# 1950/1951 News of the World Snooker Tournament

The 1950/1951 News of the World Snooker Tournament was a professional snooker tournament sponsored by the News of the World. The tournament was won by Alec Brown who won all his 7 matches, finishing ahead of John Pulman who won 5 matches. The News of the World Snooker Tournament ran from 1949/50 to 1959.

## Format

The 1950/51 event was a round-robin snooker tournament and was played from 9 October 1950 to 20 January 1951. All matches were played at Leicester Square Hall in London. There were 8 competitors and a total of 28 matches. There were 8 competitors: Joe Davis, Fred Davis, Walter Donaldson, Albert Brown, Horace Lindrum, John Pulman and Sidney Smith together with Alec Brown who had won the qualifying event. Each match lasted three days and was the best of 37 frames.
Unlike the previous year's tournament, each match was separately handicapped. Joe Davis played level with Walter Donaldson and gave Fred Davis 10, Albert Brown, Horace Lindrum and Sidney Smith, John Pulman 25 and Alec Brown 30. Fred Davis played level with Walter Donaldson and Horace Lindrum and gave Albert Brown 10, Sidney Smith 14, John Pulman 16 and Alec Brown 21. Walter Donaldson gave Albert Brown, Horace Lindrum and Sidney Smith 10, John Pulman 16 and Alec Brown 21. Albert Brown played level with John Pulman and gave Sidney Smith 3, Horace Lindrum 7 and Alec Brown 10. Horace Lindrum played level with Sidney Smith and gave John Pulman 7 and Alec Brown 11. Sidney Smith gave John Pulman 7 and Alec Brown 11. John Pulman gave Alec Brown 11.

## Results

In his last match John Pulman, receiving 25 points each frame, beat Joe Davis to move into second place in the table. Joe Davis still had one match to play and could retake second place by winning 22 frames against his brother Fred in his last match. Even though he had a break of 140 on the second day, Joe trailed 14–10 and could no longer get second place. Fred eventually won 22–15.
Joe Davis made a break of 143 in the third frame of his match against Walter Donaldson. He potted all the red, 12 blacks, 2 pinks and a blue and then all the colours. He made a break of 101 the following day.
| Winner | Score | Loser | Date |
| Fred Davis | 21–16 | Walter Donaldson | 9–11 October |
| Alec Brown | 20–17 | Fred Davis | 12–14 October |
| Alec Brown | 23–14 | Joe Davis | 16–18 October |
| Joe Davis | 20–17 | Albert Brown | 19–21 October |
| Albert Brown | 22–15 | Sidney Smith | 23–25 October |
| Sidney Smith | 23–14 | Horace Lindrum | 26–28 October |
| Joe Davis | 20–17 | Walter Donaldson | 30 October–1 November |
| John Pulman | 26–11 | Walter Donaldson | 2–4 November |
| John Pulman | 20–17 | Fred Davis | 6–8 November |
| Alec Brown | 23–14 | Albert Brown | 9–11 November |
| Alec Brown | 20–17 | Walter Donaldson | 13–15 November |
| Joe Davis | 22–15 | Sidney Smith | 16–18 November |
| Albert Brown | 20–17 | John Pulman | 20–22 November |
| Alec Brown | 21–16 | John Pulman | 23–25 November |
| Horace Lindrum | 21–16 | Fred Davis | 27–29 November |
| Joe Davis | 24–13 | Horace Lindrum | 30 November–2 December |
| Alec Brown | 23–14 | Sidney Smith | 4–6 December |
| Albert Brown | 21–16 | Walter Donaldson | 7–9 December |
| Walter Donaldson | 19–18 | Horace Lindrum | 11–13 December |
| Fred Davis | 21–16 | Albert Brown | 14–16 December |
| Sidney Smith | 21–16 | Fred Davis | 18–20 December |
| John Pulman | 20–17 | Sidney Smith | 21–23 December |
| Albert Brown | 21–16 | Horace Lindrum | 1–3 January |
| John Pulman | 19–18 | Horace Lindrum | 4–6 January |
| John Pulman | 20–17 | Joe Davis | 8–10 January |
| Alec Brown | 24–13 | Horace Lindrum | 11–13 January |
| Sidney Smith | 20–17 | Walter Donaldson | 15–17 January |
| Fred Davis | 22–15 | Joe Davis | 18–20 January |
Table
| Pos | Player | Pld | MW | FW | Prize |
| 1 | Alec Brown | 7 | 7 | 154 | £500 |
| 2 | John Pulman | 7 | 5 | 138 | ? |
| 3 | Joe Davis | 7 | 4 | 132 | ? |
| 4 | Albert Brown | 7 | 4 | 131 | ? |
| 5 | Fred Davis | 7 | 3 | 130 | ? |
| 6 | Sidney Smith | 7 | 3 | 125 | ? |
| 7= | Horace Lindrum | 7 | 1 | 113 | ? |
| 7= | Walter Donaldson | 7 | 1 | 113 | ? |
The positions were determined firstly by the number of matches won (MW) and, in the event of a tie, the number of frames won (FW).

## Qualifying

The qualifying tournament was played from 18 September to 7 October 1950. These matches were also played at Leicester Square Hall in London. As in the main event, each match lasted three days and was the best of 37 frames. There were 4 competitors: John Barrie, Alec Brown, Kingsley Kennerley and Sydney Lee. John Barrie and Alec Brown each won their first two matches which meant that the final match, between the two, would decide the winner. Alec Brown won a close match 19–18. Kingsley Kennerley had beaten Sydney Lee 21–16 in their final match.