Chalk On The Table

[Bazile]

So , what was all that about with O'Sullivan putting his chalk on the table .

Surely he knew that was against the rules ?

[RandyMarsh]

signal for asian betting syndicate? ( i joke)

[steg]

The ref didn't seem to know either

[murraymints]

he can be a bit odd at times

[Tilly2]

He took his shoes off, last week. Got into trouble for that.

[Bazile]

//signal for asian betting syndicate? ( i joke)//

Speaking of betting syndicates .

I was listening to the radio the other day about betting syndicates .
I did not know that there are professional gamblers who bet on sports events while the event is going on ( i forget what they call it ) .

For example they have people at tennis matches whose job it is to relay back to 'base camp ' every move point a player wins , so they can alter their betting - and if they get the info first they have an advantage .

I probably haven't described the above properly

Apparently one spotter was arrested at the Australian open , but the charges were eventually dropped

[Svejk]

In running betting. You can take bets on horses that have already fallen.

[Svejk]

And, of course, bet the horse that was 'plodding on' for second.

[Ken4155]

There's nothing sinister about 'in play' (or in running) betting. It is quite legal and many of the on line betting firms stream live events in the hope of tempting punters into making such bets. Can't understand under what law this so-called 'spotter' was arrested for Bazile?

[retrocop]

Showmanship or Brinkmanship.He knew all right.Probably attempting to unsettle opponent.i thought he took too long to pot a subsequent easy shot and should of been spoken to. Becoming a bit of a rebel in the game methinks

[Baldric]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2539871/British-tennis-scammer-arrested-Australian-Open.html

[murraymints]

didn't he once go for a comfort break and never came back ?

[DTCwordfan]

You would think he would have known but then the ref didn't either and neither did Steve Davis......one of those grey areas it seems but there is a good reason not to have the chalk on the table and that is that it can leave 'grit' behind and this can cause the balls to 'jump,' as it is referred to.

[Xeronema]

The reason you're not allowed to put the chalk on the table is because you can use it as a tool. It can be used to measure distances and see whether balls pass others (to pot). On this occasion it clearly wasn't done for that reason.

[murraymints]

[murraymints]

oops doesn,t want to play..look on youtube...ronnie O'sullivan concedes match to Stephen Hendry

[Xeronema]

Minty: He really does suffer sometimes and his personal life takes residence. He's done a lot more things brutal when the camera hasn't been on him. He's smashed up cues, chewed cue bits off and lost his cool. I like Ronnie :)

[Xeronema]

For Minty's post, just click on the top of the video that says "Snooker - Ronnie O'sullivan concession" - it will take you straight to the video on YouTube.

[Ken4155]

Ta for the link, Baldric, i misunderstood the point Bazile was making. This looks like blatant cheating. I was thinking more along the lines of watching live racing and trying to spot the winner from the chasing bunch. Quite a lucrative pastime if you can get it right and perfectly legal.

[Svejk]

As long as people are aware of the time delays built into 'live' sporting events, Ken. It might not be illegal, indeed courses provide 'trading rooms' for a hefty fee, but it's not quite cricket.
If you've ever watched a race on 2 TVs, 1 on ATR, 1 on C4, you can see the tremendous difference in their 'live' feeds. And they're both behind the actual live race.

[ToraToraTora]

It is not against the rules to put anything on the table, it is against the rules to have any kind of attempt at measuring anything. It is whether/what he was measuring that is the point here. If he used the chalk to assist with the shot in any way then it is a foul. He appeared to use the chalk for alignment so it was a foul. The referee basically missed it, once the shot is played it cannot later be called. No different to a football ref missing handball. Refereeing errors are rare in snooker but they do happen.