Mark Selby won the first of two exhibition events in Macau during Christmas.
Mark Selby won the Macau exhibition event, which caused controversy earlier this season. The World Snooker Tour was unhappy with five players withdrawing from a ranking event for Macau, threatening punishment. The event was rearranged to run from 22-24 December, with Barry Hawkins included. Selby defeated Ali Carter 6-3 in the final, overcoming controversy and breaching their players’ contracts. The rearranged event was a significant event in the tournament’s calendar.
The Macau Masters, an exhibition tournament, featured heavy scoring with Selby making a 147 in his semi-final win over John Higgins and Higgins knocking in a maximum in his group stage win over Hawkins. The event is the first of two exhibition events in the region over Christmas, with a second Macau Masters scheduled for 25-29 December at Wynn Palace. The tournament featured a heavyweight line-up including Ronnie O’Sullivan, Ding Junhui, Judd Trump, Mark Williams, Kyren Wilson, Si Jiahui, Jack Lisowski, and Marco Fu.
The main tour resumes after Christmas with the Championship League from 2-5 January, followed by the Masters at Alexandra Palace on 7 January, marking the curtain-raiser for 2024, with no significant results on the line, just the opportunity for players to earn a festive wedge at exhibitions.
