There was a time when Canadians were all over the World Snooker Championship, with three giants of the sport coming along at once.
Kirk Stevens, “Big” Bill Werbeniuk, and, of course, Cliff Thorburn all broke into the professional ranks in the 70s, ranked in the top-ten and even top five spots in the 80s, and Thorburn won the prestigious tournament in 1980.
Now, however, Canadians looking to back compatriots in the betting markets for the upcoming World Snooker Championship will be hard-pressed to do so.
So, we have dug beyond the top 130 snooker players in the world rankings, looking more locally to find the best snooker player in Canada right now.
Vito Puopolo is currently the best snooker player in Canada
At the 2022 Canadian Championship, Vito Puopolo stormed to victory to become Canada’s top snooker player. It began with three 3-0 wins and a close 3-2 tie with Alan Whitfield in the group stage.
Next, he steamrolled Karam Namek 4-1, Eddie Galati 4-1, and then John Brooks 4-0 to reach the final of the Canadian Championship.
Meeting Whitfield again, but with everything on the line, Puopolo put up an average of 56.0 to his opponent’s 45.38 to win a tough battle and come out as the 5-3 winner and Canadian champion.
Next, it was on to the Pan-American Snooker Championship. It started off very well for Puopolo as he got the better of the defending champion, Ahmed Aly Elsayed, in the final to take the PABSA Pan-American Seniors Snooker Championship in Toronto.
With a two-season World Snooker Tour Card up for grabs in the Open Pan-American Snooker Championship, Puopolo would meet Elsayed again, but this time in the quarter-finals.
Unfortunately, the Canadian champion would come up short, losing a close battle 4-3. If there’s any solace to be taken from this, it’s that Elsayed did go on to win the tournament, so Puopolo did bow out to the best player there.
Furthermore, his opponent in the final also represents Canada. Amar Sadeg fell 5-1 to Elsayad (representing the US) in the final but certainly put his name in the hat for the best snooker player in Canada conversation.
The final result!
— Pan American Billiards and Snooker Association (@PABSAofficial) October 25, 2022
🇨🇦 Vito Puopolo 3 -0 Ahmed Aly Elsayad 🇺🇸#PABSA #WeArePABSA #WeCueAsOne pic.twitter.com/GdWD6uGnh0
Looking to the 2023 World Snooker Championship
There may not be any players from the nation in contention for the 2023 World Snooker Championship, but there’ll be plenty of Canadians tuning in for the live action.
The tournament begins on April 15, running to May 1 in Sheffield, UK. Coming into the World Snooker Championship, Ronnie O’Sullivan will be looking to successfully defend his title for the first time since 2013.
The snooker odds certainly have him in contention to do so at +450 as the joint-favourite, but many will be looking to Judd Trump, also at +450, to improve on his final appearance of 2022 and go all the way in 2023.
At the time of writing, O’Sullivan is clearly the top player in the world rankings, sitting well ahead of second-placed Mark Selby. The second-ranked 2021 champion is at +750 to take the crown back.
Sitting fourth in the world rankings, Australian Neil Robertson has also made his way into the conversation. Having a great year and at +550 in the odds, the 2010 champion shouldn’t be slept on just yet.
What Happened to Alex Pagulayan?
Born in the Philippines but raised in and nationalized for Canada, Alex Pagulayan emerged as a hot prospect in the mid-00s, helping to win the Southeast Asian Games men’s snooker doubles in 2005.
In 2011, he took the 2011 Canadian Snooker Championships, but in Snooker Q School in 2014, he struggled to get past top opponents to qualify for the main tour events.
Since then, Pagulayan has mostly stuck to pool and continues to do well on the circuit. By mid-February 2023, the Toronto resident had amassed $16,900 to stand 13th on this year’s money leaderboard, per AZB.
As it stands, reigning Canadian champion and Pan-American Seniors champion Vito Puopolo looks to be the best snooker player in Canada.
*Credit for all images in this article belongs to AP Photo*
FIRST PUBLISHED: 14th February 2023
