Power Snooker

Power Snooker is a variant of the cue sport snooker, first played competitively in July 2010 in the United Kingdom.

The promoter of World snooker, Barry Hearn, stated Power Snooker is "designed to be faster and more exciting" than the traditional format of snooker. Players compete in time-limited matches based on total points scored, instead of number of frames won. Power Snooker uses nine red balls, which are continually re-racked at the end of each frame until the end of the match. Total match play lasts for a fixed 30 minutes, with the winner being the player who has scored the most points overall, irrespective of frames. A 20-second shot clock is imposed on each shot, while additional variants also include power plays, balls and zones, awarding bonus points.

The first tournament using the Power Snooker format was played at The O₂ in London on 30 October 2010. Eight players competed for a first prize of £35,000. The format has been sanctioned by, but organised and promoted independently from the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) which organises the traditional format of snooker. Barry Hearn stated the hope "that Power Snooker will emulate the success of Twenty20 cricket as a new, alternative form, of a well established traditional game". Five-time World Snooker champion Ronnie O'Sullivan won the inaugural tournament.

A second invitational tournament was played in 2011. No professional competitions of Power Snooker are currently organised.

Power Snooker was created by Rod Gunner and Ed Simons, both producers with backgrounds in the entertainment industry. Gunner had been involved with Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance, while Simons was co-producer of the film The Lawnmower Man. Boxing promoter Frank Warren, a longtime business partner of Simons, also has a non-controlling stake in Power Snooker.

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