World No 3 Mark Allen has called for the tables at the British Open to be ‘burned’ in a furious rant about the conditions at the Cheltenham venue.
The British Open got underway on Monday with Ronnie O’Sullivan pulling out of the tournament just hours before his scheduled first-round match.
The tournament takes places at the Centaur in Cheltenham for the second consecutive year with Mark Williams looking to defend his crown.
Allen will be among the favourites to win as one of the top seeds, but he’s not comfortable on the green baize this week.
Mark Allen is not impressed with the table at the British Open
PA
Speaking after his 4-3 win over Gary Wilson on Monday, Allen launched an explosive rant about the conditions of the tables this week.
“The conditions out there are absolutely embarrassing,” he told ITV.
“It’s some of the worst weather outside and they’ve left the massive transport doors open. It’s so cold, it’s so humid out there.
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“The table needs to be burned. The cushions are unplayable, uncontrollable. It was heavy. The speed was decent.
“There are new guys doing the tables this year and they’re clearly not up to it.
“I pride myself on preparing properly for tournaments with good conditions and you turn up and you don’t get them. It’s not good enough.”
He added: “I complain every single tournament, fill in table report sheets, match report sheets and nothing ever changes.”
Allen later issued an apology on X to interviewer Rob Walker for not giving him a ‘better interview’.
He wrote: “After having some time to calm down I’d like to apologise to Rob Walker for that interview.
Ronnie O’Sullivan has also been critical of conditions at major tournaments
PA
“My anger wasn’t directed at him and he definitely deserved a better interview.
“My frustrations were 100 per cent at the conditions which frankly haven’t been anywhere near good enough this season.”
Allen’s complaints come a few months after O’Sullivan launched a similar outburst about the conditions of the Alexandra Palace for the Masters.
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Mark Allen faces Aaron Hill next at the British Open
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He labelled the iconic venue ‘disgusting’ back in January, which has hosted the Masters since 2012.
“I just don’t like this place. I find it disgusting,” he said.
“Everywhere is dirty. It’s cold. It’s freezing. I have to wear my coat everywhere. You go through car parks. There are bins. Honestly, it just makes me feel ill.
“I’m a bit of a clean freak and when I come in here it gives me the heebie-jeebies. I just can’t wait to get out of here.”