The 1936 Daily Mail Gold Cup was a professional snooker tournament sponsored by the Daily Mail. Despite giving a handicap to all the other players, the cup was won by Joe Davis who won all his five matches. The Australian Horace Lindrum finished in second place in the final table. It was the third Daily Mail Gold Cup tournament, although the first two had been billiards events. The Daily Mail Gold Cup ran from 1935 to 1940.
Format The third event was a round-robin snooker tournament and was played from 28 September to 19 December 1936. Most of the matches were played at Thurston's Hall in London. There were 6 competitors and a total of 15 matches. Each match was of 71 frames, lasting six days (Monday to Saturday) and consisted of two sessions of six frames each day (five on the final evening). The 6 competitors were Joe Davis, Horace Lindrum, Sidney Smith, Willie Smith, Tom Newman and Melbourne Inman. The event had two handicapping aspects. Each player had a handicap which was given in each frame. The handicaps were: Joe Davis - 0, Horace Lindrum - 7, Sidney Smith - 14, Willie Smith - 18, Tom Newman - 24, Melbourne Inman - 35. In addition there was a sealed handicap for each match. This was an additional adjustment to be made after each match (a number of frames) which was kept secret until the end of the tournament. It seems that the handicapper decided to make no adjustments since the final table simply reflects the actual results.
Results The cup was won by Joe Davis who won all his five matches. Melbourne Inman, the six-time world billiards champion now in his late fifties, struggled, despite receiving the most generous handicap. The other four players were very close in the final table. Willie Smith won a prize for the most frames won in a match, 48 in his match against Melbourne Inman.
During the tournament Sidney Smith scored a record 133 break, becoming the first player to make a total clearance in snooker competition. It happened in his match against Tom Newman on 11 December. Smith was conceding 10 points to Newman in this match and went further behind when he went in-off a red. Smith then made the total clearance which included the 15 reds with six blacks, six pinks, two blues, a green and then all the colours. The clearance was in frame 58 of the match, the fourth of the evening session. Smith won the prize for the highest break of the tournament. Winner Score Loser Dates VenueSidney Smith 44–27 Melbourne Inman 28 September–3 October Thurston's Hall, LondonHorace Lindrum 37–34 Tom Newman 5–10 October Thurston's Hall, LondonJoe Davis 39–32 Willie Smith 12–17 October Thurston's Hall, LondonWillie Smith 48–23 Melbourne Inman 19–24 October Thurston's Hall, LondonJoe Davis 42–29 Tom Newman 26–31 October Thurston's Hall, LondonWillie Smith 41–30 Sidney Smith 2–7 November Thurston's Hall, LondonJoe Davis 44–27 Melbourne Inman 9–14 November Thurston's Hall, LondonHorace Lindrum 41–30 Willie Smith 9–14 November Imperial Rooms, GlasgowSidney Smith 36–35 Horace Lindrum 16–21 November Thurston's Hall, LondonTom Newman 44–27 Melbourne Inman 16–21 November ManchesterTom Newman 40–31 Willie Smith 23–28 November Thurston's Hall, LondonHorace Lindrum 41–30 Melbourne Inman 30 November–5 December Thurston's Hall, LondonJoe Davis 38–33 Sidney Smith 30 November–5 December BirminghamTom Newman 36–35 Sidney Smith 7–12 December Thurston's Hall, LondonJoe Davis 41–30 Horace Lindrum 14–19 December Thurston's Hall, London
Table Pos Player Pld MW FW 1 Joe Davis 5 5 204 2 Horace Lindrum 5 3 184 3 Tom Newman 5 3 183 4 Willie Smith 5 2 182 5 Sidney Smith 5 2 178 6 Melbourne Inman 5 0 134
The positions were determined firstly by the number of matches won (MW) and, in the event of a tie, the number of frames won (FW).
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