Shaun Murphy 'certain' 167 break will be made at 2025 Riyadh Season Snooker Championship after making '20 or 30' in practice
Updated 19/11/2025 at 14:27 GMT
The Riyadh Season Snooker Championship will feature the golden ball, which can only be potted at the end of a 147 break and earns a $1m (£760,000) bonus for any player who pots it. A 167 is yet to be achieved, but Shaun Murphy believes it will happen at the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship. Murphy has said he has made "probably 20 or 30 167s" during practice.
Golden ball explainer: What are the rules? When can it be potted?
Video credit: TNT Sports
Shaun Murphy says he is "as certain as it can be" that the first 167 in history will be made at this week’s Riyadh Season Snooker Championship, having made plenty in practice.
The Riyadh Season Snooker Championship, live on TNT Sports and discovery+ from November 19-21, features a golden ball which is worth 20 points and can only be potted at the end of a 147 maximum break.
If any player pots the golden ball and makes a 167, then they will get a $1 million (£760,000) bonus.
This will be the third tournament to feature the golden ball and so far a 167 break has not been recorded - but Murphy reckons history will soon be made.
"I’ve been practising it a lot, I have to say," Murphy told Metro.
"I’ve been practising how to get from a black to the golden ball. I’ve been practising where and how and when and why would you move the golden ball.
"I’ve been using the days since my [first round] Champion of Champions exit to find the best route round the table to a ball stuck on the baulk cushion. This week I must have made probably 20 or 30 167s in the house. So it can be done.
"I think it’s going to go this week. I think someone will do it and jeez, I’d love it to be me, I have to say. I’m definitely motivated to do it. I’ll be going for it. No question about that."
The $1m bonus for potting the golden ball is the biggest financial prize in snooker.
The winner at this year’s World Championship earned £500,000, the same as Neil Robertson scooped with victory at the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters, while the victor of the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship will pocket £250,000.
"Would you be happy making the 167 and losing in the first round?" said Murphy in regard to the huge bonus. "Yes! We just couldn’t say that anywhere else."
Four-time world champion John Higgins has come closest to getting a 167 when the golden ball was first introduced at the 2024 Riyadh Season World Masters of Snooker.
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Watch the moment the first Golden Ball is removed from the table at the World Masters
Video credit: TNT Sports
Higgins ran out of position on 120 in trying to land on the yellow off a tricky black before missing the yellow.
This season has seen a high number of 147 breaks - one short of the all-time record of 15 already - and Murphy thinks that bodes well for a first golden ball break.
"I’m as certain as it can be that it’ll go this week," added Murphy.
"We’ve seen more 147s this season than ever [at this stage]. It feels like everyone’s knocking 147s in.
"You’d feel almost a bit short-changed if the top 10 players on the planet didn’t have a crack at it somewhere along the line. And with a prize like a million dollars, everyone’s very aware and motivated by it."
Murphy opens proceedings at the event when he faces 15-year-old wildcard Ziyad Al-Qabbani on November 19.
The winner meets Ronnie O’Sullivan in round two and the victor of that tie will face world champion Zhao Xintong in the quarter-finals.
World No. 1 Judd Trump is also competing, while Mark Allen is the defending champion.
How to watch the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship
All the action from the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship will be live on TNT Sports and discovery+.
TNT Sports is available across all major TV platforms, offering a line-up of up to four TV channels (TNT Sports 1, TNT Sports 2, TNT Sports 3, TNT Sports 4), up to six digital or red-button channels (TNT Sports 5 to 10), and TNT Sports Ultimate plus TNT Sports Box Office HD.
You can subscribe to TNT Sports through discovery+, BT, EE, Sky, and Virgin Media.
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