Stephen Hendry: 147 maximum break prize in snooker should be bigger – ‘What about a car or a beautiful watch?’

Stephen Hendry believes the prize for a 147 should be bigger because it’s “the most perfect thing you can do in snooker”.

At its peak, a 147 maximum break was worth £147,000 at the World Championship in the 1990s, which Ronnie O’Sullivan and Hendry both earned.

The first official 147 was made by Steve Davis at the 1982 Lada Classic and he won a Lada car.

As maximum breaks became more common, the prize pot changed to a rolling £5,000. Recently, the standard prize of thousands of pounds returned, and at the 2022 World Championship, £40,000 was offered for a 147 made at the Crucible.

Neil Robertson went on to make one during his 13-12 defeat to Jack Lisowski in the last-16.

“There should always be a great prize for a 147,” said

.

“One of the arguments is they don’t want to give away more money. But what about a car or a beautiful watch or something?

“It’s the most perfect thing you can do in snooker and it doesn’t happen that often; nine-darters are far more common.

“You don’t know how the balls are going to be and 36 shots have to be perfect.”

Hendry has made three maximums at the Crucible, one coming in his last appearance there in 2012, before he retired.

The Scotsman admits he felt “invincible” at the time, especially at the Crucible.

“You’ve got to be nervous to win,” said Hendry. “When I won five world titles in a row, there was a time when I took winning for granted.

“Before going down to the start of the tournament I told my ex-wife could she bring a certain jacket that I wanted to wear after the final.”

He added: “At the end of the day it was your job. My job was to go to the World Championship and win it. It wasn’t to have a good time and see this or that.

“That’s why I never showed a lot of emotion when I lifted the trophy. I never cried or go crazy.

“That’s my job. I’ve come here to win the World Championship. When I won it I thought, ‘When is the next one?’”

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