Its Masters time of the year again. With all the mince pies gone and Santa safely back in Lapland, the world's best players head for the capital, as one of the biggest and most prestigous tournaments in the snooker calendar kicks the new year off in style.
Last year,it was all about Ronnie. After walking out of his UK Championship quarter-final in December, he delighted his home fans and cruised to his third Masters title. This year he will walk out as UK Champion, and if he plays with the same determination, self-control he showed in Telford, Cuefactor thinks it will be Masters number four.
Ding Junhui was devastated in the 2007 final, after being given the first of two N.A.S.A. (No Average Snooker Allowed) lessons from "The Rocket". It has taken until now, for Ding to look like the player he was leading up to that final, but we think he is back somewhere near his best and can see him going well again in Wembley.
Whoever, comes out on top at the end of next weekend, this is one of the biggest snooker events of the year, and we hope that you all enjoy it.
Come back each day for news updates and predictions from the tournament.
