SNOOKER star Jimmy White lost a frame after falling foul of the “worst rule ever seen”.
, 62, was playing against Anton Kazakov in a qualifier for the World Championship.
With the score at 1-1 and no balls potted, The Whirlwind stepped up to the table and repeatedly attempted to nudge a red ball on the right cushion.
White's aim was to lightly touch the ball and return the cue ball to the top of the table which would have denied his opponent a shot.
However, he missed his mark twice before the referee reminded the players that if White missed for a third-time he would concede the frame.
In response, White aimed for a different ball on the opposite cushion, but again failed to hit it and therefore lost the frame.
Baffled commentator Neal Foulds said: “Surely that's end of the frame, isn't it?
“That's end of frame. [The referee] must have administered the warning, Jimmy White has missed three times so the frame is over – what a way to lose a frame.”
Co-commentator, Phil Yates, added: “It's not unprecedented, of course, it has happened, it has happened in big matches.
“It has happened in a ranking final in fact between and Thepchaiya Un-Nooh [World Open final 2019] but it is a rarity.”
“White obviously expected to catch the thin edge of the red at the third attempt but no cigar and having missed a golden opportunity for 2-0, in the matter of a few moments thereafter he has found himself 2-1 behind.”
Going into the break, White was losing the first to ten, round one, qualifying match 3-6, with Ukrainian player Kazakov winning four in a row.
The rule was only enforced because the referee informed the players.
The rules of the game say: “Failure to hit a ball ‘on' three times in a row, if the player has a clear sight of the ball.
“The referee will warn a player after a second such miss that a third miss will mean that the opponent will be awarded the frame. This rule does not apply if the player is snookered.”
The rule is controversial among snooker stars, with as the “worst rule I've ever seen”.
Speaking on theTalking Snooker podcastin October, he said: “The miss rule is the worst rule I’ve ever seen!
“When there’s 14 reds on the table and you’re playing someone like, an incredible player, if you say, ‘Mark, here’s £10,000 to hit a red,' then he’ll hit a red.
“Snookering somebody now is almost pointless because they’re basically trying to miss the ball for three or four goes.
“A foul is not enough to try and encourage somebody to hit the balls.
“They’re trying to get the thin edge, flick it safe. I do it, I get it, you use the rule to your advantage, but there’s no point to a snooker anymore.
“It takes forever to put the balls back, it slows the game up. If you just made it foul, ball-in-hand, bang, people will hit the ball.
“And if they don’t then the geezer who played a good shot to get a snooker has a reward. The amount of times there is zero reward. I hate the miss rule, so I’d definitely change that.”
The Snooker World Championship at the Crucible starts on April 19 and runs through to May 5.
White has been in the final of the World Championship six times but has failed to win any of them.
However, he has won the UK Championship and once apiece and ten ranking events in total.
