Ronnie O’Sullivan wins in Saudi then gets immediate incentive to return – as Golden Ball prize is doubled to $1MILLION

RONNIE O’SULLIVAN has banked more than £1million in prize money this season after winning the inaugural World Masters of Snooker in Saudi Arabia.

The Rocket dazzled with two centuries as he crushed reigning world champion Luca Brecel 5-2 in the final – then saw the controversial Gold Ball prize DOUBLED TO $1m for next year.

Ronnie O’Sullivan enjoys his Riyadh triumph

Saudi adviser Turki Alalshikh took the mic to reveal the Gold Ball prize rise

The Rocket rounds off his victory over Luca Brecel

It represents his 79th professional title and for his efforts, he received a cheque for £250,000 by Saudi paymasters.

This money goes alongside the two separate £250,000 cheques he received for winning the UK Championship and Masters – plus £210,000 for lifting the Shanghai Masters towards the start of the 2023-24 campaign.

Nobody has earned more money in a single snooker season – but quite frankly, few players have ever played the sport as wonderfully as O’Sullivan has.

The world No.1 was in magnificent form as he whitewashed John Higgins 4-0 in the quarter-finals at 3am local time on Wednesday morning.

In the semi-finals, he was a 4-1 winner over Judd Trump before showing the Belgian Bullet why he is the best around.

The 20-point Gold Ball gimmick, which carried an astonishing bonus prize of £400k, never came into play during the three days in the Middle East as nobody compiled a 147.

But straight after the final, Saudi adviser Turki Alalshikh, Chairman of General Authority for Entertainment, took the mic to announce the special prize for getting 167 will shoot up to $1m in 2025 – £800k.

O’Sullivan immediately joked: “I’ll get [the golden ball] next year – you don’t want to get it all at once.

“I thought I’d win the tournament this year and get the golden ball next year.”

The Rocket added: “It’s been a fantastic tournament, a brilliant venue.

“The crowd have been amazing. It’s been a long time since we came to the Middle East.

“We have been treated so fantastically well. The players have enjoyed it. The hospitality has been fantastic. The culture here is fantastic.

“These are the tournaments you really want to play in. One table, a great crowd. The music was going on in-between frames.

“It was like we were in some sort of rave. Like going 25 years back when I was young. It has made it lively. It feels like a really nice festival. Everyone wants to get to Saudi.”

Brecel, 28, said: “I’ve enjoyed these last few days. The venue is amazing. The crowd have been fantastic.

“Ever since I landed in Saudi, I felt like the people are really, really nice. I’m grateful to be able to play here. Hopefully it will be here for a long time.”

“The music was going in between the frames, it was like we were in some sort of rave – going 25 years back when I was young,” O’Sullivan said on Eurosport.

“It feels like a really nice festival.”