Ronnie O’Sullivan, the world’s number one snooker player, has called for a revamp in the way the sport is promoted. The Guardian newspaper reports O’Sullivan as saying there was “not a happy atmosphere” at tournaments, and calling for a promoter to take charge of snooker in the way Barry Hearn has done in darts.
O’Sullivan made the comments after his first round win over Joe Perry at the Masters. The Guardian quoted him as saying, “I think it [the circuit] should be privatised. It needs someone like Barry Hearn, someone more up-to-date in the modern world. With the people running snooker now, it seems to be going backwards. There isn't the buzz there used to be. It's only the BBC holding it together. It's dying unless something happens… This isn't the tournament it was when Benson & Hedges were sponsoring it. It's not so much fun.It needs Barry Hearn to come in and do with it what he's done for darts.”
Hearn’s promotion of the Professional Darts Council circuit has seen it attract most of the game’s top players, establish a £5 million prize fund, and overtake the British Darts Organisation’s World Championship in prestige and credibility.
