Rory McLeod scoops top prize at first Amateur League 900 week on Pluto Snooker TV

Former world’s top 32 star and European Tour event winner McLeod finished top of a very competitive and exciting five-player round robin group at the Crucible Sports and Social Club in Reading to collect the top prize.

This was the first week of regular Amateur League action from the new, 24/7 dedicated snooker channel that will payout £600,000 in prize money across its first 12 months - a mammoth amount for the secondary tier of the sport.

Endorsed by snooker legends Ronnie O’Sullivan and Jimmy White, Pluto Snooker 900 TV officially launched last week with a special Legends League that saw Tony Drago roll back the years and take the main title before 1977 UK Champion Patsy Fagan impressed in winning the first Wednesday night one-frame knockout.

White and Ken Doherty were also in Reading on the Monday to cut the ribbon when they played in a special challenge match.

For most weeks, there will be live action from Monday to Wednesday with afternoon and evening sessions. Normally, the tournament format works with five players being invited for those weeks where they will compete in a round robin.

All contestants will face each other in a four-frame match - all frames to be played - with a point awarded for every frame won, and an additional point for every century break made. After the ten fixtures are completed, the player with the most cumulative points comes top of the table and wins the title.

On the Wednesday night, the five players that featured that week will be joined by three further players for a one-frame knockout tournament.

Both the above events are played to ‘900’ snooker rules where frames can only last a maximum of 15 minutes with a 20-second shot-clock in operation throughout.

McLeod finishes top of tight group to win title

This week's quintet was McLeod, Alfie Burden, Aaron Canavan, Jamie Clarke and Joe Perry.

A very tight group to predict from the outset, things weren't clearer after the opening day with all four matches having been drawn 2-2.

The draw-fest continued into day two, but McLeod ended that day top of the pool with 10 points - one of which he collected for making a century during his victory over reigning world seniors champion Alfie Burden.

However, McLeod had played all four of his matches, whilst the remaining cueists still had one fixture left, and with the unique points system in place rewarding tons, all of them could still mathematically come top of the pile.

Going into the final day, two-time Crucible qualifier Clarke was the likeliest player to usurp McLeod. The Welshman was two points behind in second place, but knew a draw in his last match with Joe Perry could be enough, as he had made a bigger century than McLeod which was the determining factor if players were tied on points.

Two-time ranking event winner Perry, though, scored a 3-1 win over Clarke, meaning that McLeod held on to top spot with 10 points ahead of second and third-placed Clarke and Perry who each finished on nine points.

Former world seniors champion Canavan finished fourth with seven points, the same tally that fifth-placed Burden had.

At the Wednesday night knockout, Jersey's Canavan defeated Perry, Dharminder Lilly, and then Clarke in the final for the title.

McLeod's hopes of a double were dashed in the opening round by Clarke.