Mark Williams adds to his exotic 147 haul with maximum break in the Himalayas on New Year's Eve

Three-time world champion and current world number four Williams fashioned the perfect frame - approximately 3,650 metres up in the Himalayas - on New Year's Eve during the fifth frame of his match with Neil Robertson.

A video of the maximum can be viewed on Facebook through the ‘Snookermania’ page here.

Williams and Robertson were part of a star cast featuring at the two-day Lhasa Winter Plateau Snooker Challenge which finished on New Year's Day. Fellow top 16 exponents Kyren Wilson, Xiao Guodong, and Wu Yize also performed during the extravaganza in south-western China.

As it was constructed at an exhibition and not on the professional circuit, Williams’ effort won’t count as a 147 in the official record books, but it was still a fantastic and enjoyable spectacle for all involved.

Snooker in Tibet - a region nicknamed the 'Roof of the World' - has enjoyed a huge surge in popularity in recent years with players such as Ronnie O'Sullivan, Judd Trump, and Ding Junhui having played in exhibitions there before.

Tibet's capital city Lhasa - which translates to 'Place of Gods' or 'Land of the Gods' and is one of the highest cities in the world - was the location for Williams' feat of snooker perfection. The city's largest snooker hall is equipped with 36 tables across 2,800-square-metres.

Just weeks before the exhibition, a qualifying event was held for local players with the top two going through to star in the special event.

Due to the extreme altitude of Tibet, overseas visitors have to be careful of their health. Such travellers are given oxygen tanks to help them acclimatise to the unusual conditions and avoid becoming unwell with ailments such as altitude sickness.

In the lead-up to the exhibition, former world champions Robertson and Wilson - who were visiting the region for the first time - shared their experiences on social media needing to use extra oxygen during their trip.

Williams’ incredible 147 exhibition record

Fifty-year-old Williams - who became the oldest-ever winner of a professional ranking event a few months ago at the Xi’an Grand Prix in the Far East - is one of the most sought-after names on the exhibition circuit. And due to his record at such occasions, it’s not hard to work out why.

In May 2024, we reported on the Welshman crafting two 147s during the same night at an exhibition in Cornwall, south-west England.

Last year, Williams totted up a brace of maximum breaks during a short stay in Bermuda. These are believed to be the first 147s ever made on the archipelago islands which are located approximately 650 miles off the coast of the state of North Carolina in the United States of America.

Only a few weeks later, ‘The Welsh Potting Machine’ once again completed a 147 double - this time against fellow ‘Class of 92’ graduate John Higgins during an exhibition in China.

In professional competition, Williams has made three maximum 147 breaks during his career.

The first of those came at the Crucible Theatre during the 2005 World Championship when he sank 15 reds with blacks, then all the colours in the final frame of his 10-1 round one win over Robert Milkins. That particular contribution earned Williams £161,000.

Williams’ next outing on the World Snooker Tour is set to be at the 2026 Masters held at the Alexandra Palace in London.

A two-time winner of snooker’s most prestigious invitational event, Williams has been drawn against Mark Allen in round one, with that match scheduled to take place on the afternoon of Monday 12th January.