The 2023 UK Championship gets underway in York this weekend. The bookmakers are split between Judd Trump (+500), Ronnie O’Sullivan (+500), and Mark Allen (+700) in the betting to win the event. Allen is the defending champion, but he will have his work cut out winning the event for a second time. In our latest Snooker betting picks, we look at Allen’s chances of success and tell you the most likely winner of this coveted title in 2023.
- What; 2023 UK Championship
- Where; York Barbican, York, England
- When; Saturday, November 25th – Sunday, December 3rd
- Prize Fund; £1,205.000
- Winner’s Share; £250,000
- Defending Champion; Mark Allen
The most eagerly anticipated UK Championship in years
The UK Championship is one of World Snooker’s three prestigious Triple Crown events and the first one of the current 2023/24 snooker season. It is also the eighth ranking event of the season, and with a close four-way battle at the top of the Snooker World Rankings, it promises to be a spectacular nine days of top-quality action.
The winner will receive £250,000, with a total prize fund of just over £1.2 million to be distributed between the players. Mark Allen is the defending champion. He defeated Ding Junhui 10-7 in last year’s final to win the event for the first time in his career. But over the past couple of months, Judd Trump has been the form player in the world, winning three World Ranking events across October.
That run of success for Trump ended in the last 32 of the 2023 International Open in China at the start of November when he was defeated 6-3 by Stephen Maguire. Trump was back in the groove in the recent Champion of Champions, where he reached the final. But just as Trump looked set to get back to winning ways, guess who went and thrashed him 10-3 in the final? Only Mark Allen.
🏆 Mark Allen joins Ronnie O’Sullivan and Neil Robertson as the only multiple-time Champion of Champions!
Greatness. #Cazoo | #ChampOfChamps pic.twitter.com/zXBhbErs1h
— Champion Of Champions (@ChampOfChamps) November 19, 2023
This sets the UK Championship up perfectly. We have Judd Trump flying high, getting to four of the last five finals. Mark Allen thrashing Trump in the most recent ranking event final and also attempting to defend his title here. We also have Ronnie O’Sullivan looking to defend his status as the number one ranked player in the world, with no less than Judd Trump, Luca Brecel, and Mark Allen all in with a chance of unseating the legendary Rocket this week. No wonder this is one of the most eagerly anticipated snooker events in years.
Allen’s winning moment in 2022 🥺
Who’s looking forward to Saturday?#UKChampionship | @mrqbingo pic.twitter.com/LU46LvU2l6
— World Snooker Tour (@WeAreWST) November 21, 2023
Betting to win the 2023 UK Championship Snooker
So, what do the best online sportsbooks think? Well, they are torn on who they think will win. Some are favoring Trump, and some are going with Ronnie O’Sullivan. BetOnline has Trump and O’Sullivan as joint favorites at +500. With defending champion Mark Allen next at +700 and Mark Selby at +800.
Highlighting further just how tight the current competition is at the top of world snooker, Neil Robertson is next at +900, Shaun Murphy is at +1100, and the current World Champion, Luca Brecel, is at +1200.
The list of names in the frame to win goes on. John Higgins is +1400. The winner in 2005, 2009, and 2019, Ding Junhui is next at +1600. Ding was also the beaten finalist here last year. Also at +1600 are Kyren Wilson and Mark Williams.
We have put together more odds to win the 2023 UK Championship on our Snooker betting table. Please also check out our free bets and promotions page for the latest offers from the listed bookmakers.
| Outright Winner Betting |  |
 |
 |
| Ronnie O’Sullivan | +500 | +500 | +500 |
| Judd Trump | +500 | +500 | +500 |
| Mark Allen | +700 | +700 | +700 |
| Mark Selby | +800 | +800 | +800 |
| Neil Robertson | +900 | +900 | +900 |
| Shaun Murphy | +1100 | +1100 | +1100 |
| Luca Brecel | +1200 | +1200 | +1200 |
| John Higgins | +1400 | +1400 | +1400 |
| Kyren Wilson | +1600 | +1600 | +1600 |
| Ding Junhui | +1600 | +1600 | +1600 |
| Jack Lisowski | +2000 | +2000 | +2000 |
| Barry Hawkins | +2500 | +2500 | +2500 |
| Ali Carter | +3300 | +3300 | +3300 |
| Si Jiahui | +3300 | +3300 | +3300 |
| Stuart Bingham | +3300 | +3300 | +3300 |
| Hossein Vafaei | +5000 | +5000 | +5000 |
Is Ronnie O’Sullivan a candidate to win the 2023 UK Championship
We already know all about the form of Judd Trump and Mark Allen, but what about the other betting favorite, Ronnie O’Sullivan?
The Rocket pulled out of the recent Champion of Champions event, citing mental health as his reason for skipping the event. There is little doubt that if he turns up and is in a good frame of mind, he’s a candidate to win the event. But at the moment, we can’t be sure if Ronnie will play the event. And even if he does, what will his current form be like?
Some things are more important in life. And that’s where Ronnie O’Sullivan is at the moment. Don’t be surprised if the Rocket isn’t in town to try and add another title to the record seven UK Championships he has already won.
Our Picks
Despite Judd Trump probably being the best player in the world across the last two months, this still looks like an open competition. The top players can all beat each other on a given day. And as Mark Allen has just proven, Trump can be beat.
But we can’t ignore the form of Trump when it comes to our betting picks to win the UK Championship. At odds of +500, Judd Trump is our first pick to win the UK Championship.
The openness of the competition means longer odds and the chance to hedge our bets. So, as well as backing Trump, we also feel a bet on Mark Allen at +700 is worthwhile. Allen is a gutsy character, the defending champion, and he has just hit form by winning the Champion of Champions.
Finally, for our third pick, we are going for Neil Robertson to win. The Aussie hasn’t had much success in recent months, but he has made adjustments to his personal life so he can focus on practice more, in an attempt to help him get back to the top of his game.
Robertson won here in 2013, 2015, and 2020. We believe he is worth a small wager at +900. If any of those three win, we will make a nice profit.
See below the best online sportsbooks where you can wager online and choose the best one for you:
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