O'Sullivan began the 2010–11 season at Event 1 of the Players Tour Championship, where he lost 0–4 in the quarter-finals against Jamie Cope. O'Sullivan next competed at Event 4, where he reached the final, but he lost 3–4 against Barry Pinches. At the World Open O'Sullivan made his record 10th maximum break in the last frame of his match against Mark King, which he won 3–0. However, he had to be persuaded by referee Jan Verhaas to play the final black, as he had become aware that there was no distinct prize money for a maximum break in the tournament, but only a prize of £4,000 for the highest break. Even then, he played the final black in a nonchalant fashion. O'Sullivan then defeated Jimmy White (3–1), Stephen Hendry (3–1), Stephen Maguire (3–1) and Peter Ebdon (3–1) to reach the final, where he lost 1–5 against Neil Robertson. O'Sullivan participated at the Premier League Snooker, and qualified for the finals unbeaten. He then defeated Neil Robertson 5–1 in the semi-finals, and Shaun Murphy 7–1 in the final, to claim his ninth Premier League Snooker title in 14 years. In the UK Championship in December, O'Sullivan suffered an early exit, losing 6–9 against Stuart Bingham in the first round.