides quickly became entangled in a fierce battle. Higgins gradually accumulated an advantage through piecemeal play, leading 31-11. In the intense competition, Higgins made a mistake while attacking a red ball, giving Robertson an opportunity. Robertson seized the chance and quickly counterattacked, reversing Higgins with a score of 59-46 to win the first game.
In the second game, Higgins took advantage of Neil Robertson's mistake, scoring a single shot of 54 points twice to easily win the game with a score of 67-3; In the third game, Higgins continued his good form, unleashing a single shot of 78 points to shut out Neil Robertson and successfully overtake the score; In the fourth game, Higgins took the lead, scoring a single shot of 59 points before switching to defense. Neil Robertson managed to hit a difficult long-range red ball, getting 8 points, but soon made a mistake. Higgins got another chance and successfully scored more points, winning the game with a score of 72-8.
In the fifth game, Higgins remained in hot form, taking the lead with a single shot of 86 points, continuing to expand his lead with a big score of 4-1; In the sixth game, Higgins' hand felt explosive, continuously taking the lead and scoring a single shot of 66 points, winning the game with a huge score of 120-0 and getting the match point first.
In the seventh game, the situation on the table became extremely complicated, with both sides frequently making low-level mistakes. At a critical moment, Neil Robertson steadied his mentality, seized the opportunity to score a single shot of 63 points, successfully winning back a game and saving a match point; In the eighth game, Neil Robertson pulled off a miraculous save, scoring multiple times to win the game with a score of 90-28, changing the big score to 3-5.
In the ninth game, Robertson fought harder and harder, blasting out the first century break of the game - 118 points, winning another game; In the tenth game, Neil Robertson continued his momentum, taking advantage of the long-range shot to score a single shot of 80 points to lock in the victory, leveling the big score to 5-5, dragging the game into the decisive game.
In the decisive game, Higgins withstood tremendous pressure, hitting a long-range red ball and taking the lead, but after scoring 35 points, he made a low-level mistake, handing over the excellent offensive opportunity to Robertson. Robertson did not miss the opportunity, scoring a single shot of 57 points to win the game with a score of 82-35. In the end, Neil Robertson staged a desperate comeback under the unfavorable situation of being 1-5 behind, launching a spectacular five consecutive whips, reversing and killing Higgins with a big score of 6-5 to advance to the quarter-finals.
This withdrawal from the Masters by O'Sullivan has created two world records. The first is becoming the only snooker player in history to voluntarily withdraw from the Masters; The second is becoming the first defending champion to withdraw from the Masters.