Ronnie O'Sullivan whitewashes John Higgins in final to win John Virgo Trophy ahead of Crucible bid

O'Sullivan crushed fellow 'Class of 92' graduate John Higgins 6-0 in the final to claim the title and 20,000Euros first prize at the iconic Goffs venue in Kildare.

Held in honour of the beloved former UK Champion Virgo who unexpectedly passed away in February, the four-player tournament also featured three-time world champion Mark Williams and seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry, in what was billed as the biggest snooker event to be held in the Republic of Ireland for quite some time.

The festivities all weekend were played to unique 'Snooker 900' rules - using a match-clock, shot-clock, and a spotted cueball.

On Saturday, O'Sullivan booked his spot in the final with a 6-1 victory over Hendry, while Higgins got the better of Williams, 6-4, in the earlier session.

O’Sullivan records whitewash win

'The Rocket' got off to a very fast start in the opening frame of the final, sinking a long red and going on to craft an excellent break of 125. He then doubled his advantage after a run of 68.

The third frame saw O'Sullivan unexpectedly miss a black off its spot when nicely placed, but Higgins did likewise minutes later. However, Higgins' crucial error was fouling as he erroneously clipped the black ball first when attempting to play safe.

With cueball in hand - the punishment for all fouls in this format - O'Sullivan came to the table and fashioned a 65 clearance en route to 3-0.

The sport's greatest-ever breakbuilder then teased a maximum 147 break in frame four, dispatching 12 reds and 12 blacks before missing a tricky red along the top cushion whilst on 96.

On resumption after the mid-session interval it was more of the same story as Higgins struggled to get going, and O’Sullivan mopped up.

Another unforced error from Higgins, in frame five - this time clipping the blue on the way through to a red - gave O'Sullivan cueball in hand again, and he capitalised with a frame-winning effort of 73, before completing a clean sweep triumph in the next.

Whilst this latest success isn’t classed a professional title, it will likely give O’Sullivan a bit of a pep going into the sport’s blue riband event which begins its main draw, televised stages at the Crucible on Saturday 18th April. The 50-year-old Englishman is set to open his campaign on the Tuesday afternoon against a qualifier in round one.

The record 41-time ranking event winner has not lifted a trophy on the professional circuit in over two years, but he is building some very decent momentum heading into Sheffield.

During his last engagement on the sport’s official top flight at the World Open in China, O’Sullivan crafted a record 153 break, and reached the final, and was only denied the title by an inspired Thepchaiya Un-Nooh.

Speaking straight after his win at Goffs, O’Sullivan praised the crowd and the legend whose name the event is in honour of: “Like what John (Higgins) said, crowd amazing, always great - any venue we play in Ireland but especially here at Goffs, the atmosphere is electric. Amazing.

“Obviously, the tournament’s in memory of John Virgo who we lost recently. His daughter and son are here. John was like, I’ve already said, like a second dad to me.

“Everyone on the snooker circuit loved John, so this weekend is about John as well, so keeping his name going.”